Avery Johnson and Kansas State trounce Nicholls 71-3 to open the Collin Klein era in style

MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Avery Johnson threw for 199 yards and accounted for four touchdowns in just over a half, Rodney Fields Jr. ran for 101 yards and a score, and Kansas State opened the Collin Klein era by trouncing Nicholls 71-3 on a sweltering Saturday night.

Joe Jackson had touchdowns on the ground and through the air, and Jaron Tibbs and Josh Manning also had touchdown catches for the Wildcats, who looked every bit as dominant — albeit against an FCS foe — as they did back in 2012, when Klein was their Heisman Trophy finalist at quarterback and was leading them to the Big 12 championship.

Klein had been serving as the offensive coordinator at Texas A&M when Chris Klieman abruptly retired after last season. The decision to return to his alma mater was an easy one for him, and a welcome one for Kansas State fans who still adore him.

“My message to those guys before the game was we have to play with maximum effort, maximum focus every single snap, regardless whether things are going good or bad,” Klein said. “I was really, really proud of the mentality. I knew and felt the focus level throughout the course of this week was where it needed to be.”

Johnson, making his 27th start at quarterback, wasted no time finding Tibbs to cap the game's opening drive, and break a tie with Will Howard for the school record with his 49th career TD pass. Johnson added a touchdown on the ground, his 50th through the air with a 43-yard strike to Jackson, and one more TD toss to Manning early in the second half as Kansas State pulled away.

“That was about as good as you could draw up a first game in our mind,” Johnson said. “It was really good to get up early.”

Fields, a transfer from Big 12 rival Oklahoma State who earned the starting job in camp, had his touchdown run in the first half, while Brandon White ignited a home crowd suffering through a triple-digit heat index with a 65-yard punt return for a score.

Oregon transfer Jay Harris, Monterrio Elston Jr. and Jacob Knuth had touchdown runs of their own in the second for the Wildcats, who piled up 559 yards of offense and finished just five points shy of the single-game school record.

“I ain't never been a part of something like that,” Fields said.

The Colonels were coming off a lopsided win over Mississippi Valley State, but they found the going much tougher against a team with Big 12 title aspirations. They went three-and-out on their first five possessions and finished with 122 yards of offense.

Ean Rodrigue was 7 of 19 for 30 yards for Nicholls. Tamaj Hoffman had 43 yards on the ground.

“There’s still a lot of things — even though things went well in a first ballgame — that we can improve and need to get corrected,” Klein said. “It was a good night and good to get this first win under our belt.”

Klein brought back a lot of small touches that reminded Kansas State fans of the Snyder era, such as heading to the locker room with their arms interlocked, and even the way the Wildcats jumped on their overmatched opponent was reminiscent of the glory days with the Hall of Fame coach. Now, the question is whether Kansas State can do it against a team on its level.

“It was really fun to have some of the discussions that we did about bringing back some of those old traditions, but combining them and making them our own,” Klein said. “I thought it was really good for our fans.”

Nicholls plays UT-Rio Grande Valley next Saturday night.

Kansas State welcomes Washington State next Saturday.

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