Klein Has Evolved From Heisman Dark Horse to Favorite

Collin Klein outshined fellow Heisman contender Geno Smith with seven total touchdowns in KSU's 55-14 win over WVU. (Justin K. Aller)

Collin Klein wasn't a household name before the beginning of the college football season. I also didn't see Kansas State on any preseason list of national champion contenders. It's been a surprising road to national prominence for Klein and the Wildcats, but they would be the first to tell you that season is far from over.

For the early portion of the college football season, it appeared that the Heisman race would be West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith's to lose. No one or team were capable of producing at his rate. My how two games change everything. When the Mountaineers offense struggled in a 59-14 blowout loss to Texas Tech, everyone thought it was just a bad day at the office for Smith and his boys.

After all, West Virginia had to rebound with a huge home game coming up against Kansas State. The winner of the game would emerge as the favorite to win the Big 12 and stay in the national title hunt. Even though Klein and the Wildcats were undefeated and higher ranked, they came into the showdown as underdogs.

Sixty minutes later, it became perfectly clear which quarterback should be the Heisman favorite and which team belongs in the national championship picture. With the support of the home crowd at their backs, West Virginia came out and got destroyed by Kansas State. The final score was 55-14, but that was only because the Wildcats took their foot off the pedal in the fourth quarter. They were up 52-7 after three quarters of play.

Smith threw for only 143 yards and one touchdown. He also threw his first two interceptions of the season. Meanwhile, Klein completed 19 of 21 passes for 323 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for 41 yards and four touchdowns. That's correct. Klein had seven total touchdowns in three quarters of play on the road in what was the biggest game of the season thus far.

On the season, Klein has thrown for 1,397 yards, ten touchdowns, and only two interceptions. He has also rushed for 551 yards and 14 touchdowns. That's just shy of 2,000 total yards and 24 total touchdowns.

Klein and Kansas State know that they have to keep this going. They observed first hand what has happened to Smith and the Mountaineers. Even if the Wildcats don't go undefeated, I believe that if Klein plays like this he has to still be the Heisman favorite. While other candidates have struggled and fallen, he has only gotten better. Keep an eye on this kid and his team. Klein and Kansas State look like they are real contenders this season.