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| Kansas State quarterback Grant Gregory carries for a short gain against Colorado on Oct. 24 at Bill Snyder Family Stadium. Staff photo by Michael Schweitzer. |
The emotions following each game seemed different — everything from the disappointment at Lafayette, the shock in Lubbock to the anger in Norman.
Snyder pointed to the embarrassing loss at Tech as a turning point to the season, because it was after that K-State responded with some pounding of its own against Texas A&M — winning 62-14 — and then defeated Colorado to take control of the Big 12 North.
"I would like to think that every game you play has that learning element to it," Snyder said during Tuesday's weekly press conference. "I don't think you can get beaten up as badly as we did down there and cherish what it brings. It certainly brings disappointment and anger, but you have to have the lesson and be able to build off of it. I think part of it had to do with preparation for that particular ball game and the capacity to not take things for granted.
"There were lessons we learned from that game and you don't like to learn lessons that dramatically, but nevertheless, we did."
The lesson and response to K-State's loss at OU last weekend is yet to be seen as the Wildcats (5-4, 3-2 Big 12) get set to host rival Kansas (5-3, 1-3) this Saturday with a chance to take another step in winning the North.
The overwhelming message following the Cats' loss at Oklahoma was anger — that's after going down by 21 points early, only to fight back and then not finish the comeback. Sure, there was disappointment too, but more than anything there was the feeling that K-State let one get away, against a Top 25 Sooners team that had won 27 straight games at home.
"Anytime you lose, it's frustrating," KSU defensive end Jeff Fitzgerald said. "The fact that we showed that fight, where we could come back, and play with a great team shows we are capable of more. We just need to do it for all four quarters.
"We showed that we're capable of playing with Oklahoma."
Quarterback Grant Gregory's frustration comes from seeing missed opportunities as the season begins to wind down.
"We went in expecting to win and knowing that we had a chance and didn't get it done, which is extremely disappointing," he said. "You have 12 games in the season and when you didn't accomplish what you wanted to accomplish, it's frustrating."
Snyder wants to see pain in losses. He wants to see heartache after losing any game, no matter what team it comes against and how bad or how close the final score was.
"I think the greater the investment, the greater the pain," he said. "The response to the outcome should be equivalent to what the input was."
However, with the Sunflower Showdown just three days away, Snyder wants that anger to shift to more narrowed focus toward the visitors from the East.
"If they were angered, then I can appreciate that. That's part of the process... having a lack of success in a particular event," Snyder said. "I think if you didn't have that there would probably be some concern.
"But there comes a point in time — and that time is here — when you have to get beyond that and get into the preparation and not let the emotion of the previous game have a discerning effect on your focus toward the preparation for the next game."
