Texas recap: Champions

  

These players love their coach.

 So 11-1 is how the regular season ends.  Back in August I predicted 13-0 or 11-2.  We're still on track toward the second, but I would be perfectly happy to be wrong and end up 12-1.  Senior night was a perfect blend of weird and wonderful and ended with Willie leading the crowd in a KSU chant from the top of the Dev Nelson press box for the very last time.  We rushed the field and looked up at Coach and the Captains and couldn't quite believe it was all over already.  How strange it must feel to Collin, who was recruited by Prince but ended up in the exact right place with the exact right coach and the exact right team at the exact right time in college football and the Big 12.  What a journey. 

  
Things that were good...

Great defense.  Texas got 1 yard on their first possession, and then threw an interception on the first play of the second possession.  After that, things got a little sloppy, but I was proud of the defense for coming out with fire in the first quarter.  The defense had the most to prove after the disaster in Waco, and they played like it.  There are still a few troubling holes in the line, but all in all, this was a great game for them.  And it should be, considering 10 of the 11 guys starting on defense are seniors. 

Great effort on long runs.  How many times have we been saved by great effort?  In this game it was Dante Barnett who chased down Daje Johnson in the second quarter on the play after the interception.  Then, on the next offensive series, Barnett caught up to Malcolm Brown to save another huge play.  Jarard Milo caught up with DJ Monroe in the third quarter to save a touchdown too.  We've seen it time and time again - if you don't get in the end zone on a big play, chances are you're only getting a field goal.  I was so proud of Barnett for continuing to fight, especially after his much maligned performance against Baylor.  That shows me he's using the Baylor loss as incentive to work even harder. 

Offensive persistence. The big drive in the first quarter that ended in an interception in the end zone was really, really pretty.  Great receptions by Harper, Tannahill and Thompson and solid running by Collin and Pease.  It was the typical up and down drive, with two sacks as well.  Great fight, great drive, unfortunate end.  It took them the rest of the half to shake it off, but they came out running in the second half and finally got back to their style of offense.  They never gave up, and the line executed at a high level all game long.  Very impressive stuff.  

Things that were not as good...

Weak pass rush.  I know this must have something to do with schemes and the loss of Walker and Zimmerman, but the lack of pass rush is so frustrating to me.  Case McCoy is a young quarterback, without much game experience, in a hostile environment, with a weaker arm.  Why couldn't we force him to scramble more?  We did end up with 4 sacks, so it wasn't terrible... there's just some room for improvement there. 

Third down defense.  Oof.  That third down defense killed us in the first half.  We would win first and second down by huge amounts, and then let them convert on a 3rd and 12, 15, 18?  So aggravating.  It was disheartening to the defense as well, because once it happened in a drive, they started winning first and second down easily too.  We've got to get back on track faster, especially against wicked fast Oregon. 

Kick return unit.  This unit has been hurting our illustrious special teams tradition all year long and this game was no exception.  It's like there's no safe guard built in if the runner gets past the first block.  Or maybe we don't get down there in time?  Are the kicks too short?  Whatever it is, it drives me crazy, and I hope we get it fixed by the bowl game.

 

Champs.

Things that the seniors did...

I wished for quite a bit for the seniors in their last game at Bill Snyder Family Stadium and quite a few of those came true.  Even though Braden Wilson still struggled carrying the ball, and Nigel Malone had his touchdown taken away, and Nick Puetz was injured and had to signal from the sideline, it was about as perfect a senior night as you could ask for.  Here's a few of the guys who stood out to me:

Justin Tuggle - finished with a tackle for loss, a sack and a smile on his face.  I thought he played with a passion and excitement that has been missing since September.  I'm excited to see what he can do against Oregon.  He deserves good things.  
Jarell Childs - ended the game with 7 tackles and was a huge factor in shutting down the Texas running game. 
Vai Lutui - Terrific sack in the second quarter.
Bubba Chapman - Do you know the story of Bubba and Nigel?  They were teammates at City College of San Francisco and when Nigel was recruited by K-State, he convinced his friend Bubba to conquer Kansas with him.  It's fitting that Nigel would get an interception in the first and Bubba in the fourth.  We were so fortunate to have this duo for the past two years.  Thanks for coming to Kansas, guys.
Arthur Brown - burned the running game to the ground and ended the game with a team high 11 tackles.  He was on a mission and I was inspired.
Nigel Malone - great, 2011-style interception and 2 solo tackles.  He was a beast in the open field. 
Chris Harper - this was the return to 2011 form I was looking for.  He caught 3 passes for 59 yards and they were all clutch.  He'll get the send-off he deserves with a game against Oregon and I can't wait to see how he'll avenge the Cotton Bowl disaster.  
Travis Tannahill - Tannahill bailed us out multiple times in this game and didn't even have to land on his head to do it.  On the Coach's show this week, he said that Tannahill has played hurt his entire K-State career.  If that's why we only run 2 tight end plays a game, I guess I can make my peace with it.
Roman Fields - it was a huge day on special teams for Roman and he was ecstatic about the three huge tackles he made.  Way to go out on a win, Roman.
Meshak Williams - sack, tackle for loss, all-around hoss.  I was so happy that his two for one sack in the TCU game made it into the new Stand Up video.  I'm going to miss that Meshak grin more than I realize.

Two lives changed forever.

Last but not least... #7.  Optimus Klein.  BillSnyder Kleinsdale.  Kleinapple Express.  Collin didn't play a perfect game, because no one can.  But he looked great on short drives, long drives, frustrating drives and scoring drives.  That even keel, that constant faith, that ever present leadership, heart, and courage is amazing and dare I say, Heisman worthy.  They may not be standard, but here are Collin's Heisman moments as I saw them.   1. In the first quarter, we got pinned at the one yard line and had to fight our way out.  At one point, Collin had to tight rope at the back of the end zone to make sure he stayed in bounds.  He completed a pass on 3rd and 10 that got called back on a penalty, then completed an even longer pass to Harper on the second chance.  To me, it was a drive that perfectly personified his game management skills.  2. Perfect option pitch to Hubert for the first touchdown of the third quarter.  No one will ever run the option that well.  We should just retire it after the Fiesta Bowl.  3. Beautiful touchdown throw to Lockett on the first play of the 4th quarter.  It was the longest passing play since Trujillo's first (and only) reception back in the Miami game. 4. Running touchdown in the 4th quarter off a beautiful block from Harper to make it 42-14.  He told reporters later that his teammates wanted him to strike a Heisman pose in the end zone but "that night and that game was about K-State and about a Big 12 championship and it needed to stay that way.” If the world continues to be cruel to K-State, good people and Collin Klein, Johnny Manziel will win the Heisman on Saturday night.  Fortunately for everyone, Collin will be successful anyway.