Wildcats Pounce on Sluggish Cougars’ Offense, Washington State Falls to 0-2
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Washington State Cougars quarterback Caden Pinnick (12) is tackled by Kansas State Wildcats linebacker Darien Whitaker (6) during the second quarter at Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Sewell-Imagn Images [/caption]
When Washington State's Jaylen Thomas made his break on the ball along the Cougars sideline, Kansas State quarterback Avery Johnson knew the mistake he just made. Thomas jumped the route for his second interception of the game and returned it for a touchdown with no time remaining in the first half. This lifeline from their safety put Wazzu on the board trailing 17-7, providing a much-needed momentum boost going into the break.
Courtesy of a 54-minute weather delay at halftime, the Cougs had time to sit on that momentum. But Washington State did not build off the big play in the second half and continued to fall further behind in an eventual 34-7 loss to Kansas State on Saturday morning at the Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
Washington State received the kick after the delay. A false start immediately pushed the sticks back. Wazzu went three-and-out and on the ensuing Kansas State offensive play, running back Rodney Fields Jr. ripped off a 75-yard touchdown. The stark contrast to open both drives was indicative of how both teams would respond following the delay. The Wildcats would not slow down and the Cougars had no answers to speak of.
The Wildcats dominated the Cougs in most statistical categories. Kansas State produced 487 yards of yards and left all five red zone trips with points. Kansas State also was able to sustain drives in ways Washington State could not. The Wildcats were 10-16 on third down and just seemed to have answers for whatever Wazzu threw at them defensively.
When the pressure did not get home, Johnson had enough time to dissect the defense and make the right play. And even if they did get home, Johnson did a good job of evading pressure and keeping his eyes down field, as he did not take a single sack.
For the Cougs, they were a dismal 2-12 on third down. Last week, they went 0-9 on money downs and the same problems persisted Saturday, as they were not setting themselves up for easy conversions. Wazzu recorded an average of nine yards to go on third down compared to Kansas State's six.
The Cougs tried running it on first down on their first couple of series, but as the game went on, they leaned more pass heavy on early downs. But neither strategy worked or improved third down efficiency. The Cougs' passing offense struggled on all downs, but obvious long passing downs did not help either. Quarterback Caden Pinnick threw for 65 yards on nine of 20 passing, averaging less than 3.5 yards per attempt.
Pinnick handled the Cougs' first third down well. He started left on his progression before shifting his eyes right where he delivered a strike to Branden Ganashamoorthy for 11 yards on the right hash. That drive ended in the red zone where the Cougs settled for three points, but kicker Jack Stevens pulled it left for his third missed field goal of the year.
The Cougs made it to Kansas State territory their next offensive possession after Thomas recorded his first interception. Johnson threw an out breaking route to the left sideline but placed the ball too far inside, giving Thomas room to make a play on it.
After three plays, the Cougars were set up with fourth down on the Wildcats' 36-yard line. Washington State head coach Kirby Moore decided to roll the dice, going for it. He drew up a designed quarterback run for Pinnick. Pinnick tried to hit the hole but was met by two Wildcats for the turnover on downs.
Outside of the sole red zone visit and the fourth down stop, the Cougs only crossed into Kansas State territory two more times the rest of the day. Washington State did not have much to hang their hats on as the offense finished with 166 total yards, floundering for a second straight week to open the Moore era.
As for Kansas State, the aforementioned interceptions by Thomas were the only real blemish on an overall dominant performance, and the scoreboard could have been even more crooked in favor the home team without those mistakes. It’s safe to say Moore has a ton of work left to do when the Cougars return to Pullman on Saturday, September 19 against Duquesne and take on another Big 12 opponent in Arizona on September 26 to close out non-conference play.
