Cats scratch back Helm rallies K-State from 21-point deficit Helm

By KEVIN HASKIN

The Capital-Journal

AMES, Iowa --- Iowa State had a dedication ceremony Saturday for the three new practice fields it constructed.

For one half, it also appeared the Cyclones had added a woodshed inside Jack Trice Stadium.

They took Kansas State there play after surprising play, building a 21-point bulge at halftime.

Alas, the only woodshed here remains at the town's wonderful BBQ joint, Hickory Park. The No. 15 Wildcats avoided an upset, riding the relief work of senior quarterback Adam Helm for four unanswered scores and a 35-28 victory in the Big 12 opener for both teams.

"Everybody had it in their minds that we couldn't go home with this loss," said senior tailback Frank Murphy, who gained 93 yards on 13 carries. "Our team knew it wasn't over."

It was, however, for starting quarterback Jonathan Beasley. His day was complete when the Wildcats went three-and-out on their first possession of the second half, the same fate they had experienced three times before the break.

"Unfortunately, I wasn't getting things done," Beasley admitted. "I knew if Adam got the call, I'd let him know, 'You get the job done and get this team going.' "

Encouraging words, for sure, though they didn't make the situation any less desperate.

Down 28-7 after Iowa State (3-1, 0-1) scored on successive drives of 61, 13, 81 and 68 yards, K-State (3-0, 1-0) had been outgained by 220 yards and hardly looked like a team that could secure its 16th consecutive conference win.

"I don't think anyone lacked confidence," maintained K-State coach Bill Snyder. "The intent was to take it one step at a time and see if we could get ourselves back in the ballgame by the fourth quarter.

"If we could, so be it, and if we couldn't we wanted to be a better football team, which wouldn't have taken very much."

A win, however, took the greatest comeback in Snyder's 11 seasons as K-State coach, topping the 14-point rally the Cats pulled off at Cincinnati in 1995.

To do it against Iowa State may elicit little more than a so-what response, but these Cyclones were riding the emotions of a 3-0 start. Plus, ISU just happened to be the last unranked team to defeat K- State in the regular season, back in 1993.

There were several keys to the comeback, but the first priority was to shut down Darren Davis and an ISU attack that averaged 7.7 yards per play in the first half.

To understand the contrasts between halves, consider:

- Davis sailed for 131 yards before the break, but only finished with 152.

- The end around handoff to J.J. Moses that seemed to work endlessly in the first half eventually flamed out, although ISU gained 51 yards using that same trick play five times.

- Tight ends who have proven so difficult for the Cats to cover early this season were left alone in the flat again before ISU quarterback Sage Rosenfels (197 total yards, including 156 through the air) suddenly abandoned that play in his progression.

"They're a good football team and I think there had to be some bit of underestimating them on our part," junior safety Jarrod Cooper said. "We just got whipped in the first half."

With that corrected, K-State still needed to generate some offense, and perhaps a big play.

It got both.

Helm took the Cats on drives of 80, 75 and 62 yards. All of them depended heavily on the rush, including 48 yards on 13 option keepers by Helm.

"There's something about Iowa State that brings out the best in me," said the 6-foot-3 backup. "I came in last year against them in the second half when Michael (Bishop) got hurt. I ran the ball then and I wasn't surprised we used the option again today because that's what they were giving us."

But how about the big play? Well, K-State turned to a trusted source for that one, punt returner David Allen.

After Helm directed the Cats on a 16-play TD drive on his first series, Allen greatly enhanced clock management for the rally with a 94-yard TD return with 1:58 left in the third quarter to cut ISU's lead to 28-21.

"We knew we needed something big and I ended up going to the house," said Allen, using a description that made the return sound as easy it looked. He was never touched on the play, sliding off a great opening block by Lamar Chapman, whose school record Allen tied for the longest punt return.

The Cats tacked on their last two scores behind Helm, who also completed 7 of 11 dump passes the Cats chose to throw with the wind gusting up to 20 mph. He did have one potential TD bomb of 47 yards dropped by Quincy Morgan on the final TD drive, although the Cats still scored with 2:34 remaining when Helm rolled in from 1 yard out.

Comeback accomplished. Bullet dodged. Cyclones heartbroken.

Cats

GAME AT A GLANCE

Kansas St. 7 0 14 14 --- 35Iowa St. 14 14 0 0 --- 28FIRST QUARTER

IOWA STATE --- Davis, 26-yard run. After holding K-State on downs, Cyclones went 61 yards in six plays on their second series. Davis gained 48 yards on four carries and Moses had a 16-yard gain. PAT --- McKnight, kick. 7:30. Iowa State 7, K-State 0.

IOWA STATE --- Davis, 10-yard run. Weiford recovered a fumble on a bad exchange between Beasley and Murphy at the K-state 13. Cyclones scored two plays later. PAT --- McKnight, kick. 5:00. Iowa State 14, K-State 0.

K-STATE --- Hall, 28-yard run. K-State sailed 69 yards in a minute, scoring in five plays with Murphy adding a 28-yard rush. PAT - -- Rheem, kick. Iowa State 14, K-State 7.

SECOND QUARTER

IOWA STATE --- Moses, 4-yard run. Davis carried four times for 43 yards in 81-yard march that took 12 plays. Rosenfels hit 3 of 4 passes and Cooper was flagged for pass interference in the end zone. PAT --- McKnight, kick. Iowa State 21, K-State 7.

IOWA STATE --- Rosenfels, 10-yard run. Cyclones marched 68 yards in 11 plays with Rosenfels completing two passes for 27 yards and adding 26 yards on four carries. PAT --- McKnight, kick. 5:14. Iowa State 28, K-State 7.

THIRD QUARTER

K-STATE --- Helm, 1-yard run. K-State marched 80 yards in 16 plays as Cats converted on two third downs and a fourth. Helm had three completions for 33 yards before K-State kept the ball on the ground for final eight plays. PAT --- Rheem, kick. Iowa State 28, K-State 14.

K-STATE --- Allen, 94-yard punt return. Chapman threw opening block on return that tied Chapman's school and Big 12 record. PAT --- Rheem, kick. Iowa State 28, K-State 21.

FOURTH QUARTER

K-STATE --- Murphy, 18-yard run. Murphy had five rushes for 47 yards and one of three receptions Helm completed for nine yards each in 75-yard drive that took nine plays. PAT --- Rheem, kick. 10:01. K- State 28, Iowa State 28.

K-STATE --- Helm, 1-yard run. K-State drove 62 yards, with Helm gaining 29 yards on five keepers. Cats also benefitted from two Cyclone penalties for a facemask and a late personal foul. PAT --- Rheem, kick. 2:34. K-State 35, Iowa State 28.

Attendance --- 40,057.

GAME IN FIGURES KSU ISUFirst downs 20 22Rushes-yards 45-203 44- 250Passing 91 156Comp-Att-Int 10- 21-1 11-24-1Return Yards 96 4Punts-Avg. 4-32.8 3-39.3Fumbles-Lost 2-1 0-0Penalties-Yards 6-60 4- 32Time of Possession 28:49 31:11INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING --- Kansas St.: Murphy 13-93, Helm 13-48, Hall 5- 39, Allen 6-33, Beasley 8-minus 10. Iowa St.: Davis 26-152, Moses 5- 51, Rosenfels 10-41, Haywood 3-6. PASSING --- Kansas St.: Helm 7-11- 0, 67 yards; Beasley 3-10-1, 24. Iowa St.: Rosenfels 11-24-1, 156. RECEIVING --- Kansas St.: Morgan 5-52, Murphy 2-18, Allen 1-9, Wesley 1-7, Lockett 1-5. Iowa St.: Banks 3-64, Davis 3-11, Groce 2-50, Anthony 1-15, Burris 1-10, Stensrud 1-6. PUNTING --- Kansas St.: Ronsick 4-32.8; Iowa St.: Gomez 3-39.3.

MISSED FIELD GOAL --- Iowa St.: McKnight 26, 42.

LEADING TACKLERS --- Kansas St.: Chapman 6 unassisted-2 assisted, Cooper 4-4, Simoneau 6-1; Iowa St.: Avey 3-7, Waters 4-5, Weiford 5- 4.

INTERCEPTIONS --- Kansas St.: Butler; Iowa St.: Sloth.

SACKS --- Iowa St.: Haywood, Beckom.

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