Texas Bowl Preview!

December 28, 2016December 5, 2018 Trevor Elwell-Cuddy 0 Comments

Former Big 12 foe reunion

The Aggies and Wildcats are no strangers to one another, as the two teams have met 15 times with the Aggies holding a slight 8-7 lead. Kansas State won the first meeting in the series in 1912 13-10 in College Station, although the Aggies won three of the five games before the schools became conference foes. The schools split the ten games when both schools were Big 12 members, with Kansas State winning the first two games before falling in five straight games starting with a loss in a game that shall not be mentioned in 1998. The Wildcats have won the last three games in the series, including a 62-14 win in 2009 and a 53-50 four overtime victory classic in 2011. The Texas Bowl marks the first meeting between the two schools since the Aggies left the Big 12 at the end of the 2011-12 academic year.

A familiar joust

Kansas State will face Aggie quarterback Trevor Knight for the fourth straight year as Knight played his first three years at Oklahoma before transferring to Texas A&M after graduating from Oklahoma with a degree in finance. The Kansas State defense should know what to expect from Knight on top of the fact that Knight’s talents resemble the talents of the many dual-threat Big 12 quarterbacks. Knight also has similar talents to Jesse Ertz, as the two quarterbacks have an identical number of rushing touchdowns as well as near identical quarterback ratings, completion percentages, passing and rushing yards per attempts, and touchdown-to-interception ratios. Knight was originally listed as out for the season after a shoulder injury suffered against Mississippi State, but made a surprise recovery and started against LSU on Thanksgiving.

Myles ahead

The Kansas State offensive line faces perhaps their greatest challenge of the year in Aggie defensive end Myles Garrett. Garrett is projected to be the first pick in the NFL draft next year by multiple mock drafts. This year, Garrett has posted fifteen tackles for loss and eight-and-a-half sacks. Garrett is a unique athlete (40 inch vertical, sub 4.5 40-yard dash, benches almost 500 pounds) that can have a unique impact on a game. Garrett is also a unique individual, who has an interest in paleontology and poetry and listens to jazz legends John Coltrane and Duke Ellington before games.

An Aggie roller-coaster

A one-time fourth place college football playoff ranking this year appears to be in the distant past after going 1-3 over the past four games and failing to beat a Power 5 team since Tennessee in early October. This collapse is not a one year anomaly however, as no team has started as hot and crashed as hard as the Aggies over the past three years. In both 2014 and 2015, the Aggies obtained top 10 rankings only to finish 8-5 both of those years. These three consecutive collapses have Aggie head coach Kevin Sumlin’s seat hot, and a loss to Kansas State would result in a third straight 8-5 season.

Injury watch

Kansas State fans hope that Alex Barnes, Duke Shelley, Matthew McCrane, and Abdul Beecham have recovered from their respective undisclosed injuries for the bowl game. Because of Kansas State football general policy under Bill Snyder, no public knowledge exists on these injuries so therefore all four players are assumed to be questionable for the game. Barnes has had a break out year at running back toward the end of the season, averaging almost eight yards a carry. Shelley has recorded 40 tackles and is tied for the team lead with three interceptions. McCrane has been missed in the kicking game, as backup kicker Ian Patterson has missed three extra points and a field goal in McCrane’s absence. Beecham has had a solid year at guard after transferring from JUCO.

The Aggies have had less luck with regards to injuries and suspensions. Linebacker Josh Walker was suspended before the season due to a domestic violence incident, and wide receiver Speedy Noil (the team’s third leading receiver) has been sent home from the bowl game due to a marijuana related arrest a week ago, per the Houston Chronicle. Defensive backs Justin Dunning and Noel Ellis, offensive lineman Connor Lanfear, and wide receiver Quartney Davis all have season ending injuries. Defensive back Armani Watts and backup quarterback Joe Hubenak are both questionable for the game due to injuries. Trevor Knight is probable for the game but will be battling a knee injury he suffered late in the game against LSU.