Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Following a month of speculation as to where he would land, Angel Rodriguez announced he would transfer to Miami on Thursday. The point guard took a tour of the campus Wednesday before announcing, although the Hurricanes were expected to be the frontrunners to land the star the day he announced his intentions to transfer from K-State.

Miami is coming off an unexpectedly strong season, and was the regular season champion of the ACC. However, pursuing Miami’s success is not the stated reason for his departure from Manhattan. Rodriguez attended high school in Miami and had a strong desire to transfer following a freshman year in which he was constantly hounded by the media for failing to make consistently good basketball decisions.

New head coach Bruce Weber was successful in convincing Rodriguez to return for his sophomore year, where he averaged 11.4 points and 5.2 assists while helping K-State to a share of the regular season conference championship and a fourth round seed only to experience an expected first round upset to La Salle. Yet Rodriguez maintained his desire to move closer to his family in Puerto Rico, making a university in southern Florida a natural fit (and truly, any university would gladly take a player looking to receive All-American honors as an upperclassman).

Rodriguez has applied for a hardship waiver from the NCAA according to the Miami Herald. If granted, he would be able to immediately join the team rather than sitting out a year. From the Jug’s standpoint, it’s difficult to see such an athlete leave the team, but we still wish him the best of luck wherever life takes him.

Scott Sewell-US PRESSWIRE

Three weeks ago, K-State’s 52-13 triumph over Miami became as much a referendum on how far Miami had fallen as what heights K-State had climbed. The only way to explain such a victory in many people’s minds was that the once proud Hurricane program had completely fallen off the face of the map, with no hope of competing in the ACC for the rest of the season. This had to be a better explanation than the Wildcats being that dominant; after all, K-State is from Kansas – their rightful position is in the shadow of the schools in Oklahoma and Texas.

Since September 9, Miami has done nothing but make the win look even more impressive. They’re not blowing teams out of the water, but they’re winning conference games. They bounced back with a win over Bethune-Cookman (easy pickings), but have also triumphed over Georgia Tech and NC State. This Saturday Stephen Morris set an ACC record in passing for 566 yards for six touchdowns. In fact, Miami has averaged 41 points per game over the past three games. These wins, in addition to the 41-32 victory over Boston College the Hurricanes started the season with, demonstrate Miami can score a lot of points. It’s just that points are a little more difficult to come back against Arthur Brown, Tre Walker, and company. K-State is known for compiling nonconference victories over unimpressive competitors, but the Miami win looks to bolster K-State’s BCS case by the end of the season. Of course, we’ll know more about whether Miami’s firepower is the real deal next week when they take on #10 Notre Dame.

After a stellar fourth quarter goal line stand in which he was in on three of the four tackles in K-State’s 28-24 win over Miami, linebacker Tre Walker was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week by ESPN. Walker finished with eight tackles, including the game winner in which he kept Jacory Harris out of the endzone and downed him at the inside the one-yard-line.

Sun Life Stadium. Miami, FL. Saturday, September 24 2011,  3:30p.m.

The third quarter saw big play after big play by both teams as this game turns into a Hagler-Hearns bout. Feel free to message me on Twitter @Jug_of_Snyder to join the discussion, or comment below.

Fourth Quarter

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Sun Life Stadium. Miami, FL. Saturday, September 24 2011,  3:30p.m.

It’s the Collin Klein show. The do-it-all KSU QB did it all in the first half, completing 8 of 13 passes for 109 yards and a touchdown while also running for 63 yards and another TD. K-State leads 14-3 over Miami as we go to the third quarter. If you’re not at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, you can watch the game on ESPNU and follow along here where I will be tweeting throughout the game. Feel free to message me on Twitter @Jug_of_Snyder to join the discussion, or comment below.

Third Quarter

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Sun Life Stadium. Miami, FL. Saturday, September 24 2011,  3:30p.m.

Impressive first quarter for the ‘Cats who lead Miami 7-3. They controlled the ball on offense, methodically working the sidelines on two impressive drives. Defensively they held firm when they needed to, causing stalled drives and allowing only three points. Maybe this defense is for real, after all. If you’re not at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, you can watch the game on ESPNU and follow along here where I will be tweeting throughout the game. Feel free to message me on Twitter @Jug_of_Snyder to join the discussion, or comment below.

Second Quarter

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Sun Life Stadium. Miami, FL. Saturday, September 24 2011,  3:30p.m.

Welcome to our first LiveBlog of the season. If you’re not at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, you can watch the game on ESPNU and follow along here where I will be tweeting throughout the game. Feel free to message me on Twitter @Jug_of_Snyder to join the discussion, or comment below.

First Quarter

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Coming off back-to-back home wins against clearly inferior opponents Kansas State faces their toughest (only?) test so far as they take their talents to South Beach. Arthur Brown leads the country’s top-ranked defense back to where it all began for him, as the former ‘Cane transfer returns to Sun Life Stadium. It’s the first road game of the season for ‘Cats and their first chance to show the country if they are contenders or pretenders as they square off against one of the top programs in the nation. The Hurricanes have been in the news for all the wrong reasons, but when aren’t they? As usual, though, they cause more havoc on the field than off, handling Ohio State last week 24-6. Read Clubb’s position-by-position preview (with Danny Hobrock of ‘Canes Warning), turn to ESPNU at 2:59 to watch the game and follow along here on our first LiveBlog of the season. Follow along on my twitter @Jug_of_Snyder or hit refresh often during the game for updates and, as always, comment below to join the conversation. Bring on the Cats!

Though this upcoming season looks to be a project of sorts for Bill Snyder’s bunch, fans have been given two noteworthy packages with which to be excited- Arthur and Bryce Brown. The former Wichita East High products have been shipped to Manhattan via Miami and Tennessee, respectively, in time for the debut of the revamped Big 12 campaign. Each has potential to deliver All-Conference seasons from opposite sides of the ball.

Arthur Brown, a top overall recruit at linebacker by any measure just three years ago, looks to jump start his career with Kansas State after watching Sean Spence, the “other” linebacker Miami recruited in his class earn ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2008 and a Second Team All-ACC selection with the Hurricanes this past season. Meanwhile, Arthur was merely a special teams contributor- not exactly what is expected of a Blue Chip prospect. After transferring from Miami in 2009 and sitting out the 2010 season per NCAA regulations regarding transfers, the elder Brown brother is building off a phenomenal spring whereby he has reportedly found the explosive speed and athleticism that had eluded him in Miami, so much so that he has been named to the preseason Butkus watch list for the nation’s best linebacker and is also in the running for the Bronko Nagurski award for the top defensive player in the country.

The younger Brown brother, Bryce, has a similar story to tell. After a tumultuous recruiting battle won by the University of Tennessee a little over a year ago, followed by an even more scandalous departure from Knoxville by then-Volunteer-head-coach Lane Kiffin, Bryce Brown earned his release from Tennessee and has been cleared to play for the Wildcats this season after also sitting out a year.  Unlike his older brother, Bryce is leaving his former school having actually shown glimpses of the immense talent that made him a Five Star recruit. Following a 104-yard initial outing, Bryce found himself splitting time in the Volunteer backfield with Montario Hardesty. Though a true freshman, Brown finished the season averaging 4.6 yards per carry and finding the endzone three times in the tough-as-iron Southeastern Conference, an already strong mark he should improve upon in Manhattan. He enters the summer competing with John Hubert for the right to run in the lanes that former Heisman Trophy candidate- and current Miami Dolphin second round pick, Daniel Thomas, left behind on his way to the NFL. Both backs excelled in the Spring Game. Brown gained 73 yards on the ground and scored twice, while Hubert put up 79 yards rushing and a TD of his own. Brown is expected to win the job, however, as he was named to the preseason All-Big 12 first team, while Hubert will also see time returning kicks.

Kansas State has plenty of other questions to be addressed as Big 12 Media Day approaches next week- namely, what can be expected of newly-crowned QB Collin (Don’t Call Me Calvin) Klein and whether or not the defensive line will provide any assemblance of a pass rush and/or stop the run. No question is bigger, however, than whether or not the Brown brothers can deliver on the promise that had recruiting circles expecting their on-time arrivals just three years ago…

…Better late than never.