Iowa transfer Keagan Johnson is helping K-State unlock its full potential on offense

Will Howard is coming off the best passing performance of his Kansas State football career.

That is obviously a good thing for the Wildcats no matter how you dissect his stat line (26 of 42 for 327 yards and four touchdowns) from last week’s narrow loss against Texas. But what really made it an encouraging performance is how it happened.

Howard moved the Wildcats up and down the field by spreading the ball around to his best three wide receivers, and they responded by making big plays. Phillip Brooks caught five passes for 76 yards and two touchdowns. Jayce Brown grabbed four catches for 77 yards and a score. Keagan Johnson had his first strong game of the season by hauling in seven passes for 70 yards and a touchdown.

Add it all up and the K-State receiving corps was responsible for 16 catches, 223 yards and four touchdowns. Needless to say, that was a massive upgrade from previous weeks when K-State wide outs struggled to combine for 100 yards between them.

“They made me look good at times,” Howard said, “and they made my job easy. When you are able to have multiple guys doing that at the same time it makes us more dangerous.”

This season, running the ball has been this team’s bread and butter.

But if the passing statistics mentioned above are sustainable moving forward, and other quality pass-catchers — such as tight end Ben Sinnott and running back DJ Giddens — also continue getting open for Howard, it’s possible that the Wildcats may have just added a new element to their offense.

“I hope what last week showed everybody is that we probably can have even more balance,” K-State coach Chris Klieman said. “That’s when I think we are at our best offensively: when we have really good balance and we are able to run the football to set up the pass, and we are able to pass the football but able to get a run on third-and-six when nobody expects it.

“We want to throw it on first-and-10, whatever it may be. That’s what I’m hoping we gained out of this last weekend.”

One reason K-State may be able to begin consistently throwing the ball more effectively: Johnson.

The Iowa transfer had a breakout game against Texas, and that is exactly what K-State fans have been waiting for from him. When Johnson arrived on campus during the spring, it was obvious he could be an impact player for the Wildcats.

He was fast, he could catch and he was smart. He just needed to stay healthy.

Johnson battled injuries early on this season, and that is perhaps why he only had six catches for 73 yards in the first eight games of the season. He looks much more explosive now.

“Keagan has been through a lot and he has battled,” Howard said. “I am really excited for that kid, because he wants it. You can tell the toll he has been through with his injuries. The stuff that he has been through has affected him. To see how he has fought back is impressive. The success that he had last week was only scratching the surface of what he can do.”

Howard wanted to say one more thing about Johnson.

“He is as talented as they come,” he added. “If he can stay healthy and continue to build on what he did last week it is going to be exciting for him.”

Maybe it just took a while for K-State to find its ideal combination of receivers.

Early on this season, they relied on Jadon Jackson and RJ Garcia. But neither one of those players caught a single pass against Texas.

Howard found a stronger connection with Brooks, Brown and Johnson. It will be fascinating to see what they do for an encore against Baylor on Saturday at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.