MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Kansas State began last season with a shutout of South Dakota, ran roughshod through Missouri in Week 2, then faced a team from Tulane that the Wildcats were expected to beat at home.
They were dumped 17-10 and left searching for answers.
The Wildcats quickly found them, beating Oklahoma the following week and rolling to the Big 12 title game, where they beat College Football Playoff participant TCU for the championship. Those answers have stuck with the No. 15 Wildcats through a shutout of Southeast Missouri State to open the season and with Troy visiting Saturday — a team much like the Green Wave, talented and successful.
“We don’t want to have a moment like that where we have to kind of have a little reality check to learn from,” said Kansas State quarterback Will Howard, who threw for 297 yards and two scores while running for a touchdown and catching a TD pass in the 45-0 romp over the Redhawks. “We don’t want to have, like, a hiccup to come back from, you know?”
Perhaps the Wildcats (1-0) were overconfident a year ago. Or maybe they were looking ahead to their trip to Oklahoma. Whatever the reason, coach Chris Klieman’s bunch look nothing like the team that beat the Sooners when they lost to Tulane.
“Any team can beat you. I don’t really care what level they’re at,” Klieman said. “And that’s not just physically, that’s mentally; that’s emotionally. (Troy) is a really good football team and could beat a lot of Power Five schools.”
Indeed, the Trojans (1-0) played Ole Miss tough a year ago, and South Carolina down to the wire in 2021. They have two wins over Big 12 teams, beating ex-member Missouri in 2004 and Oklahoma State three years later. And they were 12-2 last season, winning the Sun Belt and the Cure Bowl while finishing 19th in the final AP Top 25 poll.
They opened last week with a 48-30 win over perennial FCS power Stephen F. Austin.
“The biggest part of this game is really putting us on the map,” said Troy offensive lineman Eli Russ, who played at Kansas State when he was at Oklahoma State. “I think a lot of people kind of doubt us. They say we’re a little bit of a smaller school. We’re not as athletic as these guys. But I disagree with that. I think we work harder than almost anybody.”
The question is whether hard work can overcome the Trojans’ shortcomings on the road against a Big 12 power.
“If we don’t play a lot better,” Troy coach Jon Sumrall warned, “it will be a blowout against us. This is a legitimate top-20 football team. If our guys aren’t excited about getting ready for this game, we’ve got problems.”
TROJANS’ HORSE
Troy running back Kimani Vidal ran for a school-record 248 yards on 25 carries a week ago. He’s eclipsed 200 yards in three of his last five games, and Vidal needs just 845 yards the rest of the season to break the school’s career rushing mark.
“He had some big home runs,” Klieman said. “He’s a physical runner. He’s got great vision, great quickness.”
NON-POWER FIVE WOES
