Grades from Kansas State’s opening victory over Stanford and a look ahead to SIU
Kansas State football fans turned AT&T Stadium purple while the Wildcats demolished Stanford 24-7 on Saturday.
It was a fun experience for everyone involved, as K-State won its first season opener against a power conference team since 2010 and then returned to Manhattan with $2.8 million from the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for playing the game inside their iconic venue.
The Wildcats were impressive from the start against a respected Pac-12 opponent. Perhaps the skeptics underestimated them when their over/under win total was set at 5 1/2 in Vegas and media picked them to finish eighth in the preseason Big 12 poll.
Here are grades from the victory and a look ahead to K-State’s next game against Southern Illinois.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
There were too many contributors on defense for any K-State player on that side of the ball to truly stand out, so the honor goes to Deuce Vaughn. The sophomore running back set the tone for the day when he bounced outside for 17 yards on the Wildcats’ first play from scrimmage. He also had a 59-yard touchdown run and finished with 130 all-purpose yards on 15 touches.
PLAY OF THE GAME
Vaughn gave us the best highlight when he busted through a huge hole at the line of scrimmage and out ran everyone to the end zone for a 59-yard score in the second quarter, but Skylar Thompson provided a more meaningful touchdown in the first quarter. Not only did he put the Wildcats ahead 7-0 with a six-yard run on a QB keeper, he did it in the most physical way possible.
He lowered his left shoulder and bulldozed a Stanford defender at the goal line. You don’t see that everyday from a quarterback, especially one coming back from an injury like Thompson.
“I was just trying to set the tone for our football team,” Thompson said. “I know those guys feed off my energy and the way that I attack every single play. I’m going to put my body on the line. Whenever that time comes that I got to get that extra inch or get that first down, whatever the case may be, I’m going to do everything I can for this team to get that done.”
K-State badly missed Thompson as a red-zone runner when he was injured. The Wildcats utilized him near the goal line on Saturday for a pair of rushing touchdowns.
STAT OF THE GAME
K-State has never lost a season-opener on a neutral field. The Wildcats are now 3-0 in those games. They previously defeated California (2003) and Iowa (2000) at Arrowhead Stadium.
QUOTE TO NOTE
“I was pretty unreal. To even have the opportunity to be able to play in this stadium is once-in-a-lifetime. But to be bale to score a touchdown in it is something crazy. It’ something I’ll never forget. I just had so much fun out there today.” — Deuce Vaughn.
GRADES
Offense: B-. The Wildcats ran the ball well behind their offensive line and averaged 6.5 yards per rush. But their passing attack left much to be desired. Thompson wasn’t sharp in his first game back from injury and only threw for 144 yards while tossing an interception and taking three sacks.
Defense: A+. If you saw that coming, take a bow. Joe Klanderman’s unit switched formations from a traditional 4-2-5 to a new look 3-3-5 and confused Stanford all game long. The Cardinal only gained 233 yards. The Wildcats finished with eight tackles for loss and two interceptions against the Cardinal. Everyone pitched in, but Daniel Green led all defenders with nine tackles. Cody Fletcher had a strong game that featured eight tackles and a sack. Khalid Duke beat a double team for a sack in the second half. Russ Yeast and T.J. Smith both had picks. They made Stanford look hapless on offense.
Special Teams: B. Taiten Winel connected on a 40-yard field goal and made all three of his extra-point attempts. It was a little disappointing to see K-State only post nine yards on punt and kick returns, though.
Coaching: A. Give Chris Klieman credit for this one. He came up with a brand new defensive scheme during the off season and it worked flawlessly against Stanford.
NEXT UP
K-State will return to Bill Snyder Family Stadium for its home opener against Southern Illinois at 6 p.m. on Sept. 11.
The Salukis won their first game of the year 47-21 over Southeast Missouri State on Thursday.
Klieman knows a thing or two about beating FCS opponents. He used to do it all the time when he was winning national championships at North Dakota State before K-State hired him three years ago. But Southern Illinois is no push over. It was ranked seventh in the FCS preseason top 25 and actually defeated Klieman’s old team last season.
SIU quarterback Nic Baker could provide a challenge to K-State’s defense. He threw for 460 yards and four touchdowns against SEMO.