Skylar Thompson – Page 9 – Syndication Server

Instant Analysis: Five takeaways from LSU’s loss to Kansas State

Instant takeaways from the 42-20 loss in the Texas Bowl.

What was a ugly season for LSU came to an ugly end Tuesday night in the Texas Bowl.

Kansas State jumped out to a 21-0 lead and never looked back. It was not a good night for LSU in any phase of the game.

But to be fair, with all the roster issues LSU is experiencing, nobody expected it would be. The offense never found any rhythm, the defense couldn’t get off the field, and even special teams gave up some big returns.

On the other side, Kansas State had it clicking. Quarterback Skylar Thompson had one of the best games of his career and running back Deuce Vaughn once again went over 100 yards. On defense, Kansas State was able to force some turnovers that set up a couple scores as well.

It wasn’t just LSU’s roster that was shorthanded, but their coaching staff was too. LSU had to rely on analysts and graduate assistants to have a full staff in Houston tonight.

In a lot of ways, this was an end of an era for LSU as they will now try and put a lot of the ugliness of the last two years behind them. Next time they take the field, they will be led by Brian Kelly.

For now, let’s take a look at some takeaway’s from tonight’s loss.

Five reasons Kansas State could beat LSU

Playing devil’s advocate, five reasons that LSU falters on Tuesday

LSU will face off against Kansas State in the Texas Bowl on Tuesday night. It’s the final bowl game of the season before the championship next Monday.

Kansas State comes into this game with a 7-5 record. Outside of their loss to Texas in the final game of the season, four of those losses came against good teams. For the most part, this is a Kansas State team that took care of business when they were supposed too.

They are coached by Chris Kleiman, who’s in his third-year of the program after running a dynasty at North Dakota State in the FCS.

LSU will be coached by Brad Davis in what is the final game before Brian Kelly assumes that roll. Davis was hired by LSU in June to serve as the offensive line coach. Davis will remain in that position as Brian Kelly takes over.

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With all that being said, Kansas State is the favorite tomorrow. To put it mildly, LSU is dealing with a lot of adversity right now. It’s difficult to imagine them winning this game unless some unexpected names step up. On the other hand, Kansas State has some good things going for it. Here are five reasons the Wildcats could take care of LSU in the Texas Bowl.

LSU vs KSU: Previewing the quarterback battle for the Texas Bowl

Not much of a quarterback battle

We have officially made it to game week as the Texas Bowl between LSU and Kansas State is set to kick off one week from Tuesday. The battle of two teams that wear purple but they are on different trajectories at this point.

Kansas State has two quarterbacks with starting experience, LSU has none. Myles Brennan started three games a year ago before an injury ended his campaign, he likely is unavailable for this game. Where will the team turn?

While we await the decision on Garrett Nussmeier’s waiver, we look at the quarterback matchup for the Texas Bowl.

Quarterback Comparison

Breaking down who has the edge in the tale of the tape.

Thompson	vs	Nussmeier
6-2	Ht	6-2
223	Wt	172
Senior	Class	Freshman
141	Comp	29
205	Att	57
68.8	Comp %	50.9
1,844	Yards	329
9.0	YPA	5.8
9-4	TD-INT	2-2

Edge: Skylar Thompson

This really wasn’t much of a competition in the quarterback’s tale of the tape. Nussmeier just hasn’t played much and quite frankly the Tigers don’t have much in terms of experience at quarterback with Max Johnson’s transfer to Texas A&M. Thompson hasn’t been healthy but when he is, he can make the Kansas State offense go along with Deuce Vaughn.

It isn’t for certain if Nuss even plays in this game as we are still waiting on the waiver decision from the NCAA. If granted, he would likely start in the game against Kansas State. If not we could see Matt O’Dowd or even Jontre Kirklin as the signal-caller for this game.

Whichever way they go, expect a heavy dose of the run game to try and protect the quarterback in this one.

Texas Bowl Preview: Stats that define Kansas State

Taking a look at LSU’s bowl game opponent, Kansas State.

On January 4th, LSU will face off against Kansas State in the Texas Bowl at NRG Stadium in Houston.

Kansas State is a rare foe for LSU, with the two squads only having faced off once in 1980. Because of this unfamiliarity, LSU fans probably don’t know much about this Kansas State team. Let’s dive in.

Coaching Staff

Kansas State is led by head coach Chris Klieman, now in his third year with the Wildcats after putting together an incredible 69-6 record at North Dakota State.

Klieman has yet to win a bowl game at Kansas State but has had his team ranked at one point or another during every season of his tenure.

Shortly after the regular season ended, Klieman decided to part ways with OC Courtney Messingham and TE’s coach Jason Ray. Former Kansas State QB Collin Klein will take over the play-calling duties against LSU.

Despite the change at OC, it’s no secret what Kansas State wants to do on offense. They will try and establish the run game, playing a physical brand of football with some short pass game stuff spruced in.

The defense is run by Joe Klanderman and Van Malone. Klanderman has worked under Klieman for some time now, following him from North Dakota State. Malone, who works with CB’s and is the team’s defensive passing game coordinator, has a rich coaching history in Texas and the Big 12.

On defense, Kansas State will typically appear in a 3-man front, allowing their LB’s and DB’s to be patient and fly to the ball.

Next, the offense

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6 Takeaways from the Oklahoma Sooners’ 37-31 win over Kansas State

The Sooners did a lot of good things in their win over the Kansas State Wildcats, but there are some they need to tighten up before Texas.

Another week, another one-score win for the Oklahoma Sooners as they took down their nemesis from the last couple of years, the Kansas State Wildcats. Though the first half was a close affair, the Sooners started to pull away in the third quarter outscoring the Wildcats 14 to seven to take a 27-17 lead entering the fourth quarter.

Though Oklahoma would be outscored in the fourth, they continued scoring, unlike in last year’s matchup, and made enough plays on both sides of the ball to come up with the big win. Oklahoma is now 5-0 (2-0 in the Big 12) with a big-time matchup with the Texas Longhorns on the horizon.

But before we get to Texas, here are six takeaways from the Oklahoma Sooners win over the Kansas State Wildcats.

Oklahoma Sooners pick up big win over Kansas State 37-31

In one of their most complete performances of the season, the Oklahoma Sooners beat Kansas State 37-31 to move to 5-0 on the season.

As crazy as it may sound, this was the best Oklahoma Sooners win of the season. They went to Manhattan, Kansas for their first road game of the season and took care of business against a tough Kansas State team, 37-31.

The game wasn’t necessarily as close as the score indicated.

The Wildcats got the ball to start the game and methodically worked the down the field with some timely completions by super senior quarterback Skylar Thompson, who played despite a week-long game of smoke and mirrors from head coach Chris Klieman about the quarterback’s availability.

Kansas State made its way into the red zone before a forced fumble by defensive end Reggie Grimes and subsequent 60 yard return by Nik Bonitto set the Sooners up nicely.

After making it inside the 10, penalties, a botched snap, and poor blocking would result in the Sooners settling for three points off of a field goal from Gabe Brkic.

The Wildcats would answer on a touchdown pass from Thompson to star running back Deuce Vaughn.

The Sooners would respond with a 12 play 75-yard touchdown drive of their own capped off by a very creative run play involving Jeremiah Hall.

The Sooners and Wildcats swapped field goals before halftime. Oklahoma went into the locker room with a 13-10 lead.

Neither team punted until the 3rd quarter. Kansas State kept opting to go for it and the Sooners defense couldn’t get off the field. Conversely, Kansas State simply could not stop Oklahoma as every drive ended in points.

Things would get weird in the third quarter thanks in part to two different reviews.

Trailing 27-10, Kansas State attempted and recovered an onside kick, and referee Kevin Hassell went to confirm the ball traveled 10 yards. It did, but Lincoln Riley smartly and probably due to information he was receiving via his headset challenged the play again.

Riley argued that kicker Ty Zentner had accidentally kicked the ball twice (which he had). The illegal touching gave Oklahoma the ball. They would do nothing with it and instead turned it over on third and long on a Spencer Rattler interception putting Kansas State deep in their own territory. The pick amounted to nothing more than a punt as Rattler threw it up there hoping to make a play or catch a defensive pass interference call.

Another review came on a 4th down completion from Thompson to receiver Landry Weber. A superb attempt to catch it was ruled incomplete as the ball hit the ground as he attempted to secure it.

A slick Jeremiah Hall TD reception on a shovel pass from Rattler put the Sooners in front 34-17.

The Wildcats would eat up a lot of clock while scoring to make it 34-24.

The Sooners responded with another field goal from Brkic, which was followed by a kick return for a touchdown from Malik Knowles. Knowles now has three return touchdowns this year. Kansas State had one last attempt to get an offside and the attempt was unsuccessful as wide receiver Jadon Haselwood calmly caught the kick and took a knee.

Spencer Rattler threw for 243 yards and two touchdowns, running back Kennedy Brooks was the lead back of the day posting 91 yards and a touchdown while Jeremiah Hall scored twice and Marvin Mims re-emerged with four catches for 71 yards.

Oklahoma can now return to Norman and prepare themselves for the Red River Shootout with the 4-1 Texas Longhorns. Kansas State will have a bye before playing Iowa State on October 16th.

2 Sooners to watch on defense in Week 5

2 Sooners who will be critical to the defensive effort in week 5

Whether or not Kansas State quarterback Skylar Thompson plays tomorrow, Oklahoma can still expect a big game from its pash rush. The Wildcats’ offensive line has surrendered 13 sacks against Thompson and backup quarterbacks Will Howard and Jaren Lewis through four games.

Oklahoma State shut down K-State’s passing attack in week four, limiting Lewis and Howard to just 198 total yards with a touchdown and an interception. The OSU defense recorded one interception, two sacks, and nine quarterback hurries against the reserve signal-callers.

If OSU could generate that much pressure against K-State, there is no reason to believe Oklahoma and its no. 1 ranked pass rush isn’t capable of doing the same thing. That’s why Perrion Winfrey is critical to a win in Manhatten.

The Wildcats succumbed to multiple interior pass rushes last week. That should serve as a green light for Winfrey to force his way through the center of the offensive line and dirty up the jersey of whoever the Wildcats roll out at quarterback. He was the only Sooner to register a sack against a stout West Virginia offense last weekend, and he should find his job much easier tomorrow.

But in order for Perrion Winfrey, Nik Bonitto, and the rest of the OU pass rush to key in on the quarterback, Kansas State must first become one-dimensional.

Brian Asamoah made a big impact in the ground game last week. He neutralized Leddie Brown, never allowing the running back more than three yards from scrimmage, and finished with a team-high nine tackles. Another big game is needed from the junior linebacker tomorrow when he faces the dangerous Deuce Vaughn.

A sophomore running back from Texas, Vaughn is the only certified game-changer on the Wildcats’ roster. He’s shifty, explosive, and is a master at breaking tackles by dropping his pad level.

But if Asamoah can help bottle up Vaughn, who accounts for 7 of K-State’s 13 touchdowns by himself, then OU’s defense is primed for another dominant outing.

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Big 12 Power Rankings after week 1 of the season

How does the Big 12 stack up after the first full week of college football action?

The Big 12 got off to a rough start in the first full week of action. Though they finished with a 9-1 record on the weekend, the games were much closer than they should have been. With just two Power Five matchups on the slate, the Big 12 struggled against Group of Five and FCS teams throughout the weekend.

It was a similar start to the season as last year when the Big 12 saw several upsets at the hands of FCS schools. It created a perception that teams like Iowa State and Kansas State weren’t very good, but they bounced back in the following weeks to come up with big wins in the conference.

These teams will likely look better as the season progresses, but it was an unfortunate start for a conference trying to prove it belongs among the Power Five with realignment on the horizon.

*Ranking is based on the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll – last updated Aug. 10.

Texas Longhorns vs Kansas State: QB tale of the tape

On Saturday, the Texas Longhorns will be led by senior Sam Ehlinger. Kansas State counters with freshman Will Howard.

Saturday’s game between the Texas Longhorns and Kansas State Wildcats will feature quarterbacks on opposite sides of the spectrum. Continue reading “Texas Longhorns vs Kansas State: QB tale of the tape”

Sam Ehlinger named semifinalist for Collegiate Man of the Year Award

You can now add the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year award to the number of watch list that have Sam Ehlinger in their sights.

The Texas Longhorns quarterback Sam Ehlinger has been mentioned in many awards this year. At least the watch list for these awards. He can now add the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year award. Continue reading “Sam Ehlinger named semifinalist for Collegiate Man of the Year Award”