After a rough homestand that saw the Cats go 1-3, your Kansas State Wildcats are back on the road for a Big 12 series against Utah — K-State’s first trip out to Salt Lake City for a baseball game.
Kansas
Engaging with Kansas politics might be complicated. But it's easier than this board game. • Kansas Reflector
With election season bearing down on us like an overzealous predator animal, I’d like to take a quick moment to focus on responsibility.
The chattering class, of which I’m a longtime member, likes to chatter about the responsibility of both politicians and the news media. Lawmakers and journalists should tell us the truth, but they owe us more than mere facts. They should, commenters emphasize, dedicate themselves to principles of representative democracy and civic virtue.
The ultimate responsibility, though, rests on the shoulders of a far larger group. I’m talking about voters. That’s right, the millions of men and women, young and old, Black and white and every color in between, who cast their ballots in primary and general elections. You all have a job to do as well.
A fair number of you have been falling short.
I know you all assume I’m writing about a certain New York real estate developer-turned-politician. He shadows a lot of these conversations. But let’s set him and his strongman act aside. Here in Kansas, voters have enabled a system that stymies exactly the policies that they tell pollsters they want.
They want an expanded Medicaid program. They want recreational marijuana — not even medical marijuana — legalized. They want schools fully funded and a sensible tax structure. Their responses remain consistent over the years, at least according to Fort Hays State University’s Kansas Speaks Poll. Yet these same voters have continued to elect supermajorities of hardcore conservative Republicans to the House and Senate who stand squarely against all of these proposals.
Voters have chosen this course.
What’s the matter?
None of this should come as a surprise. We’ve been doing this in Kansas for decades, and a particularly well-known book lays it all out. Yes, Thomas Frank’s “What’s the Matter with Kansas?” captured hearts and minds and attention two decades ago. Yet the elections keep coming, and the choices keep being made.
Washburn University political science professor Bob Beatty pointed to Frank’s work in trying to explain why voters choose politicians who pursue policies contrary to their interests.
“A political party can be effective in making certain issues that might not affect a lot of people be prioritized over issues that these people might support and also may influence them directly,” Beatty wrote me in an email.
In other words, GOP candidates weaponize issues such as immigration, election security, crime and “critical race theory” — all non-factors in Kansas — to advance other goals.
But perhaps there’s a simpler explanation, according to the professor.
“Party identification is the greatest indicator of vote choice, still, in American elections, according to all data,” Beatty wrote. “Primaries in Kansas feature very low turnout, especially for legislative races, and the people who do turn out tend to be more conservative (sometimes much more conservative) than the general population. So, if a conservative Republican wins a primary, even if they’ve got a more moderate district overall, then party ID will kick in.”
Analysis from KFF shows that only 59% of eligible voters in Kansas actually cast ballots in the 2022 elections. That means 41% of those older than 18 who could potentially cast a ballot chose not to do so when Election Day rolled around.
Crunching data from the Kansas Secretary of State’s Office and the Census Bureau shows that a substantial number of Kansans don’t even register. Roughly 2.25 million people in the state were above the age of 18 as of July 1, 2023. Only 1.95 million had registered to vote. That works out to about 300,000 going unregistered.
You can’t have a say if you don’t raise your voice.
Our priorities
Over the weekend, several friends and I played a gigantic strategic board game called Twilight Imperium.
In the game, you play one of several alien races battling for power and influence in the galaxy. Playing requires not only understanding two books’ worth of rules, but navigating plastic spaceships across a map assembled from hexagonal tiles. As gameplay progresses, you also draw dozens of cards with potential actions and ways to score points, both publicly and secretly.
Playing a full game of Twilight Imperium can take seven to eight hours, although that’s a best-case scenario if all players know the game well and can leap into action. Our particular game took 10 hours, spread across a Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon.
Believe me, this does have to do with voting. Please bear with me.
Intensely complicated strategy board games may not be your idea of a good time. But many people become intensely involved in various hobbies. Folks of all ages play complex and absorbing video games, which transport them to other worlds while including dense screens full of statistics. A different group of enthusiasts play fantasy sports, in which building and adjusting your own team throughout a season can involve detailed research and even spreadsheets.
We don’t play Twilight Imperium or video games or fantasy football because these pursuits earn us a salary. We enjoy them. We blow off steam and spend time with friends. Yet you cannot ignore that doing so involves learning and manipulating reams of intricate data that have nothing to do with our day-to-day lives.
So why can’t we take a fraction of that absorption and critical thought and put it toward our shared civic conversation?
Why don’t voters step up to participating in their state and nation’s government with the same enthusiasm as they do toward drafting their fantasy team?
Once upon a time, perhaps when “What’s the Matter With Kansas?” came out, a certain ignorance of the internet or 24/7 news cycle could be excused. The world had changed quickly. Yet we’ve now lived more than three decades with the web, two decades with social media and 17 years with the iPhone. If you don’t understand the technology by now, that’s on you.
Multiple resources online separate fact from fiction. Reporters and news sources across the country, including Kansas Reflector, tackle this work every day. If you want to separate legitimate news from misinformation and disinformation, you can.
Each one of us has a responsibility to our state, country and shared future. Each one of us — including voters — should take that seriously.
Clay Wirestone is Kansas Reflector opinion editor. Through its opinion section, Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.
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With the offseason quickly ramping up, several Kansas basketball players will have a pivotal decision to make in the coming weeks. Those with remaining collegiate eligibility will have to determine whether they are returning to Lawrence or exploring other opportunities on the open market.
The Jayhawks are no strangers to losing talent to the transfer portal, as five players departed to other schools last year (six if you include Flory Bidunga’s brief stint in the portal).
Although KU has the ability to retool its roster with transfers across the country, there are some guys whom the program would certainly like to retain. But which players will end up leaving the university for more favorable options, and how many will there be?
Flory Bidunga: Declare for NBA Draft
Bidunga took the biggest leap of any player on the roster this offseason, seeing his scoring average nearly triple in addition to winning Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year. He is one of the most dominant rim protectors in the country and proved that by averaging 2.6 blocks per game.
After spending two years in Lawrence, Bidunga now has another critical decision to make after he nearly left last offseason. There have even been rumors of him transferring to another school, even with the NBA Draft on the radar.
Most mock drafts place him in the early-to-mid second round range, leaving some potential for his stock to rise if he returned to college. However, as an undersized center who likely won’t develop a perimeter game anytime soon, it’s difficult to see where he could improve his draft position.
Going to the NBA feels like the smartest and most logical decision for Bidunga. He would complete his lifelong dream of playing in the pros and could develop at his own pace with a team willing to invest in him.
Bryson Tiller: Stay at Kansas
A redshirt freshman who joined the team late last season, Tiller defied the odds and earned a spot in the starting rotation despite recovering from foot surgery. He was one of Bill Self’s most trusted options and formed a double-big pairing with Bidunga.
His final month or so of the season was quite abysmal, as he saw his averages plummet and his production take a massive hit. However, it is far too early to give up on the Overtime Elite product just yet.
Tiller has a smooth post game and a lot of good attributes to his skill set. Bringing him back should be one of the biggest priorities for the coaching staff this offseason, and if he’s promised a starting spot at power forward next year, it is reasonable to assume he returns.
Elmarko Jackson: Transfer from Kansas
Jackson has endured a rough ride in Lawrence since committing to the Jayhawks as a McDonald’s All-American three years ago. Following an underwhelming freshman season, he missed the entire 2024-25 campaign due to a torn patellar tendon before returning this season, where he didn’t fare much better than two years ago.
Coming out of high school, Jackson was viewed as a player with immense potential. But after three years at the school with virtually no improvement, it might be best for him to spend his final two years of eligibility elsewhere.
Unfortunately, allowing the game-winning basket to St. John’s that ultimately ended the season embodied what his tenure at KU has been like. That might be the last memory fans have of Jackson in the crimson and blue.
Kohl Rosario: Transfer from Kansas
Rosario had high expectations going into the year, starting as a member of the starting five before eventually being phased out of the rotation. The Miami native was touted as a strong 3-point shooter coming into college, but massively struggled from beyond the arc for most of the year, leading to a difficult path to playing time.
Even when Rosario wasn’t hitting his shots, though, he contributed with his athleticism and on the glass as a hustle player. Rosario is absolutely someone the coaching staff should prioritize this offseason. However, it may be best for him to leave the program to look for other opportunities.
He showed flashes throughout the year yet was never trusted heavily by Coach Self. He proved he belonged in the rotation in the Big 12 and NCAA tournaments, where he made an immediate impact when he entered and outplayed other bench options.
Ultimately, Rosario will already be competing with freshman wings Trent Perry and Luke Barnett for playing time next year. If the coaches are not going to give him minutes, there is little reason to believe he will stay another year at KU as such a high-potential player.
Paul Mbiya: Stay at Kansas
After riding the pine for the majority of the regular season, Mbiya showed real promise in the NCAA Tournament, scoring a season-high eight points in the Round of 64 and playing strong minutes in place of Bidunga against St. John’s in the first half as he battled foul trouble.
With his otherworldly wingspan and frame, Mbiya feels like someone who could blossom into a star long-term. Even with his raw offensive game, he has traits that should allow him to improve once he refines his skill set.
Mbiya could technically transfer this offseason without it being a massive surprise, but that stretch at the end of the year may have been enough to earn Coach Self’s trust. At the very least, he could be playing double-digit minutes per game next year as the backup five.
Jamari McDowell: Stay at Kansas
McDowell committed to Kansas as a member of the Class of 2023, making him and Jackson the longest-tenured players on the roster. He has been a steady bench piece who plays sparingly but offers defensive intensity and outside shooting when he enters the game.
Unlike Jackson, McDowell didn’t have the same level of hype coming out of high school and was never viewed as much more than a role player. He is best suited to play short spurts off the bench to provide an offensive spark when needed.
Given his clear love for Kansas, his situation is far different from Jackson’s. McDowell feels like someone who is content with limited minutes and simply wearing a Jayhawk uniform with pride.
The Cats sit at 17-8 on the season and 3-3 in Big 12 play, and after starting the season strong have really struggled since the Sunday game against Houston two weekends ago. Either the bats go wild and they win in a rule-ruled game, or they lose. Not exactly a recipe for confidence moving into the heart of the season.
And a lot of that struggle is on the bullpen and the K-State defense, with the former struggling to throw strikes and avoid giving up easy homeruns, and the latter struggling with staying focused and committing unforced errors at the worst times. But if ever there was a good weekend in conference play to get back on track, it would be this one for K-State. Utah enters today 13-9 and 3-3 in Big 12 play, but currently rank dead last in hitting in conference play despite putting up runs and picking up wins. If K-State can avoid errors and letting bad plays snowball, they will have a good opportunity to sweep this series.
But the Cats have to be more consistent than they’ve shown the past couple weeks.
All games here in Salt Lake City are at the America First Ballpark, a park that opened last spring and is also the home of Triple-A Salt Lake Bees, and will be available on online via KMAN and at KStateSports.com/watch with Matt Walters calling the action there. All three games will be streamed on ESPN+, with a Bill Riley on the broadcast.
James Guyette takes the mound Friday night at 7:000pm CT for his seventh start of the season. The junior righty went into the sixth inning last Friday against Arizona State before getting lifted after recording just one out. He gave up three runs on five hits, one of those over the fence, and five free bases while tossing five strikeouts. Through six games he’s got an ERA of 5.51, the highest of K-State’s weekend starters.
The Cat batters will face junior right-hander Colter McAnelly to open the game. McAnelly finished 2025 as an All-Big 12 First Team selection, and the Wyoming native earned Big 12 Pitcher of the Week honors three times as a sophomore. He’s not been quite as productive so far in 2026, sitting at just 2-3 in six starts this season with an ERA of 3.94. But that number is way up after last week, when he gave up six runs on six hits in five innings in what ended up as a 4-13 loss to Cincinnati.
Saturday’s game is set for a 3:00pm CT first-pitch. Lincoln Sheffield moves up a day as Pete Hughes looks to shake things up in his maligned bullpen, also making his seventh start of the season. Last Sunday, the senior lefty pitched a run-ruled complete game, giving up just one run on five hits and two free bases, but tossing six strikeouts enroute to a 12-1 K-State victory, and Sheff’s fifth of the season. He leads K-State starters with a 3.97 ERA that dropped back under 4.00 after his 1.29 effort last Sunday.
Utah will send to the mound Payton Riske to face the Cat batters. The right-handed junior is also making his seventh start of the season, all as the Saturday starter — a role the Las Vegas-native earned last season and has yet to relinquish. Last week he went just three innings against Cincinnati, giving up five runs on six hits — but no walks — in what became a 10-20 loss to the Bearcats.
Sunday’s start time is set for 2:00pm CT, and Tanner Duke will take the bump for the Cats in the swap with Sheffield. Duke was solid in his first two Saturday starts, before struggling against Arizona State last Saturday. The junior righty lasted just three innings, giving up seven runs (five earned) on six hits, including two over the fence, before leaving the game with the Sun Devils up 5-7. But ultimately it didn’t matter as the bullpen was just as giving, with the Cats eventually falling 12-18. After falling to 3.43, Duke’s ERA ballooned back up to 4.88 for the season.
Utah has not named a starter for Sunday’s game, but sophomore Cameron Nielson made the start last Sunday for the Utes in their 13-11 finale win over the Bearcats. Last week, the right-hander was solid through the first two innings before getting lifted after snagging just one out in the third. His final line was two runs (one earned) on four hits and two walks (one of those was intentional), tossing just one strikeout. He’s got a season ERA of 3.86, but has only pitched more than three innings one time in his seven appearances so far this season.
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