In 1998, Bill Snyder had Kansas State a game away from playing for a national championship. In 2012, only a late-November upset loss at Baylor stopped the Wildcats from advancing to the national title game.

During the span in between -- and since -- few college football programs have compiled more wins than the Wildcats.

For these reasons, it’s surprising to see K-State all the way down at No. 52 in ESPN’s Power 5 coaching job rankings. Then again, such a low ranking only magnifies what Snyder has achieved over the years.

Inside the state, the recruiting pool remains thin. Outside the state, the “Little Apple” has never exactly been a recruiting destination. But that didn’t stop Snyder from turning K-State into a perennial power. And then taking the Wildcats back there after a brief retirement.

To compensate against such recruiting obstacles, Snyder has famously relied on junior-college transfers like Michael Bishop and Jake Waters. The Wildcats have also boasted one of the nation’s most robust walk-on programs, which produced numerous starters on last season’s team.

On the field, K-State has closed the remnants of a talent gap by featuring a style heavy on fundamentals and hard-nosed play and light on turnovers and penalties. As a result, the Wildcats have won 38 games over the last four years. In comparison, Texas (No. 1 in the Power 5 coaching job rankings) has 31 victories over that span; Oklahoma (No. 9) owns only one more with 39.

Unfortunately for the Wildcats, Snyder can’t coach forever. And though the blueprint to success for K-State has been laid out, his eventual successor will be tested. Just ask Ron Prince. Snyder has at times made it look easy. But winning at K-State is anything but.