Despite the sky being gloomy over David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium, that didn’t stop the Kansas State Wildcats from adding to their winning streak in the rivalry of the Sunflower Showdown.
The Wildcats advance to 4-4 overall and 3-2 in the Big 12 Conference, earning their 17th straight win over their rival while also keeping the Governor’s Cup Trophy in the Little Apple for another year.
“I trust those kids,” K-State head coach Chris Klieman said. “I believe they trust me, but if K State continues to have core kids that are here for four or five and six years, good things are going to happen.”
The ‘Cats did not have the start that K-State fans were hoping for. On the opening return, wide receiver Bryce Noernberg fumbled the ball at the KSU25, which was recovered by KU.
After that momentum boost for the Jayhawks, quarterback Jalon Daniels made a 6-yard rushing touchdown, which was challenged by the Wildcats but stood on the original ruling as a touchdown.
Snapping back quickly, K-State’s quarterback Avery Johnson made a 2-yard rushing touchdown to tie the game at 7-7.
“[I] told the guys not to flinch and control what we can control,” Johnson said. “I think the guys did a really good job of responding.”
Not long after, the ‘Cats responded just like Johnson knew they could. When Kansas fumbled the ball at its own 20-yard line with K-State’s Ralph Ortiz swooped in to recover the ball and took it for a touchdown. With 9:16 left in the first quarter, the Wildcats lead 14-7 and would lead the remainder of the game.
The Wildcats started to find their groove as they took Jalon Daniels down for a loss of 8 yards. As a result of the sack, a fumble came along with it as Wildcat Malcolm Alcorn-Crowder recovered the ball at the KSU42.
With 0:12 left in the first quarter, Johnson sent a deep, graceful pass to Jaron Tibbs for a 27-yard touchdown, 21-7 over the Jayhawks.
“This was really just schemed up by [offensive coordinator] coach [Matt] Wells and everybody else in that offensive staff room,” Johnson said. “We worked on it all week and they gave us the look we thought we were going to get.
While the second quarter has remained quiet, the Kansas offense decided to make some noise with 0:30 remaining before half. The Jayhawks’ Daniel Jr. Hishaw rushed up the middle for a 3-yard touchdown, closing on the Wildcats’ lead of 21-14, but would keep that score going into halftime.
With 11:10 left in the third, Daniel Cobbs intercepted a Jayhawk pass and returned it for 6 yards. Then, after a 28-yard reception from Johnson to Jayce Brown, DeVon Rice finished the drive with a 1-yard rush for a touchdown. The Wildcats would extend their lead to 28-14 in the middle of the third quarter.
Rounding out the third quarter, Kansas’ Laith Marjan cleared a 47-yard field goal attempt, making the score 28-17. Then in response to the Jayhawks, a 78-yard bullet pass from Johnson to Jayce Brown is completed for a Wildcat touchdown. With 1:03 left in the third quarter, K-State pushes the lead to 35-17.
“I’m just telling that kid can fly,” Klieman said. “I knew what was going to happen. He faked it, and Jayce sped him up on his scrimmage. That was was probably the dagger [in the game].”
After a lone fourth quarter, Avery Johnson rushed to the right for a 3-yard touchdown. The Wildcats would close in on a win 42-17 and finish it off when Gunner Maldonado intercepted a Jayhawk pass for a 5-yard return. Johnson ended the night with 11-of-17 completed passes for 213 yards and two touchdowns.
“When you play good football like that, you have confidence and belief,” Klieman said. “It’s fun being around these guys, watching them practice, watching them compete.”
The ‘Cats return to Bill Snyder Family Stadium on Nov. 1 to host Texas Tech, with kickoff set for 2:30 p.m.
