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K-State Slate: 10.5.14 - Embrace the Carnage

K-State won yesterday, but a whole bunch of other teams didn't.

By wildcat00
Scott Sewell-USA TODAY Sports

Chaos.

Anyone who really watches college football has an intimate relationship with the term. But I cannot remember the last time this many undefeated teams fell by the wayside (ETA: it was 1990, which is too long ago to actually remember).

Oregon, Alabama and Oklahoma? Thanks for playing, but maybe we'll talk again in December. Texas A&M, UCLA, and BYU? Nobody really believed in you guys, so thanks for proving everyone right. Oh, and Nebraska? HAHAHAHAHAHA!

Florida State, Auburn, and Baylor? Thanks for holding steady, but forewarned is forearmed. Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Georgia Tech and TCU? Welcome to the big time. Hopefully, you get to stay longer than a week. Also, Notre Dame? We're not really paying attention to you just yet, mostly because we're resentful. But we'll come back to you in a couple of weeks.

Here's the obligatory list of post-game recaps for the Texas Tech game: from the K-State SID, from Big12Sports, from FOXSports, from ESPN, a by-the-numbers breakdown from Kansas.com, from the Collegian, and from our own Jon Morse: Succeeding the Wrong Way.

Despite our concerns over the offense, there is no denying the huge numbers Jake Waters put up in the win over Texas Tech, as noted by Tony Adame in the Wichita Eagle. Waters had 395 total yards (290 passing, 105 rushing), and fell just short of equaling Michael Bishop's 300-100 feat from 1998.

On a day when Waters was not necessarily at his best, he had plenty of help from his receivers. Tyler Lockett had 12 catches for 125 yards, and two touchdowns, which helped him move past Jordy Nelson into the #3 spot on the all-time touchdown list. He's just five scores away from surpassing his father, Kevin Lockett.

No recap of yesterday's game would be complete without a nod to Curry Sexton, who not only had 128 yards on nine catches, but also this physics-defying catch:

Overall, K-State seems to have found the always elusive offensive balance. As noted by Austin Earl in the Collegian, the running game is inconsistent but capable of big plays, and with Sexton emerging as a reliable #2 receiver, the passing game can only get better as the season progresses.

Tim Bisel, in his piece for the Topeka Capital-Journal, notes the defense came to play, and an early interception by Morgan Burns turned the tide of the game. Texas Tech never really found any offensive rhythm after that.

The view from Lubbock is less rosy, of course. Wide receiver Jakeem Grant said they laid a goose egg, and Kliff Kingsbury could not find a silver lining either.

Elsewhere in the Big 12, Oklahoma State blew out Iowa State 37-20, but a controversial reversal at the end of the first half had Iowa State athletic director Jaime Pollard seeing red. Note: the link is to video from CBSSports.com.

Kansas lost to West Virginia 33-14. This was the Jayhawks' 26th consecutive loss on the road. On a day when Clint Trickett threw for over 300 yards, his counterpart Montell Cozart was pulled after an ineffective first half, but his backups did not fare any better. A 76-yard punt return touchdown by Nick Harwell was the only spark for Kansas in the second half.

In the big showdown of undefeated teams in Fort Worth, TCU upset the balance of power and proved the team is ready for the spotlight. Going toe-to-toe with Oklahoma on offense, the Horned Frogs' defensive effort finally put the Sooners away in the waning minutes of the game. Up next for TCU is another huge matchup with an undefeated team when they travel to Baylor next week.

Baylor had its own struggles beating Texas in a game that was closer than the 28-7 scoreline would suggest. The Longhorns' defense was so solid that Baylor was forced to rely on its running game and special teams to win the contest.

The football team was not the only one beating up on Texas Tech. The volleyball team won its 15th match of the year with a sweep of Texas Tech in Lubbock. Kylee Zumach led the team with 15 kills and Katie Reininger had 11 kills and four blocks in the effort. This was the team's first win over Texas Tech in three seasons, and brings the total of road wins for K-State up to five this season.

K-State's Laura Galvan led the women in the 5K event and a third place finish overall at the Chile Pepper Festival in Fayetteville, Arkansas The event included a strong field featuring 80 collegiate teams, and new head coach Ryun Godfrey was pleased with the effort. The men's team finished 16th out of a 27-team field.

Fresh off their success at the Jack Nicklaus Invitation, the men's golf team is headed back to Ohio for the Firestone Invitational starting tomorrow in Akron.

The rowing team had a solid start to the new season. Six K-State boats finished in the Top 10 at the Head of the Oklahoma (HOTO) event, including a third-place finish for the boat headed up by senior captain Meggie Murray. Up next is the Jayhawk Jamboree in Lawrence.