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Iowa State blows away Kansas
Big 12 Conference
spt ap KU Sims
Kansas running back James Sims (29) steps out of bounds before landing in the end zone while covered by Iowa State linebacker Jeremiah George during a Big 12 Conference football game in Lawrence on Saturday night. - photo by The Associated Press

LAWRENCE — The first thing Sam Richardson did when he got into the joyous Iowa State locker room was grab his phone and text his parents.
No one could blame them if they didn’t believe what they were reading.
Their son, who’d seen only mop-up duty in two years, replaced the starting quarterback after two possessions Saturday night and threw for 250 yards and four touchdowns, leading Iowa State past Kansas 51-23.
“I was just waiting for my opportunity,” said the redshirt freshman. “I have been all year. It is a great feeling to know that I could go in and make plays for the offense and get us going.”
Richardson also scored a touchdown for the Cyclones (6-5 overall, 3-5 Big 12) and was not far short of perfection. He led his team to touchdowns on four straight possessions while taking a 38-17 lead. Virtually overlooked all year in the Cyclones’ jumbled quarterback picture, Richardson was 23 for 27 and spread his completions around to 12 different receivers. Six different Cyclones scored touchdowns and the Jayhawks (1-10, 0-8) lost their 20th consecutive Big 12 game.
“I knew he could do it,” said center Tom Farniok. “It was just a matter of was he gonna, and he did.”
The Cyclones’ season high point total before Saturday was 38, which they scored by halftime, leading 38-17.
Kansas’ final home game sent a bedraggled class of seniors out on the same sort of sour note which has characterized their entire collegiate careers.
The fourth- and fifth-year seniors came aboard just as the Mark Mangino-coached Jayhawks were winning two straight bowl games for the first time in school history. The long-struggling program seemed headed for the heights. But after starting the 2009 season 5-0, the Jayhawks lost their next seven and now, counting this lopsided loss to Iowa State, have dropped a stunning 36 of 42 games under three head coaches.
“Went through three head coaches,” said wide receiver Kale Pick. “I went through five position coaches. Some other guys did, too. But I’m proud of the class I’m in. We worked hard to try to prove to each coaching staff what we could do.”
Kansas will need to win at West Virginia in its season finale on Dec. 1 to avoid its worst season since the 1988 Jayhawks finished 1-10.
It’s also a bitter entry into the Big 12 for Kansas coach Charlie Weis, who announced at midweek that he would pay the $3 charge for anyone who wanted to buy a student ticket and come to the game. Officials said it would be several days to know how many took him up on his offer. But it appeared only a few hundred did.
Weis admitted he didn’t plan for Richardson.
“He wasn’t even listed in the two-deep. So, no, I didn’t give much thought to it and maybe I should have,” he said. “But when the guy comes out there, regardless of who it is — 23 for 27? Four incompletions on the night? Four touchdown passes? Did the kid have a good day? Absolutely. You have to give the kid credit. But he wasn’t somebody who was on the top of my head all day who would be playing on offense”
Richardson replaced starter Steele Jantz on Iowa State’s third possession and immediately engineered a 10-play, 89-yard drive connecting, with Josh Lenz for 30 yards and setting up Jeff Woody’s 11-yard touchdown run for a 10-7 lead. Lenz also had a 14-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter.
Tony Pierson rushed for 89 yards for Kansas, including a 55-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, and caught a 37-yard scoring pass from Dayne Crist in the fourth. But after his 55-yard score, Iowa State answered immediately with Richardson’s 11-yard scoring pass to Albert Gary.
Durrell Givens recovered James Sims’ fumble on the Jayhawks’ next possession, and five plays later Richardson connected with a wide-open Aaron Horne on a 30-yard scoring play, making it 24-14.
The lead went to 31-14 a few minutes later when Richardson, following Woody’s 43-yard run, dived over from the 1.
A 20-yard pass to Ernst Brun, capping a six-play, 57-yard drive, completed the second-quarter blitz and put Iowa State on top 38-14. Edwin Arceo kicked three field goals for the Cyclones, including a 51-yarder in the third quarter.
“It’s right up there on the best debuts I have seen,” Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads said of Richardson. “To be here two years and really only get a mop-up role, he probably felt like he was not part of true competition. But his performance was not a surprise coming from the young man.”

COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Big 12 Conference

Saturday

At Lawrence
Memorial Stadium

Iowa State 51, Kansas 23
Iowa State    10    28    3    10 — 51
Kansas           7     10    0     6  — 23

SCORING SUMMARY
First Quarter
ISU — FG Arceo 47, 10:18.
KU — Cox 2 run (Prolago kick), 4:22.
ISU — Woody 11 run (Arceo kick), :36.
Second Quarter
KU — Pierson 55 run (Prolago kick), 14:50.
ISU — Gary 11 pass from S.Richardson (Arceo kick), 11:23.
ISU — Horne 30 pass from S.Richardson (Arceo kick), 8:41.
ISU — S.Richardson 1 run (Arceo kick), 3:33.
ISU — Brun 20 pass from S.Richardson (Arceo kick), 1:01.
KU — FG Prolago 21, :00.
Third Quarter
ISU — FG Arceo 51, 1:35.
Fourth Quarter
KU — Pierson 37 pass from Crist (pass failed), 14:19.
ISU — Lenz 14 pass from S.Richardson (Arceo kick), 12:12.
ISU — FG Arceo 47, 8:19.
A — 41,608.

TEAM STATISTICS
                                    ISU    KU
First downs                      27    23
Rushes-yards           42-241    48-252
Passing                         307    189
Comp-Att-Int          27-34-0    11-25-1
Return Yards                (-6)    21
Punts-Avg.               3-39.3    4-38.0
Fumbles-Lost                2-1    5-3
Penalties-Yards           5-50    1-10
Time of Possession    29:56    30:04

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Iowa St., Woody 9-89, J.White 6-57, Johnson 9-51, S.Richardson 11-43, Jantz 1-4, Barnett 2-1, Nealy 3-(minus 1), Standard 1-(minus 3). Kansas, Sims 20-81, Pierson 7-73, Beshears 3-40, Cummings 5-28, Cox 6-21, Bourbon 3-12, Crist 1-2, Team 3-(minus 5).
PASSING — Iowa St., S.Richardson 23-27-0-250, Jantz 3-5-0-19, Barnett 1-2-0-38. Kansas, Crist 9-20-1-156, Cummings 2-5-0-33.
RECEIVING — Iowa St., Lenz 6-78, Young 4-31, Brun 3-26, Bundrage 3-25, Horne 2-40, J.West 2-31, Gary 2-14, Nealy 1-38, Tiller 1-10, Johnson 1-8, Hammerschmidt 1-5, J.White 1-1. Kansas, Mundine 3-63, Pick 2-37, Patterson 2-9, Pierson 1-37, Cox 1-17, Sims 1-16, Parmalee 1-10.