LAWRENCE, Kan. – 

Oklahoma State came out of the gate firing, led by the return of second-string quarterback, Zane Flores, but, yet again, it was not enough to overcome the Kansas Jayhawks on Saturday.

Oklahoma State, coming off a loss to Texas Tech, 42-0, saw Zane Flores return and throw a very complimentary 22-of-28 through the air, for a total of 235 yards, and added two touchdowns. It was a nice change of pace from former wide receiver turned quarterback, Sam Jackson V, who was unable to get the Poke offense churning in the past three and a half games (at Arizona, Cincinnati, Houston, at Texas Tech). Jackson V returned to his designated wide receiver position and recorded two catches for 34 yards, helping the Cowboys with some crucial gains in the third quarter. 

Meanwhile, the Jayhawks, coming off a 42-17 drubbing at the hands of Kansas State in the prior week, were hell bent on giving Kansas fans a better outcome and to grab a win for KU’s 113th homecoming celebration. 

Kansas quarterback, Jalon Daniels, only managed to throw for 110 yards, but added two passing touchdowns and ran for another 28 yards on the ground. It was not Daniels who powered the Jayhawk offense to 38 points, but was a Kansas running back duo who totaled 28 carries and 142 between the two. Running backs, Leshon Williams and Daniel Hishaw Jr., had 14 carries a piece for 77 and 65 yards, respectively. Williams finished with one endzone entrance, while Hishaw was able to see six twice. 

While Oklahoma State’s Flores was able to spread and share the love with nine different Cowboy receivers and played mistake free, it was the constant drive stalling for Oklahoma State that ultimately led to their demise in Lawrence. 

The Cowboys managed a touchdown on their opening 10 play, 75 yard drive to take an early 7-0 lead. Kansas would respond with a field goal and the Cowboys were leaders at the end of the first. Oklahoma State then had a chance to score mid-way through the second quarter, but left with empty hands after a missed 44-yard field goal. The Jayhawks capitalized on the missed field goal with a touchdown, though the Cowboys continued to fight. 

With a minute remaining in the first half, Oklahoma State had a first and goal from the KU three-yard line but failed to punch in. Instead, the Pokes opted for an end-of-half field goal that would’ve tied the game going into the break. Kicker, Logan Ward, missed again. 10 points left off the board because of the lack of execution for Oklahoma State…seems to be a reoccurring theme this season. 

In the post-game press conference, Oklahoma State interim head coach, Doug Meacham noted that it was “hard to pinpoint a moment when it went bad…it could be the field goal block (at the end of the first half). We could have gone in with some momentum. It’s just that fine of a line…What we have to do a better job of is when things don’t go the way we want them to, we have to put them to bed.”

Jalon Daniels and the Jayhawks would come out firing in the second half and began the third with two early touchdowns, driving the lead to 24-7 in the red and blue team’s favor. The Pokes were able to get the lead down to 10 points by the end of the quarter, but allowed a lengthy kick return that all but negated Oklahoma State’s previous score. 

From that point, it was all handshakes and lip service, as Kansas rolled to an overall 5-4 record, while the Pokes lost their 15th straight conference game. 

Next for each team: 

Kansas heads to Tucson to face the Arizona Wildcats. 

Oklahoma State plays host to the Kansas State Wildcats in Stillwater.