Wildcat report: Baylor 38, Kansas St. 27

First Quarter

Key Play: Randall Evans made an interception in the end zone to prevent Baylor from scoring three touchdowns in the opening quarter.

Key Stat: Baylor outgained K-State 247-75 in total yardage.

Second Quarter

Key Play: Zach Trujillo caught a 36-yard touchdown pass to pull K-State within 21-14.

Key Stat: K-State gained 100 yards of offense.

Third Quarter

Key Play: Bryce Petty hit Antwan Goodley for a 58-yard touchdown pass to put Baylor ahead 31-17.

Key Stat: Baylor threw for 119 yards.

Fourth Quarter

Key Play: Xavien Howard intercepted a pass to clinch the game for Baylor.

Key Stat: Jake Waters threw his only interception.

Report Card

Offense: B. K-State was smart to stick with its running game even as it fell behind, but it should have taken at least some shots down field against a Baylor defense that surrendered big play after big play to Texas Tech.

Defense: C. The Wildcats came up with some big plays, but for the most part got shredded by the Bears’ passing attack.

Special Teams: B. K-State couldn’t spring a long return, but Matthew McCrane was perfect on field goals.

Coaching: B. The better team won. You can’t blame the game plan.

Player of the game: Bryce Petty. A week after suffering a concussion he looked in top form.

Reason to hope: The only three teams K-State lost to this year were ranked in the top 10 at the time they played. The Wildcats are without a doubt one of the nation’s top 15 teams.

Reason to mope: Bill Snyder has never won a game in which both K-State and its opponent were ranked in the top 10.

Looking ahead: K-State fans can start packing their bags for the Alamo Bowl, where the Wildcats will face a Pac-12 opponent, possibly Arizona, Arizona State or UCLA. K-State is a near lock to receive an invitation to the San Antonio bowl with Baylor and TCU heading to college football’s playoff or a playoff-affiliated bowl.

Notes

▪  Dylan Schellenberg left on a cart with an injury to his left leg in the first half. It appeared to be broken, which would leave him unlikely to play in K-State’s bowl game. The safety was having a good game with six tackles.

▪  Special guests at Saturday’s game included scouts with the Dallas Cowboys, Chicago Bears and Buffalo Bills. Bowl representatives were on hand from the Alamo, Russell Athletic, Cotton, Texas and Fiesta Bowls.

Kellis Robinett

This story was originally published December 6, 2014 at 11:42 PM with the headline "Wildcat report: Baylor 38, Kansas St. 27."