Oh, no! No ‘O’

Jayhawks flounder in loss

Manhattan ? Back to normal.

The Kansas State University student section chanted it with superficial pride Saturday as the seconds ticked down in the Wildcats’ 12-3 football victory over Kansas University at KSU Stadium.

Back to normal.

After an 11-year reign as undisputed king of Sunflower State football, followed by a 2004 hiccup, K-State’s supporters thought it was all good once again – at least on the surface.

Good enough for a chant, anyway.

Back to normal.

Perhaps the fans’ eyes were planted firmly on the scoreboard the entire game. That’s all that appeared familiar from the past.

That : and KU’s inability to move the football recently.

Kansas State hardly is as strong as it once was, but Kansas lost Saturday because of an offense that couldn’t do much of anything when it had to and another three-quarterback rotation that quickly is becoming more comedic than competent.

“I can’t simplify it any more,” KU coach Mark Mangino said of the scheme. “It’s simple. But I’ll tell you this: We’ve just got to keep the faith in them.”

That is the one and only option. Brian Luke and Adam Barmann rotated all day, while Marcus Herford came in for two effective plays in the fourth quarter.

But overall, the passing game was just 8-of-22 for 127 yards – and that includes a 24-yard razzle-dazzle pass from receiver Charles Gordon to quarterback Herford.

Dropped balls were scattered throughout the game, too, making the passing attack a struggle for the second straight week.

“Practice is still nothing like the games,” Mangino said. “We practice hard, practice well. The whole team did. But you’ve got to translate it out on the field.”

With no aerial attack to worry about, K-State’s answer to stopping the Jayhawks was as easy as an open-book test – stop running back Jon Cornish, KU’s only proven playmaker the past few weeks.

“We just kept on trying to do our thing,” said Cornish, who rushed 17 times for 66 yards. “But not being able to pass was moderately distracting.”

The defense, on the other hand, deserves every praise that comes its way. KSU’s run offense appeared to be key, but 45 carries for 35 yards in a victory proved that theory wrong. In shutting down backs Thomas Clayton, Parrish Fisher and quarterback Allan Evridge, the Jayhawks racked up 16 tackles for a loss.

Clayton rushed 16 times for 13 yards, after telling reporters during the week, “I’m sure we’ll figure out a way to overcome their – quote, unquote – defense.”

Go figure

0.8, 2.6
Yards per rush, yards per offensive play for K-State

38
Time of possession for K-State

22
Time of possession for KU

1-4
Kansas’ red-zone success rate against Kansas State, after going 17-for-17 in the first four games

Linebacker Nick Reid obviously was fueled by the comment, but was equally frustrated afterward with the scoreboard.

“The defense played well enough to win,” Reid said, “yet we didn’t win.”

The KU defense really gave up only seven points. Up 3-0 deep in its own territory, Cornish fumbled an audibled option that KSU recovered 14 yards from the end zone. The three ensuing plays totaled minus-seven yards, and the Wildcats settled on the tying field goal in the third quarter.

“We never check to an option when we’re inside our own 25-yard line. That’s a no-no,” Mangino said. “We did it two weeks in a row.”

Later in the third, the Wildcats pieced together their only effective drive of the day, going primarily through the air and swallowing 75 yards of field. A personal-foul penalty boosted KSU into goal-to-go offense, and an eight-yard pass from Evridge to Jordy Nelson early in the fourth quarter resulted in a one-touchdown lead.

KSU (4-1 overall, 1-1 Big 12 Conference) tacked on its last two points after Charles Gordon was run into by a teammate while attempting to fair catch a punt. The ball ended up rolling back to the one-yard line, and Luke was sacked on third down for the safety.

“He called the fair catch, but his stinger never left,” KSU gunner Yamon Figurs said. “So I just tried to time it up and pushed (the KU player) into (Gordon).”

After the safety, it was a two-possession game. Considering the Jayhawks’ inability to move the ball, though, it might just as well have been 1,000-0.

It’s back to the drawing board for KU, and, as the KSU student body bellowed, back to normal for the Sunflower Showdown.

Now 3-2 overall and winless in the Big 12, the Jayhawks undoubtedly feel the traction underneath their feet slipping away.

“When you make the kind of mistakes we did today, you don’t win in close games,” Mangino said. “That’s the bottom line.”