09/26/26 09:57:00
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09/26 21:55 CDT Cole Tabb, Gi'Bran Payne lead Cincinnati to 31-26 win over
Kansas State in Big 12 opener
Cole Tabb, Gi'Bran Payne lead Cincinnati to 31-26 win over Kansas State in Big
12 opener
RICHARD SKINNER
Associated Press
CINCINNATI (AP) --- Cole Tabb rushed for three second half touchdowns to help
Cincinnati rally for a 31-26 win over Kansas State in the Big 12 Conference
opener for both teams on Saturday night.
Cincinnati (4-0, 1-0) finished with 436 yards total offense, including 270
yards on the ground,
Gi'Bran Payne rushed for 126 yards on 16 carries, marking the third time this
season he eclipsed 100 yards on the ground, and Tabb had 124 yards rushing on
11 carries.
Cincinnati quarterback JC French IV completed 8 of 13 pass attempts for 165
yards and a touchdown.
Kansas State (3-1, 0-1) had 447 yards total offense. Avery Johnson completed 30
of 50 pass attempts for 292 yards and one touchdown.
Cincinnati trailed 17-10 at halftime but tied the score at 17-17 early in the
third quarter on a 5-yard touchdown run by Tabb, and then pulled ahead 24-17 on
its next possession when Tabb sprinted 30 yards for a touchdown.
Kansas State closed to within 24-20 on a 36-yard field goal by Luis Rodriguez
with 9:31 remaining in the game, but Tabb increased the Cincinnati lead to
31-20 on a 14-yard touchdown run with 3:28 remaining.
Rodney Fields scored on a 1-yard run with 1:15 left to play, but Kansas State
couldn't convert the ensuing two-point conversion attempt.
Kansas State got the ball back at its own 20 with 52 seconds left, but got only
as far as its own 30 before time ran out.
Kansas State took the 17-10 halftime lead when Johnson threw a 4-yard touchdown
pass to Derrick Salley Jr. with 15 seconds remaining in the first half.
The Wildcats had built a 10-0 lead behind a 22-yard field goal by Rodriguez in
the first quarter and a 19-yard touchdown run by Fields in the second quarter.
Cincinnati rallied to tie the score at 10-10 on a 39-yard touchdown pass from
French to Malachi Henry and a 45-yard field goal by Stephen Rusnak.
The takeaway
Cincinnati: After losing its final four Big 12 games to end last season, this
was a big win to get. They are off to a 4-0 start for the first time since
2021, when they went 13-0 before losing to Alabama in a College Football
Playoff semifinal.
Kansas State: The Wildcats entered the game ranked No. 2 nationally in total
defense (182.7 yards per game allowed), but that was against a Football
Championship Subdivision opponent (Nicholls State) and two non-Power 4
conference opponents (Washington State and Tulane). Cincinnati had 210 yards
total offense in the first half alone.
Up next
Cincinnati: will play its first road game this season at Arizona next Saturday.
Kansas State: hosts Houston on Oct. 10.
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