Analysis from Kansas State’s blowout win against UT Martin and a look ahead to Tulane
There was nothing wrong about the final score from Kansas State’s 41-6 victory over Tennessee-Martin on Saturday at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
The Wildcats took care of business against an overmatched FCS team and poured it on the Skyhawks with a flurry of touchdowns in the second half.
Still, this wasn’t a pretty game for Chris Klieman’s team. The Wildcats were sloppy on offense throughout the first and only led 17-6 early on in the third quarter. If not for a masterclass performance on defense and a touchdown on special teams, this game could have been a nail-biter.
Even so, K-State had to play its starters long into a game that it was heavily favored to win.
That led to some mixed reactions from Klieman.
A day later, it is now time to look back on the action and hand out a few awards and grades. We also look ahead to next week’s game against the Tulae Green Wave, which promises to be a more difficult test for the Wildcats.
Play of the game
The Wildcats had one of the easiest blocked punts you will ever see in the first quarter of this game.
K-State pulled ahead of UT Martin 14-0 when Ty Bowman blocked a punt from Jaren Van Winkle without even diving or jumping to get in the way. The ball deflected off his body and fell to the turf right in front of Colby McCalister, who scooped it up for a walk-in touchdown.
It was a key play in the game, because K-State was clinging to a narrow lead early in the third quarter. Without a touchdown on special teams the score would have been uncomfortably close.
Player of the game
Tobi Osunsanmi set the tone for a ferocious pass rush by sacking UT Martin quarterback Kinkead Dent twice on Saturday.
The Wildcats were constantly in the back field and put tons of pressure on the Skyhawks, ending the game with four sacks and three QB hurries.
K-State won this game on defense, so this award should appropriately go to a playmaker on that side of the ball. Desmond Purnell and VY Payne also played well. But they didn’t have a fun sack celebration to show off like Osunsanmi.
Stat of the game
K-State lost the turnover battle.
Avery Johnson threw an interception and Jayce Brown lost a fumble. UT Martin didn’t give the ball away a single time.
The Wildcats could afford to be sloppy with the ball against this opponent. But that won’t always be the case as the season marches on.
Quote to note
“It was about what I thought. You’re going to make a lot of mistakes in the first game, and we’ve got to clean those things up, because we’ve got to put this one behind us quickly. We have got a tough road game next week.” — Chris Klieman
Grades
Offense: B. You can’t argue with the final stats. The Wildcats gained 449 yards and scored four touchdowns on offense. DJ Giddens (124 rushing yards) and Dylan Edwards (two touchdowns) were electric out of the backfield. But Avery Johnson was far from stellar with 153 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. This was a good learning experience for him.
Defense: A+. The Skyhawks gained 45 yards on a broken play in the first half and benefited from excellent field position following a K-State fumble in the second half. Even so, they only managed two field goals and 134 yards.
Special Teams: B. The Wildcats got a touchdown from this unit, and Chris Tennant connected on both of his field goals. That was good. K-State could have been much better on returns, though.
Coaching: B. It’s a little concerning that K-State didn’t play with the energy and passion that Klieman desired in the first half of its season-opener. But the Wildcats looked much better after halftime. The coaches got them focused in the locker room.
Next up: Tulane
Things are about to get much more interesting for the Wildcats.
K-State will hit the road for a non-conference football game against Tulane at 11 a.m. on Saturday. The last time these two teams played, the Green Wave upset the Wildcats in Manhattan on their way to the Cotton Bowl in 2022.
Both teams are much different now. Jon Sumrall is the new coach at Tulane and he led his team to a 52-0 victory over Southeastern Louisiana in its first game of the season.
Quarterback Darian Mensah led the Green Wave with 205 yards and two touchdowns in that game with Mario Williams serving as his primary target. The wide receiver caught four passes for 124 yards.
This could be a challenging game for K-State, as Tulane will benefit from both home field and rest advantages. The Green Wave began their season on Thursday, which gave them an extra two days to prepare for the Wildcats.
This story was originally published September 1, 2024 at 12:35 PM with the headline "Analysis from Kansas State’s blowout win against UT Martin and a look ahead to Tulane."