Texas Tech Aims To Halt Kansas State’s Comeback Surge
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When Kansas State started the year 1-3, many in the college football realm left the Wildcats for dead.
The most damning loss came to Army on Sept. 6, 24-21, just a week after the Black Knights lost to FCS foe Tarleton State 30-27. Army didn’t do KSU any favors after the upset win in Manhattan, Kan. The Black Knights went on to lose to North Texas 45-38 and East Carolina 28-6.
The Wildcats then expounded upon that loss to Army with another dud at Arizona, a 23-17 faltering that sent them to a 1-3 record. A team considered by many as a favorite to win the Big 12 championship this December became the cautionary tale of college football.
However, what Kansas State coach Chris Klieman did next raised plenty of eyebrows in the Little Apple. He re-opened fall camp during the team’s first bye week in mid-September.
“We just went back to what we do in fall camp — good against good,” Klieman said at his press conference. “Our best against our best in all different situations, from first downs to third downs to inside run to red zone to 7-on-7 to everything. Then we went and evaluated as if we were just in the middle of August.”
The evaluation came during a stretch of the season when Kansas State could have spent its week off resting and getting more game prep in for its showdown with UCF. However, Klieman said they didn’t even think about UCF — not a walk-through, film session or anything similar.
“We weren’t a very good football team and needed to go back to what we missed in fall camp by flipping the script because of how the schedule dictated by going to Ireland,” Klieman said. “We needed another week of fall camp, and it came at the right time because I didn’t think our guys’ bodies were beat up because it was still early enough in the season, and we weren’t playing very well.”
It's been more than two months since, but you might remember Kansas State played in the very first college football game of the 2025 season — a Week 0 showdown with conference rival Iowa State in Dublin, Ireland. That too resulted in a 24-21 loss, but the way the Wildcats played in the game left many fans thinking they’d be just fine once they got back stateside.
Instead, the loss to the Cyclones nearly led to a catastrophic upset, a narrow win over North Dakota, only to be followed up by the actual catastrophic upset to Army the following week. During the Wildcats' “second” fall camp, Klieman also decided to alter how the team prepared for its opponents each week.
He moved their Friday walk-throughs to Thursday. Instead, Kansas State actually practices on Fridays, just 24 hours before the team kicks off. Ultimately, it’s a strategy that’s worked as KSU has won three of its last four games, which suggests the uptick in intensity on Fridays is carrying over to what they do on the field on Saturdays.
“You’ve got to buy into it if you’re going to make a change when you’re not having success, and our kids did that,” Klieman said. “I also know as every team is going through, you can’t practice as much right now. Everybody’s banged up and beat up and we’re no different. We’ve got to do a really good job with our film preparation and with our walkthrough looks, then taking care of our bodies.”
Despite key injuries to players like running back Dylan Edwards, the Wildcats have been able to climb back into the hunt for at least a bowl game this season. KSU sits at 4-4 with its toughest test yet staring the team in the face — a showdown with No. 13 Texas Tech in Manhattan.
Over the past few weeks, Kansas State has been able to flex its muscle a bit against teams like TCU and in-state rival Kansas. KSU proved to be far more physical at the point of attack, and it led to convincing wins over both teams. However, this week, the team putting its hands down on the other side of the trenches will be just as physical, if not more.
“They have a really good offensive line,” Klieman said of the Red Raiders' front. “They’ve got a one-two punch back there. They can really rush the football well. Then they’re getting so many explosive plays outside with their tight ends and their wideouts that you’ve got to kind of pick your poison."
"Are you going to play a two-deep look and try to take away some of those shots? Then it opens up big gaps for those guys. Or, are you going to put everybody up in the run — then you’re going to give up some shots.”
Texas Tech’s diversified approach on offense has led to a lot of wins despite various quarterbacks being under center for them this fall. The injury bug has bitten TTU early and often, but its Week 1 starter will be back on the field Saturday as Behren Morton is set to return.
Early on in the season, Morton was a catalyst for Texas Tech taking control of games early, but it doesn’t hurt either when the Red Raiders have proven to have a very opportunistic defense through this part of the season.
“You can tell they’re jumping on people fast because they’re so disruptive on defense and getting short fields,” Klieman said. “The team is as good as anybody of punching the ball out. I think the [Jacob] Rodriguez kid is one of the best linebackers in the country, and they’re as good as anybody at punching the ball out. They’ve done that time and time again in critical situations.”
There’s only one team better at taking the ball away in the Power Four conferences than Kansas State. The Wildcats currently rank third in the country in turnovers created with 17, and Texas Tech has certainly made ball security an emphasis during its practices this week.
Ultimately, Klieman says it’s just about his kids being opportunistic while still playing smart football.
“Sometimes they come in bunches, but you’ve got to emphasize it,” Klieman said of his team’s advantage in the turnover battle. “We’re doing turnover circuits all the time. We’re stripping our backs and stuff, and you see it in practice as well. That’s been a big part of our success, the fact that, knock on wood, we have not turned the football over on offense and we’ve gotten those turnovers on defense.”
That sure played out this past weekend in the Sunflower Showdown against in-state foe Kansas. The Jayhawks didn’t have an answer against their bitter rival, as KSU ran up and down the field on them. The Wildcats outrushed KU by only 30 yards (140-110), but the game was truly won through the air and via the turnover.
KSU quarterback Avery Johnson completed just 11 passes in the game, but they resulted in 231 yards passing. That, of course, included the 78-yard touchdown pass to Jayce Brown in the third quarter that put the Wildcats up 35-17 heading into the fourth quarter.
As for the turnovers, Kansas State recorded two interceptions as well as a fumble recovery for a 20-yard touchdown in the first quarter when the game was tied 7-7. It’s safe to say the “fumble-six” was the gut punch that KU simply never responded from, and it had Klieman awfully proud of his team during the dominant road performance.
“I thought we were able to get pressure with four guys,” Klieman said. “I thought that was a huge thing for us. We blitzed him some, then we just changed a bunch of looks in the back end. You have to because he’s played so many snaps. If you line up and he knows it’s man, he’s going to pick you apart.”
The Wildcats have ridden that performance into a fun week of practice as they continue to prepare for their toughest test of the season. Texas Tech enters the contest 7-1 and just a few weeks removed from its only loss of the season — a 26-22 road setback at Arizona State.
Klieman said winning the way his team did against KU last weekend only bumps up the expectations for his bunch with the Red Raiders in town.
“There’s not a lot of people who thought we were going to win that game and then go and dominate that game,” Klieman said. “That brings a lot of energy to the team, and it brings a lot of energy to the program. Now it just raises the stakes, and it gets tougher and tougher. We’ve got a really good football team coming in here in Texas Tech and [I’m] excited to have them at home. We’ve got to come up with great plans, got to have great focus because it’s going to be a heck of a battle here at the Bill.”
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Spencer Schubert is a born-and-raised Nebraskan who now calls Hastings home. He grew up in Kearney idolizing the Huskers as every kid in Nebraska did in the 1990s, and he turned that passion into a career of covering the Big Red. Schubert graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2009, and kickstarted what's now become a 17 year career in journalism. He's served in a variety of roles in broadcasting, including weekend sports anchor at KHGI-TV(NTV) in Kearney, Sports Director at WOAY-TV in West Virginia and Assistant News Director, Executive Producer and Evening News Anchor for KSNB-TV(Local4) in Hastings. Off the clock, you'll likely find Schubert with a golf club in his hand and spending time with his wife, 5-year-old daughter and dog Emmy.