Bill Snyder will let Kansas State players decide bowl fate if Wildcats finish 5-7

The plan is simple. Kansas State intends to defeat West Virginia on Saturday, finish the regular season 6-6 and accept a bowl invitation the old-fashioned way.

But that’s not the only path that could lead the Wildcats to the postseason.

Should they falter against the Mountaineers, they would still receive a bowl invitation with a losing record. There are 75 bowl-eligible teams (6-6 or better) ready to fill a record 80 bowl spots, and only three teams, including K-State, can reach the .500 cutoff this weekend.

That means at least two 5-7 teams, or as many as five, will make a bowl trip this season.

“I don’t want to think about that, in all honesty,” K-State coach Bill Snyder said. “That is not the direction we are trying to move right now.”

However, if the Wildcats lose this week and receive a bowl invitation, Snyder knows how he will handle it.

“It will be the option of our players,” Snyder said. “I will provide them the opportunity to make a decision on whether they would want to attend a bowl or not.”

K-State would likely accept a bowl invitation regardless of record. All bowl teams receive an extra 15 days of practice, which would be more valuable than usual for the Wildcats’ young roster, and players would get the reward of a postseason trip and bowl gifts.

Those likely outweigh the cost of bowl tickets and travel, as well as the risk of another loss.

“That has always been our approach,” Snyder said. “There is a great deal of value in bowl games, as it relates to the development of younger players and giving them the opportunity to have those additional 15 days of practice, which is another full spring practice. There is a great reward for that.”

Still, letting players choose is a unique twist on the decision-making process. There would be much more enthusiasm for a bowl at 6-6 than 5-7.

If K-State wins its final game of the regular season, the Cactus Bowl would be a possible bowl destination. There are six bowl-eligible teams in the Big 12 and Oklahoma appears headed for the playoff. The top Big 12 team to miss the playoff will go to the Sugar Bowl, and the next four will likely go to the Alamo, Russell Athletic, Texas and Liberty bowls.

The Cactus Bowl, formerly the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl, would have seventh priority, followed by the Heart of Dallas Bowl.

There is no telling where K-State might land at 5-7. There are no rules for bowls when it comes to selecting teams with losing records.

Only three teams with losing records have played in the postseason — Georgia Tech in 2012, UCLA in 2011 and North Texas in 2001. But those were special circumstances. Georgia Tech and UCLA both finished the regular season 6-6 and lost in their conference championship games. North Texas won its conference.

This season, there could be as many as 17 teams with five wins vying for bowl spots.

On Monday, the NCAA’s Football Oversight Committee announced that 5-7 teams would get bowl openings based on their Academic Progress Rate scores. Nebraska, already 5-7, has the highest APR of those teams at 985.

Missouri and K-State are tied for the second spot with APRs of 976, but Mizzou athletic director Mack Rhoades said the Tigers won’t seek a bowl bid. So K-State (5-6) is next if it loses Saturday.

Still, the Wildcats want to remove all doubt on their bowl fate by beating West Virginia.

“We have a statement to make,” sophomore linebacker Elijah Lee said. “We have something to play for. This is something we have been waiting for all season. It’s something you talk about before the season. We have got to get to a bowl game. It’s go big or go home now that we are in this position. It’s time to go big.”

Burns wins another honor

K-State defensive back Morgan Burns is once again the Big 12 special teams player of the week. He earned the honor for the third straight week on Monday following his big game against Kansas.

Burns is the first Big 12 player to earn a weekly award in three consecutive weeks since 2008, when former Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell pulled it off.

He did a little bit of everything against the Jayhawks, forcing a fumble, blocking a punt, scoring a touchdown and grabbing an interception. Burns has scored a special teams touchdown in three consecutive weeks. The other two were on kickoff returns.

OU leaves no doubt

A year after the Big 12 was left out of college football’s playoff, Oklahoma appears to be the first team to lock up a top-four spot this season. The Sooners left no doubt about their fate by clubbing Oklahoma State 58-23 on Saturday to finish 11-1.

They entered the game ranked third in the college football rankings, and no team is positioned to leapfrog them in the final standings.

Bob Stoops deserves consideration for national coach of the year awards for his work this season. Many left Oklahoma for dead when it shockingly lost to Texas, but it finished with seven straight wins to claim the Big 12 championship and give it a shot at the national prize.

Power rankings

1. Oklahoma (11-1, 8-1): The Sooners are a lock for the playoffs.

2. TCU (10-2, 7-2): Gary Patterson should be proud of a 10-win season, considering TCU’s injury woes.

3. Baylor (9-2, 6-2): Bears can still reach a major postseason game (Sugar Bowl) by beating Texas.

4. Oklahoma State (10-2, 7-2): First 10 games were magic. Final two were a nightmare.

5. West Virginia (7-4, 4-4): Other than Oklahoma, the Mountaineers are the league’s hottest team.

6. Texas Tech (7-5, 4-5): The Red Raiders had a solid season, but it was close to being great.

7. Kansas State (5-6, 2-6): Snyder is king of the Sunflower Showdown.

8. Texas (4-7, 3-5): Texas has the talent to beat most opponents, but its players lack discipline in close games.

9. Iowa State (3-9, 2-7): Cyclones could be much improved under new coach Matt Campbell next season.

10. Kansas (0-12, 0-9): A tough debut season for David Beaty, but new recruits should help in 2016.

This story was originally published November 30, 2015 at 1:36 PM with the headline "Bill Snyder will let Kansas State players decide bowl fate if Wildcats finish 5-7."