Kansas State 29, Kansas 27: Sunflower streak continues in agonizing fashion | Sports

In the 15 consecutive years the Kansas Jayhawks have lost their annual Sunflower Showdown matchup against in-state rival Kansas State, it would seem that the constant losses would eventually become a dull pain.

After a up and down game, Kansas State capitalized on a late turnover to take a final late lead on a 51-yard field goal on Saturday from senior kicker Chris Tennant with 1:42 remaining to pull away on a picturesque central Kansas evening with their playoff hopes intact and Jayhawk dreams of an upset shattered yet again.

Redshirt junior quarterback Jalon Daniels completed 18 passes for 209 yards and one touchdown. Senior runningback Devin Neal tallied 66 yards on the ground with one touchdown that moved him to first in most total touchdowns in Kansas football history.

Sophomore quarterback Avery Johnson and junior runningback DJ Giddens led the Wildcats to the win, with Johnson completing 19 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns. Giddens rushed for 102 yards. 

Here’s how it happened:

A good start that could’ve been better 

The roaring crowd in “Fort Bill” did little to affect the Jayhawks in their opening sequence. An unconventional opening drive that did not feature the services of Devin Neal for half of it thanks to injury finished when Neal’s backup, redshirt junior running back Sevion Morrison, dashed 38 yards to the endzone on a third down off tackle run to give Kansas an early 7-0 lead. 

After stopping Kansas State’s opening drive and moving just over midfield, the Jayhawks had a golden opportunity to land a devastating second blow. A second down route combination left senior wide receiver Quentin Skinner with a full step on the Kansas State secondary. Jalon Daniels delivered a perfect deep ball that hit Skinner dead in the hands at the Kansas State goal line… and the ball squirted right through to turn a momentum-swinging big play to a drop. 

While Kansas left the first leading 7-0 with the Wildcats facing a third and 10 as time expired, it felt like a massive opportunity had gone right through blue and white hands. 

One big blunder leads to a huge swing 

Kansas State practically walked through the Kansas defense to equalize on a Johnson touchdown pass to redshirt freshman tight end Will Anciaux, but thankfully, Kansas was given

great field position as redshirt freshman cornerback Jaleel Croft Jr. caught the ensuing kickoff out of bounds. 

Or so it seemed. 

Replay review indicated that Croft had actually snagged the ball just in bounds, giving Kansas the ball at their own one yard line as opposed to the 35. 

On the ensuing play, Neal was met by a purple avalanche of Wildcat tacklers, falling in the endzone to produce a safety, then following a nice return on the safety kickoff Johnson and the Wildcats got rolling again. 

59 yards and a two yard Johnson toss to sophomore tight end Garrett Oakley later, the Wildcats had a two score lead with Kansas running just a single offensive play, for a safety, between the two Kansas State touchdowns.  

Two minute disaster… averted! 

Kansas closed the deficit as Daniels found senior wide receiver Luke Grimm for a 10 yard touchdown, but as Kansas State moved the ball on their next drive, the uncomfortable ghost of Kansas football – the team’s inability to close halves – drew near. 

But somehow, Kansas warded the ghosts away.

Great defense forced a Kansas State punt, but even after Daniels threw his first interception in nearly a month and had it run back nearly 50 yards, the defense remained resolute. Three straight incompletions before Avery Johnson’s Hail Mary pass was caught short of the end zone meant Kansas, for the first time since their season opener, finished the final two minutes of a first half without allowing a score. 

Topsy-Turvy in the third 

Explosive plays. Baffling turnovers. Lots of points. 

The third quarter had enough ups and downs for both sides to feel like a rollercoaster ride. 

Kansas State tore through the Kansas defense in just 105 seconds to reopen a 9-point lead on a 10-yard keeper from Johnson, only for Kansas to march back down in less than 5 minutes to pare the lead back down, only for senior kicker Tabor Allen to bang the extra point off the upright. 

Given a golden opportunity to extend the lead, Kansas State moved into Kansas territory on a big run from sophomore running back Dylan Edwards, only for Johnson to inexplicably drop the ball for a fumble recovered at the Kansas 26-yard line. 

Kansas, while unable to score off the turnover, forced another punt and finally did get into the endzone on a Daniels keeper, coming out of the wild quarter with a 27-23 lead on the scoreboard. 

The final blow 

After the unbelievably explosive third quarter, things settled to a crawl in the final stanza, with both sides trading clutch stop for a clutch stop as the deficit remained at just one agonizing point.

Then Jalon Daniels scrambled up the middle with 3:54 on the clock and everything fell apart. Sophomore linebacker Austin Romaine made a perfectly timed hit, sending the ball spilling across the green turf, and the Wildcats recovered in perfect position. 

While not gaining much, the Wildcats did enough to set the stage for the heroics of Tennant, who bombed home from 51 yards to stick the dagger in the Jayhawks. 

A final drive fell just short as Daniels, needing 7 yards on a fourth down to extend the game, found himself sandwiched between two defenders trying to scramble and lost the ball out of bounds, sending Kansas back to Lawrence and into their bye week with a lot to think about. 

What’s Next: 

Kansas is on their bye week before taking on the Iowa State Cyclones on November 9 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, MO.