Michael Bishop is back in the Big 12, only this time the former Kansas State quarterback is working from the sideline instead of taking snaps.
Bishop is now an assistant coach at Houston, where he’s helping the Cougars sharpen their offense behind the scenes. It’s a long way from the days when he was the face of K-State football, but Houston coach Willie Fritz never saw the move as a surprise.
“He does an excellent job,” Fritz said on Tuesday at Big 12 Media Days. “He’s just a great person, great role model and mentor.
He’s also a real smart football coach. We’re fortunate to have him around.”
The connection between Fritz and Bishop goes back years, before Bishop ever arrived in Manhattan and helped author two of the most memorable seasons in Kansas State history. Bishop played for Fritz at Blinn Junior College in 1995 and ‘96, and that relationship has never really gone away.
“He played for me at Blinn Junior College in 1995 and ‘96,” Fritz said. “I’ve been close to him ever since.
I don’t think a month ever went by where he and I didn’t talk at least one time. He’s always visited me at all the different places that I’ve been at over the years.”
Bishop’s K-State run still stands out. With him at quarterback, the Wildcats won 11 games in 1997 and capped the season with a big Fiesta Bowl win over Syracuse.
The next year brought another 11-win season and a climb to No. 1 in the national rankings before K-State fell to Texas A&M in the Big 12 championship game. Bishop’s play as a dual-threat quarterback was strong enough to make him a Heisman Trophy finalist.
Now, after a successful run as a high school head coach, he’s back in the college game in a different role. The timing worked out when Fritz was hired by Houston away from Tulane in 2024. At the time, Bishop was leading Legacy the School of Sport Sciences in Spring, Texas, and coaching five-star quarterback Keisean Henderson.
Henderson committed to Houston last year, and Bishop soon joined him there.
This season, Henderson is expected to back up Conner Weigman, but Fritz said Tuesday that the freshman will run the full offense when he gets on the field, not just a wildcat package. Bishop’s job is to help keep that transition smooth.
“It’s good to have somebody that knows you,” Fritz said. “He is somebody I can really trust.
I’ve known him forever, and he understands how I do things. He’s always got my back.”
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Lewis and Snell are both deep into crowded recruiting battles, while Snow is also hearing from some of the biggest names in the sport. Even the younger names in the mix show how wide Kansas State is casting its net as it tries to stack talent well ahead of time, and the real question now is how many of these early relationships the Wildcats can turn into something more down the road. [Read more 🡒]