Kansas State has edge over Jayhawks this time

Kansas and Kansas State face each other Saturday in one of college football’s longest-running rivalries, 107 years and counting.

One team is leading the Big 12 North Division, the other reeling through a losing streak — just like always.

Well, not quite like always. This year, the roles are reversed, at least from recent years.

Kansas State is the team on a roll. Kansas needs a win.

This is the Sunflower Showdown, circa 2003.

“You never know where somebody’s going to be at this point in the season,” Kansas quarterback Todd Reesing said. “I didn’t think we’d be where we are now, so it just goes to show you never know how things are going to play out.”

Kansas State probably didn’t figure it’d turn out this way, either.

Picked to finish at the bottom of the Big 12 North, the Wildcats are the surprise leaders in the division after winning three of its first four conference games. Even in a loss to Oklahoma last week, Kansas State didn’t embarrass itself, scoring 30 points and gaining 364 total yards — both season-highs against the Sooners’ defense.

Not bad for a team that couldn’t beat Louisiana-Lafayette and lost to Texas Tech by 52 points.

“From where we started to where we are now, we’ve improved quite a bit, but I knew all along that we had potential to be a decent team,” said Kansas State quarterback Grant Gregory, who opened the season as a backup to Carson Coffman. “We’re just starting to become a decent team.”

Kansas has gone in the opposite direction.

Behind Reesing and a strong senior class, this was supposed to be the year of the Jayhawk. It started off that way: Kansas opened the season 5-0, reached No. 16 in The Associated Press Top 25, its offense rolling like it always has.

Then came an inexplicable loss to Colorado, followed by lopsided setbacks against Texas Tech and Oklahoma.

Now, the Jayhawks face their first four-game losing streak since 2006 and need to beat their instate rivals to have any chance at getting back into the Big 12 North race.

“I do not think you can look at the North standings,” Kansas coach Mark Mangino said. “I think you have to look at yourself and how we are going to get better. We can’t sit around and talk about winning the North, we have to talk about winning a game. I think that is what is really important to our team and to our players.”

Getting that win will likely hinge on Reesing.

The senior who holds nearly every significant school quarterbacking record was benched with just over 7 minutes left in the fourth quarter of his last game. The Jayhawks trailed by 14 at the time, seemingly within Reesing’s reach, but Mangino brought in redshirt freshman Kale Pick, hoping to get a spark.

Bothered by a strained groin suffered two weeks earlier, Reesing wasn’t his usual mobile self and was unable to move the Kansas offense against the Red Raiders. He was sacked six times and Kansas lost 42-21 to Texas Tech.

Over the past three games, Reesing has just two touchdown passes and seven turnovers after throwing for over 1,600 yards with 13 touchdowns and three interceptions the first five games.

“Sometimes, when you get too tense, you get that snowball effect,” Reesing said of himself and the rest of the team. “That has kind of happened the last couple of weeks. Play this game the way it should be played. You’re not supposed to be hanging your head and feeling bad, not having fun. The point where this game isn’t fun for you anymore, it’s time to hang it up. I still love playing this game. It’s still fun as heck for me.”

How well Reesing plays will go a long way in determining whether Kansas can continue its run in this heated rivalry. The Jayhawks have won three straight and four of five in the series since Kansas State had an 11-game winning streak during Bill Snyder’s first stint as coach.

Rejuvenated after that shaky start to the season, the Wildcats control their own fate in the Big 12 North and would like nothing more to start the march toward the title with a win over their rivals.

“We’ve just got to go out and treat this like another game,” Kansas State safety Tysyn Hartman said. “I mean, it’s a big in-state rivalry game that really means a lot to us right now, especially as far as contending in the North, but really, we’ve just got to see it as another game. We’ll prepare for it the same way we’ve been preparing for all these other games up until this point.”