The Kansas State offense erupted as the Wildcats cruised to a 41-17 victory over UTSA on Saturday in the final non-conference game of the season.
After two weeks of offensive struggles, the Wildcat offense came out firing on all cylinders.
The Wildcats opened the game with a 10 play, 78-yard drive that ended in a two-yard touchdown rush by junior running back Alex Barnes, the first rushing touchdown this season by K-State.
After the game, head coach Bill Snyder talked about the importance of starting the game with a touchdown.
“To think about it, that is the first touchdown we have scored in the first half for the season. It was significant, and it is just something you have to be able to do,” Snyder said.
Over the last two weeks, Barnes has apologized about the performances of the offense, but on Saturday, he talked about scoring the first rushing touchdown of the season.
“It felt really good, you know. We needed that momentum going in. You know we’ve been struggling the last two weeks, and it was reassuring for all of us to finally get in there,” Barnes said.
Sophomore quarterback Skylar Thompson explained how important it was for the offense to start the game well.
“Coming into this game we really wanted to build momentum going into Big 12 play and really wanted to put emphasis on starting the game well,” Thompson said.
K-State had more passing yards in the first quarter against UTSA (106) than it had all of last week against Mississippi State (100).
Snyder talked about how the key to offensive success today was the men up front. Snyder said that the key to a successful passing game is the protection up front, and today the offensive lineman gave the quarterbacks time to throw.
The protection from the offensive line was evident as quarterbacks Thompson and junior Alex Delton went 14-for-19 for 285 yards and three passing touchdowns.
The Wildcats will be looking to continue their offensive momentum as they begin Big 12 play next week on the road against West Virginia.