Stagnant Offense Plagues Oklahoma State in Loss to Kansas State
Oklahoma State entered this week needing a win to stay in the Big 12 title race but couldn’t deliver.
No. 20 OSU lost to No. 23 Kansas State 42-20 on Saturday at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan. After a poor offensive performance in the conference opener, OSU continued to see the same issues against Kansas State.
Alan Bowman struggled to handle a snap and tried to gather the ball instead of falling on it. Kansas State recovered, and Avery Johnson shortly paid it off with a deep ball to Jayce Brown, giving the Wildcats a 21-13 lead before halftime.
Despite a rough finish to the first half, OSU had an opportunity to answer to begin the third quarter. However, the Cowboys stalled on offense, going three-and-out. On Kansas State’s second play after OSU’s punt, DJ Giddens ran for a 66-yard touchdown to extend the lead. Giddens played well against the Cowboys’ defense all game, finishing with 187 yards on 15 carries.
While OSU had a promising second drive in the third quarter, the offense stalled around midfield before Bowman threw an interception on third down, his first of two in the second half. OSU never found any rhythm after halftime and failed to score in the second half until the final two minutes.
After OSU failed to get off the field twice on fourth down, Johnson ran for a 12-yard touchdown on third and long to open the game. Following a couple of field goal attempts, with only one make on its first two drives, OSU answered on its third chance. Bowman found De’Zhaun Stribling on a flea flicker, and he sprinted down the right sideline for a touchdown, giving OSU a 10-7 lead.
A long run by DJ Giddens was ended with a horsecollar tackle by Trey Rucker to set up Kansas State in the red zone. On the next play, Johnson found Garrett Oakley in the end zone to give the Wildcats the lead again midway through the second quarter.
The Cowboys will try to get back on track in Stillwater next week, when it welcomes West Virginia into Boone Pickens Stadium.
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Ivan is a sports media student at Oklahoma State University. He has covered OSU athletics since 2022 and also covers the OKC Thunder for Inside The Thunder and Thunderous Intentions.