K-State to Open Big 12 Play at West Virginia

Game 4
Kansas State at 12/13 West Virginia

Date: Saturday, September 22, 2018

Kickoff: 2:30 p.m. (CT)

Location: Morgantown, W.Va.

Stadium: Milan Puskar Stadium (60,000)

Series: K-State leads, 5-3

WILDCATS OPEN BIG 12 PLAY ON THE ROAD AT NO. 12 WVU
Following a dominating bounce-back win over UTSA last week, K-State will hit the road for the first time in 2018 when it opens Big 12 Conference play at No. 12 West Virginia at 2:30 p.m. (CT), Saturday afternoon at Milan Puskar Stadium. The contest will be shown nationally on ESPN with Clay Matvick (play-by-play), Dan Orlovsky (analyst) and Paul Carcaterra (sidelines) on the call. The game can be heard across the 39-station K-State Sports Network with Wyatt Thompson (play-by-play), former K-State quarterback Stan Weber (analyst) and Matt Walters (sidelines) calling the action. The game will also be on Sirius channel 99, XM Channel 383 in addition to the TuneIn app. Live stats are available at k-statesports.com, and Twitter updates (@KStateFB) will also be a part of the coverage.

A LOOK AT K-STATE

K-State moved to 2-1 on the year with a 41-17 win over UTSA, a game it led 41-7 entering the fourth quarter.
K-State has played both Skylar Thompson and Alex Delton in the first three games, but Thompson settled in last week with a career-high 213 yards and three total touchdowns (2 pass, 1 rush). Thompson, who went 13-of-18 through the air, also rushed for 66 yards.
The running game is solidified by the Wildcats’ leading rusher a year ago, Alex Barnes, who is third in the Big 12 in rushing at 76.0 yards per game. He recorded the fourth 100-yard rushing game of his career in the season opener, but he has become more of a receiving threat this year with five catches for 58 yards.
Wide receiver Isaiah Zuber tallied the first 100-yard receiving day of his career against UTSA, going for 144 yards and a career-best two touchdowns. He also caught the game-winning touchdown pass late in the game against South Dakota and returned a punt 85 yards for a score against the Coyotes.
Defensively, K-State held South Dakota to just 77 yards on the ground and 334 total yards, while UTSA came away with 300 total yards, 119 of which came in the fourth quarter.
Senior defensive back Duke Shelley leads the team with 15 tackles and has six passes defended, the latter tying for second in the Big 12 and 11th nationally.
Junior defensive end Reggie Walker has eight tackles, which includes 2.0 tackles for loss and a sack. Fellow defensive end Kyle Ball notched his first sack of the year last week.
Needing to replace a four-year place kicker, Blake Lynch has stepped right in to connect on 6-of-7 field goals, including a 4-of-4 mark in his Wildcat debut against South Dakota. Lynch is tied for eighth nationally in field goals per game, and his only miss was a 52-yarder against the wind in the Mississippi State game.

A LOOK AT WEST VIRGINIA

West Virginia was off last Saturday as its game at NC State was canceled due to Hurricane Florence.
The 2-0 Mountaineers won a neutral-site meeting with Tennessee in week one before winning their home opener against Youngstown State on Sept. 8.
Big 12 Preseason Offensive Player of the Year Will Grier is 46-of-60 passing for 761 yards and nine touchdowns. Grier and the passing game have led WVU to 586.0 yards per game through two weeks to go along with 46.0 points per game.A LOOK AT THE SERIES
K-State leads the all-time series, 5-3, including a 4-2 mark since West Virginia joined the Big 12 in 2012. The Wildcats won the first four matchups as conference foes while WVU has won the last two.
The previous four meetings have been hotly contested as those games have been decided by an average of 3.25 points. The stretch includes a pair of one-point margins as K-State won at home, 24-23, in 2015 before the Mountaineers returned the favor with a 17-16 win in Morgantown in 2016.CONFERENCE CALL
K-State is an even 11-11 all-time in Big 12 openers, including a 6-3 mark since head coach Bill Snyder’s return in 2009.
The Wildcats saw a two-game Big 12-opening losing streak come to an end last season with a 33-20 victory over Baylor.BIG 12 ROAD OPENERS
Opening Big 12 play on the road is nothing new to the Wildcats as this weekend will be the 18th time in the 23-year history of the conference that K-State will open league play away from home (16 road, 2 neutral).
It is also the second time in three years that K-State will open Big 12 play at West Virginia, doing so in 2016 in a 17-16 loss.RYAN LACKEY
Director of Football and Golf Communications | K-State Athletics