If you would have told me back in August that going in to week 10, Oklahoma State versus Kansas State would be one of the best games of the weekend, I might have agreed. Most people wouldn’t have though. Back then, this was just another pit stop on our way to a showdown with the Sooners.
I have a healthy respect for Kansas State coach Bill Snyder that dates back to the late 90’s. He took the worst football program in the NCAA to the top of the food chain. He then "retired"and saw his empire crumbling which prompted him to return. After two seasons back at the helm, he's got them back at the top of the food chain.
Sidenote: I'll never forget when we built a 28 point lead against them in Stillwater - and then lost. I'll also never forget the huge RB that Snyder put in against us that absolutely killed our D line. I really hope he doesn't remember that, but I know he does.
And that's why Kansas State concerns me a little bit. They are once again on the national radar and it's for no other reason than their head coach working his magic.
Now if you look back to August, Kansas State was picked to finish 8th in the Big 12 by the coaches. It is important to note that they were picked 7th by the CRFF writers. I had them finishing at 7-5 and Sam had them at 8-4. Royal actually gave us shit for picking them to win so many games (he had them at 4-8) so FU Royal! The point here is that the Wildcats have overachieved, and there are still 4 games left.
The bottom line here is that I really don’t think Kansas State is as bad as they looked last weekend. I don’t think they are BCS #8 either. At worst, they are a decent football team with a hall of fame coach. And that is why this is one of the best games of the weekend. There is a lot at stake here.
Kansas State on the other hand is in a must win situation if they want a shot at the Big 12 title and/or a BCS game. They are already behind OU thanks to the 41 point ass kicking last weekend and a loss to the Cowboys would put them out of the hunt.
The person I’ll be watching most is Kansas State QB Collin Klein. He is absolutely their team. He’s thrown for almost 1,000 yards and run for another 800. He has 24 total touchdowns. Stop him and you win. See last week. If Kansas State is going to have a chance at pulling the upset, Klein is going to have to have a big game. In order to that, he’s going to have to throw the ball more than he’s used to, and at this point he hasn’t shown the ability to do that.
It’s a stretch to say the Oklahoma State secondary will have their hands full, but I really think they will be a key to this game.
Snyder knows that Klein will have to have the game of his life for them to win so I expect to see him slinging it early and often. If he has success throwing early, that could play into their hand. If we stop him, it’s over and the Cowboys win by at least 30. Keep an eye on that purple #7.