K-State Heads to Lawrence for Sunflower Showdown

Kansas State looks to rebound from a heartbreaking 42-35 loss to No. 9 Oklahoma on Saturday as the Wildcats head east to Lawrence for the 115th edition of the Dillons' Sunflower Showdown. Saturday's game at Memorial Stadium, which kicks at 2 p.m., will be shown nationally on FS1 with Tim Brando (play-by-play), Spencer Tillman (analyst) and Holly Sonders (sideline) on the call. The game can also be heard across the 40-station K-State Sports Network with Wyatt Thompson (play-by-play), former K-State quarterback Stan Weber (analyst) and Matt Walters (sidelines) calling the action. Coverage will also be available on SiriusXM channels 108 and 200 in addition to the TuneIn app. Live stats are available at kstatesports.com, while Twitter updates (@ kstate_gameday, @KStateFB) will all be a part of the coverage.

A LOOK AT K-STATE
• Guided by Hall of Famer Bill Snyder, who is in his 26th year at the helm, the Wildcats are looking to defeat in-state rival Kansas for the ninth-straight season.
• The K-State offense took a step in the right direction against No. 9 Oklahoma last Saturday, totaling 412 total yards, including 268 yards on the ground.
• In just his second career start, QB Alex Delton accounted for 286 total yards, including a career-high 142 rushing yards and three touchdowns. He teamed with Alex Barnes (108 yards) to give the Wildcats two 100-yard rushers in the same game for the 15th time in school history.
• The Wildcats, who reached 200 rushing yards for the fourth time this season, enter the week second in the Big 12 in rushing at 199.1 yards per game, just 0.3 yards per game behind Oklahoma.
• Six different Cats have scored on the ground this year, while four different receivers have carded a touchdown catch, led by Dalton Schoen and Isaiah Zuber's three.
• Schoen, who had 128 yards and touchdowns of 82 and 12 yards at Texas, leads the Wildcats with 325 yards through the air.
• K-State's defense held its first four opponents to under 21 points for the sixth time under Snyder, joining the 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000 and 2002 teams.
• The Wildcats are led by a pair of linebackers in Trent Tanking (60 tackles) and Jayd Kirby (55 tackles), both of whom rank in the top eight in the Big 12 in tackles.
• Will Geary has a team-best 3.0 sacks and 6.5 TFLs to tie for eighth and ninth in the Big 12, respectively.
• Kendall Adams has been a ballhawk with two interceptions – including a pick-six – and a fumble-return touchdown this season. Adams also ranks fourth on the team with 40 tackles.
• Cornerback Duke Shelley is tied for fifth in the Big 12 with six passes defended, while fellow corner D.J. Reed has 25 career passes defending in just his second season.

A LOOK AT THE SERIES
• Kansas leads the all-time series, 64-45-5, but Kansas State has won each of the last eight meetings and 21 of the last 26 dating back to 1991.
• The Wildcats' average margin of victory over the last eight years is 30.25, while they have hit the 45-point mark in five of those contests.
• Head coach Bill Snyder is 21-4 all-time against the Jayhawks – including a 9-3 mark in Lawrence – as his 21 victories over the Jayhawks are tied for the most by an active head coach over any one opponent (Snyder vs. Iowa State).
• The series is one of six in the nation that has currently been played continuously for at least 100 years and the longest among Big 12 opponents.

SUNFLOWER STATEMENT
• Saturday's game has extra meaning for the 49 players on K-State's roster from the state of Kansas (40.5-percent of roster). Of the 49 Kansans on the roster, 11 have made starts this season.
• Six of the starters are on offense in the form of QB Alex Delton, FB Winston Dimel, RB Alex Barnes, TE Dayton Valentine, WR Dalton Schoen and OL Scott Frantz.
• On the defensive side, DT Will Geary and Trey Dishon, DE Tanner Wood, LB Trent Tanking and DB Denzel Goolsby all hail from the Sunflower State.

CONFERENCE CALL
• K-State is one of only three teams in the Big 12 to notch at least 100 league wins.
• Oklahoma tops the list with 132 Big 12 wins over the last 22 years, while the Wildcats are third with 106.
• Additionally, K-State ranks third in the conference in winning percentage since the start of 2011 at .638 (37-21), trailing only Oklahoma (.793; 46-12) and Oklahoma State (.724; 42-17).
• During that stretch, the Wildcats are 21-9 (.700) at home in Big 12 play and 16-12 (.571) on the road.

THE HALL OF FAMER
• The architect of the "greatest turnaround in the history of college football," Bill Snyder was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2015.
• Snyder is just the fourth person in the history of college football to be inducted as an active coach.
• Snyder has compiled an amazing 205-108-1 (.654) record in 26 seasons at K-State as he is one of just six coaches to reach the 200-win mark and coach at only one school.
• Holding 166 more victories than any other coach in K-State history, Snyder ranks first in the FBS in wins among coaches at their current schools and second in total wins among active coaches.
• Additionally, Snyder has 119 conference wins to stand as one of four coaches with 100 Big 8/12 victories (Tom Osborne [153], Bob Stoops [121], Barry Switzer [100]).

TURNOVER TURNAROUND
• A year after finishing minus-3 in the turnover battle, K-State tied for fourth in the nation with a plus-13 turnover margin in 2016.
• It was the Wildcats' best national finish in turnover margin since ranking third in 2012, while it marked an 84-spot jump from a tie for 88th the year prior.
• K-State enters this week tied for 21st nationally in turnover margin at plus-6.
• The Wildcats have gained 13 turnovers – seven fumbles and six interceptions – while only committing seven.

DRAWING FIRST BLOOD
• Since 1990, K-State is 163-33 (.832) when scoring first.
• K-State finished the 2016 season with a 5-2 mark when scoring first and is 18-4 in that department over the last four seasons.
• Under Bill Snyder, K-State is 150-26 (.852) when scoring first, including a 3-2 mark this season.

QUICK OUT OF THE GATE
• Kansas State started games on the right side of the scoreboard in 2016, outscoring opponents 95-54 in the opening 15 minutes.
• That mark improved to 248-137 through the first half and 336-184 after three quarters.
•Through seven games in 2017, K-State has outscored opponents 144-77 in the first half, including an 89-33 margin in the second quarter alone.

LEADING AT THE HALF
• K-State earned an 8-1 record in 2016 when taking a lead into halftime with its only blemish being a loss at West Virginia.
• Under Bill Snyder, the Wildcats are 175-11 (.945) when leading at halftime, including a 56-4 (.933) mark in Snyder's second tenure, which began in 2009.
• The Wildcats are 3-1 this season when leading at halftime and had a nine-game winning streak when leading at the half snapped against Oklahoma.

CATS TOPS IN NON-OFFENSIVE TDs
• K-State is the nation's best in non-offensive touchdowns over the last 19 seasons as it has 109 since 1999, including D.J. Reed's punt return score in the season opener and two by Kendall Adams against Charlotte via a 30-yard interception return and a 46-yard fumble return.
• K-State's two defensive touchdowns currently rank 20th in the nation.
• Since 1990, the Wildcats are 60-17 when scoring on special teams and 20-1 when scoring on special teams and defense, including an 18-0 mark under Bill Snyder.
• The Cats have had at least five non-offensive touchdowns in five of the last six years and in 16 of the 18 seasons since 1999.

NON-OFFENSIVE TD RECORDS
• Under head coach Bill Snyder, K-State is 72-21 (.774) when scoring a non-offensive touchdown, while the Cats are 53-14 (.789) since 1999 in that department.
• Since Snyder returned to the sideline in 2009, K-State is 28-7 (.800) in this same category.
• Since Snyder returned to the sideline in 2009, K-State is 28-7 (.800) in this same category.

OFFENSIVE NOTES
GROUND ATTACK
• K-State leaned heavily on its running game throughout 2016, particularly during the second half of the year.
• The Cats broke the school record in yards per carry (5.27) and ranked third in rushing yards per game (231.8).
• Dating back to last season, K-State has hit the 200-yard mark on the ground in 12 of its last 16 games, including each of the final seven contests of 2016.
• K-State also had four 300-yard games in 2016, the most by the Wildcats since 2003.
• This year, K-State has recorded four games with at least 200 rushing yards, the latest being a 268-yard output against No. 9 Oklahoma, the most by the Wildcats against a Sooner team since the 2003 Big 12 Championship.
• K-State enters the weekend ranked second in the conference in rushing offense, just 0.3 yards per game behind Oklahoma.

AERIAL ASSAULT
• While the Cats are known to have a powerful rushing attack, the 2017 squad has some weapons through the air as the unit works to achieve balance.
• In the 2017 opener, Jesse Ertz threw for a career-high 333 yards and tied the school record with four passing touchdowns against UCA.
• His passer rating of 319.8 was a new school record and the highest in the nation in week one, while he also became the first player under Bill Snyder to throw three 50-plus yard touchdown passes in the same game.
• K-State enters this week ranked ninth nationally in yards per completion (15.57).

PROECTING THE FOOTBALL
• Kansas State tied for fifth in the country last season in turnovers lost (12), while the Wildcats only threw five interceptions to rank fifth in the country.
• A year after tossing 13 picks, K-State's minus-8 interception differential from 2015 to 2016 ranked third nationally among Power 5 teams behind Maryland (minus-21) and Nebraska (minus-12).
• The Wildcats have lost seven turnovers this year, one of which came on a punt return, which is tied for 21st nationally and ranks second in the Big 12.

LONG DRIVES
• In the era of quick-strike offenses in college football, K-State remains a team that likes to possess the ball.
• Of K-State's 64 scoring drives in 2016, 39 were seven plays or longer, including 19 of 10 or more plays, while 19 scoring drives a year ago lasted at least five minutes.
• The Wildcats have been more of a quick-strike offense this year as 10 of their 24 touchdown drives have been four plays or less.

RED ZONE EFFICIENCY
• K-State has been one of the best red zone teams over the past few years as the Wildcats are the only team to finish in the top-15 nationally in red zone offense in 2014, 2015 and 2016.
• The Cats finished the 2016 campaign 10th in the nation by converting on 91.9-percent (57-of-62) of red zone trips.
• Since the beginning of 2014, K-State has converted on 189-of-207 red zone attempts (.921) with 138 touchdowns. Included in that stretch was a nation-leading scoring streak of 56-straight trips that was snapped in 2016.
• In their last 56 wins since 2011, the Cats are 258-for-282 (.915) in red zone chances with 190 touchdowns, while four of their non-scoring trips have come via kneel downs to close out victories.

IN ELITE COMPANY
• Quarterback Jesse Ertz is one of four signal callers in school history to throw for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in a career, joining Michael Bishop (1997-98), Ell Roberson (2000-03) and Collin Klein (2009-12).
• Ertz, who has 1,399 career rushing yards, ranks third in school history in rushing yards among quarterbacks. He is also tied for third in career 100-yard rushing games by quarterbacks behind Klein (10) and Roberson (8).
• Ertz ranks third in school history among all players in career rushing yards per attempt at 5.46, only trailing running backs Darren Sproles (6.11; 2001-04) and James Johnson (5.55; 2006-07).

SUNFLOWER STARTER
• Quarterback Alex Delton recorded his first-career start against TCU and earned another start last week against Oklahoma.
• A product of Hays, Kansas, Delton became just the seventh Kansas native to start under center for Bill Snyder and the first to originally come to K-State as a scholarship player since Dylan Meier in 2004.

SEEING DOUBLE
• In his start against Oklahoma, Alex Delton carded 142 rushing yards, the 11th-most ever by a quarterback in school history and the third most among underclassmen (Fr. and So.) signal callers.
• Delton was backed by 108 yards from running back Alex Barnes, the third 100-yard game of his career.
• Barnes' total was aided by a 75-yard touchdown run on the second play of the game, which was the ninth-longest rush in school history.
• It was the 15th double 100-yard game in school history and the 10th-most combined yards by a pair of 100-yard rushers in K-State history.

1,000 ON THE GROUND
• A pair of Wildcats are approaching 1,000 career rushing yards as running backs Justin Silmon (906) and Alex Barnes (856) are closing in on the mark that 28 other Wildcats have hit.
• Barnes is on pace to be the fourth player in school history to become a 1,000-yard career rusher as a sophomore.

1,000 THROUGH THE AIR
• Receivers Byron Pringle and Dominique Heath have 955 and 832 career yards, respectively, as they are looking to join a list of 30 other 1,000-yard career receivers.
• Pringle is trying to join a list of six other former community-college receivers to hit the 1,000-yard mark for a career at K-State. The last to accomplish the feat was Brandon Banks, who had 1,754 yards between 2008 and 2009.
• A product of Tampa, Florida, Pringle has made the most of his catches this year as his 27.0-yard average ranks third in the nation.

HE'S SCHOEN WHAT HE CAN DO
• A third-year member of the program who came to K-State as a walk-on, sophomore Dalton Schoen has been the Wildcats' most consistent receiver this year.
• The Overland Park, Kansas, native leads the team with 325 yards and three touchdowns on just 14 catches, good for a 23.2-yard average to rank seventh nationally.
• Of his 14 receptions, five have gone for at least 23 yards, including touchdown catches of 70 and 82 yards.
• His 70-yard touchdown came on his first-career catch against Central Arkansas, the longest by a Wildcat on their first-career catch since 2001.
• His best game thus far was at Texas when he caught five passes for 128 yards and two scores, featured by the 82-yard strike, which was the ninth-longest pass play in school history.
• His 128 yards were the fourth-most by a Wildcat underclassman in school history.
• He also needs just one more touchdown to tie for third in school history among sophomores.

YOUNG TALENT
• Left tackle Scott Frantz has started all 20 career games beginning with his redshirt freshman season of 2016.
• Frantz's 20 starts are the most by a Wildcat underclassman (Fr. or So.) left tackle since 1989, eight more than Barrett Brooks (1992-93).
• Of the 352 total starts at left tackle since 1989, only 58 have been made by underclassmen (16.5-percent), but 34.5-percent of those are represented by Frantz.

DEFENSIVE NOTES
STOUT SCORING DEFENSE
• Kansas State enters the week allowing only 24.0 points per game thanks to the fact the Wildcats held each of their first four opponents under 21 points.
• It was the first time K-State accomplished the feat in 15 years and just the sixth time since 1990.
• The other five times the Wildcats allowed 21 or less points in each of the first four games were 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000 and 2002.

TOUGH AGAINST THE RUN
• Kansas State was stout in rushing defense in 2016, ranking 11th nationally and leading the Big 12 by allowing only 115.0 yards per game.
• The Wildcats finished in the top 15 in the country in run defense for the first time since 2002. They did so by limiting opponents to less than 125 yards on eight occasions, including five times in Big 12 play.
• The Wildcats have surrendered less than 125 rushing yards in four games this season, including 98 yards to a TCU team that was averaging 200-plus rushing yards per game entering the contest.
• The 98 yards by TCU were the fewest the Wildcats surrendered to a ranked opponent since No. 20 Oklahoma State could only muster 49 yards in 2015.
• Kansas State has held three opponents to less than 100 yards on the ground as they also limited Vanderbilt to just 65 rushing yards and Baylor to 84 yards.

PICKING THEM APART
• After recording only five interceptions in 2015, K-State reversed the trend last year with a Big 12-leading 16 picks, a mark that tied for 14th in the nation.
• K-State's plus-11 up-tick in interceptions from 2015 to 2016 was the highest turnaround among Power 5 teams.
• The Wildcats have notched at least one interception in 33 of the last 44 games and have totaled six this year.
• K-State also had three pick-sixes last year, including ones by current Wildcats D.J. Reed (Texas Tech) and Duke Shelley (Oklahoma State), and another this year by Kendall Adams (Charlotte).
• Reed snagged the team's first interception of 2017 against Central Arkansas and had one on the first play at Texas. He became the first Wildcat with an interception on the first play of the game since Ty Zimmerman did so against Missouri in 2011.

LBs STEPPING UP
• Although it is a group that is deep with players that shined on special teams in their careers, K-State did not return any starts at linebacker in 2016.
• The Wildcats were one of three teams in the nation – but the only one from a Power 5 school – to not return a single start at linebacker this year. The next closest among Power 5 schools was Florida, which returned 12 total starts.
• Although lacking experience, the linebackers have risen to the occasion as Trent Tanking leads the Wildcats, is tied for fifth in the Big 12 and ranks fourth in conference-only games in tackles.
• The former walk-on from Holton, Kansas, is also averaging 6.1 solo stops per game to rank 10th in the nation.
• Fellow linebacker Jayd Kirby is second on the team and ranks eighth in the league with 55 tackles.

GEARY LEADS THE LINE
• A former in-state walk-on, Will Geary has recorded a team-best 37 career starts, which includes 32 of the last 33 games.
• The Topeka, Kansas, native held a streak of four-straight games with at least one tackle for loss, including a season-best 3.0 TFLs against Baylor.
• Geary has 6.5 TFLs this year to tie for ninth, while 5.0 TFLs have come against Big 12 foes to rank fourth in conference-only games.

CLOSING OUT A GREAT CAREER
• Will Geary, who ranks second on the team in career tackles with 143, ranks 14th in program history in career tackles among interior defensive linemen.
• Additionally, Geary has 22.5 career tackles for loss, which ranks sixth in school history among interior defensive linemen.

SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
SCORING IN THE THIRD PHASE
• Kansas State has been far and away the best team among FBS programs over the last decade when it comes to scoring via a kickoff or punt return.
• The Wildcats have a combined 43 kickoff- and punt-return touchdowns since 2005, 15 more than any other FBS school over the last 13 seasons.

DEFENSE IN THE THIRD PHASE
• On the flip side, K-State has been just as consistent in terms of kickoff and punt coverage.
• The Cats have not allowed a kickoff-return touchdown in the last 57 games as the last was against Louisiana on Sept. 7, 2013. During that stretch, K-State has defended against 229 kickoffs.
• The Wildcats have also not allowed a punt-return score in the last 44 games, the last being at Iowa State on Sept. 6, 2014. The Wildcats have successfully defended against 56 punts during that stretch.

KICKOFF-RETURN STREAKS
• Kansas State is currently riding a pair of streaks in terms of kickoff returns as the Wildcats have returned a kick for a touchdown in each of the last 12 seasons – the longest streak in the nation by five years.
• Byron Pringle extended the streak in 2016 when he returned a kickoff to paydirt 99 yards against Texas Tech.
• Since head coach Bill Snyder's return in 2009, K-State has returned 17 kickoffs for touchdowns as opposed to only four in his first tenure, which lasted 17 years.
• For his effort last season, Pringle earned First Team All-Big 12 honors as a kick returner, marking the 11th-straight year a Wildcat returner has earned all-conference accolades. Additionally, a K-State kick returner has earned first team honors six times in the last eight years.

McCRANE IN THE RECORD BOOK
• Matthew McCrane will finish his career highly on many of K-State's career kicking lists.
• McCrane current ranks first in school history and sixth nationally by making 85.7-percent (48-of-56) of his career field goals.
• The two-time All-Big 12 place kicker ranks first in school history in career extra-point percentage (99.1-percent) and is in K-State's top-10 in career field goals made (2nd; 48) and extra points made (5th; 111).
• He also ranks fifth overall in school history but third among kickers with 255 career points scored.

CONNECTING FROM DEEP
• A product of Brownwood, Texas, Matthew McCrane has been one of the best in K-State history in long-distance field goals.
• By connecting from 51 yards against TCU, McCrane made his fifth-career field goal of 50 or more yards to tie with Jeff Snodgrass (2005-06) and Martin Gramatica (1994-95, 1997-98) for the school record.
• Additionally, it was McCrane's third 50-yard field goal this season to tie both Snodgrass (2006) and Gramatica (1997) for first in K-State history.
• Against Texas, McCrane drilled a career-long 54-yarder, which was tied for the eighth-longest field goal in school history, was the longest in the Big 12 this year and tied for the fifth-longest in the nation this season.

WALSH A DEPENDABLE PUNTER
• The Wildcats also have an experienced punter in Nick Walsh, as the 2015 All-Big 12 punter and two-time member of the Ray Guy Award watch list ranks fifth in school history in average (42.1), while he ranks sixth in yards (7,867) and attempts (187).
• His current season average of 43.2 ranks sixth in K-State history, while he is third in the Big 12 in average.
• Walsh's average is aided by a career-long 64-yarder against TCU, the longest by a Wildcat since Mark Krause booted a 67-yarder against Iowa State in 2013.
• A product of Lyndon, Kansas, Walsh has also had 54 career punts land inside the opponent's 20-yard line, the third most by a Wildcat since 1997.

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Players Mentioned

Kendall Adams

Alex Barnes

Alex Delton

Winston Dimel

Trey Dishon

Jesse Ertz

Scott Frantz

Will Geary

Denzel Goolsby

Dominique Heath

Jayd Kirby

Matthew McCrane

Byron Pringle

D.J. Reed

Dalton Schoen

Duke Shelley

Justin Silmon

Trent Tanking

Dayton Valentine

Nick Walsh

Tanner Wood

Isaiah Zuber

Kansas State University Athletics