Picture courtesy of Kansas State
Collin Klein celebrated his birthday, Avery Johnson celebrated a piece of Kansas State history, and the Wildcats overcame early adversity to conclude an unblemished non-conference season with a 31-20 win over Tulane on Saturday at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
Johnson became the first player in K-State history to reach 200 passing yards and 150 rushing yards in a single game, and the senior did so by completing 21-of-28 passes for 227 yards and rushing 12 times for 152 yards and two touchdowns, to account for 379 of 428 total yards for the Wildcats.
K-State, 3-0, wraps up its first non-conference season under Klein unbeaten while keeping Tulane, 1-2, from repeating its upset win in Manhattan in 2022 — an outcome that stuck with Klein during this week.
“We were 1-0 today, and truly that’s all that matters,” Klein said. “I’ll definitely probably enjoy my birthday a lot more that way, for sure. At the end of the day, I’m proud of the guys, I’m proud of where we’re going, and we just have to keep our heads down and learn our lessons to continue to make ourselves better, more efficient and to maximize our ability.”
K-State enjoyed one of its best non-conference seasons in since the Big 12 Conference began in 1996, as its offense averaged 45.3 points and 419.3 total yards, and its defense allowed an average of 10.0 points and 182.7 total yards — non-conference statistics that collectively rank near the top of K-State teams over the last 30 years.
Interestingly, the Wildcats, who outscored Nicholls (71-3) and Washington State (34-7), actually trailed for the first time this season on Saturday.
Tulane took a 7-0 lead on a 9-yard run by quarterback Kadin Semonza midway through the first quarter before Johnson led the Wildcats to 17 straight points.
“Really, really pleased with the effort collectively,” Klein said. “We were able to settle in offensively after the first couple drives, and the defense made them kick some field goals on some good drives.
“Lot to fix. Lot to tighten up.”
After K-State built a 10-7 lead, Johnson darted 66 yards around the right side and down the sideline. Then Johnson ran seven more yards for a touchdown and a 17-7 advantage. The three-play, 73-yard drive gave Johnson 106 rushing yards for the game.
He and his teammates were just getting rolling.
“I’m hungry for wins and the accolades that come along with it, I’ll always be grateful for,” Johnson said. “The biggest thing is to be 3-0 right now. It’s a really good feeling. Going into conference play 3-0, we’re in a great spot, but now is not the time to take our foot off the gas.”
Johnson, as he typically does, revved it up. It’s a part of why Johnson, who made his 29th career start, became the first player in K-State history to reach 6,000 passing yards and 1,500 rushing yards in a career.
“It’s just the way he keeps working the game, seeing pictures, and giving our guys chances with the football,” Klein said. “I was really proud of how he competed the whole game.”
Tulane kicker Cooper Helmke hit a 58-yard field goal and K-State took a 17-10 lead at halftime.
K-State used a lengthy first drive of the third quarter to reach its largest lead — a 14-play, 75-yard jaunt that consumed 8:15 and ended with Jay Harris’ second touchdown to make it 24-10. On the drive, K-State chipped away into Tulane territory. On fourth-and-1, Johnson pitched it forward to tight end Linkon Cure, who ran left to right, caught the edge and leaned the ball to the 2-yard line before Harris plowed into the end zone.
“You get Jay coming in with fresh legs on the goal line, and that dude could have nobody blocking for him, and it’d be hard for him not to get a yard because of how big, strong and physical of a runner he is,” Johnson said. “They couldn’t stop him from getting into the end zone.”
Tulane struggled to stop K-State wide receiver Jaron Tibbs as well. Tibbs, a senior who transferred from Purdue prior to last season, had career highs with nine catches for 114 yards. It included a 33-yard reception — Johnson’s longest completion of the game — and kept the Green Wave defenders on their toes.
“We really just continued to do us like we do every day,” Tibbs said. “You could feel it on the field that they started to break down, and stopped rushing as hard, and defensive backs stopped coming up and pressing as much, and we just played us. They kept breaking down and we found our way into the end zone.”
Tibbs is eager for what’s to come as K-State opens its Big 12 season at Cincinnati next Saturday.
“This gives us a lot of confidence going into the Big 12,” Tibbs said. “We played three quality opponents, and we still have a lot to learn but while still winning comfortably. It gives us a lot of confidence in what we have and in what we can improve upon. There’s still a ton of season left. I’m excited to see the progression from Game 1 to Game 12.”
K-State’s defense came to play as well during a final tune-up before league play. The Wildcats allowed the Green Wave just 260 total yards, meaning that they haven’t allowed an opponent to reach 300 total yards in three straight full games for the first time since 2007.
K-State collected six sacks and 12.0 tackles for loss. Jayden Bryant had two sacks, Darien Whitaker Jr. had 1.5 sacks, and Mekhi Mason and Elijah Hill each had a sack.
“Once we got settled in and knew what they were trying to do, we were pretty solid,” linebacker Gabe Powers said. “We go to 3-0 with a lot of confidence. We did what we had to do. Today wasn’t our best performance defensively. The first two weeks there wasn’t a time when they punched it in there or anything. It was good to have adversity and fight through it. It was good experience. We’ll be a lot better now.”
Helmke wouldn’t let Tulane go away. After K-State halted the Green Wave following a 10-play, 40-yard drive, Helmke drilled a 53-yarder to cut their deficit to 24-13 with 1:22 left in the third quarter.
But Johnson and K-State weren’t finished, either. Johnson rushed 25 yards to key a 7-play, 58-yard drive that ended with — another Johnson touchdown run. This one covered 12 yards around the right side and really put things away with a 31-13 margin and just 9:06 left in the fourth quarter.
K-State learned some things along the way. Klein appeared pleased.
“I told the guys right after the game, every football game, that’s what it is, and learning how to work through that and learning to love the fire of that competition and the heat of that is a great thing,” Klein said. “Them embracing that together, it builds those relationships, trust and dependability when it matters and when they’re stressed. Those are the games you want to play in, that are competitive, and when there’s stress on the line.”
