Quick recap: Another year of heartbreak for KU with the loss in the Sunflower Showdown 29-27

Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels (6) runs the ball during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Kansas State on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024, in Manhattan, Kansas. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Manhattan – The Kansas football team entered halftime of the 122nd Sunflower Showdown on Saturday night trailing by just two points, a reasonably solid result considering host Kansas State entered the race as the clear favorite.

But the 16-14 deficit looked much worse in the context of everything that preceded it: a missed touchdown pass that could have given the Jayhawks an early 14-0 lead, a bizarre special teams error that led to… a safety for the Wildcats, and a rash pass that led to a somewhat controversial but still costly interception before halftime.

Despite these mistakes, KU had the ball and the lead with less than four minutes left. But a fumble by quarterback Jalon Daniels led to a go-ahead 51-yard field goal by Chris Tennant, and Daniels was unable to lead the Jayhawks to a field goal of his own in the final moments. He attempted to gain a first down on 4th-and-7 but was sandwiched by two Wildcat defenders.

K-State extended its winning streak to 16 straight games in the Sunflower Showdown and KU fell to 2-6 on the season.

The Jayhawks converted two third downs on their first drive and advanced into K-State territory on Jalon Daniels' third rushing attempt. With Devin Neal in the blue medical tent and Daniel Hishaw Jr. sidelined with an injury, third-string running back Sevion Morrison took an outside handoff on third-and-long base and outsmarted a pair of Wildcats at the goal line on his way to a 38-yard run -Game opening touchdown.

K-State wasn't as lucky on its first drive and had to punt. KU got out of its own end on a 15-yard run by the returning Neal, aided by a 15-yard defensive penalty, but was forced to punt shortly after Quentin Skinner dropped a potential touchdown on a deep ball from Daniels.

Early in the second quarter, Dylan Edwards was able to gain an 11-yard gain on third-and-10 to put the Wildcats into KU territory, then converted on a second third down shortly after. Avery Johnson hit Will Anciaux for a 24-yard touchdown to tie the game.

Disaster struck for the Jayhawks when Jameel Croft, apparently trying to catch an out-of-bounds kick to draw a penalty against K-State, intercepted it downfield and went out of bounds at the 1-yard line. Neal was immediately tackled for a safety, forcing KU to get its defense back on the field immediately after the 13-play Wildcat scoring drive.

Things didn't go well for the Jayhawks. Johnson completed passes of 13 and 25 yards before throwing a 2-yard touchdown pass, completing a four-minute, 16-point swing in KSU's favor.

To its credit, KU's offense was fearless, as Daniels found Trevor Wilson for 36 yards and Luke Grimm drew a pass interference penalty before Daniels hit Grimm for a short touchdown pass.

The Jayhawks got a rare stop before halftime, and Wilson started another drive with two more big grabs. But with a chance to take the lead before halftime, Daniels tried to force the ball to himself in double coverage in the end zone and threw an interception to Marques Sigle, who returned the ball near midfield and threatened , to go to the end Wilson himself tripped him up.

Early in the second half, KSU running back DJ Giddens, previously limited to nine carries for 19 yards, broke loose for a 54-yard run, and then Johnson took it upon himself to give the Wildcats a two-yard run back . Ball possession management.

The Jayhawks came back with a productive if shaky drive, and Neal – who, like Giddens, had been pressured – capped it off with a 24-yard touchdown that more than doubled his own yardage. However, Tabor Allen missed the extra point, so the score remained 23:20.

After a Johnson fumble and two punts, Daniels subdued Grimm on a first-down deep ball, but Grimm still managed to make a 42-yard reception. Daniels promptly gave KU its first lead since 7-0 with an 8-yard touchdown run.

Once again, the Jayhawks allowed an early, explosive play, this time a catch-and-run by Keagan Johnson. But a wide-open Anciaux couldn't score a touchdown and the Wildcats settled for a short field goal from Tennant to cut KU's lead to one point.

In the fourth quarter, neither offense was able to get much going at all. Midway through the fourth quarter, KU began to gain some traction before committing two penalties that, combined with a short punt with seven minutes left, gave K-State good field position at midfield.

Marvin Grant sacked Johnson for a massive loss and Mello Dotson batted away a fourth-and-12 pass to give KU the ball back. But Daniels fumbled to give the ball right back to KSU.

Grant almost got another significant sack, but Johnson was able to pry the ball away at the last moment. That proved crucial as Tennant made the 51-yard attempt.

KU has its second bye week before a game against No. 10 Iowa State at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on Nov. 9.

How they scored

First quarter

8:51 – Sevion Morrison 38-yard run. Tabor Allen PAT well. Eleven plays, 75 yards, 6:09 TOP. KU 7, KSU 0.

Second quarter

11:09 – Will Anciaux 24-yard pass from Avery Johnson. Chris Tennant PAT well. Thirteen plays, 95 yards, 6:35 TOP. KU 7, KSU 7.

11:02 – Safety (rush by Devin Neal). KSU 9, KU 7.

7:13 – Garrett Oakley 2-yard pass from Johnson. Tennant PAT well. Eight plays, 59 yards, 3:43 TOP. KSU 16, KU 7.

3:29 – Luke Grimm 10-yard pass from Jalon Daniels. Everyone PAT well. Six plays, 75 yards, 3:44 TOP. KSU 16, KU 14.

Third quarter

13:15 – Johnson 10-yard run. Tennant PAT well. Four plays, 75 yards, 1:45 TOP. KSU 23, KU 14.

8:47 – Devin Neal 24-yard run. Allen PAT missed. Nine plays, 65 yards, 4:21 TOP. KSU 23, KU 20.

0:36 – Daniels 8-yard run. Everyone PAT well. Three plays, 54 yards, 1:31 TOP. KU 27, KSU 23.

Fourth quarter

13:23 – Tennant 28-yard field goal. Seven plays, 66 yards, 2:08 TOP. KU 27, KSU 26.

1:42 – Tennant 51-yard field goal. Seven plays, 15 yards, 2:02 TOP. KSU 29, KU 27.

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Written by Henry Greenstein

Henry is a sports editor at the Lawrence Journal-World and KUsports.com and serves as a KU beat writer while managing daily sports coverage. He previously worked as a sports reporter at The Bakersfield Californian and is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis (BA, Linguistics) and Arizona State University (MA, Sports Journalism). Despite being from Los Angeles, he's often been told that he doesn't give off “California vibes,” whatever that means.

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