For the second straight season, Kansas saw a win against Kansas State slip out if its fingers. This time, a Jalon Daniels fumble led to a 51-yard field goal from Chris Tennant to give the Wildcats a late lead.

Kansas had every opportunity to put the game away, but just couldn't score to put the game out of reach. In what has become an all-too-familiar film, special teams mishaps, drops, and turnovers culminated in a 16th straight loss for the Jayhawks to the Wildcats.

The Jayhawks even got the ball back with a chance to still find a way to win, but were unable to put together a scoring drive.

First quarter

Kansas got the ball first and worked the running game against a tough Wildcats rush defense. Jalon Daniels was effective with his legs, scrambling for eight yards on a third-down conversion. The Jayhawks caught a break after Devin Neal was able to recover his own fumble, but he came up hurt and headed to the injury tent before going to the locker room.

Sevion Morrison made a big play in his absence, breaking off a 38-yard run for a touchdown. Kansas led 7-0 after an 11-play, 6:09 opening drive.

The Wildcats relied on the run early, with Avery Johnson and DJ Giddens churning out positive yardage. However, DJ Withers set up a third-and-long after stuffing Giddens, where Johnson overthrew his receiver, stalling the drive at midfield. Kansas was set up at its own 10 after a 41-yard punt from Simon McClannan.

Neal returned to the game and picked up a 15-yard run that got the Jayhawks to midfield after a facemask. However, Quentin Skinner couldn’t haul in a deep shot and Kansas was forced to punt. Damon Greaves pinned the Wildcats inside the five with a hanging punt.

Johnson found Giddens for a 15-yard pickup to move the chains on third down. He then missed short passes on back-to-back plays, setting up a third down coming out of the quarter.

Second quarter

Dylan Edwards kept the drive alive with an 11-yard run. Kansas State took advantage, finishing off a 13-play, 95-yard drive with a touchdown. Johnson hit Will Anciaux for a 24-yard touchdown to even the game at 7-7 early in the second quarter.

Things quickly spiraled as Jameel Croft caught the kickoff on the one-yard line and stepped out of bounds, giving the Jayhawks the ball backed up in their own territory. A Neal run was stuffed for a Kansas State safety, and Dylan Edwards returned the safety kick 28 yards to give the Wildcats good field position.

Kansas forced an early third down, but Johnson scrambled for 13 yards to keep the Wildcats on the field. He completed a 25-yard pass to Jayce Brown over the middle to set Kansas State up at the three. Johnson threw a pop pass to Garrett Oakley to complete a nine-point swing, extending Kansas State’s lead to 16-7.

The Jayhawks needed an answer and they got one. Daniels opened the drive by finding Trevor Wilson for 36 yards on a back-shoulder toss. Kansas got into the red zone after a pass interference. Daniels connected with Grimm, who dove to the pylon after the catch, on third and goal to cut the deficit to 16-14.

Johnson opened the drive by finding Brown over the middle of the field for 21 yards. The Kansas defense made a crucial stop with two minutes to play in the half as OJ Burroughs broke up a pass to force a Wildcat punt.

Kansas couldn’t shift the momentum heading into halftime. After putting together a solid two-minute drill, Daniels was intercepted trying to throw a home run ball to the end zone. It was intercepted by Marques Sigle, who returned it to midfield. The Wildcats didn’t end up getting points but held a 16-14 lead at the half coming out with the ball.

Third quarter

Kansas State instantly extended its lead thanks to its ground game. Giddens, who had been held in check, exploded for a 54-yard run to put the Wildcats into the red zone. Johnson rushed it in from 10 yards out, giving Kansas State a 23-14 advantage after a 1:45 drive.

Jeff Grimes reached into his bag of play calls on the Jayhawks' first drive of the second half. They used two-QB sets and a lot of motion to keep Kansas State's defense on edge. Kansas used motion to set up a screen on third down that resulted in a conversion before Neal hit the end zone from 24 yards out. The PAT was doinked, leaving Kansas State with a 23-20 lead.

The Wildcats looked to be driving again after Edwards broke off a 44-yard run into Kansas territory. However, on the next play, Johnson dropped the ball and JB Brown stuck his nose in and recovered the football.

Kansas could not find a way to take the lead, not capitalizing off of the turnover. The defense forced a three and out, and a shanked punt gave the Jayhawks the ball back near midfield.

This time, the Jayhawks came up with a big score to take the lead. Daniels dialed up a deep ball to Luke Grimm for a 42-yard pickup to open the drive. He then kept it on a QB draw, fighting into the end zone to give Kansas a 27-23 lead, its first since it was 7-0.

Kansas State threw together two positive gains to end the third quarter. Johnson hit Keagan Johnson for 34 yards before rushing for 11 yards on the final play.

Fourth quarter

Johnson hit Edwards out of the backfield for a 19-yard pickup to open the quarter. The Kansas defense both caught a break in the red zone, as Johnson missed Anciaux on first down, before Anciaux dropped a wide-open touchdown on third. Chris Tennant hit a 28-yard field goal to inch the Wildcats closer at 27-26.

Both offenses hit a lull in the early stages of the fourth quarter, with both defenses forcing three-and-outs.

A pair of penalties hampered Kansas' next drive. A holding brought back a marginal gain on a flea flicker, then intentional grounding on third down backed up the Jayhawks' punt. Greaves got it to midfield, giving the Wildcats good field position to take the lead.

After struggling to get pressure to Johnson all day, Marvin Grant came up with a huge sack to set up a third-and-20. Kansas State elected to go for it on fourth-and-12, but Dotson affected the pass to force a turnover on downs.

Kansas opened the door for the Wildcats to push in front after Daniels coughed up the ball trying to scramble. Brendan Mott recovered, and Kansas State had the ball at midfield with about four minutes to play.

Kansas State did a good job killing the clock as it tried to get into field goal range. Kansas forced a 51-yard try from Tennant, who nailed it to give the Wildcats a 29-27 lead with 1:42 to play.

With one final chance, Daniels found Arnold for a crucial third-down conversion, picking up 12 yards to get near midfield. Kansas State continued to bring a ton of pressure, resulting in forcing Daniels to scramble on fourth down as he was unable to pick up the first down ending the game.