November 02, 1998
In the final conference activity of the month, three standout student-athletes have been named as Big 12 Conference superlative performers for games of Oct. 31 by a group of media observers.
Kansas State quarterback Michael Bishop of Willis, Texas, is Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week. Oklahoma cornerback Corey Ivy of Ada, Okla., is Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week while Big 12 Specialty Player of the Week is Texas A&M kick return man-WR Chris Taylor of Madisonville, Texas.
Bishop completed 16-of-26 passes for 225 yards and a touchdown while he rushed 13 times for 95 yards and two touchdowns to tally 320 yards in total offense. Bishop moved into a second place tie with Lynn Dickey on the K-State career TD passes' list with 29 and has a 16-1 TD-interception ratio on the season. He became the sixth player in Kansas State history to top 4,000 yards in total offense and moved into fifth on the K-State career list. The K-State offense scored on 10 of 13 possessions, with the only non-scores coming when Bishop fumbled at the one-yard line, a missed 60-yard field goal at the end of the first half and a missed 37-yard field goal in the third quarter. Over the last two games, K-State has scored on 18 of 23 possessions and has punted just one time-mostly with Bishop at the controls on offense.
Ivy, a senior standout for the Sooners' defense, came to the rescue of a corps depleted by injuries and an ejection during the 17-14 Oklahoma win over Iowa State in Norman. He killed two Cyclones' drives with pass interceptions in the end zone and was credited unofficially with three total tackles as Oklahoma limited ISU to 288 yards of total offense and won its first Big 12 game in '98.
Taylor set up one touchdown with an 84-yard kickoff return in the Aggies' 17-6 win over Oklahoma State and caught a 34-yard touchdown pass from QB Branndon Stewart with 12:15 left in the third quarter to help cinch the victory for seventh/eighth-rated-nationally Texas A&M. The sophomore speedster led the Aggies with three catches for 60 yards and also returned a punt for two yards. Before last week's win he had registered a 61-yard run on an end-around for a TD and an 81-yard touchdowns reception.