Chris Klieman blasts Kansas State’s defense for missed tackles in loss to Iowa State
What if I told you that Iowa State didn’t run a single play from within the red zone while the Cyclones battled with the Kansas State Wildcats in a blizzard on Saturday at Bill Snyder Family Stadium?
Better yet, what if I told you they didn’t run a play beyond the K-State 33-yard line and only gained 10 first downs throughout the night?
Do you think Iowa State won or lost? Before you answer, allow me throw in a few key statistics from the K-State side of things, such as the Wildcats running a school record 102 plays, gaining 32 first downs and possessing the ball for nearly 43 minutes of game action.
These are all rhetorical questions, of course. Anyone provided with this knowledge would almost certainly assume that K-State won its annual Farmageddon rivalry game, probably by a big margin.
But no. Despite outplaying Iowa State in many statistical areas, K-State lost to the Cyclones 42-35 in one of the strangest games of the season.
“You shouldn’t lose a football game like that,” K-State football coach Chris Klieman said.
That it was played in front of thousands of shivering fans, and even a snowman or two made it all the more bizarre.
“I’m not sure I’ve been a part of that before,” K-State tight end Ben Sinnott said. “But it (stinks). You’re out there all game with your guys, fighting every single snap. To fall short when you feel like you are doing so well is really disappointing.”
Sinnott, who caught 10 passes for 136 yards and a touchdown, had nothing to apologize for. Neither did Will Howard, who threw for 288 yards and a touchdown, or DJ Giddens, who rushed for 114 yards and a score.
The entire K-State offense played well enough to win, especially with several inches of snow descending upon Manhattan throughout the game. No one can complain about 35 points and 497 yards in those conditions.
The defense? That’s another story.
Klieman made the unusual decision to blame the loss on K-State’s defense after the game was over. No one was standing in line to disagree with him after they watched Iowa State score in the following ways:
- 71-yard rush by Abu Sama
- 77-yard rush by Sama
- 79-yard pass from Rocco Becht to Jaylin Noel
- 60-yard run by Sama
- 33-yard pass from Becht to Jayden Higgins
- 82-yard pass from Becht to Noel
Iowa State had four scoring plays of more than 70 yards. Before Saturday, no other team in the FBS had more than two in a game this season. And it’s not like the Cyclones have been a juggernaut on offense this year.
“We did not tackle and we did not make plays across the board on defense,” Klieman said. “And it’s a shame.”
He was far from done.
“I’ve never seen it in my five years here,” Klieman said. “I’m frustrated, I’m angry, I’ve got a lot of different emotions. We just weren’t good enough and we’ve got to get better. We have got to get better.”
K-State’s tackling was so bad that as many as six players could have been credited with missed tackles on Iowa State’s longest plays.
On one touchdown run from Sama, K-State put forth so little effort trying to tackle him that cornerback Will Lee inadvertently gave him a speed boost into the end zone by nudging him forward from behind, rather than driving him to the ground.
Later, Noel somehow meandered his way past half a dozen would-be tacklers for an 82-yard score up the sideline when it appeared as though K-State was in good position to stop him for a short gain.
This was a day that Klieman and defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman will never want to speak of again.
“It was both lack of execution and bad tackling,” K-State linebacker Austin Moore said. “I think we saw a lot of times we were in place and we just didn’t make tackles. I didn’t make tackles.”
Moore tried to take responsibility for the awful defensive play, saying as a team leader he needed to play at a higher level. But this was far from a one-man problem.
In all honesty, the weather probably made it harder than usual to make tackles. Both offenses thrived in the snow.
Still, K-State players refused to use that as an excuse.
“It’s definitely frustrating,” K-State safety Marques Sigle said. “We gave up six explosives. We talk about not having any explosives and we gave up all those. It’s tough for our offense to keep going after we give up those quick drives.”
Those miscues made it a sour senior day for K-State. Instead of closing out the season with a perfect record at home and tying for second place in the Big 12 standings, they suffered a disappointing loss that will stick with them until they play in a bowl game at some point next month.
But this result will truly linger for the Wildcats on defense. Like the rest of you, they assumed 35 points was more than enough to win this game.
“Our offense was doing their job,” Sigle said. “We couldn’t get our job done. It definitely was disappointing to see that.”