Title: Unfinished Business: The 1998 Kansas State Wildcats
Byline: A Netflix Original Documentary Recaptures Glory, Heartbreak, and Legacy
In the fall of 1998, the heartland roared with unshakable belief. The Kansas State Wildcats, long considered a football afterthought, orchestrated a season that would etch their name into the fabric of college football history. Now, Netflix’s new documentary Unfinished Business dives deep into the unforgettable campaign, offering a comprehensive, cinematic retelling of a dream season that stopped one game short of destiny.
Directed by Emmy-winning filmmaker Sarah Konner, the film paints a vivid portrait of a team that defied expectations, shaped by the relentless discipline of head coach Bill Snyder. Known for turning around what was once the worst program in college football, Snyder’s 1998 squad was the crystallization of a decade-long rebuild — a team forged in adversity, precision, and grit.
The Wildcats opened the season ranked #14 in the AP Poll, quietly confident but largely ignored by the national spotlight. That changed in Week 6, when Kansas State marched into Manhattan’s raucous KSU Stadium and delivered a seismic 40-30 victory over #19 Nebraska. The win snapped a 29-game losing streak to the Cornhuskers, ending decades of domination and propelling the Wildcats to #1 in several polls later in the season. Michael Bishop, the JUCO transfer quarterback with a rocket arm and unbreakable will, emerged as a legitimate Heisman contender. His combination of power and poise galvanized the team, fueling their unbeaten run.
The documentary features never-before-seen locker room footage, sideline audio, and interviews with former players, coaches, and fans who lived every second of the electric 11-0 regular season. Each episode brings a pulse-pounding narrative arc, including Kansas State’s demolition of Oklahoma, the nail-biter against Texas, and the high-octane offense that averaged over 48 points per game. It wasn’t just winning — it was domination, swagger, and precision.
But Unfinished Business is also a chronicle of heartbreak. In the Big 12 Championship Game against Texas A&M, Kansas State held a 27-12 lead late in the third quarter. Then came the collapse. Fumbles, fatigue, and a fateful overtime — the Aggies clawed back and delivered a 36-33 upset that shattered the Wildcats’ national title hopes. The BCS system, cruel and inflexible, left them out of a major bowl game entirely, despite a #3 national ranking.
This wasn’t just a story of games. It was a cultural shift, a resurrection, a generation’s rallying cry. Kansas State in 1998 proved that heartland programs could challenge blue bloods on sheer will and execution. Netflix’s documentary doesn’t rewrite history — it restores it. With stunning archival footage, stirring narration, and raw emotional interviews, Unfinished Business is both tribute and reckoning.
More than two decades later, the ghosts of that season still linger — in locker room walls, in Snyder Family Stadium, in every “what if?” whispered by the faithful. This is their story. This is unfinished business.
