Big 12 football preview: No. 9 Kansas State at No. 5 Baylor
When/where: 6:45 p.m. Saturday at McLane Stadium in Waco, Texas
TV/radio: ESPN; WHB (810 AM)
The series: K-State leads 7-4
The line: Baylor by 7
KANSAS STATE (9-2, 7-1 Big 12)
Date | Opponent | Result/time |
Aug. 30 | Stephen F. Austin | W, 55-16 |
Sept. 6 | at Iowa State | W, 32-28 |
Sept. 18 | Auburn | L, 20-14 |
Sept. 27 | UTEP | W, 58-28 |
Oct. 4 | Texas Tech | W, 45-13 |
Oct. 18 | at Oklahoma | W, 31-30 |
Oct. 25 | Texas | W, 23-0 |
Nov. 1 | Oklahoma State | W, 48-14 |
Nov. 8 | at TCU | L, 41-20 |
Nov. 20 | at West Virginia | W, 26-20 |
Nov. 27 | Kansas | W, 51-13 |
Saturday | at Baylor | 6:45 p.m. |
BAYLOR (10-1, 7-1 Big 12)
Date | Opponent | Result/time |
Aug. 31 | SMU | W, 45-0 |
Sept. 6 | Northwestern State | W, 70-6 |
Sept. 12 | at Buffalo | W, 63-21 |
Sept. 27 | at Iowa State | W, 49-28 |
Oct. 4 | at Texas | W, 28-7 |
Oct. 11 | TCU | W, 61-58 |
Oct. 18 | at West Virginia | L, 41-27 |
Nov. 1 | Kansas | W, 60-14 |
Nov. 8 | at Oklahoma | W, 48-14 |
Nov. 22 | Oklahoma State | W, 49-28 |
Nov. 29 | at Texas Tech | W, 48-46 |
Saturday | Kansas State | 6:45 p.m. |
What’s at stake
Everything. The winner of this game clinches at least a share of the conference championship, and Baylor can stay in the playoff conversation with a victory.
Cheers if …
Tyler Lockett scores on a return. The Wildcats may need an unorthodox touchdown to keep pace with Baylor. That would be the ideal way for it to happen.
Jeers if …
K-State falls behind early. Look what happened against TCU. The Horned Frogs jumped out to a lead, forced the Wildcats to abandon their running game and won going away. K-State needs a fast start to prevent Baylor from doing the same.
Three things about Baylor
1 Bryce Petty, one of the nation’s top quarterbacks, will play against K-State despite suffering a concussion last week against Baylor. Bears coach Art Briles said this week that Petty passed concussion protocol and is ready to go.
2 The Bears rank first nationally in several offensive categories, including scoring. They average 340.2 passing yards, 240.9 rushing yards and 49.8 points.
3 Baylor is coming off its worst defensive performance. It allowed 712 yards and 46 points to Texas Tech in a narrow victory in Arlington, Texas.
Key matchup
K-State’s offensive line vs. Baylor’s front seven. The Wildcats have to establish a running game against the Bears. They can’t win if they don’t. Sure, Baylor surrendered 609 passing yards to Texas Tech last week while the Red Raiders tried to finish off a furious rally, but that’s not the way K-State plays when it is at its best. Bill Snyder’s offense thrives on its balance. Running the ball keeps Baylor’s offense off the field and allows K-State’s defense to rest. Moving the ball on the ground and winning time of possession will be a must.
KANSAS STATE OFFENSE
P | No. | Player | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
WR | 16 | Tyler Lockett | 5-11 | 175 | Sr. |
WR | 14 | Curry Sexton | 5-11 | 183 | Sr. |
LT | 55 | Cody Whitehair | 6-4 | 309 | Jr. |
LG | 77 | Boston Stiverson | 6-4 | 312 | Jr. |
C | 66 | B.J. Finney | 6-4 | 303 | Sr. |
RG | 68 | Luke Hayes | 6-6 | 295 | Jr. |
RT | 65 | Matt Kleinsorge | 6-5 | 306 | Jr. |
TE | 85 | Zach Trujillo | 6-5 | 256 | Sr. |
WR | 6 | Deante Burton | 6-2 | 205 | So. |
QB | 15 | Jake Waters | 6-1 | 210 | Sr. |
RB | 20 | DeMarcus Robinson | 5-7 | 209 | Sr. |
K | 16 | Matthew McCrane | 5-10 | 165 | Fr. |
KANSAS STATE DEFENSE
P | No. | Player | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
DE | 44 | Ryan Mueller | 6-2 | 245 | Sr. |
DT | 60 | Will Geary | 6-9 | 290 | Fr. |
DT | 95 | Travis Britz | 6-4 | 293 | Jr. |
DE | 75 | Jordan Willis | 6-5 | 250 | So. |
LB | 9 | Elijah Lee | 6-3 | 214 | Fr. |
LB | 35 | Will Davis | 6-0 | 223 | So. |
LB | 21 | Jonathan Truman | 5-11 | 219 | Sr. |
CB | 33 | Morgan Burns | 5-11 | 195 | Jr. |
SS | 22 | Dante Barnett | 6-1 | 186 | Jr. |
FS | 20 | Dylan Schellenberg | 6-9 | 195 | Sr. |
CB | 7 | Danzel McDaniel | 6-1 | 205 | Jr. |
P | 14 | Nick Walsh | 5-10 | 198 | Fr. |
BAYLOR OFFENSE
P | No. | Player | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
WR | 5 | Antwan Goodley | 5-11 | 220 | Sr. |
IR | 9 | KD Cannon | 6-0 | 170 | Fr. |
RT | 69 | Pat Colbert | 6-6 | 310 | Jr. |
RG | 61 | Jarell Broxton | 6-5 | 330 | Jr. |
C | 55 | Kyle Fuller | 6-5 | 305 | So. |
LG | 73 | Blake Muir | 6-6 | 310 | Jr. |
LT | 58 | Spencer Drango | 6-6 | 310 | Jr. |
TE | 41 | Tre’von Armstead | 6-6 | 265 | So. |
WR | 1 | Corey Coleman | 5-11 | 190 | So. |
QB | 14 | Bryce Petty | 6-3 | 230 | Sr. |
RB | 32 | Shock Linwood | 5-9 | 200 | So. |
K | 40 | Chris Callahan | 5-9 | 185 | Fr. |
BAYLOR DEFENSE
P | No. | Player | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
DE | 2 | Shawn Oakman | 6-9 | 280 | Jr. |
NT | 75 | Andrew Billings | 6-2 | 300 | So. |
DT | 95 | Beau Blackshear | 6-4 | 300 | Jr. |
DE | 56 | K.J. Smith | 6-2 | 255 | Fr. |
LB | 11 | Taylor Young | 5-10 | 225 | Fr. |
LB | 44 | Bryce Hager | 6-2 | 235 | Sr. |
NB | 38 | Collin Brence | 6-0 | 210 | Sr. |
CB | 9 | Ryan Reid | 5-11 | 190 | So. |
S | 28 | Orion Stewart | 6-2 | 200 | So. |
S | 13 | Terrell Burt | 5-10 | 185 | Jr. |
CB | 4 | Xavien Howard | 6-2 | 200 | So. |
P | 36 | Spencer Roth | 6-5 | 220 | Sr. |
Kellis Robinett pick: Baylor 40-28
The Wildcats have lost their last three games at Baylor and haven’t won in Waco since 2002. This doesn’t seem like the time for that streak to end. Baylor’s offense appears too strong for K-State to keep up with.
| Kellis Robinett, krobinett@kcstar.com
This story was originally published December 5, 2014 at 5:52 PM with the headline "Big 12 football preview: No. 9 Kansas State at No. 5 Baylor."