Kansas coach Lance Leipold made it clear when he took charge of the struggling Jayhawks that their intense in-state rivalry with Kansas State was more of a rivalry in name than in action.
To truly be a rivalry, Leipold said, the Jayhawks would need to win against the Wildcats once in a while. That hasn’t happened yet. The Wildcats have won 15 games in a row leading up to Saturday night’s game.
This was meant to be the season when the Jayhawks would challenge Kansas State, especially with Leipold’s program improving.
However, the situation is quite different: No. 16 Kansas State is doing well at 6-1 and is in contention for the Big 12 title game and possibly a spot in the College Football Playoff, while Kansas sits at 2-5, with its only win against an FBS team coming last week against Houston.
“We don’t make more of it,” Leipold said about this week’s matchup. “It’s an important game on our schedule for us to build upon, and we know last year was a very good football game that we had our opportunities and we let slip away. I think our guys know how important it is and the extra energy that comes into rivalry games.”
Indeed, last year’s game, which is part of the third-longest ongoing series in Division I football, became more competitive.
The Jayhawks led 27-16 after a touchdown run by Devin Neal early in the third quarter.
However, the Wildcats responded with a touchdown run by D.J. Giddens, and in the fourth quarter, then-quarterback Will Howard scored the winning touchdown in a 31-27 victory.
“There are almost all the same players that were up 11 on us in the fourth quarter at their place, plus you add the quarterback that they didn’t have last year,” Kansas State coach Chris Klieman said. “They obviously have the full attention of our players and our coaches, because it’s a bunch of veteran guys on both sides of the ball.”
It may come down to the quarterbacks to determine the winner.
The Jayhawks faced the Wildcats last season without Jalon Daniels, who spent most of the year dealing with a back injury. Now he is back as the starting quarterback, and even though he has had trouble with turnovers, he is coming off his best game of the season.
Kansas State has Avery Johnson, whose exciting play is a big reason why Howard transferred to Ohio State. Despite some early challenges, Johnson has been playing very well recently.
“The biggest thing is not overhyping it. Just treating it like each and every week,” Johnson said. “Obviously it’s a big rivalry game and we’re going to get their best, and we’re going to go out there and put our best on display. Attacking it like every other week, but obviously, this one means a little bit more.”
