Kansas State WR Quincy Morgan eludes Ball State's Steve Monson on his way to end zone.(AP)

"He told our players about a time he went to Colorado and the score was similar," Lynch said. "He told them to keep believing and keep on going. I hope they took it to heart."

Losses like that 64-3 defeat by Colorado in 1990, when Kansas State was in the early stages of its transformation from patsy to powerhouse, make it easy to sympathize with teams like Ball State, Snyder said.

"It's hard for those youngsters in that other locker room," said Snyder, who has been criticized in recent years for his team's soft nonconference schedule. "All they're looking for is just a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel, and it's hard for them to see it.

"Those coaches over there work just as hard as anyone else, and sometimes it must be easy for them to say, 'Where's this all going?"'

Kansas State's 76 points broke a 90-year-old school record, set in 1910 in a 75-0 victory over Drury. It fell with 11:21 remaining, on Rashad Washington's 1-yard run and Kyle Altvater's conversion.

The Wildcats' 11 touchdowns also set a record, breaking the mark of nine accomplished on three occasions, most recently in a 66-0 victory over Missouri last Nov. 20.

Jonathan Beasley threw two long touchdown passes to Quincy Morgan and ran for another score in the first quarter. Morgan caught a third touchdown pass from Beasley's backup, freshman Ell Roberson, tying a school record for TD catches in a game.

"We work extremely hard in practice," Morgan said. "It doesn't make any difference if we're going against a strong team or a weak team. I'm not going to practice hard for nothing - I'm going to go out and run my routes hard."

Josh Scobey and Roderick Cartwright added two touchdown runs each for Kansas State.

The Wildcats (3-0) led 34-0 after one quarter, scoring five touchdowns before Ball State (0-3) managed a first down. Kansas State's defense, led by tackle Mario Fatafehi's three sacks, had more interceptions (two) than Ball State had completions (one, for 5 yards.)

The Wildcats' defensive domination over Ball State, which gained only 52 total yards, was such that on one play in the third quarter, running back Anthony Jones was stuffed for a 2-yard loss by a defense that had only nine players on the field.

"If you put up those kinds of numbers, that means something," Kansas State defensive coordinator Phil Bennett said. "They gave Florida 230 yards and 19 points (in the Gators' 40-19 win over Ball State on Sept. 2), and we kept them to zero. That means something to me."

Beasley's first TD pass to Morgan, a 55-yarder, came with less than two minutes gone in the game. Then, on Ball State's first play, Monty Beisel sacked Brian Conn and stripped him of the ball.

Turelle Williams recovered at the Cardinals' 8, setting up Beasley's TD run on the ensuing play. Four plays after that, Aaron Lockett returned a punt 83 yards for a 20-0 lead.

It was the second punt return for a touchdown in as many games for Lockett, who is subbing for David Allen as Allen - who needs one more TD return for the NCAA record - recovers from an ankle injury sustained in the Wildcats' opener against Iowa.

Kansas State's next drive consisted of three passes, all completed. The third went to Morgan, 5 yards behind the Ball State secondary, for a 66-yard touchdown and a 27-0 advantage. Scobey's 4-yard run closed out the quarter's scoring for the Wildcats, who led 48-0 at the half after Roberson's 8-yard pass to Morgan and Rashad Jackson's 4-yard run.

Snyder declined to pad the record in the closing seconds, instructing fourth-string quarterback Zac Burton to take a knee on fourth-and-5 at the Cardinals' 11 with a second remaining.