K-State coach Jerome Tang removes names from jerseys after rant
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Feb. 14, 2026, 3:40 p.m. CT
Kansas State basketball ran a lot of stairs after Jerome Tang called out his team’s effort in its blowout loss to Cincinnati. He also sent another message to his team with the uniforms they wore against No. 3 Houston.
The names on the back of the Wildcats’ uniforms have been removed for the Saturday, Feb. 14, game at the Fertitta Center in Houston. It appears to be a “play for the name on the front of your jersey, not the back” play, as Tang attempts to instill some pride in his group.
Kansas State (10-14, 1-10 Big 12) lost 91-62 to Cincinnati on Feb. 11, for the team’s third consecutive home loss by 24 or more points. Tang followed the game with a rant that went viral and was featured on ESPN and “Pardon The Interuption.”
“This was embarrassing,” Tang said on Wednesday. “These dudes do not deserve to wear this uniform, and there will be very few of them in it next year. I’m embarrassed for the university, I’m embarrassed for our fans, and our student section. It’s just ridiculous.”
Kansas State had a pair of 6 a.m. practices following Tang’s outburst. During his weekly radio show on Feb. 12, Tang said he made his players run up and down the stairs at Bramlage Coliseum around 70 times.
Tang has been under fire for most of Big 12 play. Students wore paper bags over their heads and called for his firing during the Wildcats’ loss to the Bearcats, while fans booed in timeouts.
Whatever happened behind closed doors seemed to give the Wildcats a little spark early, as they put forth better effort in the early minutes of their matchup with the Cougars on Saturday afternoon. The Wildcats led the Cougars 15-6 at the under-12 media timeout with 10:55 left in the first half.
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
