About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement MANHATTAN — It appears Kansas State football will be without starting tight end Garrett Oakley for the second consecutive game due to what coach Collin Klein called a viral illness,
Oakley missed the Wildcats' 35-24 win over Kansas and, according to Klein, is "probably unlikely" to play in their Oct. 24 game at Arizona State .
Oakley's absence forced the Wildcats' staff to get creative with personnel groupings, while the team was already down Will Anciaux for the season. Linkon Cure was the only tight end with meaningful snaps entering the Wildcats' Oct. 17 win over the Jayhawks.
Kansas Jayhawk players await to take on Kansas State Wildcats inside Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) Kansas State Wildcats take on Kansas Jayhawks for the Sunflower Showdown inside Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) Kansas State Wildcats prepare to take on Kansas Jayhawks for the Sunflower Showdown inside Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) Kansas State Wildcats mascot Willie the Wildcat walks by fans before kickoff against Kansas Jayhawks during the Sunflower Showdown game at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) Kansas State Wildcats fans show their support before kickoff against Kansas Jayhawks during the Sunflower Showdown game at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) Kansas State Wildcats head coach Collin Klein watches players warm up before taking on Kansas Jayhawks for the Sunflower Showdown game at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) Kansas Jayhawks head coach Lance Leipold watches players warm up before taking on Kansas State Wildcats for the Sunflower Showdown game at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) 1 / 7 Top photos from Sunflower Showdown Kansas vs Kansas State football Kansas Jayhawk players await to take on Kansas State Wildcats inside Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) 1 / 7 Top photos from Sunflower Showdown Kansas vs Kansas State football Kansas Jayhawk players await to take on Kansas State Wildcats inside Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) 2 / 7 Top photos from Sunflower Showdown Kansas vs Kansas State football Kansas State Wildcats take on Kansas Jayhawks for the Sunflower Showdown inside Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) 3 / 7 Top photos from Sunflower Showdown Kansas vs Kansas State football Kansas State Wildcats prepare to take on Kansas Jayhawks for the Sunflower Showdown inside Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) 4 / 7 Kansas State vs Kansas live updates: TV channel, score, time Kansas State Wildcats mascot Willie the Wildcat walks by fans before kickoff against Kansas Jayhawks during the Sunflower Showdown game at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) 5 / 7 Top photos from Sunflower Showdown Kansas vs Kansas State football Kansas State Wildcats fans show their support before kickoff against Kansas Jayhawks during the Sunflower Showdown game at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) 6 / 7 Top photos from Sunflower Showdown Kansas vs Kansas State football Kansas State Wildcats head coach Collin Klein watches players warm up before taking on Kansas Jayhawks for the Sunflower Showdown game at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) 7 / 7 Top photos from Sunflower Showdown Kansas vs Kansas State football Kansas Jayhawks head coach Lance Leipold watches players warm up before taking on Kansas State Wildcats for the Sunflower Showdown game at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 17, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal) That made the Wildcats look to freshman offensive tackle Oliver Miller to play more of a tight end role. He made his college debut on Oct. 10 after sitting out the first four games with an injury, and played just three snaps in a loss to Houston. Against the Jayhawks, he played 29 snaps, giving the Wildcats an extra blocker while also playing alongside Cure.
It worked, as the Wildcats rushed for a season-high 359 yards against the Jayhawks.
Kansas State would prefer to have Oakley available. Before his illness, he was the team's second-leading receiver with 16 catches for 196 yards and a touchdown. The Wildcats would likely continue to use Miller heavily even if Oakley were active.
The Wildcats will provide availability reports on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and 90 minutes ahead of their 2:45 p.m. CT game against Arizona State on Saturday. The game will air on ESPN2.
Wyatt D. Wheeler covers Kansas State athletics for the USA TODAY Network and Topeka Capital-Journal. You can follow him on X at @WyattWheeler_ , contact him at 417-371-6987 or email him at wwheeler@usatodayco.com
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas State TE Garrett Oakley's status for Arizona State is in doubt
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