Pick and Preview: Tulane at Kansas State

KSO will look at a handful of categories each week when previewing the Kansas State game on Saturday. We discuss factors to keep in mind for the Wildcats, what K-State needs to learn, the players to watch and a final prediction.

FOUR FACTORS FOR KANSAS STATE

1. PREPARATION: It has been discussed a lot this week, but the Wildcats are in a typical letdown spot for college football teams. They just finished an emotional game that was a regional rivalry that was re-booted. A showdown with Oklahoma in Norman on FOX in primetime next week. But what people lose sight of is that it doesn’t just consist of being flat on Saturday. It is a result and a product of not maintaining the appropriate focus during the preparation throughout the week. We’ll find out soon if Kansas State kept their minds concentrated on Tulane this week. Something tells me they have the maturity and leadership to do so.

2. DISCIPLINE ON DEFENSE: There is a chance that Willie Fritz and his new offensive coordinator try to RPO (run/pass option) K-State to death. If so, that takes the defensive line out of the equation for the most part, though they can be disruptive in passing lanes and at least collapse on quarterback Michael Pratt enough to give him a lot of traffic to elude. But it’s something that they haven’t seen a lot of thus far, and it should test the linebackers like Khalid Duke, Daniel Green and Austin Moore. If they are caught in the wrong spot, that is when big plays can happen. For that reason, playing Tulane ahead of the quick-strike Oklahoma offensive attack may not be a bad thing.

3. CLEANER ON OFFENSE: Execution errors have plagued the passing offense for Kansas State thus far this season. It has been penalties. It has been dropped balls. It has been inaccurate passes. It has been poor fundamentals on some of the receivers’ assignments. All of it is easily correctable, and a cleaner game in that department would be reassuring to see. Even that could make a significant impact on the aerial stats for the Wildcats.

4. TACKLING: As shared earlier, I worry some about the K-State defense on Saturday. It should be their toughest test this year. The Green Wave probably aren’t as deep as Missouri, but they are coached better on the offensive side of the ball and have some skill position talent that can apply pressure on the Wildcats. The emphasis and necessity of tackling and taking the appropriate angles will be amplified.

WHAT THE WILDCATS NEED TO LEARN

1. MATURITY AND LEADERSHIP: Is Kansas State as mature as what they have led on thus far? Do they have the appropriate leadership in place to not be caught sleeping on Saturday? If they do start fast, is the focus strong enough to not let their foot off the gas? Those areas will be tested.

2. GROWTH FROM RECEIVERS: While Adrian Martinez needs to be a bit more crisp, just having a mistake-free game from the receivers would be a sigh of relief for the Wildcats. Eliminating costly penalties, executing the majority of the routes as they are intended and not dropping any passes would go a long way in producing a competent passing attack that teams have to at least honor a little bit.

3. STEP FORWARD IN KICKING GAME: Kicker Chris Tennant has had his issues this year. It’s a credit to him that he has maintained some impressive mental fortitude and not completely collapsed. He’s hearing about it in every corner of his life and has every reason to have his confidence shattered, but Tennant has answered the bell and still sent through his other opportunities. He hasn’t been nearly accurate enough, and the shorter kicks continue to plague him. That’s indicated by missing a handful of extra points in his career. It likely wouldn’t hurt them against Tulane, but it will in the multitude of close games that could occur within Big 12 action. Tennant having a perfect game before the trip to Norman would be monumental.

SATURDAY STARS

Samuel Wheeler: It wouldn’t shock me if K-State chose to open it up in the passing game. They haven’t necessarily had the opportunity to do so just yet, and if the wind isn’t a huge factor, doing it against the Green Wave and building confidence would be a solid strategy. Finding a rhythm and groove in that part of the offense before the contest with the Sooners seems wise. We haven’t heard Samuel Wheeler’s name, yet. I’m interested to see if he is deployed a bit more this week in that phase, and that could catch the Green Wave off guard.

Daniel Green: An offense predicated on mostly RPO and run-action type stuff is designed to stress linebackers. Khalid Duke and Austin Moore aren’t as experienced against it. The presence of Daniel Green may be vital.

Matthew Maschmeier: Has anyone watched the kickoff coverage unit much? I understand if not, of course, but one of the standouts for the Wildcats has been Matthew Maschmeier. He has been a wrecking ball in that phase for Kansas State. And as shown below, he’s the special teams captain of the week, too.

Special Teams Captain of the Week ⚒

Matthew Maschmeier (@MattMasch30) pic.twitter.com/NWDcmoCyrf

— K-State Football (@KStateFB) September 14, 2022

PREDICTION

A slow start wouldn’t be a surprise to me. Even the most mature and sound teams fall into that trap at times. I’m not sure we should expect any different from K-State. They have the leadership to overcome it, but I foresee a scenario where it could still be just a one or two-possession game at halftime.

Tulane won’t roll over, and they’ll force Kansas State to beat them. I think it happens, but they may not pull away until the third quarter. I anticipate a big play or two in the passing game and more of a ho-hum type of performance from the Wildcats.

K-State avoids a scare and win comfortably on the scoreboard, 31-13.