Avery Johnson passed for a pair of touchdowns as Kansas State defeated visiting UCF 34-20 on Saturday at Manhattan, Kan.
Johnson was 18-of-25 passing for 168 yards and added 75 rushing yards on 12 carries to lead the way for Kansas State (2-3, 1-0 Big 12). Dylan Edwards contributed 166 yards rushing on 20 carries and a TD for the Wildcats.
Myles Montgomery rushed for 119 yards on 10 carries for UCF (3-1, 0-1), which committed three turnovers.
Luis Rodriguez hit a 38-yard field goal to put Kansas State up 3-0 early in the second quarter.
UCF quarterback Tayven Jackson went to the locker room in the second quarter with a left shoulder injury but later returned. He was replaced by backup Jacurri Brown, whose first pass was interceptedf by Gunner Maldonado.
Kansas State turned the turnover into points when Joe Jackson scored on a 1-yard TD run with 3:52 remaining in the half for a 10-0 advantage.
Brown regrouped on the Wildcats’ next series, firing an 82-yard touchdown pass to DJ Black and cut the deficit to 10-7.
The Wildcats extended the lead to 17-7 when Will Anciaux caught a 3-yard scoring pass from Johnson with 45 seconds left before halftime.
Kansas State picked up right where it left off in the second half when Johnson led a six-play 65-yard drive that finished on a shovel pass to Garrett Oakley for a 1-yard TD and a 24-7 lead.
UCF’s Noe Ruelas hit a career-long 53-yard field goal with 2:01 left in the third quarter to narrow the gap to 24-10.
Edwards immediately answered for Kansas State with a 75-yard touchdown run for a 31-10 lead with just under two minutes remaining in the third.
UCF’s Jaden Nixon closed it to 31-17 with his 54-yard touchdown sprint late in the third quarter. A 40-yard field goal from Ruelas brought the Knights within 31-20 with 9:34 remaining.
Rodriguez added a 48-yard field goal for the Wildcats with 2:41 remaining before Qua Moss sealed the win with an interception of Jackson with 2:27 left.
