Baylor Football: Bears Fall to Kansas State Wildcats, What Does It Mean?

Kansas State opened their Big 12 season at home by upsetting Robert Griffin III and the visiting Baylor Bears 36-35.

Wildcats kicker Anthony Cantele nailed a 31-yard field goal with just over three minutes remaining, and the defense held from there.

What happened?

It was a back and forth game, with both teams having nice runs. In the end, Kansas State outscored Baylor 10-0 in the fourth quarter to win.

The Bears lost the turnover battle 3-1. The costly one came in the fourth quarter when Griffin threw his first interception of the season, which led to the go-ahead field goal.

They also committed eight penalties, against only four from Kansas State.

Who's the goat?

Griffin had a fantastic game, but that interception was costly. Still, the Baylor defense did Griffin and his offense no favors.

Even with the bad interception, 36 points should be more than enough to get the job done.

How far will they fall?

Baylor was No. 15 in the country. Given that Kansas State is 4-0, it would be completely unfair to drop Baylor out of the top 25 altogether.

Still, they will be at the bottom of the rankings. Baylor was a BCS outsider coming in, so this loss will do them no favors.

Who Benefits the Most?

From all perspectives, Kansas State does. Obviously, they won the game, but they also beat a ranked team.

At 4-0, the Wildcats just aren't far from cracking the top 25.

The rest of the Big 12 is also going to benefit from this. Seeing a pre-league, season favorite upset in the opener puts them in a really good spot.

Big 12/National Championship Implications

Any faint hopes that Baylor had at a national title are pretty much gone. They can come back okay and handle their business as it relates to conference play, but it's hard to see the pollsters forgetting this one.

Kansas State should now be a ranked team. We're a long way from calling them a Big 12 favorite now, but the Wildcats are now a team to be taken seriously.

Next Game

Baylor-Saturday, October 8 at Iowa State

Kansas State-Saturday, October 8 vs. Missouri

Can Baylor Rebound in the Polls?

In all honesty, I don't see them getting back to the top 15 for a while. If this is the best their defense can do against Kansas State, this won't be Baylor's last loss.