Missouri State @ Kansas State preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 15, 2007 ) Missouri State 10, Kansas State 61

Kansas State will be looking to build off its impressive 31-22 opening win over UCLA when it hosts Missouri State Saturday.

Missouri State hopes to become the second Missouri Valley team in two weeks to knock off a Big 12. North Dakota State upset Kansas 6-3 last week.

If the Bears want to repeat North Dakota State’s success, they’re going to have to shut down the Wildcats’ Daniel Thomas, who exploded for a 234 yards rushing and two touchdowns against UCLA. Thomas was the leading rusher in the Big 12 last season running for 1,265 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Kansas State's passing game wasn't nearly as impressive. Fifth-year senior quarterback Carson Coffman passed for just 66 yards against UCLA. He didn't get much protection from his offensive line and was sacked five times. To make things worse, offensive lineman Ethan Douglas, who was injured in the UCLA game, has been ruled out for this week’s game. The Wildcats attempted only 16 passes against the Bruins.

In a 31-9 win over Eastern Kentucky, the Bears allowed just 35 yards rushing, but gave up 315 yards passing.
coach
After going 6-6 last season in coach Bill Snyder’s first year back, the Wildcats were picked to finish third in the Big 12 North in the Big 12 Media Preseason Football Poll. Last year, they would have snuck into the Big 12 Championship with a win over Nebraska in the final week, but lost 17-3 in Lincoln.

The Bears are led by 5th-year head coach Terry Allen, who has gone up against Snyder’s Wildcats several times in the past. Allen was the head coach at Kansas from 1997-2001 and an associate head coach at Iowa State from 2002-2005. Now that the Missouri State's entire roster consists of players Allen recruited, the Bears are looking to continue to improve after going 6-5 last season. They return 17 starters and expectations are high in Springfield.

Senior quarterback Cody Kirby is i his third year leading the offensive attack for the Bears. He threw for 199 yards and a touchdown against Eastern Kentucky and also scored on two short runs. Chris Douglas and Stephen Johnston split the carries last week at running back. Douglas ran for 128 yards and a touchdown. Johnston, who missed the entire 2009 season with a knee injury, added 48 yards

Don’t expect Kansas State to look past the Bears, especially after what happened to Kansas last week. However, Allen’s familiarity with Kansas State and his experienced roster could keep this one interesting.