- - Fans Wear Paper Bags Over Heads Asking for K-State Coach to Be Fired as He Says Players ‘Don’t Deserve to Be Here’

Anna Lazarus CaplanFebruary 13, 2026 at 12:37 AM

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Kansas State Wildcats fans wearing bags over their heads at the Feb. 11 game

Scott Sewell/Imagn Images

Kansas State head coach Jerome Tang said he was "pissed" after his team's latest loss

The Wildcats lost 91-62 to the Cincinnati Bearcats on Wednesday night, making it their third consecutive loss at home of more than 24 points

Fans wore paper bags over their heads with messages for Tang to be fired

Jerome Tang had harsh words for his team after Kansas State’s latest loss on the same night fans in the student section wore paper bags with messages pleading for him to be fired.

The Wildcats basketball coach called out his players’ effort — or lack thereof — after their Wednesday, Feb. 11, 91-62 drubbing at home against the Cincinnati Bearcats.

"This was embarrassing," Tang said in his postgame presser. "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.”

He added, “It's just ridiculous," later saying the players "don't deserve to be here."

The loss to the Bearcats dropped the Big 12 team to 1-10 in conference play and 10-14 on the season and was the team’s fifth-straight loss overall and third-straight loss of more than 24 points at home.

In the game, the Wildcats allowed Cincinnati a near-record 16 3-pointers and suffered defensive lapses including at least one head-scratching-for-K-State-fans play in which they allowed the Bearcats to rebound a missed free throw and throw down a dunk.

Jerome Tang speaks at a press conference

Kansas State Wildcats on K-StateOnline/YouTube

In the stands at Bramlage Coliseum in Manhattan, Kan., fans booed. More than a dozen students donned paper bags asking for the school to buyout the coach’s $18.6 million contract, according to the Topeka Capital-Journal.

The 59-year-old Tang is in his third season at the university after serving as an assistant for nearly 20 seasons under Baylor head coach Scott Drew. In 2023, he signed a seven-year deal through 2030.

In his first season at the school in 2023, the team went deep in the NCAA tournament, coming up short of the Final Four after losing in the Elite Eight. Last year was less successful with K-State missing March Madness and suffering a second-round loss in the NIT.

Things don’t get any easier for the Wildcats this weekend: They play at No. 3 Houston on Saturday, Feb. 14.

For Tang, the team has no choice but to pick up the pieces as he seemingly fights for his job.

"We have practice at 6 a.m. tomorrow. I have no answers or no words. Y'all got two questions, so whoever wants to ask two questions, I'll answer 'em to the best of my ability right now,” he told reporters. “But right now, I'm pissed."

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Source: “AOL Sports”