The University Daily Kansan
Section B·Page 5
Kansas City awash in K-State fans
Game against Iowa expected to draw 60,000 Catbackers
The Associated Press
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City hasn't experienced this much sports buzz since the Royals hosted the Cardinals in the 1985 World Series.
— are pouring in from every direction to party, watch their beloved Wildcats play Iowa in the
About 60,000 purple-clad Kansas State followers - a school record
Eddie Robinson Classic and make a point.
"We're going to turn this town purple," said Kevin Kletzman, host of a popular radio sports talk show and one of Kansas City's most visible Kansas State grads.
Kansas State billboards and banners have sprung up all over town and people have been going around for more than a week sporting Kansas State regalia.
Officially, parties began on Thursday. But by kickoff at 1 p.m. tomorrow in Arrowhead Stadium, Wildcat fans will stage barbecues, golf tournaments and cocktail parties. Tonight, they'll hold a midtown pep rally that has officials worried about traffic and crowd control.
"We figure this will be the most K-Staters who have ever gathered at one time for one event in school history."
Warren West
KC Catbackers Club chairman
"Locally for us it's a chance to
stick their chest out."
Kietzman said. "For a good 48 hours or longer, it's going to be pretty purple around here."
Kansas State's athletic
leadership is 1,090 diabetes. Butt
national state's athletic department sold 45,000 tickets. But at least another 15,000 of the faithful figure to acquire tickets through other sources, including several thousand Kansas City Chiefs season ticket-holders.
On this theoretically neutral site, the home field advantage will tilt heavily to Kansas State, which is ranked No. 8 in the preseason poll and expects to slaughter an Iowa team coming off a 1-10 year.
K-Staters who have ever gathered at one time for one event in school history," said Warren West, chairman of the Kansas City Catbackers Club.
Through the years, most Wildcat fans have felt shortchanged and taken for granted in Kansas City, which straddles the state line and has always been the scene of sharply divided loyalty among Kansas, Missouri and Kansas State alumni.
We figure this will be the most
For K-Staters, playing in Arrowhead on national television in one of the season's premier kickoff games is a beautiful way to
get even with neighbors and laws who went to Missouri and Kansas and seem to get more than their share of media coverage.
team," said Kutcher, who helped organize many of the week end's activities. "Kansas City has always leaned more to Missouri and KU. We're anxious to show people what K-Staters look like up close. We want to make this a bowl-game atmosphere."
The Wildcats, with 15 starters back from an 11-1 team, are aiming for nothing less than a national championship in Bill Snyder's 12th season as head coach.
"We want to show Kansas City and the rest of the country how K Staters follow their team." said West, who has
"This game is very important for us," said Kansas State linebacker Ben Leber. "It gives us a chance to play on national television against a good opponent from a big conference. It gives us a chance to get exposed."
it all adds up to a party to remember for the Wildcats' devoted followers, who sent about 45,000 people to the 1997 Cotton Bowl and set a record for fans crossing state lines to attend a postseason game
But Iowa won't be ignored. The
Hawkeyes hope to have perhaps 10,000 of their own fans at a rally in downtown ansas City.
Private security guards have been hired for Kansas
State's pep rally Friday night. Organizers are saying they expect about 10,000 fans, but many feel that estimate is far too low.
"They're trying to be very responsible about crowd control," said Max Urick, Kansas State athletics director. "It's a concern when you gather people together about something as emotional as this."
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