MANHATTAN, Kan. – Three Kansas State football players – safety Dante Barnett, fullback Glenn Gronkowski and offensive lineman Cody Whitehair – were each named to the Preseason All-Big 12 team as voted on by media representatives who cover the league, the conference office announced Wednesday.

Whitehair is a two-time member of the preseason all-conference team, while Barnett and Gronkowski are first-time recipients. All three earned All-Big 12 honors from the league’s coaches following the 2014 season as Gronkowski was a first-team member and Barnett and Whitehair were named to the second team.

A native of Abilene, Kansas, Whitehair is a three-time All-Big 12 offensive lineman after starting 38 of his 39 career games and helping K-State earn a 28-11 record with three bowl berths during that span. He is on the watch list for the Outland Trophy for a second-straight season.

Gronkowski has played in all 26 games over the past two seasons and has been a receiving threat out of the backfield in addition to being one of the top blocking backs in the country. The Amherst, New York, product has averaged 29.3 yards on 10 career receptions, while three of his four touchdowns have spanned 50 or more yards. Last season, he hauled in a 62-yard touchdown in K-State’s win at No. 11 Oklahoma.

Barnett, who is on the watch list for the 2015 Bednarik and Thorpe awards in addition to the Nagurski Trophy, is K-State’s top returning tackler after recording 77 stops in 2014. A product of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Barnett also recorded three interceptions and 11 total passes defended last season, including four against Texas en route to Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honors.

A very limited number of tickets remain for the 2015 season as K-State is closing in on another season sellout, which would run its consecutive streak of filling Bill Snyder Family Stadium to 27 straight games.