#80 Ty Bowman — Wide receiver Ty Bowman (80) changed his jersey number to No. 8 during the offseason, freeing it up for freshman tight end Will Anciaux to take on. | Photo by Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

In which BracketCat counts down the 80th day until the 2024 kickoff with a profile of Kansas State tight end Will Anciaux.

#80 Will Anciaux

Redshirt Freshman | 6-6 | 239 lbs. | Wichita, Kansas

Position: Tight End
Previous College: None
Projection: Scout Team
Status: On Scholarship

Will Anciaux (b. Nov. 5, 2004) is a strong tight end from Wichita who is majoring in kinesiology with the hope of becoming an orthopedic surgeon. Although he excels at catching and route running, he redshirted and did not play in 2023 to add 20 more pounds.

A three-year letter-winner and two-year captain at Kapaun Mt. Carmel Catholic High School under head coach Weston Schartz, Anciaux was viewed as the 28th-best tight end in the Class of 2023 by ESPN and the 10th-best overall player in the state of Kansas by 247Sports.

He earned first-team all-state honors as a junior and senior from Sports in Kansas, while also picking up first-team honors in 2022 from both The Wichita Eagle and KSHSAA Covered.

Anciaux also was an honorable mention all-state pick as a junior by KSHSAA Covered and the Eagle, while he earned all-city accolades as a sophomore, junior and senior.

A high school teammate of K-State defensive tackle George Traglia, he totaled 58 receptions for 911 yards and nine touchdowns during his prep career, which included three scores as both a junior and senior.

Anciaux helped the Crusaders to earn city league, sectional and regional championships in 2021, while they were regional champions in 2020. He also played basketball, in which he was a two-time captain and helped Kapaun to earn a pair of sub-state championships.

Anciaux chose K-State over offers from California, Iowa State, Kansas, Liberty, Memphis, Michigan State, Minnesota and Nebraska, as well as interest from Wisconsin. His primary recruiter was recruiting coordinator Taylor Braet.