K-State fans head to stores for new Elite Eight shirts
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – The madness of March spills into uncharted territory – the land of the wild cats in the state of Kansas.
Another win will send K-State (26-9) to the 2023 Final Four in Houston, a place the Wildcats haven’t been in almost six decades. These games are scheduled for next Saturday.
Every well-dressed cat-backer wants an Elite Eight t-shirt. Rally House stores, including the one near Oak Park Mall, are stocked with purple K-State Elite Eight shirts. The new designs arrived on Friday morning. Sweet 16 shirts are also still available. You’ve been here since last weekend.
K-State’s Thursday night thriller against Michigan State sends the Cats back to the NCAA Regional Finals. Jerome Tang’s Wildcats defeated the Spartans 98-93 at New York’s Madison Square Garden. Add another win and the Cats will reach the Final Four for the first time in 58 years.
“We’ve seen KU get there too many times. Now hopefully it’s K-State’s turn,” said Thomas Noll, the store’s resident K-State fanatic.
Noll is one of several Wildcat fans who commented that success in basketball feels different than Kansas State’s wins on the football field. During the 2022 season, K-State had double-digit wins (10-4) and finished in the top 15 in Associated Press polls before losing to Alabama in the December 31 Sugar Bowl.
“I only have one team to cheer for in March Madness. I always watch March Madness, but having a team to cheer for in the late rounds is really fun,” Noll commented.
For perspective, the last time the Wildcats made the Final Four, LBJ was in the White House and the Beatles were a new band to Americans. K-Stare fans we spoke to are faced with a tricky choice – if you’re just buying one shirt, is it Sweet 16, Elite Eight, or wait for another win?
“I appreciate everything Coach Tang, Markquis Nowell and Ish Massoud have done for our program. I appreciate that,” said Ryan Montgomery, a graduate of Kansas State University.
“Obviously I’d love to see a Final Four and a Finale, but the Elite Eight is even sweeter than what the Sweet 16 was,” said Jeremy Flowers, another K-State fan.
There is also room for Final Four jerseys on the store shelves. Rally House expects they’ll have those by Sunday, assuming K-State keeps playing great.
Kansas State meets Florida Atlantic (34-3) in the NCAA East Regional Finals at 5:09 pm CT on Saturday. The Owls advanced after defeating Tennessee Thursday night.