Kansas State 31, Baylor 3
By SCHUYLER DIXON
AP Sports Writer
WACO, Texas - Will Howard threw for three touchdowns after Adrian Martinez exited with an injury, and No. 23 Kansas State buoyed its Big 12 title hopes with a 31-3 rout of Baylor.
The defending conference champion Bears (6-4, 4-3 Big 12) will need help to get back to the championship game after a three-game winning streak had put them back in contention.
The Wildcats (7-3, 5-2) went into the game in a three-way tie for second place in the Big 12 with Baylor and No. 18 Texas, which played undefeated and fourth-ranked TCU later.
Howard came on after Martinez appeared to injure his lower body getting a first down on a quarterback sneak in the first quarter.
The junior who threw four TD passes in a 48-0 victory over then-No. 9 Oklahoma State two weeks ago put the Wildcats ahead 7-0 on the same drive with a 15-yard scoring pass to Ben Sinnott.
Howard has thrown seven TD passes without an interception in three-plus quarters filling in for Martinez, who was on the sideline with his helmet on after getting checked by the medical staff.
Martinez returned last week against Texas and threw for 326 yards, but had an interception that was turned into a touchdown and lost a fumble that clinched the victory for the Longhorns.
Blake Shapen threw two interceptions in the Bears' worst offensive showing in a Big 12 game this season as a four-game winning streak in the series ended.
Deuce Vaughn had a 20-yard touchdown catch and 104 yards rushing, making him the third Kansas State running back with consecutive 1,000-yard seasons (1,079 yards this season).
Howard was 18 of 26 for 186 yards, and Sinnott had another TD from 19 yards while finishing with seven catches for 89 yards.
THE TAKEAWAY
Kansas State: The Wildcats wasted little time showing faith in Howard. On his first drive, they ran a reverse flea-flicker, and he completed a 23-yard pass to Sinnott. The TD toss to Sinnott came two plays later.
Baylor: Coach Dave Aranda tried to spark a struggling offense late in the third quarter by going for it on fourth-and-3 from the Baylor 19-yard line. Monaray Baldwin's catch gained just 1 yard, and DJ Giddens sent many fans to the exits on a 1-yard TD for a 31-3 Kansas State lead early in the fourth.
November 12, 2022
Scoring Summary |
Second Quarter |
KanSt | Baylor |
KanSt |
TD |
14:20 |
Ben Sinnott 15 yard TD pass from Will Howard (Ty Zentner Extra Point) |
7 |
0 |
KanSt |
FG |
5:57 |
Ty Zentner 31 yard field goal |
10 |
0 |
KanSt |
TD |
2:09 |
Deuce Vaughn 20 yard TD pass from Will Howard (Ty Zentner Extra Point) |
17 |
0 |
Baylor |
FG |
0:00 |
John Mayers 37 yard field goal |
17 |
3 |
Third Quarter |
KanSt | Baylor |
KanSt |
TD |
1:53 |
Ben Sinnott 19 yard TD pass from Will Howard (Ty Zentner Extra Point) |
24 |
3 |
Fourth Quarter |
KanSt | Baylor |
KanSt |
TD |
14:06 |
DJ Giddens 1 yard TD run (Ty Zentner Extra Point) |
31 |
3 |
Team Stats |
|
Kansas State |
Baylor |
First downs |
30 |
19 |
Rushing |
11 |
6 |
Passing |
16 |
11 |
Penalty |
3 |
2 |
3rd Down Efficiency |
8-13, 62% |
4-12, 33% |
4th down efficiency |
1-2, 50% |
0-3, 0% |
Rushes-Yards |
44-184 |
23-103 |
Passing Yards |
221 |
203 |
Return Yards |
29 |
6 |
Completions-Attempts-Int |
26-35-0 |
22-38-2 |
Sacks-Yards Lost |
1-7 |
0-0 |
Punts |
2 |
3 |
Fumbles Lost |
0-0 |
0-0 |
Penalties - Yards |
5-28 |
6-51 |
Kansas State Passing |
Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
W. Howard |
19 |
27 |
196 |
3 |
0 |
A. Martinez |
7 |
8 |
25 |
0 |
0 |
Baylor Passing |
Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
B. Shapen |
22 |
38 |
203 |
0 |
2 |
Kansas State Rushing |
Player |
Carries |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
D. Vaughn |
25 |
106 |
4.2 |
0 |
D. Giddens |
13 |
58 |
4.5 |
1 |
P. Brooks |
1 |
16 |
16.0 |
0 |
W. Howard |
2 |
6 |
3.0 |
0 |
A. Martinez |
3 |
-2 |
-0.7 |
0 |
Baylor Rushing |
Player |
Carries |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
R. Reese |
9 |
54 |
6.0 |
0 |
B. Shapen |
7 |
21 |
3.0 |
0 |
C. Williams |
4 |
17 |
4.3 |
0 |
Q. Jones |
3 |
11 |
3.7 |
0 |
Kansas State Receiving |
Player |
Rec |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
B. Sinnott |
7 |
89 |
12.7 |
2 |
D. Vaughn |
8 |
50 |
6.3 |
1 |
K. Warner |
4 |
26 |
6.5 |
0 |
M. Knowles |
3 |
18 |
6.0 |
0 |
P. Brooks |
2 |
17 |
8.5 |
0 |
D. Giddens |
1 |
11 |
11.0 |
0 |
R. Garcia II |
1 |
10 |
10.0 |
0 |
Baylor Receiving |
Player |
Rec |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
J. Cameron |
6 |
83 |
13.8 |
0 |
M. Baldwin |
8 |
75 |
9.4 |
0 |
H. Presley |
2 |
22 |
11.0 |
0 |
B. Sims |
2 |
13 |
6.5 |
0 |
C. Williams |
3 |
10 |
3.3 |
0 |
Q. Jones |
1 |
0 |
0.0
|
0 |
Kansas State Interceptions |
Player |
Int |
Yards |
K. Savage |
1 |
15 |
D. Cheatum |
1 |
1 |
Baylor Interceptions |
Player |
Int |
Yards |
Kansas State Punting |
Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
T. Zentner |
2 |
76 |
38.0 |
Baylor Punting |
Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
I. Power |
3 |
126 |
42.0 |
Kansas State Punt Returns |
Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
P. Brooks |
2 |
13 |
6.5 |
Baylor Punt Returns |
Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
Kansas State Kick Returns |
Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
Baylor Kick Returns |
Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
J. Nabors |
1 |
6 |
6.0 |
Kansas State Missed FG |
Player |
Length |
Baylor Missed FG |
Player |
Length |