Game report: No. 20 Kansas State 55, Stephen F. Austin 16
First quarter
Key play: Tyler Lockett caught a nine-yard touchdown pass that gave K-State its first lead.
Key stat: Jake Waters threw one incomplete pass, going eight of nine for 80 yards and a touchdown.
Second quarter
Key play: Charles Jones scored a touchdown on a 15-yard keeper out of the Wildcat formation, giving K-State a 21-0 lead.
Key stat: Stephen F. Austin rushed for 57 yards and a touchdown, mostly on quarterback scrambles, exposing a weakness in K-State’s defense.
Third quarter
Key play: Kody Cook caught a 22-yard touchdown pass that helped put K-State ahead 35-10.
Key stat: Morgan Burns returned two kicks for 78 yards, setting up K-State with solid field position.
Fourth quarter
Key play: Joe Hubener hit Steven West for a touchdown. It was the sign of a blowout victory.
Key stat: Judah Jones received carries, the fourth running back to enter the game for K-State.
Player of the game: Jake Waters. He led K-State to touchdowns on its first four drives and more or less clinched the game at halftime.
Reason to hope: The Wildcats are off to a 1-0 start without breaking a sweat. K-State fans couldn’t ask for more.
Reason to mope: Cody Whitehair and Tyler Lockett both missed portions of the opener. K-State can’t afford to be without two of its best players for long.
Looking ahead: What once looked like a challenging early conference game now seems like a game K-State should fully expect to win. Iowa State looked anything but tough Saturday in Ames, surrendering 34 straight points in a 34-14 loss to North Dakota State.
| Kellis Robinett, krobinett@kcstar.com
Report card
A | Offense | Jake Waters amassed nearly 300 yards of offense and played a role in four touchdowns, while DeMarcus Robinson and Charles Jones both looked good at running back. The Wildcats could have done more, but without Tyler Lockett in for most of the game, this was a good showing. |
B+ | Defense | K-State made life difficult on Stephen F. Austin when Zach Conque was playing at quarterback. But when the coach’s son was removed for Joe Minden the Lumberjacks scored touchdowns on a pair of drives. The Wildcats could use work against the quarterback draw. |
B | Special teams | Morgan Burns had some nice returns, but Curry Sexton was quiet on punt returns and Jack Cantele missed a field goal. |
A | Coaching | Bill Snyder had K-State ready to go in this game, and his coaching staff called a quality game. |
This story was originally published August 30, 2014 at 9:41 PM with the headline "Game report: No. 20 Kansas State 55, Stephen F. Austin 16."