Scheduling Could Cost 'Cats

By Keith Whitmire
November 16, 2009

A 38-12 loss to Missouri was shocking for Kansas State, but the Wildcats still control their own destiny. If they beat Nebraska on Saturday, in Lincoln, they win the Big 12 North and qualify for a bowl. However, it’s an all-or-nothing deal. Lose to Nebraska, and there will be no bowl for Kansas State.

Hard to imagine a team like Kansas State could go unrewarded for a turnaround season in Bill Snyder’s second stint as coach. The Wildcats have won four conference games and could be left out of the bowls, while a Missouri team that has won just two conference games became bowl eligible with the win.

Somewhere in all of this the NCAA needs to look at making conference records count more towards bowl eligibility, but with so many bowls somebody has to fill them.

The reason Kansas State is in a win-or-go-home position is scheduling. While the Wildcats have the mandatory six wins to be considered for a bowl, two of the wins are over Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Div. I-AA) teams. Only one win over an FCS team can count toward bowl eligibility.

Basically, Kansas State under-scheduled itself and will end up paying the price if the Wildcats cannot pull out a win at Nebraska.  On the flip side, if Kansas State wins the North and then upsets Texas in the Big 12 championship, hello BCS bowl.

QB INJURY CAUSES HEADACHE FOR OKLAHOMA STATE
Oklahoma State quarterback Zac Robinson showed why quarterbacks should always slide at the end of a run. His failure to do so put both his health and his team’s BCS bowl chances in jeopardy. Robinson was fighting for yards at the end of Saturday’s 24-17 win over Texas Tech when he lowered his head and went straight at Red Raiders defensive back Jamar Wall, who likewise went low. It was as brutal a collision as you’ll see in football.

Robinson suffered a concussion, which on its own makes his playing status dicey. Complicating matters is the fact OSU plays on Thursday night against Colorado, making for an even shorter recovery time.

The latest word out of Stillwater is that Cowboys coach Mike Gundy expects Robinson to play Thursday. The Cowboys could probably get past the Buffs without him, but there’s still a lot at stake for OSU.

If the Cowboys win out, they will finish 10-2 and be among the contenders for a BCS bowl berth, assuming Texas goes to the national championship game. After Colorado on Thursday, OSU gets eight days between games. The Cowboys finish the regular season with the Bedlam Series game against Oklahoma Nov. 28.

OFFENSE RETURNS TO THE BIG 12
The rust was shaken off some scoreboards around the conference with impressive offensive showings.

One of the biggest developments was the return of a running game at Texas. Cody Johnson rushed for 109 and Tre’ Newton gained 80 – including an impressive 45-yard TD run – in a 47-14 win over Baylor. Give Colt McCoy a running game and the Texas quarterback is twice as deadly.

Nebraska’s Roy Helu rushed for 156 yards and scored three touchdowns in a 31-17 win over Kansas. Again, a running game is a quarterback’s best friend and Nebraska’s Zac Lee needs all the friends he can get. Not to mention how much better Nebraska’s intimidating defense can be if the offense provides a little support.
Missouri receiver Danario Alexander had 10 catches for 200 yards and three touchdowns in the win over Kansas State. That’s back-to-back 200-yard games for him.
Iowa State bucked the trend by winning with defense in a 17-10 win over Colorado. But what the hey, it made the Cyclones bowl-eligible for the first time since 2005.

During his 12-year stint with The Dallas Morning News Keith Whitmire was a Big 12 and national college football columnist. He resides in Dallas.