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The Topeka Capital Journal
Why Kansas State football's new coaching staff has a 'frat house'
- Story byThe Topeka Capital Journal
- Why Kansas State football's new coaching staff has a 'frat house'
MANHATTAN — Down the street from the Aggieville bar scene in Manhattan are the Kansas State fraternity houses, with big Greek letters where keggers take place. Ahead of a gameday, for the student body , it can be the place to be.
Somewhere in the Colbert Hills neighborhood, on the other side of town, a few of the new Kansas State football coaches live together under one roof , as they await their families to get a place of their own.
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The group has labeled it the Kansas State coaching staff's very own "frat house."
"You know what the rules are of the frat house?" Wildcats coach Collin Klein laughed. "What happens there stays there."
Klein isn't among the coaches living in the home, but the legend of the Kansas State football fraternity house has taken on a life of its own with the fanbase.
Those living in the home promise there are no wild house parties, but they are seeing a brotherly bond forming among them in the early months of coaching the Wildcats.
"The brotherhood being built among our staff is undeniable," linebackers coach Nick Toth said.
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Toth, defensive coordinator Jordan Peterson, defensive backs coach Jeremiah Johnson, outside linebackers coach Preston Mason and Tim DeRuyter, the assistant head coach for defense, are among those living in the house.
Toth said Kansas State supporters gave them the living space until families move to Manhattan in the coming months. Each has their own bed and restroom; there's a "clean kitchen" and a place to do their laundry late at night after working all day at the Vanier Family Football Complex.
Not too much time has been spent at the home in recent months, thanks to recruiting trips and the countless hours at the football facility. Toth admitted he could count on two hands how many times he's driven around the neighborhood while the sun's been out, and only recently discovered the home was on a golf course.
"There's no reason to leave the office," Peterson said. "We're just working here, and when it's time to go to sleep, we just go back to the house and go to bed."
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Aside from having a place to live, the fraternity brothers have seen the benefits of living together since moving in.
Coaches have praised Klein for hiring like-minded coaches. They have been on staff before, where egos can appear, but it hasn't been a problem as they pursue the common goal of making the Wildcats a consistent championship contender. At the same time, they're not going crazy without their families and have friendly faces to have dinner and watch TV with late at night.
"It's made it a lot more personal a lot faster," Toth said. "I think that 100% what our frat house has done is that it's put all of our cards on the table, and that's pretty cool. It's gonna get rid of some obstacles that could keep us from having success here in the short term and medium term."
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 football coaching staff 'frat house' can lead to success
