MANHATTAN, Kan. _ A global pandemic couldn't stop Kansas State from playing its first football game of the year on Saturday at Bill Snyder Family Stadium, but Arkansas State did prevent the Wildcats from beginning this unprecedented season with a victory.
K-State didn't do nearly enough things right to beat the Red Wolves in front of a socially distanced home crowd of 11,041, and the Wildcats paid the price with a 35-31 loss. It was their first loss in a home-opener since 2013.
The Red Wolves won the game on a touchdown catch from star receiver Jonathan Adams with 38 seconds remaining, and then a defensive stand that kept the Wildcats out of the end zone.
The game appropriately ended with Skylar Thompson overthrowing a pass intended for Phillip Brooks. The Wildcats were close to connecting on several big plays throughout the afternoon, particularly on long passes over the middle, but there were obvious signs of rust in their passing attack and serious signs of mediocre talent in their running game.
"I thought we left some plays out there," Thompson said. "There are three or four that I can think of that were just inches off or I missed a throw or misjudged on a ball and just couldn't get on the same page there a couple times. But all things considered, I thought we made some good plays, we just didn't make enough today."
K-State was mostly solid on defense but struggled mightily to stop Adams and allowed Arkansas State to convert three key trick plays that factored largely into the result.
Adams was trouble for K-State all day long, showing off elite play-making skills on his way to eight catches for 98 yards and three touchdowns on just 10 targets. He may be one of the best receivers the Wildcats face all season, even with a full Big 12 schedule in their future.
"He was too good today," K-State coach Chris Klieman said. "A couple times today we had our back to the football and didn't turn back and make a play. On two of the touchdowns he had, we had good vision on him and he went over the top of us and made a play. And then the last play, we tried to double him and we kind of fell off a coverage and you can't do that against a really good player. Give that kid credit, he's a phenomenal player."
Still, the Wildcats were in position to escape with victory when Blake Lynch nailed a 35-yard field goal to give them a 31-28 lead with 2:30 remaining in the fourth quarter. They simply couldn't keep the Red Wolves and Adams out of the end zone.
K-State tried to defend Adams with man coverage from A.J. Parker in the red zone. Some will wonder why the Wildcats didn't do more to make someone else beat them.
In any case, there were no style points associated with this performance for the Wildcats.
They looked sloppy in many areas and will no doubt enter their Big 12 opener at Oklahoma in two weeks lamenting how many big plays they left on the field in this one.
"A variety of things killed us," Klieman said. "We didn't block well enough up front is the first thing. I think everyone could see after the play at the two-yard-line where Skylar got hit, he struggled to move around after that. It was not a severe injury, but he did not have the same mobility as he typically does. Once again, we have to make plays. I know that there are some receivers that aren't out there, but the guys that are out there we have to make plays, and we had a couple of opportunities to make big plays and we didn't."
An unusual offseason filled with quarantine, COVID tests and sporadic tests likely attributed to the disappointing start. So did player absences, as the Wildcats played this game without nearly two dozen players and most of their scholarship wide receivers.
Injuries on the offensive line were also a problem. Starting center Noah Johnson hurt his right arm in the first half, and K-State had to experiment with Ben Adler and Haydem Gillum handling snaps afterward. That led to some issues.
The Wildcats also suffered personnel losses in the secondary, including starters Jahron McPherson early and Wayne Jones late. Klieman pointed out they were down to third-string players at some positions.
K-State showed some positive signs in the passing game, with Thompson completing 17 of 29 passes for 259 yards and two touchdowns. But his numbers would have been a whole lot letter better had he been more accurate on his deep throws.
Freshman Deuce Vaughn looked good in his debut at running back, but the Wildcats otherwise struggled to move the ball on the ground, finishing with just 91 rushing yards as a team.
The weird thing about this game was that it got off to a dream start for the Wildcats.
New coordinator Joe Klanderman's time in charge of the defense began with a three-and-out, and K-State followed it up with a blocked punt by redshirt freshman defensive back Will Jones. That gave the Wildcats excellent field position, and they took advantage two plays later with a 17-yard touchdown pass from Thompson to Brooks.
Thompson celebrated the score by turning to the K-State student section and flexing his muscles, perhaps a sign of how much he missed being on the football field over the past six months.
Arkansas State tied things up with a two-yard pass from Logan Bonner to Adams on the ensuing drive, but that did little slow K-State's early momentum.
The Wildcats looked like the better team throughout the first half, especially when they pulled ahead 21-7 at the 8:41 mark of the second quarter following a short touchdown run from Vaughn and a seven-yard touchdown catch from Thompson to Briley Moore.
Things began to shift in Arkansas State's favor after that, though. The Red Wolves closed out the scoring in the first half with a 48-yard touchdown pass on a trick play that involved running back Jeff Foreman completing a 48-yard pass to Roshauud Paul.
Trick plays were a weak spot for K-State's defense all day. They allowed Arkansas State to convert a fake punt via penalty and conceded another halfback pass for big yardage in the second half.
Those big plays eventually added up for the Red Wolves. They took a 28-21 lead with 11:49 remaining in the fourth quarter. Their offense was beginning to cluck, while the Wildcats appeared to be stuck in mud.
K-State battled back to take a 31-28 lead but was unable to hang on for victory.
It was Arkansas State that walked away with a signature victory.
"I'm obviously excited about the win," Arkansas State coach Blake Anderson said. "Excited, but not surprised. I was really clear with our guys all week that I felt like we had a very good opportunity to win. I think the guys absolutely believed that to be true, they played that way even when things didn't go great. We made a lot of mistakes. We cleaned up some issues from a week ago and played better, which is encouraging but it's not our best football."
