No. 17 Kansas State football avoided a road upset at the hands of Tulane on Saturday, overcoming a 10-point halftime deficit to win 34-27 in New Orleans.
Staying composed and being able to come from behind showcased the Wildcats’ resolve, according to head coach Chris Klieman.
“Great resolve by our guys, Tulane is a really good football team,” Klieman said after the game. “… That was player-led. I told the guys at the end of the game, ‘That was a culture win.’ Discipline, toughness, commitment to be selfless. That’s what that was today.”
Running back DJ Giddens was “turnt today,” according to Klieman. The junior went for 114 yards and a 6.0 yards per carry average on the ground. In the air, he tagged on four catches for 63 yards, including a 45-yard score.
Quarterback Avery Johnson, in his first road start, went 15-23 for 181 yards and two touchdowns, adding 40 yards on the ground.
“It means a lot just coming on the road my first season as a starter and getting a win in a tough environment down here,” Johnson said to K-State Athletics. “… I couldn’t let the whole environment get to me and I had to play my game and trust the guys I’m playing with.”
K-State forced two turnovers in the contest while committing zero on offense to control the turnover battle, and ultimately the scoreboard.
The Rundown
Forecasted rain in the New Orleans area cleared up leading to kickoff, and the Green Wave took full advantage in the first half, airing out their offense.
The K-State defense forced a turnover on downs and a punt on Tulane’s first two drives, with K-State cashing in a field goal. However, the Tulane attack would hit its peak immediately after.
Back-to-back touchdown drives led by Tulane’s redshirt freshman quarterback Darian Mensah put the Green Wave up 14-3 early in the second quarter.
K-State cut its deficit to 14-10 on a seven-yard touchdown pass to senior tight end Will Swanson, but a pair of Tulane field goals — plus a missed field goal by K-State — led to a 20-10 deficit at halftime.
Mensah went 11-14 in the air for 218 with a quarterback rating of 232.9 in the first half.
“[Tulane] had a really good plan, executed the plan really well, in the first half they had us on our heels,” Klieman said. “…We didn’t cover them, we have to shore that up or people are going to continue to expose that…we’ll get that fixed.”
Coming out at half, energy had been injected into the Wildcats’ attack. Led by a defense that settled in against Mensah, and the Wildcats’ running backs taking over, the contest was far from over.
“I challenged the guys at halftime, not upset or anything, I just said, ‘We can play better on both sides,’” Klieman said.
The running back duo of Edwards and Giddens continued to drive K-State in the road environment. A 45-yard touchdown pass to Giddens and a 13-yard rush touchdown for Edwards gave K-State its two second-half scores offensively.
“That play where [Giddens] scored the touchdown, it was supposed to be a bubble [screen],” Klieman said. “That’s the experience of DJ and the patience of Avery to extend the play [into a big wheel route touchdown.]”
Defensively, a scoop-and-score was the difference. Tied at 27-27, redshirt freshman safety Jack Fabris housed a 60-yard forced fumble from sophomore Austin Romaine, giving K-State its first lead since 3-0.
“We needed to make a turnover, we hadn’t created one all season, what a better time to have it happen, Klieman said. “Jack Fabris is a redshirt freshman, hasn’t played a lot — a lot of kids would dive on that…Jack was smart enough to pick it up and score.”
Up 7, K-State’s defense was tested but ultimately came away with another key turnover. Backed into the red zone, junior safety VJ Payne picked off Mensah to seal the win.
What’s Next
K-State returns home for a quirky matchup. First, the kickoff will occur at 7 p.m. Friday instead of the norm on Saturday. Second, although K-State faces new Big 12 member Arizona, the contest will be scored as a non-conference matchup in league standings.