Three questions for Kansas State football going forward after loss at Oklahoma State

STILLWATER, Okla. — Kansas State's football team arrived at Oklahoma State on Friday night as an 11.5-point favorite but left Boone Pickens Stadium following a disappointing 29-21 loss with more questions than answers.

Oklahoma State, which had not been sharp through its first four games, clearly used its bye week to get better, hitting the Wildcats with a balanced attack on offense and exploiting a defense that has continued to allow big plays.

Offensively, quarterback Will Howard had a bad night passing to say the least, but he did not get much help from a wide receiver corps that has struggled to get open, causing him too often to check down to his running backs or forcing passes downfield.

After a game they — and pretty much everyone else — thought they should win, the Wildcats are now 3-2 overall, 1-1 in the Big 12, the same as Oklahoma State. And things don't look to get easier Saturday when they go back on the road to Lubbock, Texas, for a 6 p.m. game against Texas Tech (3-3, 2-1).

Here are three lingering questions from the Oklahoma State game and going forward:

Related: Kansas State football at Oklahoma State: Scouting report, prediction

Why did the Wildcats go for two in the fourth quarter?

In a game where they never led, the Wildcats still were in it well into the fourth quarter, cutting Oklahoma State's lead to 29-21 on Howard's 6-yard touchdown run with 8:56 left. Instead of kicking the extra point, they went for two, and Keagan Johnson's pass fell incomplete.

The thinking, coach Chris Klieman said, was that by trimming the deficit to six points, K-State could score again and win the game with a point after. Worst case, they still were within one score at 29-21, but would have to go for two again to tie.

"We've thought long and hard about it," Klieman said. "It wasn't just a random, 'Hey, what do we do here?'

"I thought long and hard about that if we got in that situation, and I wish we would have converted because I would have looked like a genius, and then all of a sudden we get a score and kick the PAT and we walk out of there. But we didn't, and probably didn't deserve to win the game."

In the end it wasn't a factor. The Wildcats got the ball back twice with a chance to tie, but the first possession ended with Howard's third interception, and then they turned it over on downs.

Related: Kansas State football quarterback Will Howard puts Oklahoma State loss on his shoulders

Will Avery Johnson get the call if Will Howard struggles again?

If Howard puts the subpar performance behind him — he was just 15 of 34 passing for 152 yards with three interceptions, including a pick-six — the question is moot. But if the problems linger, will Klieman and offensive coordinator Collin Klein give true freshman backup Avery Johnson a shot?

Klieman said after the loss that Johnson's name did come up in conversations during the OSU game.

"We talked about it," Klieman said of inserting Johnson, who previously saw action in the season opener against Southeast Missouri State as well as during a 30-27 loss at Missouri. "This was a tougher environment, probably. There were a lot of cadence things going on.

"We talked about it during the game, and it was talked about between coach Klein and I, and we stuck with Will."

If Oklahoma State on the road was a tough environment, Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock on a Saturday night does not promise to be any friendlier.

Related: Kansas State football determined to reverse recent struggles at Oklahoma State

How serious is the injury situation at cornerback?

K-State finished the Oklahoma State game without either starting cornerback, which could be a major concern going forward as the Wildcats have been less than stellar defending the pass.

Jacob Parrish suffered an injury leading up to the game and did not accompany the team to Stillwater, giving converted receiver Keenan Garber his first start at corner. Will Lee, who already had eight tackles, went down with just over a minute left in the first half, giving way to seldom-used redshirt junior Justice James the rest of the way.

"Jacob got hurt in the middle of the week of practice," Klieman said. "We think he's day-to-day, week-to-week, but he couldn't make the trip.

"And then I didn't get clarification on what Will Lee's injury was, but we had to go with Keenan and Justice James, and we feel like we have some depth there. So those two guys I thought came in and busted their tail and gave us an opportunity."

Arne Green is based in Salina and covers Kansas State University sports for the Gannett network. He can be reached at agreen@gannett.com or on Twitter at @arnegreen.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Three questions for Kansas State football going forward after loss