D
Derek Young
Guest
OFFENSE
Just like special teams, it didn’t get off to a resounding start. They began the game by being penalized for a delay of game before they had an offensive snap. That is severely disappointing. But they didn’t look back from there. At least not on this side of the ball other than not being able to finish with a score when they needed it the most.
The player of the game on this side of the ball was definitely Skylar Thompson. It was as good as he’s thrown the ball all year and it wasn’t that close. His two touchdowns were beauties. He connected with Isaiah Zuber in the corner of the end zone by throwing him open perfectly from the far hash.
His second touchdown was a dart to Chabastin Taylor in the back of the end zone. The redshirt freshman rose to the occasion and used his big mitts to haul it in. Thompson’s third touchdown was a great play call by Andre Coleman that fooled the Cyclones and the toss to Zuber was one that Skylar can make in his sleep.
Thompson also scored a touchdown on the ground in what was a very tough and physical run and especially considering that it tied up the contest at 14. He had that kind of game. His desire and toughness won him a first down in Cyclone territory on a third down play. That drive resulted in six points.
But then the fourth quarter happened. After marching down the field to pull within 10 to begin the fourth quarter, Iowa State sent a blitz that surprised the Wildcats and forced a fumble from Thompson as he was throwing, and Iowa State returned it for a score. In a matter of a minute, it went from a comfortable 38-21 lead to a nervous 38-35 advantage.
Kaltmayer had filled in admirably for Frantz until the fumble. I believe the blitz came through his side. But he wasn’t the only perpetrator of missed blocks. Alex Barnes whiffed a couple of times as well.
At Kansas State, 38 points is usually enough to win, especially against the Cyclones.
DEFENSE
It was a step back for the defense. And not to make excuses, but they are digging deep into the tool chest for contributors right now which speaks more to what they have done thus far this season.
They’ve been without starting defensive end Kyle Ball for the last few games. Linebacker Elijah Sullivan hasn’t played since the beginning of the year and Duke Shelley has been out of commission for about a month. Last week’s starting nickelback, Lance Robinson, didn’t make the trip. And today Jonathan Durham left injured. A.J. Parker exited the game. Eli Walker is limited.
For most of the second half, the Wildcats were using five defensive backs that didn’t even start a week ago. The Cyclones did out-do their scoring average and racked up more yards against K-State than what they have averaged per game so far this season. Now, some of that is due to the ISU offense sputtering out of the gate and not finding their stride until Brock Purdy settled in as the team’s starter under center. But some of that is just the mere fact they scored 42 points and half of those came in the fourth quarter.
But, it wasn’t even close to the strong performances that Blake Seiler’s unit had produced against the likes of TCU, Texas, Oklahoma State, KU and Texas Tech. Brock Purdy shredded Kansas State for the most part.
One of the main problems for the Wildcat defense was their inability to put a lid on Hakeem Butler. They had no answer for him and two of his monster catches accounted for much of the yardage that K-State surrendered. In fact, he had another long one that would have given Iowa State the lead, but he dropped it in the end zone. Some of that was not a schematic breakdown by Seiler or the Kansas State staff. Some of those plays were won by Iowa State on the recruiting trail. By that I mean that there wasn’t a scheme that was going to help the Wildcats defend Butler. It was especially true on the 1-yard touchdown catch he hauled in during the first half on a back-shoulder throw.
SPECIAL TEAMS
It was a horrendous start, but they did regroup. K-State began the game at their own two-yard line due to the mistake of Isaiah Zuber on the opening kickoff. He fair caught it but muffed it, deadening the ball where he recovered it. That was followed by an illegal substitution penalty from the punt return team that allowed the Cyclones to go for it on fourth down (but they did not convert). Finally, Devin Anctil joined in by shanking the ball for a 13-yard punt just a few minutes later.
However, they did respond the rest of the game and played mistake-free. It included Colby Moore recovering an Iowa State punt and Blake Lynch connecting on a 36-yard field goal. The Cyclones also missed a 38-yard field goal.
PERSONNEL
Offensively, there were some noteworthy items. Isaiah Zuber started at receiver with true freshman Malik Knowles not making the trip and preserving his redshirt. Dalton Schoen and Zach Reuter rounded out the receiving core, but we saw both Chabastin Taylor and Wykeen Gill after those three.
Nick Kaltmayer jumped into the game at left tackle after Scott Frantz left with an injury. Josh Rivas was the starting right guard tonight instead of Tyler Mitchell. Mitchell did not play. It is Rivas’ second career start.
Defensively, there weren’t any real changes until the second half began. Walter Neil made his return as the starting nickel as Lance Robinson stayed home to preserve his redshirt. Denzel Goolsby and Kendall Adams were the starting safety. Eli Walker saw minimal snaps once again and it is believed he is dealing with an injury.
In the second half, A.J. Parker left the game and Jonathan Durham exited with an injury. The defensive backs on the field at one point were Kevion McGee, Darreyl Patterson, Walter Neil, Jahron McPherson and Eli Walker. None of those five even started a week ago. That either signals that they have depth, or they were looking for different solutions.
Kyle Ball made the trip and dressed for the game but did not play once again. Wyatt Hubert and Reggie Walker were the starting defensive ends while Chase Johnston and Boom Massie entered the game for the jet package. Kendall Adams was used as the third linebacker on a few occasions again as well.
Phillip Brooks did not travel so he could preserve his redshirt as well. That meant Isaiah Zuber returned to that duty as the kick and punt returner against the Cyclones.
Just like special teams, it didn’t get off to a resounding start. They began the game by being penalized for a delay of game before they had an offensive snap. That is severely disappointing. But they didn’t look back from there. At least not on this side of the ball other than not being able to finish with a score when they needed it the most.
The player of the game on this side of the ball was definitely Skylar Thompson. It was as good as he’s thrown the ball all year and it wasn’t that close. His two touchdowns were beauties. He connected with Isaiah Zuber in the corner of the end zone by throwing him open perfectly from the far hash.
His second touchdown was a dart to Chabastin Taylor in the back of the end zone. The redshirt freshman rose to the occasion and used his big mitts to haul it in. Thompson’s third touchdown was a great play call by Andre Coleman that fooled the Cyclones and the toss to Zuber was one that Skylar can make in his sleep.
Thompson also scored a touchdown on the ground in what was a very tough and physical run and especially considering that it tied up the contest at 14. He had that kind of game. His desire and toughness won him a first down in Cyclone territory on a third down play. That drive resulted in six points.
But then the fourth quarter happened. After marching down the field to pull within 10 to begin the fourth quarter, Iowa State sent a blitz that surprised the Wildcats and forced a fumble from Thompson as he was throwing, and Iowa State returned it for a score. In a matter of a minute, it went from a comfortable 38-21 lead to a nervous 38-35 advantage.
Kaltmayer had filled in admirably for Frantz until the fumble. I believe the blitz came through his side. But he wasn’t the only perpetrator of missed blocks. Alex Barnes whiffed a couple of times as well.
At Kansas State, 38 points is usually enough to win, especially against the Cyclones.
DEFENSE
It was a step back for the defense. And not to make excuses, but they are digging deep into the tool chest for contributors right now which speaks more to what they have done thus far this season.
They’ve been without starting defensive end Kyle Ball for the last few games. Linebacker Elijah Sullivan hasn’t played since the beginning of the year and Duke Shelley has been out of commission for about a month. Last week’s starting nickelback, Lance Robinson, didn’t make the trip. And today Jonathan Durham left injured. A.J. Parker exited the game. Eli Walker is limited.
For most of the second half, the Wildcats were using five defensive backs that didn’t even start a week ago. The Cyclones did out-do their scoring average and racked up more yards against K-State than what they have averaged per game so far this season. Now, some of that is due to the ISU offense sputtering out of the gate and not finding their stride until Brock Purdy settled in as the team’s starter under center. But some of that is just the mere fact they scored 42 points and half of those came in the fourth quarter.
But, it wasn’t even close to the strong performances that Blake Seiler’s unit had produced against the likes of TCU, Texas, Oklahoma State, KU and Texas Tech. Brock Purdy shredded Kansas State for the most part.
One of the main problems for the Wildcat defense was their inability to put a lid on Hakeem Butler. They had no answer for him and two of his monster catches accounted for much of the yardage that K-State surrendered. In fact, he had another long one that would have given Iowa State the lead, but he dropped it in the end zone. Some of that was not a schematic breakdown by Seiler or the Kansas State staff. Some of those plays were won by Iowa State on the recruiting trail. By that I mean that there wasn’t a scheme that was going to help the Wildcats defend Butler. It was especially true on the 1-yard touchdown catch he hauled in during the first half on a back-shoulder throw.
SPECIAL TEAMS
It was a horrendous start, but they did regroup. K-State began the game at their own two-yard line due to the mistake of Isaiah Zuber on the opening kickoff. He fair caught it but muffed it, deadening the ball where he recovered it. That was followed by an illegal substitution penalty from the punt return team that allowed the Cyclones to go for it on fourth down (but they did not convert). Finally, Devin Anctil joined in by shanking the ball for a 13-yard punt just a few minutes later.
However, they did respond the rest of the game and played mistake-free. It included Colby Moore recovering an Iowa State punt and Blake Lynch connecting on a 36-yard field goal. The Cyclones also missed a 38-yard field goal.
PERSONNEL
Offensively, there were some noteworthy items. Isaiah Zuber started at receiver with true freshman Malik Knowles not making the trip and preserving his redshirt. Dalton Schoen and Zach Reuter rounded out the receiving core, but we saw both Chabastin Taylor and Wykeen Gill after those three.
Nick Kaltmayer jumped into the game at left tackle after Scott Frantz left with an injury. Josh Rivas was the starting right guard tonight instead of Tyler Mitchell. Mitchell did not play. It is Rivas’ second career start.
Defensively, there weren’t any real changes until the second half began. Walter Neil made his return as the starting nickel as Lance Robinson stayed home to preserve his redshirt. Denzel Goolsby and Kendall Adams were the starting safety. Eli Walker saw minimal snaps once again and it is believed he is dealing with an injury.
In the second half, A.J. Parker left the game and Jonathan Durham exited with an injury. The defensive backs on the field at one point were Kevion McGee, Darreyl Patterson, Walter Neil, Jahron McPherson and Eli Walker. None of those five even started a week ago. That either signals that they have depth, or they were looking for different solutions.
Kyle Ball made the trip and dressed for the game but did not play once again. Wyatt Hubert and Reggie Walker were the starting defensive ends while Chase Johnston and Boom Massie entered the game for the jet package. Kendall Adams was used as the third linebacker on a few occasions again as well.
Phillip Brooks did not travel so he could preserve his redshirt as well. That meant Isaiah Zuber returned to that duty as the kick and punt returner against the Cyclones.
