KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The Kansas City Chiefs had offensive tackle Eric Fisher rated No. 1 on their draft board. The Jacksonville Jaguars had fellow offensive tackle Luke Joeckel rated first on their board.

Both of the teams got what they wanted in April.

Now, the Chiefs and Jaguars will get a good idea who might have fared best when Fisher and Joeckel make their NFL debuts. Kansas City visits Jacksonville on Sunday with both players set to start at right tackle for teams coming off 2-14 seasons.

Fisher and Joeckel have both been slowed by injuries during the preseason, but they’ve showed flashes when they’ve been on the field. Chiefs coach Andy Reid and Jaguars coach Gus Bradley both said Wednesday that they’re happy with the way things worked out.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The Kansas City Chiefs began working in earnest Monday for their season opener at Jacksonville while also trying to work seven new players into the fold.

The Chiefs were awarded them off the waiver wire Sunday, while also cutting loose six more as they continue to churn the bottom of the roster. Because they had the No. 1 selection in the NFL draft, the Chiefs also had the top priority in claiming players released by other teams.

The series of moves they made Sunday resulted in a 53-man roster with 30 newcomers heading into Sunday’s opener against the Jaguars. That includes all three quarterbacks and all the tight ends.

“If there’s a time to do it,” GM John Dorsey said of the overhaul, “the time is now.”

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The Kansas City Chiefs have cut 20 players, including veteran running back Shaun Draughn, and waived two other injured players to reach the 53-man roster limit by Saturday’s deadline.

Tight end Tony Moeaki fractured his shoulder in a preseason game against Pittsburgh and offensive lineman Ricky Henry ruptured his bicep in the Chiefs’ game against Green Bay.

Both of them will end up on injured reserve if they pass through waivers without getting claimed.

Draughn was beaten out by Cyrus Gray for the Number 3 running back job behind Jamaal Charles and Knile Davis in one of the few battles to come down to the wire. Wide receivers Rico Richardson and Josh Bellamy were beaten out by Devon Wylie and Junior Hemingway for roster spots.

Crews finished up the new West Stadium Center at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in time for Friday’s season opening football game.
The West Stadium Center was Phase II of a six phase master plan for Bill Snyder Family Stadium. The 215,000 square foot structure features a new student athlete performance dining center for all of the 458 student athletes at K-State in 16 sports.  Click the photos for a closer look.

The initial cost for the project was $75 million dollars, however, due to continued support from fans and donors world wide the athletic department was able to expand the project to include a total of $90 million dollars invested in Bill Snyder Family Stadium. The entire project is being funded through a combination of private construction gifts, premium seat contributions from Ahearn Fund members and athletics department revenue.

MANHATTAN, Kan. – The architect of the greatest turnaround in college football history will forever be enshrined at the stadium that bears his own name as K-State unveiled a statue of head coach Bill Snyder today as part of the West Stadium Center dedication celebration.

The 11.5-foot monument constructed of bronze and granite was sculpted by Kansas City’s Spencer Schubert of E.S. Schubert Commercial Sculpture Studios and Leopold Gallery. With consultation and assistance from Sharon Snyder and the five Snyder children, the project has been in the works for the past year with the final 1,800-pound bronze statue being constructed in six months.

“Coach Snyder is one of the most legendary head coaches in the history of college football and has transformed K-State Athletics, Kansas State University, the Manhattan community and the college football landscape with his tremendous leadership,” Athletics Director John Currie said. “We appreciate the terrific work of Spencer Schubert and Sharon’s behind-the-scenes efforts on the project as we deservingly recognize one of the greatest football coaches of all time.”

The statue, located just outside the main entrance of the new West Stadium Center at Bill Snyder Family Stadium, depicts the head coach in his signature sideline pose complete with his customary purple jacket, turtleneck, khakis, felt tip purple pen, notepad and most significantly his NIKE Cortez tennis shoes.

Family has become synonymous with K-State football and Snyder and is exhibited on the base of the statue which includes handprints of each of Snyder’s immediate family members. The granite pedestal displays the family theme on each of its four sides with various quotes and messages representing the Snyder family, K-State football family, the Jack Vanier family and all of K-State Nation.

Named the 32nd head football coach at K-State on Nov. 30, 1988, and again as the 34th on Nov. 24, 2008, Snyder has amassed a 170-85-1 (.669) record during his tenure with the Wildcats, including a 97-65-1 (.598) mark in Big 8/12 games. His 170 victories are the fourth-most among active FBS coaches who and are more than triple the man in second place on K-State’s all-time coaching victories list.

But to fully understand the turnaround ushered in by Snyder at Kansas State one must only consider that the Wildcats were in the midst of an 0-26-1 run when he was hired. It also took K-State 51 seasons (1938-1988) to total just 130 wins, while the 12 head coaches prior to Snyder’s arrival in Manhattan combined to win just 116 games from 1945-1988.

A sure-fire hall of famer, Snyder’s unprecedented success in 21 years at Kansas State has not gone unnoticed. He has been named the National Coach of the Year on five occasions (1991, 1994, 1998, 2011, 2012). He has won the prestigious Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award twice (1998, 2012) and been a finalist for the Bear Bryant/FWAA National Coach of the Year Award in 1993, 1995, 2011, 2012 before winning in 1998.

K-State opens the 2013 season tonight against North Dakota State as the nation will be tuned to FOX Sports 1 and more than 50,000 Wildcat fans will be in attendance when the new West Stadium Center at Bill Snyder Family Stadium debuts.

— KSU Media Relations —