Sep 263 min read

Oklahoma State Travels to K-State With Both Teams Reeling

K-State Quarterback Avery Johnson — © Rob Gray-Imagn Images

No. 20 Oklahoma State (3-1, 0-1) is going on the road to face No. 23 Kansas State (3-1, 0-1) on Sept. 28 at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kan. This Big 12 Conference contest is between two teams coming off of losses where they were dominated. Oklahoma State lost 22-19 to No. 10 Utah (4-0, 1-0) where the Utes led 22-3 with less than seven minutes to go in the game and Oklahoma State was able to make a run to make the final score look respectable. K-State went to Provo, Utah to face No. 22 BYU (4-0, 1-0) where they had a disastrous six-minute stretch allowing BYU to go from being down 6-3 to up 31-6 with the final score ending up 38-9.

What's at Stake?

Both teams must win this game to keep pace in the Big 12 Championship race. Kansas State had uncharacteristic issues against BYU committing 8 penalties that stalled out drives on offense and gave the ball away three times leading to 21 points for BYU. K-State is looking to protect its home field this weekend and prove that last week was an outlier, not a new trend.

Oklahoma State could not run the ball against Utah which has become a recent trend for the Cowboys. They were only able to get 48 yards on the ground which put too much pressure on quarterback Alan Bowman to make the necessary plays. The Oklahoma State coaching staff needs to figure out how to get running back Ollie Gordon II to be more effective on the ground and become more balanced.

Oklahoma State - Quarterback - Alan Bowman — © William Purnell-Imagn Images

Key Players: K-State

Avery Johnson, Quarterback

Last week Johnson had the worst game of his short career throwing for 130 yards and 2 interceptions. The Kansas State offense needs Johnson at his best to be the most effective. So far this season there have been zero touchdowns thrown to wide receivers. The Oklahoma State defense has given up a lot of yards this season but has been able to turn teams over with 5 interceptions. Johnson will have to play with fewer mistakes this week to give the Wildcats a shot to win.

Brendan Mott, Defensive End

Mott is second in the Big 12 in sacks with 4. Oklahoma State's offensive line has been good in pass protection only giving up 1 sack on the season. The secondary of K-State has given up some big plays in the passing game this season at times and with that reoccurring problem, the defensive line will have to get some pressure on Bowman when he drops back. The defensive line will be looked upon to keep the Cowboys rushing attack sputtering. Mott is the leader of the defensive line and he will have to set the tone in this game.

Key Players: Oklahoma State

Alan Bowman, Quarterback

Last weekend against Utah, Bowman had his worst performance of the season finishing up the game with 206 yards passing 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Coach Mike Gundy even made a change at quarterback to try to find a spark. It turned out that spark came when Bowman was put back in the game. The Cowboys were able to make their run to make the game closer. Bowman will have to play better this weekend on the road for the Cowboys to win in Manhattan.

Trey Rucker, Safety

Rucker is the Big 12 leader in tackles with 53 tackles and he also has 2 interceptions on the year. The Cowboys defense has given up plenty of yards in some games this season but they have been effective at forcing turnovers with 5 interceptions and 3 fumbles. Rucker has been all over the field and will be called upon again this weekend against K-State to slow down a Wildcats' offense that can be hard to stop once it gets rolling.

Trends to Watch

Which quarterback will have a bounce-back game this weekend? Both of them are coming off rough outings, and whoever plays the most mistake-free football will lead their team to victory. Kansas State wants to lean on its running game with dynamic running backs DJ Giddens and Dylan Edwards. If the K-State offense can get the running game going they will set themselves up to control the clock and keep the potentially lethal Cowboys' offense off the field. Will Oklahoma State be able to get their running game going? The K-State defense only gives up 61.3 rushing yards a game so the Cowboy's offensive line and running backs will have their work cut out for them.