Wildcat report (Dec. 6)

K-State players Deante Burton, left, and Kody Cook, center, celebrate late in Saturday’s victory. Bo Rader The Wichita Eagle

First quarter

Key play: Josh Lambert kicked a 45-yard field goal to give West Virginia a 3-0 lead.

Key stat: Neither team gained 100 yards of offense.

Second quarter

Key play: Skyler Howard hit Jovon Durante for a 24-yard touchdown pass to give West Virginia a 10-3 lead.

Key stat: West Virginia amassed 188 yards of offense.

Third quarter

Key play: Kody Cook connected with Deante Burton for a 77-yard touchdown pass to give K-State a 17-13 lead.

Key stat: Cook engineered two scoring drives after K-State managed a field goal in the first half.

Fourth quarter

Key play: Morgan Burns returned a kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown, giving K-State a 24-23 lead.

Key stat: West Virginia didn’t score in the final 13 minutes.

Player of the game

Junior LB Charmeachealle Moore made a game-high 17 tackles, including four for loss. He also made a key stop on fourth down in the final quarter.

Reason to hope

K-State had its back against the wall two weeks ago at 3-6 and responded with three straight victories. Now it gets a bowl game and 15 extra practices. This could be a nice springboard into next season.

Reason to mope

Imagine how much better K-State’s record might be if it had learned to finish games earlier in the season.

Looking ahead

The Wildcats will either play in the Liberty Bowl or the Cactus Bowl. If they end up in the Liberty (Memphis, Tenn.), which is likely, they will face a SEC opponent, potentially Arkansas.

Report card

Offense: C. The Wildcats accomplished little in the first half and were out-gained by nearly 150 yards. They made key plays in the second half, but needed special teams help to win this game.

Defense: B. K-State surrendered a large amount of yardage, but it came up with big plays when it had to make them.

Special teams: A+. Dana Holgorsen said K-State won the game on special teams, thanks to Morgan Burns totaling 201 return yards and a touchdown.

Coaching: B+. Bill Snyder and his staff deserve credit for keeping K-State fired up after a 3-6 start, and fighting back to a .500 record despite mounting injuries.

Kellis Robinett

This story was originally published December 5, 2015 at 9:41 PM with the headline "Wildcat report (Dec. 6) ."