Kansas State football recap: Wildcats roll past Houston, 41-0

MANHATTAN — Kansas State football turned in a dominating performance Saturday on the way to a 41-0 victory over Houston at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.

Will Howard completed 15 of 17 passes for 164 yards and two touchdowns for the Wildcats, who finished with 394 yards total offense. DJ Giddens had 96 yards and two touchdowns rushing on 13 carries. Phillip Brooks caught five passes for 83 yards and a score.

The defense limited Houston to 208 yards total offense and forced two turnovers.

Kansas State game time, TV channel, betting odds vs. Houston

KICKOFF: 11 a.m.

TV: ESPN2

BETTING ODDS: Kansas State by 17.5

FINAL: Kansas State 41, Houston 0

Avery Johnson leads Wildcats to another score

After Will Howard led K-State to five touchdowns through the first three quarters, it looks like the fourth belongs to Avery Johnson.

On his second possession of the period, Johnson leads the Wildcats on an eight-play, 42-yard scoring drive, throwing 7 yards to Seth Porter for the touchdown to make it 41-0 Wildcats with 6:46 left. It was the first career touchdown catch for Porter, the special teams captain.

The touchdown was set up by a fourth-down stop and Des Purnell fumble recovery at the Houston 42.

END OF 3Q: Kansas State 35, Houston 0

It was a slower third quarter for Kansas State, but the Wildcats still added to their lead and take a 35-0 lead to the fourth.

K-State has 328 total yards to 152 for Houston.

Defense sets up another score and K-State leads 35-0

After stalling on its first two possessions of the second half, K-State turns to the defense to set up a touchdown.

Will Lee intercepts a Donovan Smith pass and returns it 16 yards to the Houston 24, where DJ Giddens takes care of the rest with runs of 11 and then 13 yards for the touchdown to put K-State up 35-0 with 1:22 left in the third quarter.

HALFTIME: Kansas State 28, Houston

Will Howard completed 13 of 14 passes for 155 yards with touchdown completions of 12 yards to Garrett Oakley and 21 to Phillip Brooks on the way to a 28-0 halftime lead over Houston.

The Wildcats had 277 yards total offense in the half to just 83 for Houston.

K-State scored on all four possessions with Howard at quarterback, while backup Avery Johnson's stint was limited to two plays and a lost fumble.

In addition to Howard, K-State got 78 yards on four catches from Brooks, while DJ Giddens ran 10 times for 61 yards and a touchdown, and Treshaun Ward gained 30 yards with a touchdown on nine attempts.

Houston quarterback Donovan Smith was 6 of 17 passing for 36 yards.

K-State offense rolling as Wildcats go up 28-0

K-State running back DJ Giddens gets in on the action with a 9-yard touchdown run to put K-State up 28-0 with 1:33 left in the half.

The scoring drive covered 44 yards in five plays following a Houston penatly on the preceding punt.

The Wildcats now have 277 yards total offense and Will Howard is 13 of 14 passing for 155 yards.

Wildcats go up 21-0 with 72-yard drive

With Will Howard back at quarterback, K-State goes 72 yards in nine plays with a 4-minute, 6-second drive.

Treshaun Ward gets the touchdown on a 1-yard run. The drive included a 40-yard completion from Howard to Phillip Brooks. Howard now is 12 of 13 passing for 140 yards. He completed his first 12 passes.

K-State escapes lost fumble unscathed

After Avery Johnson lost a fumble at the K-State 26-yard line, the Wildcat defense holds steady, pushing Houston back 2 yards, where the Cougars missed a 45-yard field goal attempt.

Will Howard is back at quarterback.

Avery Johnson gets his turn at quarterback

After starter Will Howard led K-State to touchdowns on its first two possessions, Avery Johnson takes over at quarterback for the Wildcats.

On the second play, Johnson fumbles and Houston recoversat the K-State 26.

Another long K-State scoring drive

Kansas State goes 2-for-2 with two drives, two touchdowns as Will Howard delivers a perfect 21-yard strike to wide-open Phillip Brooks on a post route.

The Wildcats' drive covered 89 yards in 15 plays and took another 7:48 off the clock. The two scoring drives so far have eaten up 13 minutes, 11 seconds.

END 1Q: Kansas State 7, Houston 0

Kansas State leads 7-0 after one quarter. The Wildcats controlled the ball most of the quarter with 11:19 time of possession and 132 yards to 36 for Houston.

Will Howard remains at quarterback

There will be no alternating possessions for K-State's quarterbacks today. At least not every other series.

After Kansas State's defense forces a Houston punt, Will Howard is back behind center for a second drive after leading the Wildcats to a touchdown to open the game.

Kansas State on the board first

Kansas State opens the game with a 12-play, 75-yard drive with Will Howard at quarterback.

Howard hits tight end Garrett Oakley with the 12-yard touchdown completion. The drive took 5 minutes, 23 seconds off the clock.

Kansas State gets the ball first

Houston won the coin toss and deferred. Kansas State will start with the ball.

Two generations of Coffmans on hand

Former Wildcat tight end Paul Coffman and ex-quarterback Carson Coffman teamed up to open the locker room as K-State took the field.

Kansas State football without Keagan Johnson

Of the four players whose status was in question for today's game, only wide receiver Keagan Johnson is not suited up. Tight end Ben Sinnott, middle linebacker Austin Romaine and wideout RJ Garcia all went through warmups.

Houston will be without two starters. Defensive end Nelson Ceaser, the team's sack leader with 5.5, and wide receiver Joseph Manjack, the second-leading receiver did not make the trip.

Sunny and cold at The Bill

Weather conditions at kickoff are 36 degrees under sunny skies with a 14 mph northeast wind. There is a chance of rain later,

Related: How Kansas State football's defense put it all together in blowout of TCU

Related: How Kansas State football's offensive line has reclaimed its identity in the running game

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: Kansas State football score updates for Big 12 game against Houston