Wildcats Downed by No. 20 Sooners

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Tyler Lockett and Jake Waters piled up school records and career-highs on Saturday at Bill Snyder Family Stadium, but it was not enough for K-State to defeat No. 20 Oklahoma as the Sooners secured a 41-31 win. The loss ended K-State's four-game winning streak.

Tyler Lockett had 12 catches for a school-record 278 yards and three touchdowns for K- State (6-5, 4-4). Lockett carded a school record of 440 all-purpose yards, as he tallied 162 kick-off return yards. His three receiving ouchdown catches tied the school record for a single game.

Jake Waters threw for 348 yards and accounted for four TDs, but he also threw an interception that the Sooners' Zack Sanchez returned 74 yards for a fourth-quarter score that put the game out of reach. Waters' 348 passing yards were the most since Josh Freeman tossed for 478 yards against Oklahoma on Oct. 25, 2008 and marked the first 300-yard passing game for a K-State quarterback since Collin Klein threw for 323 yards at West Virginia last season.

OU's Brennan Clay ran for a career-high 200 yards and two touchdowns, while freshman quarterback Trevor Knight threw for 171 yards and accounted for two TDs for the Sooners.

The Sooners (9-2, 6-2 Big 12) struck first when Knight hit Sterling Shepard from 12 yards out on third-and-goal in the first quarter, but that was about the last pass that Oklahoma called in the first half.

At one point, Stoops called for runs on 17 of 18 plays, including all 14 on a 98-yard TD drive. Clay and Knight did most of the work, with Knight faking a handoff and running untouched the final 8 yards for a 14-0 lead.
While the Sooners were pounding the ball, Kansas State took advantage of the strong north wind at its back.

Waters and Lockett took advantage of blown coverage to hook up for the first time for a 48-yard scoring strike early in the second quarter. When the Wildcats got the ball back, Waters found his favorite target with a perfectly thrown 30-yard TD pass in the corner of the end zone.

Oklahoma answered on the ground with Clay scooting to his right and racing past the secondary for a 69-yard touchdown run.

It took all of one play -- a 90-yard pitch-and-catch from Waters to Lockett -- for the Wildcats to make it 21-all. The TD catch also allowed Lockett to match the school record for a single game. This was K-State's first 90-yard pass play since Tyler's uncle, Aaron, went 97 yards against Louisiana-Monroe in 1998.

Michael Hunnicutt's field goal in the final seconds gave Oklahoma a 24-21 halftime lead.

As entertaining as the first half was for offensive savants, the third quarter turned into a sluggish affair. Both teams muddled their way to field goals on time-consuming drives.

The Sooners finally seized control when they pinned Kansas State at the 3-yard line early in the fourth quarter. The Wildcats went three-and-out, and Mark Krause's punt was held up in the wind. Jalen Saunders caught it on the run and returned it to the 3, where Clay ran it in on the next play.

Oklahoma put the game out of reach moments later, when Sanchez picked off Waters and returned it up the sideline for a touchdown to make the score 41-24 with just over 11 minutes left.

Waters added a TD run for Kansas State in the closing minutes for the final margin.

K-State will close out the 2013 regular season next Saturday, as the Wildcats travel to Sunflower State rival, KU, for an 11 a.m., kickoff. The game will be available to a national audience on FOX Sports 1.

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Team Stats

Jake Waters

Players Mentioned

Mark Krause

Tyler Lockett

Jake Waters

Players Mentioned

Mark Krause

Tyler Lockett

Jake Waters

Kansas State University Athletics