It's a story as old as time: The student faces his former teacher. And in Saturday's Liberty Bowl between Bill Snyder's Kansas State Wildcats and Bret Bielema's Arkansas Razorbacks, it will play out again. Kansas State and Arkansas are scheduled to kick off at 3:20 p.m. ET, with television coverage on ESPN and streaming service through WatchESPN.
Watch the Kansas State vs. Arkansas Liberty Bowl online: Time, TV schedule, live stream and 3 things to know
Legendary coach Bill Snyder meets one of his proteges in the Liberty Bowl. Here’s how to see it.
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Both Snyder and Bielema got their coaching starts at Iowa with Hayden Fry. When Bielema left the Iowa coaching staff in 2001, he landed as a co-coordinator for Snyder at Kansas State, and spent two seasons under Snyder before moving to Wisconsin. The two remain close, with Bielema attending Snyder’s induction to the College Football Hall of Fame earlier this season.
Both Snyder and Bielema have struggled through disappointing seasons. Snyder’s Wildcats enter the Liberty Bowl at 6-6, having won its last three games just to reach bowl eligibility. Kansas State did manage to beat West Virginia in the regular season finale, holding the potent Mountaineer offense to 23 points.
Expectations were kept low for Kansas State this season, though. The same cannot be said for Arkansas. After winning two games against top 20 teams last November and dominating Texas in the Texas Bowl, the Razorbacks were a dark horse pick to win the SEC West. Instead, Bielema’s team lost three of its first four games, and yet another strong November run has gone largely unnoticed. The Razorbacks hammered then-No. 9 LSU and dominated Missouri in the season finale, though, and could also be rounding into form.
How to watch, stream and listen
TV: Jan. 2, 3:20 p.m. ET, ESPN
Radio: Arkansas and Kansas State affiliates are available.
Online streaming: WatchESPN
Spread: Arkansas is favored by 13 points.
Make friends: Get to SB Nation’s team blog chats for this game at Bring on the Cats (for Kansas State fans) and Arkansas Fight (for Arkansas fans).
Three big things to know
Ball control: So often in modern college football, time of possession is irrelevant. This is not one of those games. Arkansas is third nationally in time of possession, holding the ball for more than 34 minutes per game. Kansas State, which needs to hold the ball just to survive against Big 12 offenses, is 14th nationally, at nearly 33 minutes per game. The Wildcats have held a time of possession edge in all five of their wins against FBS opponents, and the Razorbacks’ wins over Auburn and Missouri came with massive 2-to-1 time of possession leads. The team that holds the ball the longest could well be the winner at the Liberty Bowl.
Arkansas is all-in with Allen: Bielema's teams are known for relying on a pounding running game, and halfback Alex Collins has racked up nearly 1,400 rushing yards behind the nation's biggest offensive line. But it's been quarterback Brandon Allen that has been crucial to Arkansas' offense this season. Allen has thrown for more than 3,100 yards and 29 touchdowns against just seven interceptions, and has put up more than 400 passing yards in three games this season. He threw for six touchdowns in an overtime win over Ole Miss, and seven scores in a one-point loss to Mississippi State. When the running game is working, Allen stands aside, but Kansas State is sure to focus on stopping Collins. Allen will then be crucial to the Razorbacks.
Slumpbuster: Bill Snyder had gone a respectable 6-5 in bowl games before his retirement in 2005, but has had no such luck since returning to Kansas State in 2009. Since his return, Snyder has taken his Wildcats to five bowl games. His team has lost four of those games, including a five-point defeat against UCLA in last season’s Alamo Bowl.
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