Meet Wyatt Wheeler, new Kansas State beat reporter for Capital-Journal and USA TODAY Network

My story of becoming your new Kansas State athletics beat reporter begins in the early hours of a Missouri State dormitory when I needed to use the restroom.

I grabbed my phone and maneuvered my way around boxes, prepped for the upcoming move back to Central Illinois to spend my summer, where I would do a whole lot of nothing. While scrolling through Twitter, err... X, I stumbled upon a post announcing that the local newspaper had hired a new president.

"Welcome, Mr. President! Let me be the first to ask for a job!" I tweeted back at him because, as you'll come to know, I can be kinda strange. I then set the phone aside and slept for a few more hours.

I woke up to multiple text messages from the paper's editors, offering me a job. I slept on couches and one night in my car for the remainder of the summer until it turned into a full-time gig. I've spent the last eight years in love with covering sports in the Southwest Missouri region.

So let's now fast forward to two days before my wedding this past July.

Preparing to marry the love of my life, I get tipped off by one of my bosses that the opportunity to cover Kansas State athletics was available, and that I'd be a good fit. Being the sports fan I am, I already knew K-State would be in the mix for College Football Playoff spots for years to come. I was aware of the significant investment in men's and women's basketball, as well as the growth of the baseball program. I knew it would be a great place to take the next step in my career.

But if there's one thing to take away from this introduction column, please make it that you shouldn't tell your soon-to-be wife that you may have a job opportunity in a different state less than 48 hours before your wedding.

My bride still decided to walk down the aisle, and we tried not to think about moving until after the honeymoon. Shortly upon our return, we drove to the Little Apple to see what we might be getting into.

She knew I'd be sold when we walked the Kansas State campus, taking in Bill Snyder Family Stadium from the outside. The idea of covering the Sunflower Showdown in Bramlage Coliseum gave me goosebumps. What about the opportunity to potentially cover the Wildcats at AT&T Stadium, playing for a Big 12 title, or potentially hosting a College Football Playoff game in front of 50,000-plus in the middle of Kansas?

The biggest thing holding me back was the idea of leaving the people we have come to love over my last decade and Springfield, Missouri. My devotion to the readers and those I've come to know weighed on me heavily.

I then came across a plaque on Bill Snyder's statue outside the stadium:

"The wonderful people of Kansas State are a special part of our family and have meant so very much to Kansas State University and our football program. You all are so very caring, loyal, and when it comes to family, no one is more special than our K-State family."

As you've read here, timing can be a funny thing. At that specific moment, I needed to be reminded that caring and good people are everywhere, even when it's outside my comfort zone. I love the family-like atmosphere I've built with readers, whether they're Missouri State fans or the good people of Southwest Missouri. That quote from the legendary coach also told me that a similar atmosphere can be built with those who bleed purple and the great people of the region, too.

I look forward to getting to know and interacting with you, whether it's via social media or by shaking your hand in person. I'm on a daily mission to have fun with those I love, and I hope you will join me on this pursuit. A fun time will be had on X daily, so give me a follow at @Wyatt_Wheeler, and tell me where I should take the wife on dates.

I'm excited to work tirelessly for whoever decided to read this far. Let's get started.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Wyatt Wheeler, the Capital-Journal's new Kansas State beat reporter