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MANHATTAN, Kan. -- Kansas State has dropped two of its first three Big 12 games, sits squarely at .500 at the midway point of the season and now has Texas looming with injury uncertainty at quarterback.Make no mistake: These Wildcats are wounded.You win some, you lose some. You have to keep moving on to the next week, Kansas State linebacker Elijah Lee said. We have six games left -- a half of a season in front of us.Those six games will determine whether the Wildcats will qualify for a bowl game, build some momentum heading into next season, and perhaps even whether 77-year-old Bill Snyder decides to come back for yet another pursuit of a conference championship in his second go-around as head coach.The next couple of games are particularly crucial.First up is Texas, which has looked imminently beatable this season but nearly knocked off the same Oklahoma team that trounced the Wildcats on Saturday. Then comes a trip to Iowa State, which has given a hard time to just about everybody it has played but is still seeking its first league win.Win those two games and the Wildcats could still salvage a solid season.Lose both and the season could have slipped away.Making things even more desperate for the Wildcats is that they could be facing the Longhorns without quarterback Jesse Ertz, who was hurt just before halftime on Saturday. He tried to continue in the second half but pulled himself from the game after attempting one pass.Joe Hubener, who started after Ertz was lost for the season a year ago, entered in relief and had a hard time moving the offense. He was just 12 of 23 for 157 yards, but a big chunk of that came on a 54-yard touchdown toss to Dominique Heath that took advantage of some rare broken coverage.Hubener was sacked twice by a Sooners defense that has been regularly shredded.I think he was ready, Snyder insisted afterward. He made some mistakes and threw some balls in the dirt, but I think if you took those away he would grade out comfortably well.The Wildcats certainly werent willing to put the blame on their quarterback. After all, those who were around last season have actually spent more time with Hubener than Ertz on the field.Im already used to Joe, said running back Charles Jones, who was held to 34 yards rushing by the Sooners. We played with him last year so it wasnt a big change. I felt he stepped up, made some plays but too little, too late. We all didnt make the plays.That has been a common problem for the Wildcats this season.Their offense was lackluster in a season-opening loss to Stanford, then had to settle for three field goals in a 17-16 loss at West Virginia. Their slow start on Saturday allowed the Sooners to get out to an early lead, forcing them to bail out of what has been a relatively productive run game.Perhaps more worrying for the Wildcats? Their defense, which had been among the best in Division I football, has been exposed in consecutive games against Texas Tech and the Sooners.They werent doing anything that we werent expecting. It was just struggling on the tackling, Kansas State defensive end Jordan Willis said. Guys were hitting them, but they just werent wrapping up -- just fundamental things. Its small things that just didnt go our way.Those are the kind of mistakes that were once rarely seen in Snyder-coached teams, but that have become a source of frustration last season and again this season.Not doing the assignment that was asked of you was really what happened, Willis said. Its a matter of correcting mistakes. Its the biggest thing weve got to do. Wholesale College Jerseys China . 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NCAA Basketball Jerseys Cheap .B. - Sebastien Auger made 44 saves as the Saint John Sea Dogs edged the visiting Acadie-Bathurst Titan 2-1 on Saturday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. EVANSTON, Ill. -- Although it appeared his missed extra point might prove to be the difference, Sean Slattery said his thoughts never turned negative.Coach told me at halftime, `Youre gonna hit a big one, Slattery said. That gave me some confidence. You just have to believe in yourself and get it done.Slattery connected on a 33-yard field goal as time expired to give Illinois State a 9-7 upset of Northwestern on Saturday.Jake Kolbe completed 30 of his 41 passes for 287 yards and two interceptions, Anthony Warrum had nine receptions for 116 yards and George Moreira had 57 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown for Illinois State (2-0).We feel like we belong playing teams like this, Kolbe said. We stressed all week were good enough to play with teams like that.Clayton Thorson was 17 of 41 for 191 yards for Northwestern, which fell to 0-2.Justin Jackson had 39 yards on 11 carries for the Wildcats before leaving the game early in the fourth quarter with a leg injury.Thorson connected with Austin Carr on a 10-yard touchdown pass on a fourth-down play early in the fourth quarter that gave the Wildcats a 7-6 edge with 9:04 remaining. That appeared to be the winning score before Kolbe led the Redbirds on an 11-play, 77-yard drive in the final 3:11 for the winning score.We knew that today was going to be a battle, Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald said. Did I think it was going to be this type of battle from a standpoint of scoring? Quite frankly, no. I thought wed be able to move the ball better on the ground. I thought, obviously, wed be able to pitch and catch better, so youve got to credit ISUs defense. They did a great job up front.Slattery missed the extra point following Moreiras 6-yard touchdown run just before halftime and missed a 49-yard attempt in the first quarter.Even when they went up 7-6, I always felt like we were gonna come back and win the game, Illinois State coach Brock Spack said.TAKEAWAYIllinois State: The Redbirds suffered a 37-3 loss in their previous visit to Ryan Field in 2010.dddddddddddd That was coach Brock Spacks second season and Saturdays result shows how far the program has come since then. With Kolbe and Warrum leading a high-powered offensive attack, the Redbirds should again be one of the better teams in FCS.Northwestern: The struggles against Western Michigan in the opener werent an aberration. Once again, the offense could not find any consistency and Jackson could not bail them out because the Illinois State defense was keying on him. Thorson cannot seem to get on the same page with his receivers and completions over 10 yards were rare. Defensively, the Wildcats struggled to get off the field and continue to get pushed around in short-yardage situations.STUFFEDJackson left early in the fourth quarter and wasnt much of a factor before that, averaging just 3.5 yards a carry.Early on, I felt like we dominated the line and stopped him, Redbirds linebacker Alejandro Rivera said.The Northwestern players didnt disagree. Offensive line wise, I thought we got our butts kicked up front, guard Connor Mahoney said. The credit goes to Illinois State. We didnt bring it today and that falls on the whole group.NO WORK OF ARTThe Wildcats won 10 games last season, but now have dropped two games by a total of three points. They lost 22-21 to Western Michigan in the opener.I wouldnt say either of the teams weve played have put together a Picasso, Fitzgerald said. Obviously, we havent either. Our hallmark around here is we typically win close games because we make plays down the stretch and right now that isnt happening, so obviously thats my responsibility. Ive got to find a way for us not to be in these types of close games.UP NEXTIllinois State: The Redbirds host Eastern Illinois on Saturday.Northwestern: The Wildcats season-opening four-game home stand continues Saturday night against ' ' '