K-State Washes the Tulane Green Wave 31-20

Flash forward to 2026 and the circumstances are pretty similar; Tulane, on week three, in Bill Snyder Family Stadium, on family weekend. K-State fans saw the signs and the opportunity for revenge was right in front of HC Collin Klein, who was the offensive coordinator in that loss to Tulane. And Klein saw it too as K-State answered the call, putting up more points in the first half than they did in that entire game in 2022.

1st Quarter

Kansas State entered the game with a bang as the defense forced a three and out with a TFL from Wendell Gregory. The offense, however, looked a bit sluggish. Avery Johnson’s deep ball woes from the game against Washington State persisted and the ground game was almost nonexistent. As the Cats first drive stalled, the Green Wave came alive with a couple of big plays to set up a nine yard QB keeper to the house for Kadin Semonza. That touchdown totaled all of the scoring in the first quarter as K-State struggled to get into rhythm until the second quarter.

2nd Quarter

The second quarter saw the Cats come alive offensively, as Avery Johnson found Jaron Tibbs for 33 yards to put K-State in Tulane territory. From there, K-State settled for a field goal after an underwhelming goal to go stalled. K-State’s defense tightened up immediately after allowing their first touchdown, as Semonza and company couldn’t put together any big plays, with two drives stalling out quickly.

Meanwhile, K-State found their first point from backup RB Jay Harris on his first touch of the game. Shortly after, Avery Johnson took an option play 66 yards, capping off an explosive drive by waltzing into the endzone on a seven yard run. K-State quickly found themselves with a 10 point lead after trailing 7-0 to start the quarter.

It seemed like that score would hold over halftime, but Tulane wasn’t done yet. The Green Wave put together a 12 play drive over two and a half minutes that resulted in the longest made field goal in Tulane history from Cooper Helmke. With that, K-State entered the locker room with a 17-10 lead over Tulane.

3rd Quarter

The start of the second half felt reminiscent of K-State’s first drive against the Washington State Cougars. It was a long, drawn out scoring drive that ate up over eight minutes of clock. Though they took it slow, the offense looked really efficient and in control as another Jay Harris touchdown gave the Cats a 24-10 lead. Tulane responded with a long drive of their own as Johnnie Daniels torched KSU’s defense for multiple 10+ yard gains. Though there were some pros for the Green Wave, a Darien Whitaker sack caused Tulane to settle for another long field goal for Cooper Helmke. Though the defense showed they could be bent, they still didn’t break as the third quarter ended with the Cats leading 24-13.

4th Quarter

K-State’s fourth quarter started with a punt from Simon McClannan after a K-State three and out ended the third quarter. Tulane’s first drive in the fourth showed promise but a false start penalty held them back from the line to gain, giving K-State the ball back within two minutes. From there, the offense took the ball and ran with it as Avery Johnson took another option play 25 yards into Tulane territory, capping it off with another 12 yard rushing touchdown. Tulane’s offense responded with a six and a half minute drive ending in a 25 yard touchdown to cut the lead to 11, but that would be all that Will Hall’s squad could do. An attempted onside kick would go right to Wesley Fair and the Cats let the clock wind down to improve to 3-0, beating Tulane 31-20.

K-State’s win over Tulane has a lot of good, but also the most bad out of the three games so far. Avery Johnson had one of his best performances as a starter, leading the team in rushing and passing yards with two rushing touchdowns. Johnson’s rushing ability was the strongest it’s been since his freshman year, with 151 yards on the ground and a 66 yard run setting a new record for his longest rush. Jaron Tibbs led the receiving yards with 114 on nine receptions, having his biggest game of the season thus far.

Defensively, K-State had a lot of flashy, big plays in the backfield. Kadin Semonza was under pressure on most plays, with the defense getting six sacks and 12 TFLs. Though the Cats got to the ball a lot, the run defense was still a big concern. Marcus Turner and Johnnie Daniels had quietly strong games, both averaging over five yards per carry. In spite of that, the Cats still impressed against the pass, as Semonza ended with only a 50% completion percentage.

Overall, K-State learned a lot about themselves when faced with some adversity. Avery Johnson’s performance and the defensive line provided a lot to look forward to, but the defense’s performance against the run left a lot to be desired as K-State prepares for their first road contest against Cincinnati to open conference play.