Eighteen straight. The Dillons Sunflower Showdown came down to one final chance for Kansas to end the streak and spoil homecoming for the Wildcats, but the Jayhawks were unsuccessful.
K-State extended its dominance over its in-state rival Saturday, overcoming a 10-point deficit and a late Kansas scoring threat to secure a 35-24 victory at Bill Snyder Family Stadium. The win marked the Wildcats’ 18th straight Sunflower Showdown win and their fourth straight comeback win in the rivalry.
“Proud of our guys, thought the resiliency and the fight through the ebbs and flows of the ball game were fantastic,” head coach Collin Klein said. “The energy and the camaraderie and the communication to fix some of the issues that we were having and to stay together through those ups and downs was so proud of them and so proud of the effort and the focus that they had.”
After a 31-26 loss at Cincinnati on Sept. 26 and a 35-16 loss to No. 22 Houston on Oct. 11, K-State needed a response. The Wildcats found it on the ground, piling up 359 rushing yards, and in the final minutes, the defense made the play that kept the streak alive.
“I want to say thank you to our fans, and that environment today was unbelievable,” Klein said. “Our students were absolutely amazing; they were loud, they were passionate, they were into it. Their support was incredible and had a huge impact on that game.”
K-State opened with a jolt. On the fourth play from scrimmage, quarterback Avery Johnson burst through the middle for a 59-yard run, taking the Wildcats to the Kansas 4-yard line before stumbling just short of the end zone. Running back Rodney Fields Jr. finished the drive with a 4-yard touchdown run, putting K-State up 7-0.
The lead lasted just 13 seconds.
Bryson Hayes fielded the ensuing kickoff and raced 95 yards for a Kansas touchdown, tying the game at 7. The return snapped K-State’s 168-game streak without allowing a kickoff-return touchdown, the longest active streak in the nation.
“Can’t have the kick return,” Klein said. “That’s something that’s normally the ace in our pockets, and we have to make sure we get that tightened up so we’re on the right end of those special teams difference-maker plays.”
Kansas seized the momentum. Quarterback Isaiah Marshall connected with Nik McMillan for a 12-yard touchdown, and Martin Connington added a 31-yard field goal late in the first quarter. The Jayhawks led 17-7, forcing K-State to chase the game.
The Wildcats began their comeback in the second quarter. Luis Rodriguez drilled field goals from 22 and 51 yards to cut the deficit to four, 17-13. Then the defense gave K-State a much-needed break.
Freshman Nick McClellan forced a fumble on a direct snap to Matthew Gill, and the ball rolled out of the end zone for a safety. The 2 points pulled K-State within 2, 17-15. Rodriguez followed with a 28-yard field goal with 24 seconds remaining in the half, completing the turnaround and sending the Wildcats into halftime with an 18-17 lead.
But Kansas was not finished.
Early in the third quarter, former Wildcat Dylan Edwards scored a 3-yard touchdown run, putting Kansas back up 24-18. Edwards, who previously played for K-State (2024-25) before joining the Jayhawks, briefly put his former team’s winning streak in jeopardy.
K-State answered with a 65-yard drive, leaning on its offensive line and rushing attack. Fields ripped off a 23-yard run, and Johnson connected with wide receiver Jaron Tibbs for 11 yards on third-and-8 to keep the drive alive.
Joe Jackson finished the possession with an 8-yard touchdown run. The extra point put K-State up 25-24, but the narrow lead left little room for error.
KU had one more chance to take control late in the fourth quarter. After K-State fell short on fourth-and-inches near the goal line, the Jayhawks marched down the field to the Wildcats’ 17-yard line for a chance to reclaim the lead.
Instead, Logan Bartley ended the threat.
As Marshall targeted wide receiver Nahzae Cox in the end zone, Bartley stepped in front of the pass and intercepted it, recording the Wildcats’ first interception of the season. K-State had entered the game as the only FBS team without an interception.
Klein called Bartley’s interception “the difference in the ballgame.”
“I caught it and was looking around, and thought, ‘I got to run it,’” Bartley said. “I was just in the post, and I was lurking, and saw [Cox] step up, and he was staring at it, and it was coming right at me. I had to catch it.”
The play energized the home crowd, and Bartley made sure the fans got their flowers.
“That was awesome,” Bartley said. “Like we have the best fan base and I stand on that.”
K-State turned the interception into points. Jackson took the ball to the right and exploded for a 64-yard run, putting the Wildcats in striking distance. Johnson then found Tibbs on a crossing route for a 9-yard touchdown with 8:28 left in the fourth quarter, stretching K-State’s lead to 32-24.
With Kansas running out of time, Johnson helped keep the offense moving before a 34-yard field goal with 1:56 remaining put the game out of reach. It was Rodriguez’s fourth field goal of the afternoon — the most since Blake Lynch made four against Texas Tech in 2018 — and it secured the 35-24 victory. Rodriguez connected from 22, 51, 28 and 34 yards, and made 4-for-4 on extra-point attempts.
K-State’s offense finished with 568 total yards: an all-around balanced performance from its quarterback and rushing attack. Johnson completed 14 of 24 passes for 209 yards and a touchdown while adding 132 rushing yards. He also became the program’s all-time leader in total offensive yards. Jackson added a season-high 159 rushing yards and a touchdown.
The Wildcats’ 359 rushing yards were the second-most in Sunflower Showdown history. K-State averaged 7.0 yards per carry and broke off seven plays of at least 20 yards, repeatedly turning small openings into game-changing gains.
“We knew we had to make a statement and dominate the line of scrimmage and run the ball,” Jackson said. “We stuck together, and it worked. The sky’s the limit. It opens up everything and gives us the confidence we need.”
Klein pointed to that physical edge as the program’s foundation.
“You have to win the line of scrimmage if you want to be a consistently winning championship-level program, period,” he said.
Still, K-State’s victory was not without mistakes.
“We tried to give that game away a couple ways and shot ourselves in both feet,” Klein said. “Because our guys wanted it enough, we were able to overcome it, but we have some work to do.”
The Sunflower Streak began in 2009, when Klein was a true freshman on K-State’s roster. Seventeen years later, he leads the Wildcats and adds another win to a streak he first experienced as a player.
K-State hits the road for its next two games, starting with a matchup against Arizona State on Oct. 24 in Tempe, Arizona. The Wildcats will then travel to Boulder to face Colorado on Oct. 31 as they look to carry their momentum from the Sunflower Showdown into the second half of Big 12 play.
