K-State Q&A: Losing streaks, Baylor reactions, coordinator blame and basketball
There was so much going on last week with basketball, football and Thanksgiving that I didn’t have enough time to ask for questions on Twitter or share my answers right here in everyone’s favorite mailbag.
To make it up to you, here’s a special Monday edition of K-State Q&A that is full of topics from the Wildcats’ football loss against Baylor and an 0-2 start from men’s basketball.
Thanks, as always, for your participation.
This question perfectly sums up the past few weeks for K-State sports. Well done!
The football team has lost four straight games to fall completely out of the Big 12 championship mix, and the men’s basketball team is 0-2 for the first time in 18 years.
That’s ... not great, Bob.
I would suggest you stick with K-State sports at least a little longer, as Bruce Weber’s team will likely beat UMKC for its first victory on Monday night. And there is probably a bowl game in the football team’s future, if those get played this holiday season, regardless of what happens against Texas on Saturday.
Otherwise you can go ahead and pour yourself into Christmas. There’s never been a better time to go full Clark Griswold with over-the-top decorations on your house.
It’s been worse than just missing Skylar Thompson.
The Wildcats have played without Malik Knowles, Justin Hughes, Elijah Sullivan, Josh Rivas, Ben Adler and Briley Moore at different times during their current four-game losing streak.
Don’t forget that Joshua Youngblood also transferred.
If I told you K-State would have to play games without all those key players before the season began, you wouldn’t have expected many victories.
That being said, the frustration comes from the way K-State has lost two of its past four games. The blowout defeats at West Virginia and Iowa State were unavoidable, but the Wildcats had double-digit leads over Oklahoma State and Baylor and couldn’t close them out. Blowing a fourth-quarter lead against Arkansas State in the opener was also frustrating.
Regardless of personnel, there’s no good excuse for letting those games slip away.
I’m guessing K-State would be 6-3 with Skylar Thompson leading the offense every week.
His leadership alone could have been a difference-maker against both Oklahoma State and Baylor.
More than that, his accuracy as a passer would drastically help the receivers and his running ability would eliminate a lot of the problems K-State has had in the red zone this season.
It will be interesting to see what he decides to do next season. The Wildcats could really use him back under center if he wants to return for one more year of college football.
There are three main reasons why K-State football seems to be regressing right now.
1. The Wildcats are playing with a freshman backup quarterback. Skylar Thompson was at the controls when K-State beat Oklahoma and took an early lead over Texas Tech. The passing game has taken a nose dive since.
2. K-State’s schedule got a whole lot harder. The Wildcats played Oklahoma before the Sooners got rolling and then played Texas Tech, TCU and Kansas (three of the worst teams in the Big 12) on their way to a 4-0 start. West Virginia, Oklahoma State and Iowa State were all big steps up in competition. Baylor wasn’t, and that’s one of the reasons K-State nearly won that game.
3. The secret is out on K-State’s secondary. The Wildcats surprised some of their early opponents with both personnel and schemes. Now that there is more film out there for offensive coordinators to study, they are no longer a mystery. Exposure has also made things harder for Deuce Vaughn on offense.
When the offense can’t get it done with a healthy and experienced quarterback then it will perhaps be time to wonder about a change at offensive coordinator.
I understand the OC is public enemy No. 1 after any loss, but I think there are a few too many fingers currently being pointed at Courtney Messingham.
It’s not fair to throw him under the bus right now. At least not purely based on what happened during Kansas State’s 32-31 loss at Baylor in which the Wildcats averaged 6.5 yards per play and put up their highest points total in more than a month.
Only two teams have scored more points against the Bears this season, and no team has averaged more yards per play. Texas came the closest at 6.1 yards per play.
Fans can gripe all they want about the play calling, but the stats show K-State had a very good day on offense against Baylor, especially when you consider how bad the passing game was with Will Howard only completing half his passes and throwing two interceptions.
The Wildcats rushed for a season high 256 yards without two starters on the offensive line.
Can the offense be better? Absolutely.
But that’s never entirely the coordinator’s fault.
Howard is a freshman quarterback, and he is playing like one. The Wildcats also aren’t very talented at receiver right now, and their offensive line is on the young side.
These aren’t the Kansas City Chiefs, is what I’m trying to say.
E-MAIL QUESTION: From what I read, Messingham was a flop as OC at Iowa State. Offense was termed inconsistent and ranked close to bottom of Big 12. Hmmm? Was this the offense they ran at ND State and can it be successful in the Big12? -Kent T.
This is a fairer question to ask about Messingham.
His offense decimated all opponents when he was at North Dakota State, but the Bison benefited greatly from having a huge talent advantage over just about every FCS team they lined up against.
North Dakota State had NFL quarterbacks, big offensive linemen, a stable of versatile tight ends and a handful of bruising running backs.
Heck, the more I write about this answer, the more I wonder if he had more talent at NDSU than he currently does at K-State.
Messingham’s long-term challenge will be molding K-State’s roster to fit his offensive philosophy. The Wildcats were at their best last season with a rotation of four running backs sharing the rushing load and an experienced quarterback managing the games behind a senior-laden offensive line.
Adding Briley Moore at tight end provided a nice boost this season, but the Wildcats are missing just about everything else they had last year.
If K-State can upgrade talent at running back and receiver, develop a quality quarterback and find some tight ends, I think Messingham’s offense will work in the Big 12. If not, it’s going to be a challenge.
There’s no good alternative, unfortunately.
Skylar Thompson is out for the season and incoming recruit Jake Rubley is still in high school.
If Will Howard is going to be the quarterback of the future at K-State, he might as well go through some growing pains now.
Rallying from 21 down to defeat Oklahoma on the road was definitely the high point of the season. But beating TCU on the road and destroying Kansas a few weeks later were also impressive.
I would say the team peaked in Game 5. The Wildcats were 4-0 in conference play and seemed like a legit contender in the league championship mix, even with a backup quarterback. But it’s been all downhill since.
I’m going with A as my answer.
Will Howard’s goal heading into every game should be very simple. If he completes more than half his passes and doesn’t turn the ball over, he’s had a good day. If he could take back an interception against Baylor and a fumble against Oklahoma State, the Wildcats probably win those games.
Positives: Nijel Pack looks like he is going to be a really good point guard. The Wildcats have also found a big man (Kaosi Ezeagu) capable of catching an entry pass in the paint and then scoring. Mike McGuirl also seems ready to step up as a senior. K-State’s offense could honestly be much improved this season.
Negatives: The defense is atrocious. K-State is allowing 78 points per game, at the moment, and it seems like the vast majority of those buckets have come in the second half. The Wildcats led Drake 47-40 with 15 minutes remaining in the opener and somehow lost 80-70. I think the Bulldogs scored every time they possessed the ball. But Bruce Weber’s teams have always been good on defense, there is hope that the Wildcats will improve in that area as the season progresses. I also haven’t been very impressed with DaJuan Gordon or Selton Miguel yet.
Heck, I think the Wildcats would be 1-1 right now if they could have played a secret scrimmage or an exhibition game.
K-State was adjusting on the fly against Drake and it showed. Had the team had just a little bit more time together, or any taste of outside competition, that would have really helped.
Playing Drake probably helped K-State get off to such an encouraging start against Colorado before ultimately fading in the second half.
This season is going to be an adventure. There’s no way around that.
But I am encouraged by K-State’s offensive improvement. As long as the Wildcats can find a way to get a few stops as the season goes along, they will win some games and maybe even pull off some upsets.
I’m not saying this team will finish with a winning record even avoid finishing last in the conference standings, but it might set a solid foundation for future success.
By the time January rolls around, we should have a better feel for how good or bad this team truly is.
It’s too early for me to wonder about the temperature of Weber’s seat.
K-State was in the Elite Eight three years ago and on top of the Big 12 two years ago. Yes, last year was bad. But he will be given time to try and build the roster back up again. I suppose he could face some real pressure to win next season. For now, though, his goal should be development.
There are currently three seasonal beers in my fridge — Boulevard Plaid Habit, Boulevard Nut Cracker and Oskar Blues Death by Coconut. I recommend all three of them anytime you get thirsty during the month of December.