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The original was posted on /r/cfb by /u/RJEP22 on 2024-07-10 13:40:47+00:00.
WE’RE GOING THROUGH EACH P4 TEAM’S SCHEDULE AND PICKING EVERY GAME.
Today we have the Kansas State Wildcats.
Will Howard is now a Buckeye and for many teams that would be a bad thing, but not for the Wildcats. Klieman and Co. seemed perfectly willing to let Howard go and put their faith in dual-threat backup Avery Johnson.
Johnson was electric at points in 2023 and gave Kansas State fans plenty of reasons to be optimistic. Now he is the leader of a team with big expectations on them in 2024. Anything less than a Big12 title appearance would be a disappointment, and it will be up to Johnson to make this offense explosive while keeping himself healthy for a postseason run.
The wildcats avoid fellow conference title favorite Utah in the regular season, which means the Big12 could be one of the few conferences to avoid a rematch in the title game. That bodes well for their chances of getting 2 teams in the playoff because you can have two undefeated teams facing off in Dallas. However, with as much parity that is expected in the Big12 this year, I don’t see anyone getting to 12-0 in this league.
Early season home games vs Arizona and Oklahoma State will be massive tests. The offense needs to start humming quickly if they want to get the Bye at 5-0. Going to Tulane is no easy trip either. Kansas State cannot afford to be looking ahead to Arizona during weeks 1 and 2.
The back half of the schedule features their two toughest road games in Morgantown and Ames. As I pointed out a few posts back, Jack Trice in November is a scary place, and I like the Cyclones in that game. I also think the WVU offense will be one of the few units that could outshine K-State’s. I could see that being a night game between two potentially ranked teams.
The floor is 8-4 if this team starts slow, but 12-0 is in the cards if they get 2022 TCU levels of luck in coin flip games. There are 4-5 losable games, but they get 3 of them at home, so if they can just take care of business, I see 10-2 and a likely trip to Dallas for the Wildcats.
How do you see it?