The Kansas State Wildcats have a chance to add to an already dominant bowl season for the Big 12 Friday night in the Cotton Bowl.
With a victory, the Wildcats can push the Big 12 bowl record to 7-1. If they do that, they'll be handing both the Arkansas Razorbacks and the SEC a bowl loss.
So what's it going to take for Kansas State to beat Arkansas? Here are the keys for both teams.
KANSAS STATE
1. Let Collin go — There's no secret to the success for the Kansas State offense. It starts and ends with quarterback Collin Klein. He's a bigger threat with his legs (1,099 yards rushing) than with his arm (1,745 yards passing) but he's a threat to score either way. Klein accounted for 38 touchdowns, and the Wildcats will need him to be at his dual-threat best to help his team keep pace with the Razorbacks.
2. Create some havoc — The Wildcats are going to have to do something against Arkansas they've struggled to do this season — pressure Arkansas quarterback Tyler Wilson. Kansas State had just 19 sacks on the season, with defensive end Jordan Voelker accounting for four of those. Kansas State needs its best defender — junior linebacker Arthur Brown — to have a big game. He leads the Wildcats in tackles with 95. Five tackles against Arkansas makes Brown the first K-State player to reach the 100-tackle mark since 2006.
3. Seize the moment — Kansas State was picked to finish eighth in the Big 12 before the season started. They ended the season with BCS hopes. A win against Arkansas would give the Wildcats their first 11-win season since 2003. That's not a bad accomplishment for a team that was supposed to be an also ran in its own conference.
ARKANSAS
1. Take advantage of the home field — Sure, Arkansas doesn't play its home games at Cowboys Stadium, but the Razorbacks are familiar with the surroundings, having played and beaten Texas A&M in Arlington each of the last three years. Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino talked about how his team is familiar with the surroundings at the stadium. If there are going to be any nerves to be felt by the stadium, it shouldn't be felt by the Razorbacks.
2. Get Jarius going — Arkansas standout receiver Jarius Wright had his breakout game against Texas A&M in September when he set the school record for receiving yards in a game with 281, on 13 catches. He followed that up with a two more 100-yard games and two more with at least 90 yards. But in the season finale against LSU, Wright was a non-factor, with just two catches for 27 yards. The Razorbacks have to get him involved early and often against a KSU secondary that allowed 267 passing yards a game despite all four starters earning all-conference honors.
3. Get motivated — The game is a sellout, and both head coaches compared the atmosphere to that of a BCS game. While Kansas State's season may have been a surprise to some and the Cotton Bowl is a big reward, Arkansas could make a strong argument that it belongs in a BCS game. The only teams to beat Arkansas this season were LSU and Alabama, the squads playing for the national title. The best way to show you were snubbed is to go out and dominate the game you're playing in.
