PLAYERS TO WATCH
–QB Skylar Thompson was declared the starter Kansas State was willing to use without substitution before the Sept. 22 loss at West Virginia. Thompson then struggled against the Mountaineers, prompting coach Bill Snyder to indicate QB Alex Delton played better after he entered in the fourth quarter. Snyder then walked back his comments while beginning preparations for Texas but clearly there is little separation at a position where the Wildcats are struggling, quarterback.
–WR Isaiah Zuber posted back-to-back 100-yard receiving games with 144 yards against UTSA and 133 at West Virginia. In the season opener against South Dakota, Zuber caught the game-winning touchdown pass after returning a punt 85 yards for a touchdown earlier in the fourth period. Consistency has held Zuber back in past seasons, but he is clearly the Wildcats’ go-to threat now.
–RB Alex Barnes does not possess breakaway speed, but the Kansas State staff pounds the 225-pound junior in hopes he can wear down defenders. He averages 69.2 yards per game, though that clip was fortified by a 100-yard performance in the opener against an FCS opponent. He also has seven catches for 65 yards.
–PK Blake Lynch, a walk-on who was awarded a scholarship after winning the kicking job in preseason camp, is 9-for-11 on field goals, the most makes through four games of any kicker coached by Snyder at Kansas State. Lynch ranks fifth nationally in field goals per game, though his misses from 52 and 50 yards indicate his deep range is suspect.
SERIES HISTORY: Kansas State leads Texas 10-8. QB Sam Ehlinger passed for 380 yards and two touchdowns last year as the Longhorns outlasted the Wildcats 40-34 in two overtimes. Ehlinger added 107 rushing yards in just his third collegiate start. QB Jesse Ertz threw two touchdown passes for Kansas State but removed himself in the third quarter and never played again for the Wildcats.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “Both of them (QBs Skylar Thompson and Alex Delton), I thought, did some very good things and both of them had some issues that we have to work through and deal with and become better at. Maybe there wasn’t as much differentiation as I may have indicated (after the West Virginia loss).” — Kansas State coach Bill Snyder.