Kansas State Wildcat fans are fired up after longtime Baylor assistant coach Jarome Tang quickly turned around their program.
Kansas State is ranked fifth in the national Associated Press (AP) poll as of Jan. 23, its highest ranking since reaching third in 2010. The Wildcats lead the Big 12, nearing the halfway point of the conference season.
Following former KSU coach Bruce Weber, Tang took over the team with only three scholarship players and added 13 athletes to blend into the country’s best start by a first-year Division 1 head coach (17-2). The Wildcats have already won three more games than they had last season.
Tang was Scott Drew’s (Baylor Head Coach) right-hand man for 19 years in Waco, Texas. As well as the ace recruiting coordinator and one of the most respected assistants in college basketball.
Fans lined up courtside for an audience on Saturday Jan. 21, after the coach’s postgame appearance on the Wildcat radio network wearing a “Tang You Very Much” t-shirt.
“Hangin’ With Tang” is a series of talks with Coach Tang, who had the idea of putting a couch into the student union and rapping with the rank and file.
Tang had been dancing by himself on the court after wins but decided spontaneously following the win against Texas Tech last Saturday to join the student section. All of it seems to fit, not disrespectfully, in a sport whose culture is much more flashy than its respected counterpart of college football.
On Tuesday Jan. 17, following the upset of then-number two Kansas, Tang grabbed a mic, jumped on the scorer’s table, and issued a statement all Wildcat fans wanted to hear: “From here on out, expect to win.”
