Kansas State tops No. 11 Oklahoma (VIDEO recap)

Bill Snyder sounded like a proud parent more than a football coach when he sat down and talked about Kansas State’s 31-30 victory over Oklahoma on Saturday at Memorial Stadium.

He described his players as hard workers that long ago embraced the goals, values and discipline he teaches. He called them good people and said they were loaded with character. He praised them so thoroughly he had to briefly stop and catch his breath.

Then he rephrased his thoughts more simply.

"They are fighters," he said.

The No. 14 Wildcats (5-1, 3-0 Big 12) proved their resolve in front of 85,019 noisy fans, overcoming myriad defensive breakdowns and a stat sheet slanted heavily in Oklahoma’s favor to knock off the No. 11 Sooners (5-2, 2-2) in a place they rarely lose.

K-State is the now the lone Big 12 team without a conference loss and a top contender in the race for a league championship.

The Wildcats got there behind senior quarterback Jake Waters, who hurt his shoulder early in the third quarter and fought through noticeable pain to throw for 225 yards and two touchdowns and run for 51 yards and a score.

"Nothing was going to take me out of this game," Waters said.

They got there behind Travis Britz, who blocked an extra point moments after Oklahoma pulled within 31-30 in the fourth quarter. They did so behind Danzel McDaniel, who intercepted a pass in the second quarter and returned it five yards for one of the defensive touchdowns K-State always seems to get in big games.

They got there behind linebacker Jonathan Truman, who made a career-high 17 tackles.

"Jonathan might be the toughest-minded guy that has ever played at Kansas State," Snyder said. "We have had some guys who are tough minded … But he is a tough young fella. He does everything right. He is one of those guys. You say nobody plays to his full potential. He comes closer than anybody."

They also did so behind cornerback Morgan Burns, who along with Dylan Schellenberg was beaten all afternoon by OU receiver Sterling Shepard — 15 catches for 197 yards and a touchdown — but Burns had the poise to recognize a trick play and make a key interception in the end zone.

"All the numbers were against us," Snyder said, "in regards to yards, etc., and they were having their way with us."

Still, add it all up and K-State won a game in which it allowed 533 yards, was outgained by 148 yards and lost the time-of-possession battle by nearly five minutes.

"It says a lot about our defensive character," Burns said, "that we played until the end of the game and never gave up."

"A lot of plays went our way," added running back Charles Jones, "that in the past didn’t go our way. I just think we finished and played like it was 0-0 the whole way. That benefited us."

Many teams fold when the Sooners get their offense going at home.

Since Bob Stoops took over in 1999, Oklahoma has gone 89-6 in Norman, often going years between defeats. But its success has dropped recently against K-State, which has won back-to-back trips to Memorial Stadium. No other team has defeated Oklahoma twice at home during that time.

"To be able to say that is pretty awesome," said K-State receiver Curry Sexton after grabbing eight passes for 77 yards. "I still kind of don’t believe it the way things played out."

K-State certainly took a strange path to victory, taking a 21-17 halftime lead and fighting its way to the finish line.

Waters briefly left the field to receive treatment in the locker room, and Oklahoma threatened to score throughout the second half, not punting in the final two quarters. If not for a shanked, 19-yard field goal by Michael Hunnicutt with 3:53 remaining things may have turned out differently.

Then again, K-State players put themselves in position for good fortune by stuffing OU running back Samaje Perine with a goal-line stand.

Though the Sooners dominated most phases of the game and Trevor Knight had a big day throwing for 318 yards and three touchdowns, they made glaring errors and K-State took advantage, including cornerback Danzel McDaniel intercepting Knight at the Sooners’ goal line and walking into the end zone for a touchdown and a 14-7 K-State lead.

It was the polar opposite of the Auburn loss. Predictably, this victory was as uplifting as that defeat was heartbreaking.

"This win was really special," defensive end Ryan Mueller said. "The great Kansas State teams beat OU. That is what we are trying to be, the best team we can possibly be. This is a great start. We are heading in the right direction."

So much so, that K-State is starting to get questions about the possibility of finishing in the top four and qualifying for the inaugural College Football Playoff.

Not that Snyder is looking that far ahead.

"That’s way down the line," Snyder said. "That is 100 years from now."

K-State players are following their coach’s lead. When asked what lies ahead for this team, players responded with one word: "Texas."

The fighters are ready for their next match.

"This team is filled with gritty, tough guys that simply know how to win," Sexton said. "You match us up on paper with a lot of teams and you are probably going to say, ‘OK, they have better athletes, and they have better players,’ but at the end of the day we are a bunch of guys who go out there and make plays when we have to. You can’t beat that."

This story was originally published October 18, 2014 at 2:33 PM with the headline "Kansas State tops No. 11 Oklahoma (VIDEO recap)."