Their defensive coordinator has been there for years and the players on defense are almost all upperclassmen. They play a base 3-3-5 (often may look like a “drop 8”), and there is certainly opportunity to exploit that look with a lot of patience and discipline, but they are extremely opportunistic and if you throw a bad pass odds are there will be a man in the area to take advantage.
I think we can win, but it will take a gameplan similar to Baylor at home in 2022. Play within our scheme, run the ball, and don’t try to make plays that aren’t there. Kansas State is prepared to do the same, they haven’t had a passing game over 181 yards yet this year but are averaging 7 yards a carry rushing the ball. If we can slow down their rushing attack, we may be able to turn the game into a rock fight and hopefully the home crowd can give our players the boost they need in that type of game.
I’ll be honest, I’m not sure if Retzlaff has this type of game in him, he hasn’t show that he has in the past against good defenses… but, this is his opportunity to prove he can play within himself against a defense that’s main strength is Jake’s biggest weakness: creating turnovers.