A LOOK AT K-STATE
• K-State has put together four solid outings in the last five weeks in wins over Texas Tech, TCU, Kansas and West Virginia.
• Skylar Thompson has put together the best passing stretch of his career in the last seven games. During that time, Thompson has thrown for 1,614 yards and nine touchdowns with just two interceptions on 129-of-187 (70.0%) aim.
• Thompson enters the week ranked 14th nationally in passing yards per attempt (9.04) and completion percentage (68.8%).
• Thompson's favorite receiver this year has been Deuce Vaughn, who leads the team with 45 receptions for 464 yards and three scores.
• A Doak Walker Award Semifinalist, Vaughn has totaled 602 yards from scrimmage over the last five games (120.4 yards per game), which includes 100-yard rushing games against No. 11 Baylor, KU, West Virginia and TCU.
• This year, Vaughn has totaled 1,579 scrimmage yards (1,115 rush/464 receive) and 17 total touchdowns. He ranks fourth nationally in scrimmage yards per game (143.5).
• In his 21 career games, Vaughn has at least 100 scrimmage yards 16 times, which includes each of the last 13 games.
• Receivers Phillip Brooks, Malik Knowles and Landry Weber have combined for 75 catches for 1,053 yards and five scores.
• The Wildcats, deploying a new 3-3-5 look and regularly rotating in over 25 players on defense, rank 21st in the nation and second in the Big 12 against the run (118.5 yds/gm).
• Linebackers Daniel Green (72) and Cody Fletcher (64) lead the team in tackles.
• Felix Anudike-Uzomah leads the nation in forced fumbles with six – which is tied for the school record – while he is third in sacks (11.0) and 12th in tackles for loss (14.5). A native of Lee's Summit, Missouri, Anudike-Uzomah is just a half sack shy of tying the school record.
• He earned three national player of the week awards and Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honors following a school-record tying 4.0 sacks against TCU.
• Safety Russ Yeast – a transfer from Louisville – is tied for the Big 12 lead with three interceptions, while he had four total passes defended against West Virginia to tie for the 11th-best mark in the nation this year.
• Punter Ty Zentner ranks fourth in the Big 12 with a 44.7-yard average.
• Malik Knowles has returned two kickoffs for a touchdown, and he ranks third in the nation with a 32.1-yard average.
A LOOK AT TEXAS
• Texas comes into the game with a 4-7 mark and a 2-6 record in Big 12 play, looking to end the season by snapping a six-game losing skid, the latest defeat was a 31-23 setback at West Virginia.
• Quarterbacks Casey Thompson and Hudson Card have split duties, combining to go 199-for-321 for 2,533 yards and 28 touchdowns with just nine interceptions.
• The quarterbacks' favorite targets have been Xavier Worthy (56 rec, 916 yds, 12 TDs) and Jordan Whittington (24 rec, 359 yds, 3 TDs).
• Bijan Robinson is the leading rusher with 1,127 yards and 11 touchdowns but is out the remainder of the year. Behind Robinson is Roschon Johnson, who has 390 yards and four scores.
• The defense is paced by DeMarvion Overshown with 74 tackles, while Luke Brockermeyer is right behind at 72.
A LOOK AT THE SERIES
• Texas leads the all-time series, 11-10, but the Wildcats hold a 9-8 margin since the two became Big 12 foes.
• Texas has won each of the last four games – its longest streak in the series – while each of the last two games in Austin have been decided by six or less points.
• In 2017 in Austin, the game was tied, 27-27, in regulation. Both teams scored touchdowns in the first overtime before a missed K-State field goal and a UT touchdown ended the game.
• In 2019 in Austin, K-State tied the game, 24-24, with less than seven minutes remaining, but Texas kicked at game-winning 26-yard field goal as time expired for a 27-24 victory.
• K-State's last win over the Longhorns was a 24-21 victory in Manhattan in 2016, a game in which the Wildcats held a 24-7 advantage in the third quarter and hung on despite two late Texas touchdowns.
• The Wildcats' last win at Texas was a 17-13 victory when No. 16 K-State went on to earn a Cotton Bowl berth and finish the year ranked 15th in the Associated Press Top 25.
WEEKDAY MATCHUP
• Friday's contest at Texas is the first time the Wildcats will play the day after Thanksgiving since 1926, a 3-2 home loss to Iowa State.
• It is the first time K-State will play a regular-season weekday game since 2016 when it opened the season at Stanford on a Friday, while it is the first in Big 12 play since hosting No. 2 Baylor on a Thursday in 2015.
• Kansas State holds a 19-19-2 record all-time in weekday regular-season matchups with only 11 of those games being played since 1939.
ONE OF THE BIG 12'S BEST
• K-State ranks third in Big 12 with 126 wins since the league's inception in 1996, trailing only Oklahoma (166) and Texas (142).
• The Wildcats also rank third in the conference in winning percentage since round-robin play began in 2011. They sit at 58.2% (57-41), trailing only Oklahoma (82.5%; 80-17) and Oklahoma State (66.3%; 65-33).
BOWL BOUND
• With a win over Kansas, K-State earned its sixth win of the year to play in a bowl game for the 23rd time in school history at the conclusion of the 2021 regular season.
• Chris Klieman will be the first head coach in school history to have his team play in a bowl game twice in the first three seasons and to be bowl eligible for his first three years at the helm.
• Of the 23 bowl appearances, 22 will have come since 1990, which includes this season.
• Entering the 2021 season, Kansas State's 21 bowls since 1993 was tied for 19th in the nation and ranked fourth in the Big 12.
WINNING THE FINAL FRAME
• Kansas State has been strong in the fourth quarter of games this season, as the Wildcats are outscoring their opponents, 98-40, in the final frame.
• The 58-point margin in the fourth quarter is the highest mark in the Big 12 this year.
• The Wildcats have won nine of their 11 fourth quarters this season. The only two they didn't were at Oklahoma State (0-0) and against Baylor (3-0).
IMPRESSIVE RESUME
• The three opponents that the Wildcats defeated in non-conference play – Stanford, Southern Illinois and Nevada – have combined for a 17-13 record in their other games.
• K-State's first two Big 12 opponents – Oklahoma (12th) and Oklahoma State (9th) – are each in the top 12 of this week's Associated Press Poll.
• Southern Illinois has turned out to be one of the best FCS teams in the nation, ranking 16th in this week's Coaches' Poll.
A WINNING HISTORY
• A proven winner with a championship history, Chris Klieman holds a 91-28 career record, as his 76.5% career winning percentage ranks fourth among current FBS coaches that have led programs for at least eight years and 12th among NCAA coaches.
• Klieman came to Manhattan after capping his five-year stint as head coach at North Dakota State by winning his fourth national championship in 2018. He guided the 2018 Bison to a perfect 15-0 record.
CATS TOPS IN NON-OFFENSIVE TDs
• K-State is the nation's best in non-offensive touchdowns over the last 23 seasons as it has 125 since 1999, eight more than the next closest team.
• Kansas State has three non-offensive scores this year as Malik Knowles returned a kickoff for a touchdown at Oklahoma State and against Oklahoma, and Marvin Martin returned a block punt for a score against West Virginia.
• K-State has had at least five non-offensive scores in seven of the last 10 years. Last year, the Cats missed that mark by just one during their shortened 10-game schedule.
OFFENSIVE NOTES
DOWN THE FIELD
• Traditionally a run-oriented offense, the Wildcats have been pushing the ball down the field more this year, as K-State is tied for 16th nationally with 10 plays of 50 or more yards.
• K-State started the season with at least one 50-yard play from scrimmage in its first five games to become the first Wildcat team with a five-game streak since at least 1988.
• Of the 10 total 50-yard plays by K-State this year, seven have been passes, including scores by Daniel Imatorbhebhe against Nevada (68 yards) and TCU (73 yards), Malik Knowles vs. KU (68 yards) and Deuce Vaughn at Oklahoma State (55 yards). Vaughn has the three lone rushes of 50 or more yards, going for a 59-yard TD in the season opener against Stanford, an 80-yard score at Kansas and a 65-yard score against Baylor.
• His touchdown against the Jayhawks was the first time the Wildcats scored on their first offensive play of the second half since the 2009 Texas A&M game.
• Vaughn has 52 touches that have gone for 10 or more yards to rank to fourth in the nation and tops among Power 5 players
• With 235 total plays this year (190 rushes/45 catches), Vaughn is gaining at least 10 yards 22.1% of the time he touches the ball.
YARDS PER PLAY
• Through 11 games, K-State is averaging 6.2 yards per play as an offense (3,975 yards on 638 snaps). The school record is 6.47 set back in 1998, while the 2013 squad averaged 6.32.
RED ZONE SUCCESS
• In the first two-plus years under offensive coordinator Courtney Messingham, Kansas State has converted on 113-of-122 (92.6%) of its red zone opportunities, which includes 80 touchdowns.
• Included in that is a streak of 67-straight red zone conversions, as the Wildcats were true on their final 39 tries of 2019 and their first 24 opportunities of 2020.
• K-State's 92.6% conversion rate since 2019 ranks second in the Big 12.
• The Wildcats are the only team in the nation to rank in the top five in red zone offense each of the previous two years, leading the nation in 2019 (96.2%) and ranking fourth last year (93.9%).
TOTAL OFFENSE
• Kansas State totaled 504 yards of offense against Kansas, the first time the Wildcats hit the 500-yard mark since the first two games of 2019 against Nicholls and Bowling Green.
• It was the first time K-State produced 500 yards in a Big 12 game since going for 505 yards against Kansas in 2014.
• The Wildcats were extremely balanced against the Jayhawks as they passed for 262 yards and rushed for 242 yards.
• It was the fourth time this season K-State rushed for over 200 yards, also hitting the mark against Stanford (200), Southern Illinois (208) and Nevada (269).
• The Wildcats have produced at least four 200-yard rushing games twice in the last three seasons.
GO FOR IT
• K-State currently is 13-for-16 this season on fourth down, which ranks third nationally in conversion percentage at 81%. • The 13 conversions are the most since the 2010 team had 13, which occurred on 20 attempts in a full 13-game season.
• K-State's current 81.3% mark is its best since at least 1995.
AN EXPERIENCED, WINNING SIGNAL CALLER
• Skylar Thompson has started each of the last seven games after missing the previous two contests due to injury.
• Thompson has started 39 games in his career, the most by a Wildcat since at least 1990. Of those 39 starts, the Wildcats have 23 victories, as he has the most wins among starting K-State signal callers since 1990.
• Thompson topped the previous high mark of 22 held by Ell Roberson, Collin Klein and Michael Bishop.
CUTTING IT LOOSE
• Since returning from injury, Skylar Thompson has combined to go 129-of-187 (69.0%) for 1,614 yards with nine touchdowns and only two interceptions.
• As a result, Thompson ranks highly in many national passing categories entering the week, including No. 14 marks in yards per attempt (9.04) and completion percentage (68.8%).
• His completion percentage mark is the current school record, while his 140.6 efficiency mark ranks fourth.
• Thompson threw for 306 yards at Texas Tech on 24-for-30 accuracy, as his 80% completion mark against the Red Raiders was a career-best.
• Thompson's performance at Texas Tech included a 14-for-15 clip in the second half. His 93.3% completion rate in the final 30 minutes was highest in one half (minimum 15 attempts) by a K-State quarterback since Josh Freeman went 15-for-16 (93.75%) in the first half at Colorado in 2006.
• At Kansas, Thompson connected on 12 of his first 13 passes for 184 yards and a touchdown. He finished the game by completing 79.2% of his passes (19-of-24), the second-highest percentage of his career.
FIRST IN SCHOOL HISTORY
• During the game at Texas Tech, Skylar Thompson became the first player in school history to throw for 6,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in a career.
• Additionally, the Independence Missouri, native ranks in the top 10 in school history in 15 career categories. A detailed list of records can be found on pages 59-61.
VAUGHN HITS 1,000
• A semifinalist for the 2021 Doak Walker Award, Deuce Vaughn has 1,115 rushing yards this season to produce the 17th 1,000-yard rushing season in school history.
• It is just the third time in school history a freshman or sophomore reached 1,000 rushing yards in a year, a feat accomplished by sophomore Darren Sproles in 2002 (1,465) and sophomore Cornelius Davis in 1966 (1,028).
• Vaughn, a product of Round Rock, Texas, currently ranks second in school history in rushing yards by a sophomore.
• Vaughn hit the 1,000-yard mark on his 182nd carry of the season, which is tied for the fourth-fastest to 1,000 rushing yards in a season in school history (Darren Sproles, 2003).
ALL-PURPOSE BACK
• Deuce Vaughn is the only player in the nation with 1,000 or more rushing yards and 400 or more receiving yards.
• Vaughn ranks fifth in the nation and tops among Power 5 players in yards from scrimmage (143.5 yard per game), while he ranks eighth in the nation in all-purpose yards per game.
• With 36 more receiving yards, Vaughn can become the fourth player in Big 12 history and just the third nationally in the last five years with 1,000 rushing yards and 500 receiving yards in a single season.
ON THE RECEIVING END
• An accomplished receiver both out of the backfield and from the slot, Deuce Vaughn ranks second in school history among running backs/fullbacks with 898 career receiving yards, while he his third in receptions (70).
• Vaughn ranks second in the nation in receiving yards by a running back since the beginning of 2020.
• Vaughn leads all Big 12 running backs in receptions (45) and yards (464) this year, while he is second in touchdown catches (3).
• Vaughn is trying to become the first player in school history with 1,000 career yards as both a rusher and a receiver. The closest a Wildcat came to accomplishing that feat was Mack Herron (1968-69), who had 1,244 receiving yards and 815 rushing yards.
• If Vaughn hit the 1,000/1,000 mark, he would be one of only 11 players in Big 12 history to do so. However, if he did so this year, he would become just the second to reach the milestone as a sophomore (Taurean Henderson, Texas Tech), which would be impressive considering Vaughn's young career included a shortened 10-game freshman season in 2020 due to COVID-19.
WELL-TRAVELED TIGHT END
• Transfer tight end Daniel Imatorbhebhe is making a splash with the Cats in his seventh and final season of college football.
• Imatorbhebhe is third among Big 12 tight ends with 279 receiving yards. That mark includes touchdowns of 68 yards (vs. Nevada) and 73 yards (vs. TCU), the latter being the second-longest reception by a tight end in school history.
• He is the only tight end in the nation this year with two receptions of 65 yards or longer, while he is the first K-State tight end with two in a season since at least 1977.
• K-State is Imatorbhebhe's fourth FBS school as he signed and went through spring practices with Florida in 2015, transferred to USC for the 2015 through 2019 seasons and spent the 2020 campaign at Illinois.
MALIK MAKING MOVES
• Wide receiver Malik Knowles became the 33rd player in school history to eclipse the career 1,000-yard receiving mark during the Kansas game.
• Knowles, who enters this week with 1,090 career yards, has 10 career receiving touchdowns to sit just one shy of entering the school's top-10 list.
DEFENSIVE NOTES
RUN STOPPERS
• K-State has allowed just 1,304 total yards rushing on 377 carries, as the Wildcats rank 21st nationally and second in the Big 12 in rushing yards allowed per game (118.5).
• It is a stark difference from last season as the Wildcats allowed 177.2 rushing yards per game to rank 78th in the nation and seventh in the league.
• K-State's current mark of 118.5 rushing yards allowed per game sits just outside of the school's top-10 list.
FEWER EXPLOSIVES
• One area of emphasis for the Wildcat defense in 2021 was to limit opponents' explosive plays. Through the first 11 games, K-State has allowed 42 plays of 20 or more yards to tie for second in the Big 12.
• It is the Wildcats' fewest 20-plus yard plays allowed through 11 games since the 2014 team surrendered 30. In 10 games last year, K-State conceded 60 plays of 20 or more yards.
BEHIND THE LINE
• K-State has tallied at least six tackles for loss in nine of the 11 games this year, which includes three of the last four contests.
• The Wildcats have 78 TFLs this year – which includes 24 players with at least a half TFL – as they are just two away from tying for 10th in school history.
• K-State is on pace for 92 tackles for loss this year, which would be its highest mark since the 2003 team had 104 rank fourth in school history.
• The Wildcats tallied a season-high 10 TFLs against Baylor and TCU, the most since they had 13 at Baylor last year.
MEET ME AT THE QB
• Through 11 games, K-State is ranked third in the Big 12 at 2.64 sacks per game (29 total).
• Kansas State has at least one sack in 32 of the 34 games since Chris Klieman took over as head coach in 2019 with the lone non-sack games being the 2019 opener against Nicholls and this year against Iowa State.
• Last season, K-State totaled 28 sacks in 10 games, which were the most for the Wildcats during an entire season since a 13-game 2016 campaign (30).
• K-State is on pace for 34 sacks, which would be its highest mark since the 2015 team had 38.
STRONG AT THE START
• The K-State defense has been strong at the beginning of games since the start of 2020 as 13 of the Wildcats' last 21 opponents have come up empty on their first possession of the game.
• Over the last 21 games, K-State has allowed only 22 total first downs (1.05 per game), while drives have covered just 566 total yards (26.9 yards).
• Included in that span is five three-and-outs and interceptions this year against Nevada and West Virginia.
DEPTH IN THE SECONDARY
• Of the six defensive transfers K-State brought in prior to the 2021 season, four are in the secondary.
• Including the 2021 season, that group has combined for 105 career Division I starts by Julius Brents, Cincere Mason, Reggie Stubblefield and Russ Yeast.
• Pairing the 105 starts from the transfers with the rest of the secondary, the Wildcats are currently at 192 combined career starts by defensive backs.
KING FELIX
• Defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah has broken out during his sophomore season as he leads the nation in forced fumbles (6), ranks third in sacks (11.0) and 12th in tackles for loss (14.5).
• A native of Lee's Summit, Missouri, Anudike-Uzomah has 11.0 sacks this season to tie for fifth in school history, and he is just a half sack shy of tying the school record.
• Ranking third on the team in tackles with 47, Anudike-Uzomah has 14.5 TFLs this year as 30.9% of his tackles have resulted in lost yardage.
• Anudike-Uzomah has recorded at least 3.0 sacks in two games, one of only four players in the nation this year to accomplish that feat and the first in school history with two 3.0-sack games in a season.
FELIX'S HISTORIC GAME
• Felix Anudike-Uzomah tallied 4.0 sacks, forced two fumbles and totaled eight tackles against TCU, earning him three national defensive player of the week accolades in addition to Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honors.
• His four sacks tied the school record originally set by Chris Johnson at Missouri in 2000. However, Anudike-Uzomah was close to tying the NCAA record of 6.0.
• His two forced fumbles came on potential sacks that caused the ball to be recovered beyond the original line of scrimmage, thus making them rushes by NCAA rule. If the ball had been recovered on the TCU side of the line – regardless of who recovered – those two would have been counted as sacks to tie the FBS record and break the Big 12 mark.
DEFENSE'S "DEUCE"
• Nicknamed "Deuce" by the defensive staff, linebacker Daniel Green has been impressive as a full-time starter for the first time in his career.
• Green leads the team with 72 tackles and ranks second with 12.5 tackles for loss despite missing two full halves this year due to targeting calls.
• A product of Portland, Oregon, Green has totaled nine tackles in four different games this season, coming against Stanford, Nevada, TCU and Baylor. It is first time a Wildcat had at least nine tackles in four games since Jayd Kirby in 2017.
SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
SCORING IN THE THIRD PHASE
• One of the main reasons the Wildcats have been a successful program the last three decades is a knack for momentum-swinging plays in the return game.
• Since 2005 (17 seasons), the Wildcats have a combined 58 kickoff- and punt-return touchdowns, 21 more than second-place Alabama (37) and 27 more than the next closest Big 12 team (Oklahoma State: 31).
• Of the 58 total returns, a nation-leading 31 are on kickoff returns. The next closest team is San Diego State with 19.
DEFENSE ON KICK RETURNS
• On the flipside, K-State has excelled in kickoff-return defense, as the Wildcats have gone 109-consecutive games and 353 kickoff returns defended without allowing a score. The last team to take one to paydirt on K-State was Louisiana in 2013.
• K-State 109-game streak ranks seventh in the nation behind Florida State (233), Memphis (168), Akron (131), Virginia Tech (114), UTEP (112) and New Mexico (110).
• The Wildcats have tallied 14 kickoff-return touchdowns since surrendering their last one.
KNOWLES WITH A KNACK
• Junior Malik Knowles is the latest K-State kickoff return man with a knack of finding the end zone as he has three in his career, which includes scores this year against Oklahoma State and Oklahoma.
• Knowles is tied for fourth in school history in both career and single-season kickoff return touchdowns, while he is tied for fourth nationally among active players in career kickoff-return scores.
• Additionally, he holds a 32.1-yard average this year and a 28.1-yard average for his career. His mark this season ranks third in the nation, while his career figure ranks fifth nationally among active players. Both marks are also currently sixth in school history in their respective categories.
ZENTNER HAS BEEN IMPRESSIVE
• Punter Ty Zentner has averaged 44.7 yards per punt overall this year to rank fourth in the Big 12. His average would rank in the top 30 nationally if he had six more punts to meet the NCAA required minimum.
• In Big 12 games only, Zentner has averaged 46.3 yards per punt, which includes 12 punts of 50 or more yards. Last season, Zentner only had five total punts of 50 or more yards.
• At Texas Tech, Zentner had a single game career-best average of 55.7 yards per punt, which ranks 12th in the nation for a game this season.
• One of his punts against the Red Raiders was a 63-yarder – the second longest of his career – which immediately preceded at K-State safety that swung the game in the Wildcats' favor.
BROOKS LOOKS TO ADD TO IMPRESSIVE RESUME
• Junior Phillip Brooks was one of the top return men in the nation last season as he was a Third Team All-American selection after averaging 23.7 yards on 11 attempts.
• This year, Brooks has earned Preseason All-America honors from Phil Steele, USA TODAY, CBS Sports and 247Sports.
• A product of Lee's Summit, Missouri, Brooks ranks second in school history and tied for sixth in Big 12 history with three punt-return touchdowns, while he has 454 career punt-return yards to rank 10th in school history.
• He ranks third nationally among active players in yards per return (16.2) and first in punt-return touchdowns (3).
TENNANT SEES FIRST ACTION
• True freshman Chris Tennant has served as the primary kicker each of the last three games, as he is 4-for-7 on field-goal attempts and a perfect 14-for-14 on extra points.
• Tennant is the first true freshman at K-State to make a field goal since Joe Rheem went 4-of-6 on field goals in 2001.
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