The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
K-State
Football plays Kansas State Saturday in Big 12 opener
09.16.2013 | Football
Horns and Wildcats game will kick off at 7 p.m. CDT from Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium
Texas-Kansas State Game Notes | Longhorns Gameweek | Tickets
Texas Plays Host to Kansas State in Big 12 Opener: Texas will try and rebound from a pair of nonconference losses when it plays host to Kansas State Saturday (7 p.m. CDT/ABC) in the Big 12 Conference opener for both teams. The Longhorns fell 44-23 to No. 25/25 Ole Miss on Saturday in Austin. Starting in place of an injured David Ash, Case McCoy went 24 of 36 for 196 yards and a TD and running back Jonathan Gray gained 91 rushing yards, but the Rebels rallied in the third quarter after Texas had scored on five straight possessions to claim a 23-17 halftime lead. K-State has won its last two games after dropping its season opener to North Dakota State. This will be the Wildcats first road game of the year.
Cancer Awareness Game: The Kansas State contest is UT's annual Cancer Awareness Game. Each team member will dedicate the game to a friend, family member or someone close affected by cancer. We will host two young cancer patients and their families during the game and they will join the captains for the coin toss. In addition to the U.S. Flag and Longhorn Flag, team representatives will carry out three flags – Yellow, Purple and Pink. Players will wear a yellow, purple or pink ribbon on their helmets to honor the person they've dedicated the game to. During the game, the players will wear the ribbon of their choice to promote awareness of any form of cancer that has affected their lives -- pink for breast cancer, yellow for testicular cancer, or purple for all other forms of cancer which affects those around us. They also will have the option of wearing wristbands, gloves and/or socks with ribbons. The coaching staff will join by wearing black and pink shoes, and lapel pins with the ribbon of their choice.
First-and-Goal:
• The Longhorns are averaging 493.3 yards of total offense after three weeks which ranks No. 30 in the nation. They are averaging 205.0 yards on the ground (No. 46) and 288.3 in the air (31st).
• Junior David Ash has a passing efficiency rating of 168.9 which would be 16th in the nation, but he has played in less than 75 percent of the games after missing the Ole Miss contest with head and shoulder injuries. He is averaging 297.0 passing yards per game and 359.5 total yards of offense per game with six TDs and two interceptions. Ash is also second on the team in rushing (125 yards).
• Johnathan Gray leads the team and ranks fifth in the Big 12 in rushing (69.7 per game). He had 91 rushing yards vs. Ole Miss, the third-highest total of his career.
• Mike Davis leads the team and ranks tied for first in the Big 12 with 20 receptions. Jaxon Shipley is third in the league with 19. Davis has a team-high four TD receptions which is tied for fifth in the nation.
• Five players have at least one catch of 45 yards or more.
• Kendall Sanders made his second career start vs. Ole Miss and posted career highs in receptions (7), receiving yards (55) and all-purpose yards (143).
• The Horns played most of the last two games without Daje Johnson (injured ankle) who posted a career-high 139 all-purpose yards vs. New Mexico State. Johnson has four career touchdowns and has averaged 61 yards on those scores.
• Junior LB Jordan Hicks leads the team in tackles with 34. He has nine or more in all three games. DE Cedric Reed is second with 27 stops and has a team-best three tackles for loss.
• The Longhorns rank tied for 40th nationally in turnover margin at +0.7 per game.
• Anthony Fera ranks 24th nationally in punting average (43.9). Seven of his 16 punts have gone inside the 20 and seven have been fair caught.
Kansas State Series: Texas and Kansas State have met 13 times with the Wildcats leading, 8-5, in a series that dates back to 1913. K-State has won the last five games. The Horns have a 4-3 record in Austin. The Wildcats won the first two Big 12 matchups (48-7, 1998/35-17, 1999) before the Horns posted a 17-14 win at K-State in 2002 and a 24-20 victory at home in 2003. Kansas State won last season 42-24 in Manhattan and 17-13 in 2011 in Austin. The Wildcats earned a 41-21 decision in Austin in 2007 and a 45-42 win in Manhattan in 2006, in a game where QB Colt McCoy was hurt during the first series after giving Texas a 7-0 lead. Prior to the teams becoming Big 12 opponents, the Longhorns had won three of the series first four contests (64-0, 1942/41-7, 1927/46-0, 1913).
Series Tidbits: Kansas State is the only team in the Big 12 Conference to lead an overall series with the Longhorns (8-5). Although Texas and Kansas State have played only 13 times, the series dates back to a 1913 Longhorns' victory in Austin (46-0). Prior to joining the Big 12 Conference, UT and Kansas State last met on Sept. 26, 1942. The Longhorns, who agreed to bench their freshmen — which included stars Gus "Pig" Dittmar and Alva "Fats" Carlton (who were not eligible under Missouri Valley Conference rules), shut out Kansas State, 64-0, that year in Austin.
Horns in Big 12 Openers: Texas is 13-2 in Big 12 Conference opening games under Mack Brown. The only losses came to Kansas State on the road in 1998, and at home in 2007. The Longhorns also faced the Wildcats in their 2003 league opener and won 24-20 in Austin. Overall, the Longhorns are 14-3 in Big 12 openers.
Streaks, Trends and Milestones:
• With a win vs. Kansas State, head coach Mack Brown would tie Woody Hayes for 10th on the NCAA all-time coaches victories list. Brown has 237 career victories.
• Mike Davis posted seven receptions for 46 yards, including a 13-yard TD catch, vs. Ole Miss. He moved into a tie for ninth on the UT career touchdown receptions list with 14. Wane McGarity (1995-98) and Johnny 'Lam' Jones (1976-79) also had 14.
• Davis is the 10th player in UT history to have at least one TD reception in three straight games and only the second to do it in the first three games of the year (Jordan Shipley - first eight games of 2008).
• Jaxon Shipley recorded six receptions for 83 yards vs. Ole Miss. He now has 122 career receptions, moving from 12th to 10th on Texas' career receptions list. He passed Marquise Goodwin (120/2009-12) and James Kirkendoll (121/2007-10).
• Shipley has posted at least five receptions in seven consecutive, and 10 of his last 13, games, dating back to last season.
• After not attempting a field goal in the first two games, Anthony Fera hit all three attempts vs. Ole Miss, including a career-long 47-yarder. His previous best was 46 yards vs. Ohio State (while at Penn State) in 2011. Fera had a career-high 11 points vs. Ole Miss.
• The Longhorns 715 yards of total offense vs. New Mexico State was the most against an FBS opponent during the opening weekend of the season. The total yards output was a school record, eclipsing the mark of 692 set in 1998 vs. Rice (list on pg. 8).
• In the New Mexico State game, Texas posted more than 300 rushing (359) and 300 passing yards (356) for the fourth time in school history. The most recent 300-yard rushing and 300-yard passing effort was at Ole Miss on Sept. 15, 2012.
• OG Mason Walters leads the team with 41 straight starts, which is tied for the second-longest streak in the nation among offensive linemen (42, Gabe Jackson, OG, Mississippi St.). CB Carrington Byndom leads the defense with 29 consecutive starts. CB Quandre Diggs has 27 straight starts.
