MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Will Howard threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score, Cincere Mason returned an interception for a TD and No. 19 Kansas State moved closer to a berth in the Big 12 championship game by beating West Virginia 48-31 on Saturday.
Kansas State (8-3, 6-2 Big 12, No. 15 CFP) can clinch a title game spot alongside No. 4 TCU on Dec. 3 with a win in its regular season finale at home against Kansas.
West Virginia (4-7, 2-6) failed to become bowl eligible for the second time under fourth-year coach Neal Brown and for only the fourth time since 2000.
Both team's quarterbacks played well in a battle among backups.
Howard, starting in place of the injured Adrian Martinez, completed 19 of 27 passes for 294 yards.
West Virginia's Garrett Greene got the nod ahead of JT Daniels after Greene's solid play in the second half of a win over Oklahoma a week ago. Greene threw three TD passes to Sam James and finished 15 of 27 passes for 204 yards. He was intercepted twice. Greene also scored on a 13-yard run.
Kansas State led 28-19 after the first quarter. Mason’s 37-yard interception return put the Wildcats up 14-0 a little more than 3 minutes into the game. Later in the quarter, West Virginia’s Malachi Ruffin returned an interception 43 yards for a score. But West Virginia couldn't mount a comeback.
By halftime, Kansas State had 312 total yards and led 41-25. It was the highest scoring first half by the Wildcats since scoring 45 against Montana State in 2008, and the most allowed by West Virginia since allowing 56 to Baylor in 2013.
The offenses slowed down considerably after halftime.
West Virginia ate up nearly nine minutes of clock time on its opening possession of the third quarter, but Casey Legg's 44-yard field goal try fell short, his first miss in 14 attempts this season. He also missed two earlier extra-point kicks.
Howard threw a 43-yard TD toss to Malik Knowles in the fourth quarter. He also had a 15-yard scoring pass to Ben Sinnott in the second.
THE TAKEAWAY
Kansas State: The Wildcats have won three of their last four. Behind Howard, Kansas State tied its biggest output of the season against the league's worst scoring defense and improved to 4-1 on the road.
West Virginia: Approximately 37,000 fans showed up in the cold, and it will be up to the school to decide whether it was the final home game for Brown, who has a 21-25 record with four years remaining on his contract. Athletic director Shane Lyons was fired last Monday, and WVU President Gordon Gee said no other changes will be considered until after a new athletic director is hired in the next few weeks.
UP NEXT
Kansas State hosts Kansas next Saturday. The Wildcats have won 13 straight in the Sunflower Showdown and are 4-2 at home this season.
West Virginia plays at No. 24 Oklahoma State next Saturday. The Cowboys have won four of five meetings in Stillwater, Oklahoma, since the Mountaineers joined the Big 12 in 2012.
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