Kansas State heads to Fort Worth still searching for the right answer at quarterback, and the timing could hardly be tougher.
The Wildcats are expected to keep juggling options Saturday against TCU, with Avery Johnson still sidelined after suffering a neck/shoulder injury against Kansas on Oct. 17.
Since then, Kansas State has started Jacob Knuth, Dillon Duff and Blake Barnett, and the results have not turned the season around. The Wildcats are 4-5 overall and 1-5 in Big 12 play, with losses in all three games since Johnson went down.
Knuth, who is dealing with an ankle injury, is expected to miss his third straight game. Barnett got the start last week in a 66-28 home loss to Oklahoma State, finishing 7 of 17 for 106 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Duff came on in relief and threw for 94 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
Kansas State coach Collin Klein still has not named a starter, and he said both quarterbacks could see action against the Horned Frogs.
"It’s not anything to do with those guys," Klein said. "They are both going to compete this week and get a lot of reps, and we will see how it goes through the week."
The challenge on the other side is a TCU defense that has been the Big 12’s toughest to score on. The Horned Frogs are allowing a conference-best 15.8 points per game, and Klein pointed to the group’s front as the driving force.
"Their front seven is extremely disruptive," Klein said. "They can rush the passer. They get off blocks and destroy blocks in the run game."
TCU enters at 4-5 overall and 2-4 in the Big 12, and its offense has had its own issues. The Horned Frogs are averaging a conference-low 107.3 rushing yards per game and rank second to last in scoring at 23.8 points per game.
They’ve dropped two of their last three, including a 29-28 loss at then-No. 24 Arizona last Friday. In that game, quarterback Jaden Craig threw for 232 yards with a touchdown and an interception while also running for two scores.
"We got better," TCU coach Sonny Dykes said. "But we are nowhere near where we need to be."
Even with the close calls, the Horned Frogs have not found a way to finish. All five of their losses have come by one score.
"The one thing we always prided ourselves on was the ability to win close games," Dykes said. "It seems like, for whatever reason, this year it hasn’t been the case."
In Other News...
Kansas State Faces A Strange New Disruption Before TCU Kickoff
Kansas States trip to Fort Worth turned into an unusual pregame wrinkle Friday when the Wildcats were unable to leave Manhattan Regional Airport because of a national FAA ground stop on all air travel. Instead of settling in the night before, the team will now travel Saturday morning for its Big 12 matchup with TCU, a game set for 1 p.m. CT at Amon G. Carter Stadium.
It is the kind of disruption no team wants on the eve of kickoff, especially with a conference road game waiting and a quick turnaround built into the schedule. The Wildcats will still have the game in front of them on ESPNU and ESPN+, but the logistics of getting there just became part of the story, and it leaves a little extra uncertainty around how smoothly their Saturday unfolds once they finally arrive. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas State Loss Put TCUs Biggest Late-Season Question Under The Spotlight
TCUs 20-10 win over Kansas State did more than even the Horned Frogs at 5-5. It also put a familiar late-season question back in focus for the Wildcats, whose offense spent much of the afternoon fighting for space against a defense that was steady, physical and patient enough to make every drive feel longer than it should have.
The Horned Frogs did not need a flashy performance to come away with the result. They got contributions from several players, including Koron Hayward and Kari Ashley, and showed a more balanced attack with multiple options involved in both the rushing and passing game. For Kansas State, the loss was another reminder that the margin for error is shrinking, and the bigger concern now is whether there is enough time to answer the question this result put back in the spotlight. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas States Ugly Skid Just Put One Offensive Problem Back In Focus
Travel delays tied to an FAA ground stop were part of the backdrop Saturday, but Kansas States bigger issue was on the field. The Wildcats fell 20-10 to TCU, their fourth straight loss, and the defeat pushed them to last place in the Big 12 standings. A costly fumble by Rodney Fields helped tilt the game, and the offense never found enough rhythm to overcome a defense that kept getting pressured and put in tough spots.
Dillon Duff was sacked five times as TCUs defense controlled enough of the afternoon to make Kansas State chase the game from behind. For a team already trying to stop an ugly slide, the loss put the offense back under a harsh spotlight, with protection issues and ball security once again standing out as problems that have to be cleaned up fast. [Read more 🡒]