Mistakes Costly As CU Falls To K-State

MANHATTAN, Kan. - Given the chance here Saturday to make a strong follow-up statement in the Big 12 Conference's North Division, the Colorado Buffaloes regrettably declined.

To demonstrate just a hint of legitimacy, the Buffs needed a sequel to last week's upset of then-No. 17 Kansas. Instead, they turned gaffe after gaffe into an unsightly 20-6 loss against Kansas State.

Starting the 2009 season's second half with an offensive whiff, CU slumped to 2-5 overall and 1-2 in the Big 12. The loss also puts the Buffs in the tenuous position of having to win four of their final five games to reach six victories and become bowl eligible.

"We've got to rally, we've got to rally . . . this is not where we wanted to be," CU coach Dan Hawkins said, calling his team's failure to capitalize on the KU victory "just the nature of this conference.

"You've just got to pull yourself up every week and get going, and not get caught up in whether you won or lost."

Added Buffs quarterback Tyler Hansen, whose second game as the starter lacked the productivity of the first: "You go from such a high (after KU) to such a low . . . it's tough to handle it. We've just got to fight through."

Meanwhile, K-State, attempting Resurgence Part II under coach Bill Snyder and doing reasonably well, improved to 5-3, 3-1. Credit the Wildcats for doing just enough Saturday to stay atop the quickly unraveling North, but don't get too lavish; they were simply out-uglied by the road-challenged Buffs.

Can an October afternoon turn into a wart covered by warts? This one did.

"It was just a bad day all around . . . you're just going to have those, but it's a shame it happened now," said Hansen, speaking more of his and his team's travails than the game, which was generally wretched and right there for anyone's taking.

Those extended hands didn't belong to the Buffs, who dropped their 17th road game in 19 trips on Hawkins' 31/2-year watch. They lost two of three fumbles (the Wildcats converted them into 10 points), were intercepted twice (both picks thrown by Cody Hawkins), and were penalized eight times for 69 yards (the Wildcats had one fewer flag for the same number of lost yards).

Hansen blamed his team's penalties on "a lack of focus . . . We need to clean that up, because it's killing us."

The Buffs rushed for only 60 yards, their lowest total against K-State since 1999, and had just 244 yards in total offense, also the lowest against the Wildcats since totaling 214 in 1999.

"We had a hard time throwing the ball, we had a hard running the ball . . . I've got to give a lot of credit to Kansas State. They did a great job of defending us well," CU offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Eric Kiesau said.

The Wildcats, he added, made no meaningful adjustments to stymie the Buffs: "They just went out and played. It just comes down to our execution and how we played. It was just unfortunate . . ."

All of the game's scoring was done in the first half, and half of K-State's total resulted from two of CU's four turnovers. Defense wasn't the downfall; offensive inefficiency and a couple of special teams missteps doomed the Buffs.

Poor field position also was a factor: In 12 possessions, the Buffs' averaging starting point was their 19-yard line, while the Wildcats averaged opening on their 47 on 14 possessions.

And then there's the road factor that CU can't seem to overcome. Said Dan Hawkins: "You talk to these guys all the time and you have to have leadership from your guys who have been around a little bit; they just need to know when you travel, you need to bring a little extra juice and stay locked in there."

The Buffs didn't bring nearly enough juice or whatever else might be needed offensively. Although they fell behind 3-0, they answered smartly and efficiently with a 13-play, 71-yard drive that would be their only offensive noise of the day.

"After that (drive), I felt like we were going roll on offense," receiver Scotty McKnight said. "Then, we just got stagnant."

How stagnant? CU's six points were the fewest against K-State since a 38-6 loss in Manhattan in 1984.

In trying to explain how his team squandered what might be its best chance for a road win this season (trips to Iowa State and Oklahoma State remain), Dan Hawkins his offense "never got any rhythm until that last drive" and his defense allowed the Wildcats "to run the ball more than we'd have liked."

CU's final drive - as futile as all others except the first - was directed by former starter Cody Hawkins, who spelled Hansen in the final 1:06 of the first half and again for the game's final 9 minutes.

Kiesau said Cody Hawkins entered the game because he was more efficient at running a no-huddle offense. Had the Buffs needed to utilize it last week against KU, Cody Hawkins likely would have directed it then.

Hansen remains the likely starter next Saturday against Missouri (Folsom Field, 11:30 a.m., FSN), but Dan Hawkins appeared reluctant to be pinned down on that issue: "Guys, I've told you we'll do what we need to do to win football games. We'll see (who the starter is for Mizzou)."

Hansen completed half of his 14 passes for 89 yards and ran 11 times for minus-8 yards (he was sacked four times for minus-34 yards).

The Wildcats didn't allow him to be the scrambling factor he was against the Jayhawks. But his receivers appeared to be covered better this week than last, and his performance also suffered from several dropped balls.

Kiesau, though, noted the quarterback-receiver timing also was amiss: "Tyler was waiting too long sometimes . . . there's small windows there, and he got to understand those windows are going to close very fast . . . He's got to make the read faster and pull the trigger."

The offense was no better in Cody Hawkins' hands. Although he did drive the Buffs to the Wildcats' 2-yard line in the game's final 3:15, he was intercepted in the end zone by safety Emmanuel Lamur.

It was Lamur's second pick of the game, ending Cody Hawkins' afternoon with 10 completions in 23 attempts for 95 yards and the two picks.

Dan Hawkins pinned the Buffs' passing game woes on "not executing (and) a combination of receivers not getting open, quarterbacks not seeing things, and the dropped balls."

The Wildcats relied on quarterback Grant Gregory and tailback Daniel Thomas for a strong running game. K-State finished with 204 yards rushing and 284 yards in total offense.

"They focused on the run and they had a good, strong, fast guy (Thomas) back there," said CU defensive end Marquez Herrod, adding he and his teammates weren't surprised by K-State's occasional option plays.

"They just came out and were running hard . . . they were beating us off the ball. We've just got to hit them in the mouth like they did us," Herrod continued. "The second half we kind of did that a little bit, but that's all it is.

"It was never like we gave up and said, 'Hey, we're just going to ride it out.' Guys were out there fighting on every play, even on the kneel downs."

But so was the 227-pound Thomas. Ranked third in Big 12 in rushing (95.6 yards a game with eight touchdowns), he rushed for 87 of his 145 yards and his touchdown in the first half, while Gregory ran 11 times for 50 yards (23 after sack yards were subtracted) and one score.

K-State's rushing defense played better than advertised. CU's 60 yards rushing were 46.4 fewer than the Wildcats had been allowing.

And getting four turnovers bolstered the Wildcats' cred in that department; they are No. 1 in the Big 12 in turnover margin (plus six before Saturday).

K-State endured a 100-point swing in its two most recent games (a 66-14 loss against Texas Tech, a 62-14 win against Texas A&M), and its fans were wondering about a possible identity crisis.

The Wildcats allayed some of those fears by marching to a 3-0 lead on their first possession, with Josh Cherry's 25-yard field goal culminating the nine-play 61-yard drive.

CU answered with Rodney Stewart's 2-yard dive into the end zone, but Aric Goodman's PAT slammed high into the right upright, and the Buffs' lead was only 6-3. And it would be their finial one of the game.

K-State's last drive of the first quarter spilled into the second, with a pair of option plays directed by Gregory gaining 33 yards and a 14-yard run by the junior quarterback accounting for the bulk of the 58-yard scoring march.

Thomas got the touchdown on a 3-yard run, and Cherry's PAT pushed the Wildcats in front 10-6.

Less than a minute later, Cherry was the beneficiary of a Hansen fumble on the center snap that was recovered by linebacker Ulla Pomele at the CU 13-yard line.

Cherry's 27-yard field goal sent the Wildcats in front 13-6, and the first half appeared on the verge of deteriorating for the Buffs.

The verge was passed two series later.

After an earlier ill-advised decision to field a punt at his own 4-yard line (he was buried there), returner Jason Espinoza lost his first bobble of the season at the Buffs' 20, where it was recovered by Corey Adams.

The CU defense looked as if it might hold, but on third-and-two and the 12, tackle Curtis Cunningham jumped off sides, giving K-State an effortless first down. Two plays later, Gregory scored on his 5-yard run off right tackle.

After Cherry's PAT, the Wildcats led 20-6 and any of K-State's lost early momentum had been recaptured. And, given the state of its offense, most of CU's comeback hopes were disappearing.

With 1:06 left in the half, CU changed quarterbacks, subbing in Cody Hawkins to run the 2-minute drill. That strategy netted one first down before ending with Hawkins being intercepted by Lamur eight seconds before halftime.

The Buffs hardly played a thinking-man's first half, losing two fumbles that served up 10 points to the Wildcats and being penalized four times for 30 yards.

CU had difficulty slowing Thomas, who ran for 87 of K-State's 129 first-half rushing yards. Conversely, the Buffs managed just 49 ground yards before intermission, with Stewart gaining 29 of those.

If CU had designs on a comeback, receiving the second-half was a good place to start. Instead, the Buffs took a delay of game penalty on first down. The series . . . then the third quarter . . . then the fourth, fizzled from there. A prime opportunity to pull one game below .500 and establish a foothold in the North was wasted.

McKnight said the Buffs "just need to flat out find a way to win. There's a lot of conference left; it comes down to the leaders on this team.

"We've got to take pride in the program that we're not going to hit the bottom of the conference. We've got to find a way to win games."

BUFF BITS: Saturday's attendance at Bill Snyder Family Stadium was 42,019 . . . . CU receiver Scotty McKnight's first-quarter reception gives him at least one catch in 31 consecutive games, adding to his school record . . . . Michael Sipili opened at middle linebacker and Ray Polk started at safety for CU . . . . Aric Goodman's botched extra point attempt after CU's first score was his first miss in 20 tries this season . . . . The Buffs were in all-white uniforms Saturday for the first time since last season's game against Florida State in Jacksonville, Fla. . . . . Tailback Darrell Scott, who had arthroscopic knee surgery on Thursday, is hopeful of returning to play against Texas A&M (Nov. 7, Boulder).

Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU

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Team Stats

Cody Hawkins

Tyler Hansen

Players Mentioned

Curtis Cunningham

Jason Espinoza

Aric Goodman

Tyler Hansen

Cody Hawkins

Marquez Herrod

Scotty McKnight

Ray Polk

Darrell Scott

Michael Sipili

Rodney Stewart