LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Alan Bowman threw for 408 yards and three touchdowns while playing for the first time since suffering a partially collapsed lung three weeks ago, and Texas Tech beat Kansas 48-16 on Saturday.
“Looked like he never even had an injury,” receiver Antoine Wesley said.
Bowman completed 36 of 47 passes while showing accuracy on short and deep passes, with only one interception. The true freshman was the nation’s leading passer when he got crushed between two West Virginia defenders in Texas Tech’s last home game Sept. 29, and was released from the hospital four days later.
“It’s been a while. We just wanted to make sure practice went well. Didn’t want any setbacks,” coach Kliff Kingsbury said. “We felt confident … a few days after he got out of the hospital that he’d be ready for this date. We just wanted to make sure he held up, felt good. His breathing was fine.”
After coming out early in that loss to West Virginia, Bowman missed only one game. Jett Duffey started a 17-14 win at TCU. On his only drive in the fourth quarter Saturday, Duffey completed all three of his passes for 33 yards before DeMarcus Felton’s 34-yard TD run for a 48-9 lead.
Wesley, who entered the game third nationally with 117 yards receiving a game, had nine catches for 155 yards and a nifty one-handed grab for a 6-yard touchdown. T.J. Vasher and Seth Collins also had TD catches for the Red Raiders (5-2, 3-1 Big 12), who had 553 total yards despite three turnovers.
Kansas (2-5, 0-4) lost its 43rd consecutive true Big 12 road game, dating back to a 35-33 win at Iowa State on Oct. 4, 2008.
But the Jayhawks weren’t surprised to see Bowman in the game, no matter how coy Kingsbury had been about who would be his starting quarterback.
“Our defensive game plan was all around Bowman,” senior linebacker Joe Dineen Jr. said. “Our coaches knew that he was going to be able to go this week, so we really prepared for him.”
The Jayhawks played their first game since offensive coordinator Doug Meacham was fired. Peyton Bender threw for 221 yards and two touchdowns while freshman Pooka Williams had 16 carries for 70 yards to finish 38 yards below his rushing average that was second-best in the Big 12.
“We’re disappointed because we didn’t do enough to help us win,” coach David Beaty said of the overall offensive output. “We had a firm understanding of what we were doing. I think everybody felt comfortable there. They were engaged the entire time.”