SAN ANTONIO — UTSA (0-2) will hit the road for the second time in three weeks to face Kansas State (1-1) on Saturday, Sept. 15, in Manhattan, Kan., marking the Roadrunners' first-ever trip to the Sunflower State. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Bill Snyder Family Stadium and the game will be televised on Fox Sports Networks (Fox Sports Southwest in the state of Texas).
The Roadrunners and Wildcats are meeting for the second time, as K-State scored a 30-3 victory on Sept. 12, 2015, at the Alamodome. Saturday's contest will mark the third straight Power 5 conference opponent for the Birds, as they are one of two non-Power 5 programs (BYU) to open with three consecutive P5 foes. UTSA also is looking to snap a three-game losing streak on the road. The Roadrunners last won away from home on Oct. 28, 2017, in a 31-14 decision at UTEP.
UTSA Roadrunners (0-2)
at
Kansas State Wildcats (1-1))
3 p.m. | Sept. 15, 2018
Bill Snyder Family Stadium | Manhattan, Kan.
TV: Fox Sports Networks (Fox Sports Southwest in Texas)
Radio: Ticket 760 AM San Antonio
Opening drive
• Saturday's game will mark the second meeting between UTSA and Kansas State.
• The Wildcats won the first matchup, 30-3, on Sept. 2, 2015, in San Antonio.
• This weekend will be the Roadrunners' maiden voyage to the state of Kansas.
• Kansas State will be UTSA's third straight Power 5 conference opponent.
• The Roadrunners are looking for their first road win since a 31-14 victory at UTEP on Oct. 28, 2017.
• The game will air on Fox Sports Networks, marking the 63rd straight UTSA game to be broadcast.
Tuning in
The game will be televised on Fox Sports Networks (Fox Sports Southwest in the state of Texas). Mark Followill (play-by-play), Brian Baldinger (analyst) and Lesley McCaslin (sideline reporter) have the call. The contest will air live on the Roadrunners Sports Network and can be heard in the San Antonio area on Ticket 760 AM. Andy Everett (play-by-play), Jay Riley (analyst) and Pat Evans (sideline reporter) will call all the action. The pregame show will begin at 4 p.m. and there will be a 45-minute postgame show. The broadcast also can be heard live online at goUTSA.com and Ticket760.com and via the free iHeartRadio app.
Game 86
Saturday's matchup with Kansas State will mark the 86th game in UTSA football history and its 43rd road contest. Now in their eighth season of play, the Roadrunners are 38-46 overall and 16-26 away from home. By comparison, this will be the 1,210th game in the Wildcats' history, which dates back to 1896. K-State owns a 527-641-41 all-time record.
The Power (5) open
UTSA will open its 2018 season with three consecutive games against Power 5 conference opponents. The Roadrunners debuted at Arizona State on Sept. 1 and hosted Baylor last Saturday before closing the stretch with the second all-time matchup against Kansas State this Saturday. BYU is the only other non-Power 5 team to open the season with three straight Power 5 opponents (at Arizona [Sept. 1], vs. California [Sept. 8], at Wisconsin [Sept. 15]).
A look at Kansas State
The Wildcats fell to 1-1 on the season after dropping a 31-10 home decision to No. 18 Mississippi State last Saturday. The Wildcats were held to just 213 yards of offense and they allowed 538. K-State rallied from a 12-point deficit entering the fourth quarter to score a 27-24 win against South Dakota in the season opener on Sept. 1. Junior running back Alex Barnes leads the rushing attack with 178 yards on 38 carries, while junior Isaiah Zuber is the top receiver with seven catches for 79 yards and a touchdown. The Wildcats have played two quarterbacks in sophomore Skylar Thompson, who is 15-of-31 for 147 yards and two TDs, and junior Alex Delton, who has completed 7-of-18 for 105 yards. Senior defensive back Duke Shelley is the defense's top tackler with 12 stops (11 solos) and he also has a team-best five pass breakups, while sophomore Walter Neil Jr. has 10 tackles. Head coach Bill Snyder is in his 27th season at the helm and he owns a 211-111-1 career record.
Series history
Saturday will mark the second all-time meeting between UTSA and Kansas State. The Wildcats posted a 30-3 victory in the first matchup on Sept. 12, 2015, at the Alamodome. This will mark the seventh game against a Big 12 Conference team for the Roadrunners, who own a 1-5 record against the league.
Last meeting
Kansas State turned a 7-3 halftime lead over UTSA into a 30-3 victory in the first meeting between the two teams on Sept. 12, 2015, at the Alamodome in San Antonio. Daniel Portillo handed the Roadrunners a 3-0 advantage with a 51-yard field goal early in the first quarter, but Joe Hubener's quarterback sneak from one yard out with 11:34 left in the second stanza gave the visitors a lead they would never relinquish. The Wildcats got three field goals from Jack Cantele and a pair of rushing touchdowns in the second half to run past UTSA. K-State piled up 418 yards of offense and held the Birds to just 229 yards and 14 first downs.
Last time out
UTSA sophomore B.J. Daniels rushed for a game-high 90 yards, but it was not enough in a 37-20 setback to Baylor in the home opener on Saturday night in front of 42,071 fans at the Alamodome. Daniels carried 16 times for a career-best 90 yards and a touchdown to pace the offense. The Melbourne, Fla., native had a career-long 36-yard dash in the first quarter and his 2-yard TD plunge late in the second stanza helped pull UTSA (0-2) to within 20-13 at halftime. Junior quarterback Cordale Grundy completed 18-of-33 passes for 157 yards and his first career touchdown pass, a 10-yard strike to Blaze Moorhead early in the fourth that made it a 27-20 contest. The Bears (2-0) responded with 10 unanswered points on a 38-yard field goal by Connor Martin and a 1-yard plunge by JaMycal Hasty with 1:29 left to close out the 17-point win and even the all-time series at one apiece. Charlie Brewer passed for 328 yards and three TDs, while Jalen Hurd (136) and Denzel Mims (133) both topped the 100-yard receiving mark for Baylor. The attendance figure marked the second-largest home crowd in UTSA history behind the 56,743 fans who watched the inaugural game on Sept. 3, 2011.
Big crowd takes in home opener
UTSA welcomed 42,071 fans to the Alamodome for the home opener against Baylor on Sept. 8. The attendance figure marked the second-largest home crowd in UTSA history behind the 56,743 fans who watched the inaugural game on Sept. 3, 2011. It also ranks as the largest home attendance figure in Conference USA this season. The next-closest attendance figure is 29,519 for the North Texas home contest against SMU on Sept. 1. It also was the biggest crowd to take in a UTSA game at the Alamodome since the 2013 game against Oklahoma State when 40,977 fans filed into the facility. The Roadrunners now have drawn 1,161,670 fans for 42 all-time home games, an average of 27,659 per contest.
Few can call a dome home
The Roadrunners are one of only two FBS teams to play their home games indoors. UTSA, which boasts a 22-20 all-time mark inside the Alamodome, joins Syracuse (Carrier Dome) as the only FBS programs to play in enclosed facilities.
Up next
UTSA will renew the H-E-B I-35 Showdown when it hosts Texas State on Saturday, Sept. 22. Kickoff is slated for 6 p.m. at the Alamodome and the third all-time meeting between the two teams will air on ESPN+. Tickets are on sale by calling or texting 210-458-UTSA (8872) or visiting http://goUTSA.com.
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