Kansas State has made great strides this year. Their accomplishments include a ten-win season, a Big 12 Championship, three wins against top 10 teams and Sugar Bowl berth. Yet, today’s game shows that they still have a journey ahead of them to compete with the best of the best in college football. It is not as long of a journey as you might think.
The Wildcats started the game 10-0, taking the Crimson Tide by surprise. Deuce Vaughn’s electric 88-yard dash to the end-zone must have woken Alabama up because they managed to score touchdowns on back-to-back drives in just under three minutes. Then, in the second quarter, the Wildcats went on a 10 minute drive. They converted 2 fourth downs. Eventually it was fourth and goal on the Alabama two-yard line. Ben Sinnott was open, but Will Howard misfired. What happened in the next minute was completely unpredictable. Alabama drove 98 yards for a touchdown.
Alabama got the ball to start the second half. They scored. A few plays in to KSU’s first drive of the 2nd half and Howard threw an interception. Alabama scored quickly again. The game was virtually over at that point. Alabama’s talent and depth leaned on the Wildcats. They were led by their superstar quarterback, Bryce Young. He came back to play with his team one last time. His heart and loyalty to his squad is what college football is all about. Despite Alabama’s dominance, KSU never gave up. They never will.
The future is bright. This is Coach Chris Klieman’s fourth year, and he coached his team to a New Year’s Six bowl game. With the new playoff system coming to fruition, Kansas State will be playing for the College Football Championship in years to come. Go Wildcats!
