Alec Busse of EMAW Online talks Martinez, Deuce & the Wildcats
We sat down with Alec Busse of EMAW Online ahead of this weekend's matchup with the Wildcats in Manhattan to get some perspective on Kansas State.
With all the talk being about Deuce Vaughn from the Red Raider coaching staff, even drawing comparisons to Darren Sproles from Tim DeRuyter, Busse gave some insight into what he’s seen from the standout running back this season.
“Deuce has pretty much lived up to the hype this year,” Busse said. “He’s definitely not the most physical back in the world. The biggest key to opposing teams is making sure you bring him down on your first or second attempts before he breaks someone for 25 yards.”
Adrian Martinez, the Nebraska transfer, has had a roller coaster start to his Wildcat career. Before the five-touchdown performance against Oklahoma, Martinez struggled to get the offense moving. Busse spoke about what he expects from the fifth-year quarterback this weekend.
“As someone who was in the Big 10 for the last three, four years, my perception of him is that there’s games where he looks like a magician and then there’s games where he shouldn’t be a starting quarterback at the power five level,” Busse said. “It’s really hard to project him. He’s electric at times, but he can be extremely frustrating at times.”
Busse spoke about the Kansas State offense, echoing the sentiment of ups and downs for the Wildcats.
“I think it all comes down to Adrian Martinez and the receivers,” Busse said. “I expect Martinez to run the ball more this week, they found some success against Oklahoma with that which was something that they didn’t do much of in the first three weeks. I think the K-State offense can move, but if Martinez looks more like he did in the first three weeks, I don’t think it will move very well.
Busse gave some insight into the defense, echoing the name of standout edge rusher Felix Anudike-Uzomah that Zach Kittley and some offensive players have called out this week.
“It’s been a really impressive start to the season from the defense,” Busse said. “Felix is a potential first-round pick on that side of the ball. Their linebacking core has done a really good job early this season. The biggest question about the K-State defense coming into the season was the secondary and they’ve filled that hole quite well.”
Kansas State has been great on special teams for years and nothing has changed this season and Busse spoke on that group for the Wildcats.
“K-State refers to themselves as Special Teams U,” Busse said. “Especially in the return game, there is some big play potential there. In terms of place kicking and field goals, it’s been a little bit of a roller coaster ride, you could say.”
Busse spoke about what would have to go wrong for Kansas State, the eight-point favorites, to lose on Saturday.
“I think the Texas Tech offense is incredibly hard to prepare for from a defensive standpoint,” Busse said. “I think that discipline from the defensive backs is something that will be key for Kansas State.”
Score Prediction: Kansas State 37, Texas Tech 30.