Chris Klieman

Chris Klieman and his wife, Rhonda, have two sons, Devin and Colby, and a daughter, Haley. Devin worked as a student manager with the North Dakota State equipment staff during the final three seasons of Klieman's time with the Bison.

Klieman's decision to retire from Kansas State followed discussions with his family and references to his personal health. He announced the decision in December 2025 after a 6-6 season.

Klieman played defensive back for the Northern Iowa Panthers from 1986 to 1990 and was a three-time All-Gateway Conference selection. He earned a bachelor's degree in health education from Northern Iowa in 1990 and a master's degree in physical education in 1992.

He began coaching at Northern Iowa as a graduate assistant in 1991 and later coached defensive backs and coordinated the defense. His early coaching stops also included Western Illinois, Kansas, Missouri State and Loras College. He became Loras's head coach in 2005, guiding the Division III team to a 3-7 record before returning to Northern Iowa in 2006.

Klieman joined North Dakota State in 2011 as defensive backs coach under Craig Bohl. He became defensive coordinator in 2012 and 2013, and those defenses ranked first nationally in scoring defense in both seasons. He was named the Football Scoop FCS Coordinator of the Year in 2012.

After Bohl left for Wyoming, Klieman became North Dakota State's head coach in 2014. He led the Bison to a 69-6 record, five Missouri Valley Football Conference championships and four FCS national titles in five seasons. His teams won championships in 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2018, while the 2018 team finished 15-0, becoming only the fifth undefeated and untied national champion in FCS history.

Klieman was named the 2014 Rawlings Football/American Football Monthly FCS Coach of the Year and the 2017 Bruce Craddock Missouri Valley Football Conference Coach of the Year. He was also a four-time finalist for the Eddie Robinson Award and served as an FCS representative on the American Football Coaches Association Board of Trustees in 2018.

Kansas State hired Klieman as its 35th head football coach in December 2018, bringing him in to succeed Bill Snyder. In his first season, he led the Wildcats to eight wins, a victory over No. 5 Oklahoma and a bowl berth after the program had missed the postseason the previous year.

Klieman's Kansas State teams won the 2022 Big 12 Championship with a 31-28 overtime victory over TCU. The Wildcats finished that season 10-4 and ranked ninth in the final College Football Playoff Top 25. During his tenure, Kansas State also won the 2021 Texas Bowl, the 2023 Pop-Tarts Bowl and the 2024 Rate Bowl.

His players included consensus All-Americans such as running back Deuce Vaughn, defensive lineman Felix Anudike-Uzomah and offensive lineman Cooper Beebe. Ten Wildcats were selected in the NFL Draft during Klieman's tenure, including Anudike-Uzomah in the first round and Julius Brents in the second round of the 2023 draft.

Klieman retired after the 2025 season with a 54-34 record at Kansas State and the second-most wins in school history, behind Snyder. He finished his head-coaching career with a 126-47 overall record.