Kansas State is back home after back-to-back road losses, but the challenge waiting Saturday is a big one. The Wildcats will try to slow down one of college football’s most explosive offenses when they face Oklahoma State at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan.
The Big 12 matchup kicks off Saturday, Nov. 7, at noon CT and will be televised on TNT. It can also be streamed live via Sling.
Kansas State enters at 4-4 overall and 1-4 in Big 12 play, and it will have a new face under center again. Blake Barnett is set to start at quarterback, making him the Wildcats’ fourth different starter in as many weeks. Regular starter Avery Johnson remains out and could miss the rest of the season.
Oklahoma State comes in at 5-3 and 3-2 in the Big 12 after dropping two of its last three games. That includes last week’s 51-49 loss at Iowa State.
Even so, the Cowboys have been piling up points all season, scoring at least 32 in every game since their Week 1 loss at Tulsa. Quarterback Drew Mestemaker leads the way, and he is widely regarded as the best QB draft prospect in the sport.
Prediction: Oklahoma State 42, Kansas State 28
That’s a difficult matchup for Kansas State even with Johnson available. Without him, the Wildcats’ offense does not look built to trade scores with Oklahoma State, which has a future NFL quarterback and an attack that can fill up the scoreboard. Kansas State’s defensive issues could be put under even more pressure in a game like this.
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Kansas State Suddenly Has Bigger Problems Than One Ugly Loss
The setback against Oklahoma State was ugly from the opening moments, and it left Kansas State with far more to sort through than just one bad afternoon at home. The Cowboys controlled the game from the start, with quarterback Drew Mestemaker throwing for 313 yards and four touchdowns while the Wildcats never found much rhythm on either side of the ball.
At 4-5, Kansas State now has little margin left if it wants to reach bowl eligibility, and the path forward suddenly looks a lot tighter than it did a week ago. Two more wins are still required, but after a performance like this, the bigger concern is whether the Wildcats can steady themselves quickly enough to get there. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas State Got Its First Win But Creighton Looms Large
Kansas State opened the Casey Alexander era with a much-needed 95-78 win over Cal State Northridge on Nov. 6 at Bramlage Coliseum, and Brandon Rechsteiner made sure the night carried some early momentum. He poured in a career-high 26 points and knocked down six 3-pointers, giving the Wildcats a clear offensive spark in their first victory under the new coach.
The challenge gets steeper quickly, though, with Creighton coming to Manhattan on Nov. 10 for Kansas States first high-major test of the season. After getting the first one in the books, the Wildcats now have a chance to see how that opening-night energy holds up against a far more demanding opponent. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas State Returns Home Facing A Season-Saving Test
After a promising win over rival Kansas, Kansas State has hit a rough patch with two straight road losses, and the Wildcats are back home trying to stop the slide before it swallows the season. At 4-4 overall and 1-4 in Big 12 play, there is little margin left, especially with Avery Johnson and Jacob Knuth both dealing with injuries that have limited the offenses options and put more pressure on the rest of the roster to carry the load.
Oklahoma State arrives as the next chance to steady things, and the setting only adds to the urgency for a team that has not looked like itself away from home. The defense still has talent, but it has not played to that level often enough, which makes this matchup feel less like a routine conference game and more like a test of whether Kansas State can regroup quickly enough to keep its season from slipping further out of reach. [Read more 🡒]