Coming off of a tough 19-14 loss to Texas last week, the Wildcats will head deep into the heart of Texas on Saturday to take on the Baylor Bears.
But as the Wildcats try to salvage what’s been a rough start to the season, head coach Bill Snyder has been silent on K-State’s quarterback situation, even as sophomore quarterback Skylar Thompson has seemed to be the team’s obvious first choice for Saturday’s start. The legendary coach even snapped at reporters Tuesday who probed Snyder on the starter position, telling them “write whatever the hell [they] want to write.”
After the Wildcat offense, led by junior quarterback Alex Delton, was shut out in the first half of last Saturday’s game, Thompson took over at quarterback for the second half, and the Wildcats rallied to hold the Longhorns scoreless in the second half before falling five points shy of a comeback.
K-State will head to Baylor this Saturday with a record of 2-3 on the year and 0-2 in conference play.
Related:
Once again, no decision on starting quarterback from Coach Snyder
Baylor faced conference favorite Oklahoma in Norman on Saturday and lost 66-33.The Bears defense could not contain Oklahoma’s Heisman hopeful Kyler Murray who was credited with seven touchdowns. Baylor is 3-2 on the season and 1-1 in the Big 12.
Baylor is a three-and-a-half point favorite over K-State this weekend.
History
K-State fans might still have some bad memories with the Wildcats’ upcoming trip to Waco. In 2012 the No. 1 ranked, undefeated Wildcats faced a four-win Baylor team.
The Bears shocked the nation and crushed the Wildcats 52-24.
K-State holds a 9-6 all-time series record over the Bears, but the Wildcats have not won consecutive games in Waco since 1998 and 2002.
A win on Saturday would push the Wildcats above .500 in Waco, the current record is 4-4.
In 2017, the Wildcats defeated the Bears 33-20 in Manhattan in the first Big 12 game of the season.
Quarterbacks by the numbers
The quarterback controversy has been a trend throughout the first five weeks of the 2018-19 season and it just might have hit its peak this week. In Snyder’s weekly press conference this week, he made it clear that both quarterbacks will play on Saturday, but also that he is done answering questions on the subject.
Neither quarterbacks were available to the media after the game against Texas or in the press conference on Tuesday.
Going into Saturday, Skylar Thompson has accounted for six touchdowns this season (4 passing, 2 rushing) with 601 passing yards and one interception and 175 rushing yards.
Thompson has played in all five games and has been the starter in the opening four games.
Alex Delton has thrown for 273 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions this season. He rushed for 143 yards and zero touchdowns through five games this season.
Players to watch
K-State: Senior free safety Eli Walker is coming off an 11-tackle game against Texas, the most by a Wildcat in a single game this season.
Junior linebacker Da’Quan Patton leads the team in tackles (30) and is 18th in the Big 12 and had eight tackles in the matchup against Texas.
Junior wide receiver Isaiah Zuber leads all K-State wide receivers in yards (389) and touchdowns (3).
Baylor: Sophomore quarterback Charlie Brewer has thrown for 1,262 yards, eight touchdowns, and one interception through five games this season. Last week against Oklahoma, Brewer threw for 400 yards and two touchdowns.
Wide receivers Jalen Hurd and Denzel Mims each had over 100 receiving yards in the game against Oklahoma.
Through five games, Hurd leads the Bears in receiving yards (415) and has five touchdowns on the year.
It will be crucial for the Wildcats to stop junior running back JaMycal Hasty both on the ground and as a receiver on Saturday.
Hasty has 225 rushing yards and three touchdowns this season but also has 16 receptions for 122 yards and a touchdown.
How to watch
The Wildcats and the Bears will face off at 2:30 p.m. on FS1 and you can stream with the FOX Sports Go app or through various streaming services.
Fans can also listen to the radio broadcast on the K-State Sports Network.
