Grades from Kansas State’s loss to Tulane and a look ahead to Big 12 play at Oklahoma
Kansas State’s football season has taken an unexpected turn.
Instead of entering the Big 12 portion of its schedule with an undefeated record and maybe a spot in the Top 25, K-State will head to its next game against Oklahoma with a noticeable limp. The Wildcats lost 17-10 against Tulane on Saturday at Bill Snyder Family Stadium, and it’s hard to say where Chris Klieman’s team will go from here.
Many fans had hoped K-State had enough talent on this roster to win 10 games and challenge for a spot in the Big 12 championship game at the end of the year. Both those goals are technically still within reach. As players were quick to point out after Saturday’s loss, the Wildcats are 0-0 in conference play.
But expectations probably need to be tempered, at least for now.
Over the past 20 years, K-State has averaged 6.75 wins per season when losing a nonconference game. The Wildcats failed to reach a bowl in five of those seasons. But they also rallied for eight or more victories five different times under former coach Bill Snyder. It can be done. It just isn’t easy.
For now, let’s look back on the action from Saturday and hand out a few awards and grades. We also look ahead to next week’s game against the Oklahoma Sooners.
Play of the game
Tulane coach Wille Fritz had enough guts to go for it on fourth-and-inches from his own 26 with 2 minutes, 3 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.
The Wildcats could have stolen the game with a stop and a late touchdown in that situation. Instead, the Green Wave did what the Wildcats could not and picked up a massive first down to clinch victory.
Klieman went for it on fourth down five different times on Saturday, but only Fritz was rewarded for his aggressive calls.
Player of the game
K-State safety Kobe Savage had seven tackles and an interception against Tulane. He has only been on campus for a few months, but he is already one of the Wildcats’ best defensive players.
Stat of the game
Three, as in K-State was only successful on three money downs against Tulane. The Wildcats were an abysmal 2 of 15 on third down, which led to them going 1 of 5 on fourth down.
Quote to note
“We gotta get him to cut it loose, without question. We gotta get him to cut it loose and be free. If he makes a mistake, he makes a mistake.” - Chris Klieman on Adrian Martinez.
Grades
Offense: F. Not even Deuce Vaughn had a good day. This was an abysmal showing from K-State’s offense. Adrian Martinez looked nothing like the playmaker he was at Nebraska and the Wildcats were hopeless on third down. It will be interesting to see how Collin Klein responds to his first adversity as offensive coordinator. The honeymoon period is over.
Defense: A. The Wildcats played well enough on defense to win this game, allowing only 336 yards and forcing a pair of turnovers. Daniel Green and Kobe Savage both had impressive interceptions. Penalties were an issue in the first half, though.
Special Teams: B. Ty Zentner averaged 42.6 yards per punt. He was actually one of K-State’s best players on Saturday. Chris Tennant connected on his only field goal. That was a positive. But there were no game-changing plays here.
Coaching: D. The Wildcats were ready to play on defense, which saves the coaching staff from a failing grade. But the offense was stuck in neutral for four full quarters and Klieman was far too aggressive on fourth down. Fritz knew early on this was going to be a defensive battle and chose to punt from the K-State 35 in the first quarter. His conservative approach helped Tulane win.
Next Up
K-State opened as a double-digit underdog for its next game against Oklahoma.
The Sooners will be favored by 11.5 points when they host the Wildcats at 7 p.m. next weekend.
This figures to be one of the hardest games on the schedule for K-State. Oklahoma is off to an undefeated start and is coming off an impressive 49-14 thrashing of Nebraska.
New coach Brent Venables has the Sooners playing well behind transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel. They are averaging 42.3 points and 500.7 yards per game.
This story was originally published September 18, 2022 at 11:00 AM with the headline "Grades from Kansas State’s loss to Tulane and a look ahead to Big 12 play at Oklahoma."