Kansas State coach Jerome Tang did not hold back his criticism of the team’s performance following their loss to UCF. While Tang typically offers encouragement and optimism, this time his motivation focused on the need for improvement.
“We’re in the second-best league in America this year, but for the past seven years, we’ve been the best league in the country, and that’s what we signed up for,” Tang remarked. “I told them, ‘As 12-year-olds, they dreamed of playing in games like this, right?’ They’d watch TV and think, ‘I want to be out there.’ It’s time for us to be fed up and make a change.”
As the Wildcats approach their final conference games, they must win all remaining matches to have a shot at continuing their season. Tang is emphasizing a ‘one game at a time’ mindset to his players moving forward.
“We have to improve,” Tang stated. “We’re not in a position to take plays off. For example, we lost the middle eight today, with a 10-0 run at the end of the half and a 6-2 run to start the second half. That’s a 14-point swing. I admire our players’ toughness and grit as they fight to make comebacks. But at some point, we need to avoid having to come back—let’s fight from the beginning so there’s no need for a comeback.”
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