Another Trip to a Hostile Environment

Kansas State is one record-long field goal and a handful of plays away from being a 5-0 squad, but reality shows that the Wildcats, who lost to Missouri in the nonconference, face a climb in the Big 12 Conference standings after a tough loss at Oklahoma State.

Now the Wildcats seek their first road win of the season against a Texas Tech team that will celebrate Homecoming in Saturday's 6 p.m. kickoff (FS1) at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas.

K-State, 3-2 overall and 1-1 in the Big 12, comes off a 29-21 loss to the Cowboys. The defeat gave the defending Big 12 Champions pause as they sought to regroup during the week. The Wildcats look to avoid their first 1-2 start in league play since 2021 — a season in which they finished 8-5 and beat LSU in the Texas Bowl.

"The season's not over," K-State safety said. "We still have all our goals ahead of us. As you see, Texas lost, and nobody thinks their season is over. Our season is just like theirs."

K-State embarks upon a business trip in another hostile environment. Texas Tech fans are encouraged to wear all black in the 56,200-capacity stadium.

"It's a tough environment for sure, especially playing another night game," said K-State head coach , who says that the Red Raiders "have found their footing."

Texas Tech, 3-3 and 2-1, most recently captured a 49-28 win over Houston and a 39-14 win at Baylor. The Red Raiders seek their first 3-1 start in league play since 2018.

"They got after Houston and got after Baylor, so they've playing some of their best football right now," Klieman said.

K-State has won the last seven meetings in the series. That includes a 25-24 win the last time the teams played in Lubbock in 2021. Texas Tech seeks its first series victory since 2015 but has won 11 of its last 16 homecoming games. Second-year Texas Tech head coach Joey McGuire is 9-2 at home.

"Texas Tech is just a team that's a hard-nosed, gritty team, and they're always going to give you their best," K-State center said. "They're scrappy, and they're going to play hard. You can expect that every time you play them."

McGuire encourages the Red Raiders to "be the team we know we are."

"Against K-State, we do need a complete game out of all three phases," McGuire continued. "They're a really good football team. I think they're as good as anybody in the Big 12. We have to build off what we're doing."

Meanwhile, K-State continues to search for the road-dog mentality that served it well as the Wildcats went 4-1 on the road a year ago.

"We have to have that same hunger we did, especially last year, when we were underdogs in every sense of the word and had that fire every game," K-State quarterback said. "We have to get back to that and just remember that's what got us here."

The defense allowed one touchdown and five field goals while Howard threw for 152 yards and one touchdown and  a career high-tying three interceptions against the Cowboys. Howard added a 70-yard run for an offense that amassed 220 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.

However, K-State came back from a 20-7 deficit to make things interesting down the stretch in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

"I truly believe there's no team out there that can beat us," Howard said. "We're the only ones that can do that. If we're not playing to our standard, anyone can beat us. We have to get back to what we're doing and get back to having fun and playing more free."

One matchup of intrigue against Texas Tech comes in the trenches.

K-State's running game ranks fourth in the Big 12 at 202.8 yards per game behind , who averages 97.6 yards. The Wildcats will be tested against a Texas Tech defense that is tied for sixth in the Big 12 in allowing 126.0 rushing yards per contest.

"You just talk about our starters and their starters, and it's going to be a war," McGuire said. "If you like to watch football between the tackles and guys getting after it, it's going to be an absolute war."

K-State offensive coordinator subscribes to such an notion.

"I remember every time I went down to Lubbock as a player for sure," Klein said. "It's a hostile environment and they're a physical, aggressive bunch, and it's going to come down to who's able to execute and make some plays and not make mistakes."

K-State owns the top rushing defense in the league in giving up 93.4 yards. Texas Tech running back Tahj Brooks ranks fifth in the FBS with 688 rushing yards and has reached 100 rushing yards four-straight times. He had 31 carries for 170 yards at Baylor, both career highs.

"Tahj is running the ball as well as anybody in the country," McGuire said.

K-State defensive coordinator said "he's phenomenal."

"He's probably as hot of a back as there is in the league right now," Klanderman added. "He's a really bigger back, a guy who's tougher to bring down and who is patient and does a really good job keeping his feet underneath him. He never gets himself overextended, and it's hard to get good shots on him."

Sophomore Behren Morton has thrown for 571 yards and eight touchdowns and two interceptions while stepping in for injured sixth-year senior starter Tyler Shough.

"When you can run the football the way they're running the football, a lot of things open up in the passing game, and that's what they're doing," Klieman said.

One key to K-State's overall success? Operation.

"We just need to execute it throughout the week, ramp up communication, and ramp up the operation in everything we do," Gillum said. "I think we take some of that for granted in what it takes to operate at the level that we need to operate on Saturdays."

K-State might need to be operating at full efficiency in order to survive Texas Tech in a night game at Jones AT&T Stadium.

K-State, legitimately close to being undefeated, could see its season record drop to .500 if the Wildcats don't handle the Red Raiders and their environment.

"They have a really good fan base and they're loud," Klieman said. "It'll be a big challenge for us to make sure we can handle the noise, especially at night. I think we're going into another 'Black Out.' The night games are a tough deal on the road, but that's the hand we're dealt, so we need to do a great job adjusting to it and making sure our guys are prepared and ready."