Players of the game: Quarterback Will Howard leads Kansas State past Mountaineers
KANSAS STATE OFFENSIVE MVP: Will Howard
Despite throwing a pick six, Kansas State quarterback Will Howard was still the most impactful offensive player for the Wildcats. He threw the ball with confidence, which resulted in a good completion percentage.
Howard threw one impressive touchdown pass to Ben Sinnott and had a second score on a quarterback sneak at the goal line. Sinnott had his second great game in a row for K-State and was one of the best receivers. He caught three passes for 85 yards and a score.
Malik Knowles was arguably the best Kansas State pass-catcher of the game. He snagged six of them for 111 yards and a fourth quarter touchdown that put West Virginia to bed. He gave Howard his third score of the day.
Deuce Vaughn had a solid game, but it probably was a little modest for his standards. He rushed it 22 times for 67 yards and a score. He was quiet in the passing game, too. The offensive line blocked even better for Vaughn’s backup, DJ Giddens.
The K-State freshman carried it just 12 times for 78 yards and found the end zone once from 49 yards out in the first quarter.
KANSAS STATE DEFENSIVE MVP: Brendan Mott
The Kansas State defense had some moments to forget in Morgantown. It was one of the worst first half tackling efforts of the season, rivaling their showing versus Texas. Daniel Green had a couple big plays to keep the Mountaineers at bay.
Two plays that come to mind for him were his third down and fourth down stops to turn West Virginia on downs.
K-State did find a way to stiffen up a bit in the second half.
Brendan Mott had one of his best games by getting to the quarterback for three sacks and making him hurry on a couple other plays. Mott also finished the game as the leading tackler. Green nearly received the nod, but it is hard to ignore what Mott was able to do on that side of the ball.
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He disrupted what the Mountaineers wanted to do in the second half.
Cincere Mason should also get a shout out for his interception that he returned for a touchdown. He had to fill in for the injured Kobe Savage and played admirably. Josh Hayes and Drake Cheatum weren’t at their best and allowed a few too many explosive plays that included long touchdowns.
It is worth mentioning Kansas State freshman Jacob Parrish for an impressive pass break-up that stalled an early second half drive. Julius Brents accounted for a key interception in the fourth quarter when West Virginia had an opportunity to pull within a score.
There was some poor play from the Wildcat defense, but luckily the offense stepped up and didn’t allow the 31 points allowed to get the best of K-State. And although they could have played better, there were still some solid performances from a few individuals.
SPECIAL TEAMS MVP: Ty Zentner
Kansas State specialist Ty Zentner hadn’t been tested with a long field goal since taking over those duties a few games ago. He was given two long ones to convert late in the first half and he drilled both from 46 and 51 yards. He also punted just one time and sent it 56 yards through the air.
The return game looked good for the first time in a while. Knowles took three kickoffs and returned them for a total of 98 yards.
