K-State Q&A: Big 12 title contenders, injured starters, Cartier Diarra and Austin BBQ
It’s time for another K-State Q&A.
As usual, I’m choosing not to use this space for some type of thoughtful or witty introduction, because nothing I could write would be more entertaining than your questions. So let’s get right to them.
It doesn’t seem like many are talking about this, but K-State at Texas is a football game that has Big 12 championship implications.
Baylor (8-0, 5-0 Big 12) and Oklahoma (7-1, 4-1) appear on a collision course for the conference title game in Arlington, Texas, but that’s far from automatic.
The Bears still have to play TCU, Oklahoma and Texas. The Sooners still have to play Iowa State, Baylor, TCU and Oklahoma State. I’m not sure what the odds are of them combining for just one loss the rest of the way, but I’m guessing they are slim.
K-State can surpass one or both of them of them if the Wildcats win their final four games. That’s no easy task, as they are touchdown underdogs this week against the Longhorns. But if they finish 10-2 there chances of playing for a Big 12 championship aren’t hopeless.
The Wildcats can pass Oklahoma if the Sooners lose any of their remaining games, because they own the head-to-head tiebreaker. And they can pass Baylor if the Bears lose two or three games, but that process is more complicated because Matt Rhule and his hideous hoodie own a head-to-head tiebreaker with K-State.
It’s too early to tell what will happen if all three teams finish with 7-2 conference records and split their games against each other. It would probably depend on who beat the fourth-place team and who didn’t.
For now, all K-State really needs to worry about is winning its remaining games. But if that happens, fans need to adopt whoever is playing Baylor and Oklahoma as their second-favorite teams.
The Wildcats will miss him. There’s no doubt about that.
AJ Parker has been their best cover corner all season and arguably their best overall defensive player next to Wyatt Hubert. The Longhorns are one of the nation’s most prolific passing teams, and no team wants to defend a quarterback like Sam Ehlinger without its best defensive back.
That being said, Kevion McGee is a capable replacement. I doubt Texas will be able to pick on him all game long.
It’s also worth remembering that K-State went on the road to beat Mississippi State earlier this season without Hubert and Walter Neil. It also won at KU last week without its top two running backs and Parker for a decent chunk of the game.
Parker’s injury won’t be an easy one to overcome, but Chris Klieman’s team has handled injuries well all season.
Vegas set K-State’s over/under win total at 5.5 before the season began. Congratulations to anyone who has already cashed the over!
I am setting K-State’s updated over/under win total at 8.5.
The Wildcats will definitely be favored at home against West Virginia and will probably also be favored on the road against Texas Tech. If they take care of business in those games they will have eight victories right there.
The real question is how they will fare against Texas and Iowa State. Both are toss-up games.
I’m sticking with 8-4 as my projected final record, but it’s awfully tempting to bump it up to 9-3 the way Texas and Iowa State looked in their last games. I guess 8.5 is a good over/under number.
It’s been a while since I compared anything to Big 12 football teams, but I’m happy to do it again for this topic.
You know the way to my heart, or more precisely my stomach. Austin is the best town on the planet for barbecue.
We’ll go by the current Big 12 standings:
Baylor: Stiles Switch.
The Bears don’t get the same publicity as Texas or Oklahoma, and this BBQ joint doesn’t get as much love as some other Austin spots that have huge crowds of people lining up for smoked meat. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t both good. Baylor is undefeated and Stiles Switch is Austin’s best BBQ restaurant that doesn’t double as a tourist trap.
Oklahoma: La Barbecue.
The Sooners usually win the Big 12 but they always seem to be No. 2 in the conference when it comes to national attention. The same could be said for La Barbecue in the realm of Austin food. Its barbecue is arguably the best around, but its lines are much shorter than some other spots.
Kansas State: County Line.
The Wildcats and this restaurant share one big thing in common: They are both throw backs. Chris Klieman likes to run the ball and win with defense. The County Line cooks up good, simple barbecue with a few more options than the town’s newcomers while also offering some old-school staples like thick-sliced bread that is so tasty a few members of my family save it for dessert.
Texas: Franklin Barbecue.
This isn’t the best comparison, because Aaron Franklin smokes the best brisket in the world and the Longhorns are far from the nation’s best college football team. But they have both won championships before and probably get more publicity than they deserve. As good as Franklin’s is, it’s hard to justify waiting four hours for food barbecue more than once a year.
Oklahoma State: Terry Black’s.
Everything at this place is great, but it might be best known its huge, incredible beef ribs. I feel like Mike Gundy and the Cowboys like eating beef ribs.
Iowa State: Poke-e-Jo’s.
It’s not a destination restaurant. Iowa State isn’t a destination job. But they’re both solid. Bonus: you can order real sides like french fries here.
TCU: Iron Works.
The Horned Frogs and this restaurant both have lots of history. Iron Works has solid barbecue, a fun scene and a quirky building. TCU has Gary Patterson.
West Virginia: Salt Lick.
The original location isn’t technically in Austin. You have to travel a bit out of your way to Driftwood. And once you get there you can only pay in cash. But you can bring your own beer and they have an all-you-can-eat plate! It’s a different place. The barbecue isn’t quite as good as you will find within the city limits, but you can’t beat the atmosphere. Kind of like West Virginia football.
Texas Tech: Any place in Lockhart.
There are people who swear the best barbecue in central Texas resides in Lockhart. Those people are wrong, kind of like the folks in Lubbock who ran off Mike Leach.
Kansas: Stubb’s.
The Jayhawks are getting better at football, but they’re best known for basketball. This restaurant isn’t a bad barbecue spot, but it’s better known for its sauce and music.
Exposed is a strong word. We will probably have to wait a few weeks and see if other Big 12 teams have similar results against KU while using the same defensive scheme K-State ran so well last Saturday.
But the Wildcats definitely got the better of Brent Dearmon and the Jayhawks. There’s no doubt about that.
Scottie Hazelton confused the heck out of Carter Stanley all game long. He made a lot of poor decisions and threw two interceptions, including one to DaQuan Patton in which it looked like the pass was intended for the K-State linebacker. And when KU called creative plays that looked like they might go for big gains, Stanley saw too much pressure from K-State’s defensive line to take advantage.
It’s been an up-and-down season for the Jayhawks. Maybe this was just another down? They could bounce back and eclipse 30 points in their next game against Oklahoma State. Or maybe the Wildcats really did break them and the offense won’t look good again.
Whatever the case, K-State played exceptionally well on defense last week. The Wildcats held a team that was averaging 42.5 points under its new coordinator to three points before garbage time arrived.
Before we get to your question, let’s take a moment to talk about how impressive it would be for Klieman to beat Oklahoma and Texas in the same season.
No first-year coach in the Big 12 has accomplished that feat. Kudos to D. Scott Fritchen over at Gopowercat.com for unearthing that stat.
Klieman’s team is already bowl eligible with a field-storming win over Oklahoma on his resume. He’s already exceeded expectations, which means anything else he does this season will be considered icing on the cake. But a win over Texas would make his debut in Manhattan that much better.
I’m not sure it’s going to happen, though.
I haven’t settled on a prediction for this game, but I’m leaning Texas right now. The Longhorns need this game and their defense is a lot healthier than it has been for other games this season.
K-State, on the other end, won’t have top corner AJ Parker. And its top two running backs, James Gilbert and Jordon Brown, might not be at full strength.
Tom Herman tends to do well when the pressure is on. The Wildcats haven’t won in Austin since 2011. This seems like the Longhorns’ game to lose.
As far as I know, Bill Snyder hasn’t said anything publicly about new football coach Chris Klieman or this team since the season began.
But he did give someone a thumbs up after the Oklahoma game, so it seems like he approves.
I like the quiet approach Snyder has taken this season. He has turned down interview requests to talk about this team, and I think that is a wise decision on his part.
Everyone in Manhattan wants is grateful for what Snyder built here and wants him to continue supporting K-State football, but Klieman deserves to have his own space and freedom to run things his own way.
Some were disappointed when the Wildcats took down Snyder’s 16 Goals for Success in the football team meeting room, but I’m not sure why. Klieman’s “Pound the Stone” slogan is all about working hard as a team every single day. That’s how he wants to coach this team and the players seem bought in. Allowing him to work in his own way has helped him win six of his first eight games.
Here’s guessing Snyder is pleased with those results.
I don’t think so.
The Wildcats deferred to him too much in the season-opener against North Dakota State and that’s why he ended up taking 21 shots on his way to 23 points, six rebounds and six assists.
But I think some of that was first-game jitters. Xavier Sneed will learn how to match Diarra’s intensity over the long haul. Makol Mawien will get lots of touches. K-State’s freshmen will adjust to the speed of college basketball and contribute more as the season goes along.
Diarra might have the highest ceiling of anyone on this roster, though. His quote about doing whatever it takes to lead K-State to a third-straight memorable season shows he is willing to put the Wildcats on his back if need be. That was good to see.
This story was originally published November 8, 2019 at 5:00 AM with the headline "K-State Q&A: Big 12 title contenders, injured starters, Cartier Diarra and Austin BBQ."