I have a soft spot in my heart for Kansas State University. That’s why I’ll be pulling for Kansas State when its football team plays the University of Alabama Saturday in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans. It’s one of two NCAA Division I FBS bowl games this season to prompt me to support a team – or at least a player on a team. The other was the Quick Lane Bowl, played Monday in Detroit. That game featured Richmond High School graduate Keyshaun Elliott, who helped New Mexico State University edge Bowling Green (Ohio) State University 24-19. I was happy to see Elliott get some camera time. Obviously, that’s understandable, given his Ray County ties. But I’m sure some of you are probably wondering how I, a lifelong Missourian, could root for a school in a state many Missourians love to hate, particularly a school with no Ray Countians on its football team. Allow me to share some reasons: • Special family memory: The first college football game I saw in person was at Kansas State – or K…