Over the weekend, one of Kansas State’s 2026 recruiting class members passed away. Three-star Texas defensive back Brandon Ford has switched to a Big 12 foe and retracted his commitment to the Wildcats. He now plans to play football with the Oklahoma State Cowboys, who are coached by Mike Gundy. Due to Ford’s change of intentions, K-State currently has 16 pledges rather of 17.
Last November, Ford became the first football recruit from 2026 to commit to the Wildcats. However, he was still being recruited by other schools, and he ultimately decided to attend Oklahoma State. In addition, he received scholarship offers from Texas Tech, SMU, Houston, Nebraska, Arizona, and Arizona State.
Kansas State received a positive boost around the Fourth of July holiday with a key addition to its future football roster. On July 4, Tucker Ashford, a highly regarded four-star defensive end from Fort Worth, Texas, publicly committed to joining the Wildcats. Ashford had drawn interest from a number of major programs and ultimately selected K-State over offers from California, Houston, Illinois, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, and several others.
His commitment adds momentum to the Wildcats’ 2026 recruiting efforts, which have been slowly building. According to the On3 recruiting rankings, Kansas State’s 2026 class now stands at 60th nationally and 12th among Big 12 programs. While there’s still room for growth, landing a top defensive talent like Ashford is a promising step forward for the Wildcats’ long-term outlook.