K-State QB Will Howard critical of Big 12 refs for one ‘pretty bad’ call from KU game
It was hard to figure out exactly what Kansas State quarterback Will Howard was trying to accomplish when he threw an interception directly into the arms of KU cornerback Mello Dotson during a 31-27 win over the Jayhawks on Saturday.
Replays made it look like Howard was trying to get the ball to Ben Sinnott, his tight end near the middle of the field, but wide receiver Keagan Johnson was credited with a target near the sideline.
Neither K-State player ended up anywhere near the ball. Sinnott and his defender, KU safety Kenny Logan, both ended up on the ground with Logan holding up his hands as if to signify that he played no role in their trip to the artificial turf. Johnson was running a comeback route, which left him moving in the opposite direction of Howard’s pass. The result was an easy turnover for Dotson late in the third quarter.
Howard tilted his head to the right and flashed a look of disappointment. Then he slowly jogged off the field. He didn’t express any frustration about the play until a few days later when he explained his throw and blamed the miscue on the Big 12 referees.
“I was throwing it to Ben in hopes that he was going to get open, but he didn’t even have a shot because he got tackled,” Howard said. “That was one of the worst no calls that we have gotten this year. We talked about it. It was pretty bad.”
He may have a point.
Sinnott and Logan were tangled up throughout that play. How they ended up on the turf together is in the eye of the beholder.
Some may look at replays and decide that Logan dragged Sinnott down with him to make sure he wouldn’t be in position to catch a pass from Howard. The way Logan threw out his hands as he fell could be construed as an admission of guilt following a hold or pass interference.
Others will see the play and think that Sinnott lost his balance and crashed down on Logan inadvertently. Perhaps that is why Logan reacted the way he did.
In any case, Howard was puzzled as to why that potential penalty was ignored after KU was flagged for much less contact on a key fourth down earlier in the game when Jayce Brown drew a defensive holding penalty while running an out route.
“How that is not a (pass interference compared to) some of the other ones that we had, like that one that was called on Jayce?” Howard said. “I don’t know how that’s called and the other one isn’t.”
It’s possible that Howard saw Sinnott falling to the ground and threw in his direction in an attempt to force the refs to throw a flag.
Howard didn’t admit to that, but he said he was absolutely not trying to throw the ball to Johnson, who was battling with Dotson on the sideline.
“I looked outside first and he was kind of covered,” Howard said. “So then I came inside to Ben. He was just tackled.”
The play ended up not mattering all that much in the grand scheme of things. Kansas held a 27-24 lead when it took control of the ball following the interception, but both teams traded punts until the Wildcats mounted a go-ahead touchdown drive in the fourth quarter.
Howard fittingly crossed the end zone on that drive via a QB keeper and he lifted his team to an exciting victory.
But he is still upset about how his lone interception of the game transpired.
This story was originally published November 22, 2023 at 6:00 AM with the headline "K-State QB Will Howard critical of Big 12 refs for one ‘pretty bad’ call from KU game."