On Saturday night, Kansas State football travels to Provo, Utah, for a game against the BYU Cougars. Both teams open conference play with 3-0 records in the non-conference portion of their schedules. BYU beat Southern Illinois, SMU, and Wyoming; K-State beat UT Martin, Tulane, and Arizona. This game is intriguing for a lot of reasons. Will the altitude affect K-State’s players? Will the late evening start be an advantage for BYU? Is BYU for real, or is their undefeated record schedule-driven?
We will find out the answers to those questions on Saturday night. We do have a little bit of information to digest from both teams through three games that may help show what we should expect in the game. Here are the offensive and defensive statistics of both teams so far this season.
BYU Offense vs. Kansas State Defense
- BYU Total Offense: 440 ypg (No. 39 Nationally)
- Rush Offense: 151 ypg (No. 77)
- Pass Offense: 289 ypg (No. 30)
- Kansas State Total Defense: 316 ypg (No. 64 Nationally)
- Rush Defense: 80 ypg (No. 24)
- Pass Defense: 236 ypg (No. 93)
BYU senior quarterback Jeff Retzlaff has been fantastic so far, averaging 280 yards passing per game and rushing for 113 yards. He had 62 yards rushing last week against Wyoming on six attempts. Both the attempts and yards led the team. BYU’s pass offense has been very efficient, ranking number 30 in the country, while K-State’s pass defense has not been efficient at times, currently ranking number 93. On the other hand, K-State’s rush defense has been good. Containing BYU’s passing game will be a key to winning this game.
Kansas State Offense vs. BYU Defense
- Kansas State Total Offense: 412 ypg (No. 62 Nationally)
- Rush Offense: 244 ypg (No. 16)
- Pass Offense: 168 ypg (No. 113)
- BYU Total Defense: 236 ypg (No. 14 Nationally)
- Rush Defense: 106 ypg (No. 41)
- Pass Defense: 131 ypg (No. 19)
K-State’s pass offense is their worst statistical category thus far this season, but I think that will come around. Their rush offense has been their strength, while BYU’s rush defense has just been average. I expect K-State will run the ball effectively against BYU, controlling the clock and the game. As long as K-State’s secondary can keep BYU somewhat in check, K-State should be able to do what is needed to win the game. I think it will be close through the third quarter, and K-State may pull away in the fourth. I don’t have much to go on, but I think K-State wins something like 31 to 17. Better have your coffee pot brewing some coffee to make it through that 9:30 central time kickoff on Saturday!
