Posted by SJSdude on 9/4/2007, 8:50 am By Tim Bisel MANHATTAN — After throwing two more interceptions without a touchdown in Saturday's 23-13 loss to No. 18 Auburn, Kansas State quarterback Josh Freeman now has 17 career picks and only six touchdowns. Still, the 6-foot-6, 250-pound sophomore insisted Monday his mental health is just fine. "I'm not really worried about it," Freeman said. "I'm more worried about winning." Here's something else that doesn't concern Freeman — his physical health. The 6-foot-6, 250-pound sophomore dismissed questions about that subject with three simple words. "I feel good," he said. Freeman's physical standing was a hot topic at K-State's weekly news conference because his left leg appeared a bit gimpy following an awkward third-quarter slide at Auburn. It also was an issue because ESPN made it one. Announcers speculated the Wildcats' starter may have twisted an ankle or knee or pulled a groin during the slide, although they also reported he wasn't receiving treatment. The network also showed video of Carson Coffman throwing on the sideline. Freeman admitted he hurt the leg a little bit following the slide but added that is was "nothing too bad." He sported a brace Monday around his left knee but said he has been practicing with that since the first day of fall camp. As for the issue of being sidelined Saturday? Nothing doing. "I took a couple shots, but I never felt like I was going to come out," Freeman said. If such an instance does occur, however, Freeman is confident that Coffman, his backup and close friend, is ready for action. Coffman redshirted last season after leading Raymore-Peculiar (Mo.) High to undefeated state championship seasons in 2004 and 2005. "I've got all the confidence in the world in Carson," Freeman said. "Carson's a great player, and I feel like if anything were to happen, he could step in and pick up the offense without a hitch." IT WASN'T A SCHOOL WORST, but it certainly was bad enough to get coach Ron Prince's attention. K-State was called for 141 yards on 16 penalties Saturday night, a yardage total that is second-most in school history to the 162 against Kansas in 1999. "Just like we don't think you can win with four or five turnovers in a game, I don't think anybody thinks you can win with 16 penalties in the game," Prince said. Most concerning to the second-year coach were a number of offsides infractions committed by the offense and a handful of personal-foul calls against the defense. Cornerback Justin McKinney, who has a history of personal-foul woes, was guilty of two face masks and received a tongue-lashing from Prince after the game. So, coach, what was the message? "I don't think it would be appropriate to share the things that I said," Prince said with a wry smile. Not that this is a laughing matter, of course. "The message was we've just got to stop making foolish penalties," McKinney clarified. "That'll hurt us." IT'S WORTH NOTING that several K-State players took exception to a few of the flags while also accepting their share of responsibility. "You can't win any football game with 16 penalties," senior safety Marcus Watts said. "Some of them, I thought, were bogus calls, but you've got to live with it. Every official's human. They can't see everything. "But 16 penalties and five or six personal-foul penalties, we can't win that way. We'll get that corrected this week." PRINCE COULDN'T HAVE said it better Monday when asked about junior Alesana Alesana's debut performance at the major college level. "Alesana, welcome to college football," Prince joked. While Prince said the offensive line as a whole graded out well Saturday night, he noted that his new left tackle had much difficulty containing Quentin Groves, Auburn's preseason All-America end. Groves, remember, blew by Alesana for the late sack of Freeman that produced a fumble and the Tigers' final touchdown. Alesana also was called for four false starts. But perhaps that was to be expected. After all, the transfer from City College of San Francisco grew up playing rugby in Western Samoa and is a relative newcomer to American football. Consequently, Prince shouldered much of the blame for Alesana's struggles. "I've got to a better job of protecting a young player," he said, adding that he remains confident in the 6-foot-4, 286-pounder. PRINCE ALSO ACCEPTED responsibility for K-State's late collapse. "I think I did a poor job of handling the end of the game," he said. "We let the game get away from us." K-State quick kicks • K-State interim sports information director Kenny Lannou said tickets remain available for Saturday's 6:05 p.m. home opener against San Jose State, but he didn't know exactly how many seats were unsold because the ticket office was closed Monday. • San Jose State is coming off a 45-3 loss to Arizona State on Saturday. The Spartans went 9-4 and won the New Mexico Bowl last season, but they managed only 115 total yards against ASU while allowing a whopping 520. • K-State is listed as an early 151/2-point favorite. • Kaleb Drinkgern, a 6-6, 260-pound true freshman from Marysville, is now listed as Alesana' backup at left tackle. Last week, K-State didn't list a second-teamer at that position. Tim Bisel covers Kansas State University for The Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached at (785) 295-1289 or tim.bisel@cjonline.com.
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Freeman says he is in good physical and mental shape
The Capital-Journal
Published Tuesday, September 04, 2007
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