As red, white and blue drifted down from the sky, the crowd of the Wildcats grew that same blue with the dissatisfaction of the game. The Kansas State Wildcats would find themselves defeated by the Army Black Knights in a 24-21 battle.
The Wildcats hosted a Fort Riley Day, which included a flyover and skydivers before kickoff. With three skydivers landing on the Bill Snyder Family Stadium, fans were full of excitement and vitality. When the last skydiver was coming down to land on the field, with him came the rippling Stars and Stripes.
The first half of the game was a head-to-head match, with K-State leading at halftime 13-7.
“We didn’t finish drives,” Klieman said. “That’s why it was 13-7 at half and not 21 because you can’t settle for field goals.”
Returning from halftime, the roles started to switch with Army taking the momentum.
“Our biggest issue was we wore down in the second half,” K-State head coach Chris Klieman said. “The issue is, we’re dead. The issue isn’t what the mistakes were, they did it great.”
In the third quarter, K-State continued to maintain its lead before Army would take over.
Bryce Noernberg, a redshirt freshman, caught the ball at the 1-yard line after Anderson Britton launched a 64-yard kickoff. Noernberg ran between blocks and across the field to go for a 99-yard kickoff return and score. Quarterback Avery Johnson would finish with a two-point completion to Jaron Tibbs, giving the ‘Cats a final 21-14 advantage.
Not discouraged, the Black Knights kept pushing on, drive after drive, until the game clock was on their side and the win became visible.
Army had 46 total plays during the second half, with the Wildcats only having 13 total plays. This meant lots of time the defensive accumulated on the field while the offense was sitting on the sideline for nearly an hour.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever been in a game where they ran it so much,” senior defensive tackle Damian Ilalio said. “At the end of the day, I think they just ran it better than we could defend it, obviously. So it’s tough, for sure, but I don’t want to use that as an excuse. We just didn’t play well enough.”
While on the sidelines, senior offensive lineman Sam Hecht understood the hardship of being unable to assist his team.
“It was definitely difficult,” Hecht said. “We were just watching the game getting real tight and wish we could make a difference. Just stick together. Learn from this.”
By the end of the game, Army held possession of the ball for 40 minutes and 44 seconds, over twice as long as K-State, while the Wildcats had it for 19 minutes and 16 seconds.
Johnson went 15-of-25 passes over 172 yards with one touchdown and one interception. With 1:35 remaining in the game, a pass deflected off running back Joe Jackson and into the hands of Collin Matteson near midfield, allowing his first pick of the season.
“I felt really good back there in the pocket,” Johnson said. “Offensive line did a great job protecting and receivers did a good job getting open. I did a good job on some throws tonight, but wasn’t enough to win the game, just kind of figure out what I’m getting better at.”
The Wildcats will reflect, learn, but not dwell on the loss as they look ahead to Arizona at 8 p.m. on Sept 12.
“It’s still going to be a player-led program,” Klieman said. “Our coaches will step up. I’ve got to step up. Once again, it’s easy to lead when things are going well. It’s easy to lead as the linebackers and the D-line. It’s hard to lead and everybody wants to hide. I promise you, I ain’t hiding.”
