K-State aims 'to go back to work' when Mountaineers visit Manhattan

MANHATTAN, Kan. — The message new Kansas State coach Chris Klieman delivered in the locker room after a gut-check loss at Texas last weekend was almost identical to the one he relayed after the Wildcats upended then-No. 5 Oklahoma to shake up the Big 12.

“We have to wipe it clean pretty quickly,” Klieman said, “and you have to go back to work.”

It is that blue-collar approach that has not only endeared Klieman to Kansas State faithful, but also allowed the Wildcats (6-3, 3-3) to exceed most outside expectations in his first season in charge. Yes, there was the victory over the Sooners. But there was also the rout of down-the-road rival Kansas, a road win over Mississippi State and a solid victory over TCU.

The Wildcats have a chance to add to their bowl-eligible resume, too. They face West Virginia (3-6, 1-5) on Saturday, then head to Texas Tech before wrapping up the regular season against Iowa State. None of those teams has a winning conference record.

Not that Klieman is taking anything for granted.

“We have to go back to work and have to continue to get better, continue to improve,” Klieman said. “I thought Texas did a really good job of shutting down our rushing attack. It’s something we have to get back going to set up everything we need to in the passing game. The guys are excited to be back playing at home, and we look forward to a great afternoon in Manhattan.”

The Mountaineers are also in their first season under a new coach, and it’s been a rocky start for Neal Brown. They have dropped five straight. Should they lose to K-State, they will have their first six-game losing streak since 1986.

Last week was especially ugly. The Mountaineers fell behind Texas Tech 35-10 in the first half, and an offense that once set all kinds of scoring records under Dana Holgorsen couldn’t catch up.

“We played as bad of a first half as you can play,” Brown said. “We gave up touchdowns on the first five drives. I don't think I've ever been part of a game like that. Everybody and everyone’s under evaluation.”

That includes quarterback. Austin Kendall was replaced late in the third quarter against Texas Tech by Bowling Green transfer Jarret Doege, who got his first action of the season.

“We've got a plan. I don't think it does me any good to share it,” Brown said. “Our quarterback play hasn't been tremendous, but it hasn't been the reason why we've struggled, either. On the areas that we've got to get fixed, that's not number one on the list.”

POINTS OVER YARDS

West Virginia outgained the Red Raiders last week but turned the ball over on downs several times deep in Texas Tech territory, while Kendall threw an interception into the end zone in triple coverage to end another drive.

“Struggling to run the ball in the red zone is really tough,” Brown said. “We had negative runs in the red zone. I like our pass plays. We didn't execute them.”

RUNNING WOES

Injuries along the West Virginia offensive line have played a part in the poor run game. The Mountaineers are averaging just 75.8 yards per game, third-worst in the Football Bowl Subdivision. The team has 682 rushing yards; K-State’s James Gilbert has 558 by himself.

SPEAKING OF GILBERT

The Wildcats’ leading rusher is dealing with an ankle injury that Klieman said “is just not responding as well as we would have hoped.” That puts Kansas State in a bind because Jordon Brown, his backup, has also been dealing with an ankle injury that limited him in practice this week. Third-string running back Joe Ervin was cleared to play this week after the freshman went through concussion tests.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Kansas State’s special teams were usually a game-changer under former coach Bill Snyder, and that appears to be the same with a new regime. Freshman wide receiver Joshua Youngblood returned a kick for a touchdown against Texas, though that hardly brightened his day. “We lost,” Youngblood said, “so it doesn’t really mean much to me if you don’t win.”

NO REGRETS

So that message about moving on that Klieman preached after the Texas loss? It appeared to have hit home with freshman defensive back Wayne Jones.

“We left a couple plays out there that should have been made,” he said, “so bouncing back from that is our biggest thing. Going through the process each and every day and just getting better.”