Kansas State football quarterback Avery Johnson chooses new number over new address

MANHATTAN — It has been a tumultuous couple of weeks for Kansas State’s football program, but at least Wildcat fans can rest easy that their future quarterback is staying put.

Freshman Avery Johnson, who will start at quarterback against North Carolina State in the Pop-Tarts Bowl on Dec. 28 in Orlando, Florida, showed in a social media post on Thursday that he is in it for the long haul.

A video on the K-State football social media account showed Johnson announcing that he is switching from his current No. 5 jersey to the No. 2 he wore at Maize High School.

“For me, it’s never been just a number,” Johnson says in the video, that not only reveals a new jersey and helmet sticker, but also shows clips of him in a No. 2 jersey dating back to his youth football days. “It’s a mentality, an attitude. It’s a tradition.

“And although my number changed, our mission hasn’t.”

Kansas State freshman quarterback Avery Johnson puts the Wildcats on his back

That is positive news for the Wildcats, who since their 42-35 loss to Iowa State in the regular season finale have seen 13 players, including starting quarterback Will Howard and two backups, enter the transfer portal, and then earlier this week offensive coordinator Collin Klein take a similar job at Texas A&M.

Klein’s departure raised concerns that Johnson might follow him out the door, given their close relationship. Klein was instrumental in landing Johnson, one of the Wildcats’ highest-rated in-state recruits ever.

Johnson became the de facto starter when Howard entered the portal to pursue his fifth year of eligibility elsewhere, but he already showed during the regular season that he is up for the challenge.

Kansas State football quarterbacks Will Howard and Avery Johnson in dead heat for QB1 job

After Howard struggled in a loss at Oklahoma State in early October, Johnson had a breakout game the following week at Texas Tech, coming off the bench to rush for 90 yards and five touchdowns, plus complete 8 of 9 passes for 77 yards. While Howard eventually solidified his position again, the two were listed as co-starters on the depth chart the rest of the season.

Johnson, who completed 65.7% of his passes for 301 yards and three touchdowns, plus ran for 225 yards and six scores, will wear the No. 2 jersey in the bowl game. That number previously belonged to Jake Rubley, one of the three quarterbacks to enter the portal.

Arne Green is based in Salina and covers Kansas State University sports for the Gannett network. He can be reached at agreen@gannett.com or on Twitter at @arnegreen.