Kansas State didn’t crack the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll, but the Wildcats did at least get a foot in the door.
When the poll was released Tuesday, Aug. 4, Kansas State was left outside the Top 25 and finished with one vote, meaning a single coach slotted the Wildcats at No.
- That puts them well below the national chatter heading into the season, even if the buzz around Manhattan suggests a team capable of more.
The Big 12 picture tells a similar story. Texas Tech checked in highest among league teams at No. 12, followed by BYU at No.
15, Utah at No. 21 and Houston at No. 24.
TCU, Arizona, Oklahoma State and Arizona State all landed in the “others receiving votes” group with more support than Kansas State.
Houston is the only team on Kansas State’s schedule that begins the year ranked.
Preseason polls always come with a built-in warning label, and the source of that skepticism is easy to find. Kansas State entered last season ranked 17th in the same poll and finished unranked.
Oklahoma State started at No. 18 and went 3-9. And eventual national champion Indiana wasn’t even in the Top 25 until Week 5.
Still, the early numbers set the tone for what comes next. Kansas State will have to stack wins quickly if it wants to climb into the conversation and earn the kind of respect plenty of people in Kansas already believe it deserves.
Ohio State opens at No. 1 in the coaches poll, followed by Oregon, Georgia, Texas and Notre Dame. Indiana sits at No. 6 after its 16-0 season, with Miami, Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Ole Miss rounding out the top 10.
The rest of the preseason Top 25 is Alabama, Texas Tech, LSU, Southern Cal, BYU, Michigan, Penn State, Tennessee, Washington, SMU, Utah, Iowa, Clemson, Houston and Missouri.
Among the teams that dropped out from the final poll last season were Vanderbilt, Virginia, Tulane, James Madison, Navy, Georgia Tech and Illinois. Kansas State, meanwhile, joins the group of teams getting only a lone vote - a small but notable starting point as the Wildcats try to prove they belong much higher than that.
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Brandon White Is Emerging As A Key Piece For Kansas State
Brandon White arrived at Kansas State with the sort of transfer profile that can quietly reshape a receiver room, and the Wildcats are already treating him like someone who should matter this fall. Avery Johnson gave White a notable endorsement during Big 12 Media Days, pointing to both his ability on the field and the presence he has brought into the locker room, a good sign for a program looking for reliable targets as it settles into a new season.
The timing is useful, too, with the program set to put its roster in front of fans at the upcoming Meet the Cats event, where coach Collin Klein and players will be on hand. For a team that wants to keep building around Johnson, White looks like one of the newcomers worth watching closely, even before the first real test arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Former Kansas State LB Austin Romaine Is Turning Heads In The Big 12
Austin Romaine did enough at Kansas State to leave a real impression, and now he is carrying that reputation into a new setting at Texas Tech. After recording 60 tackles and a half sack for the Wildcats before transferring, the former K-State linebacker has already been noticed again, with Pro Football Focus College naming him among the Big 12s best returning linebackers and teammates in Lubbock offering early praise for the way he has fit in.
For Kansas State fans, it is another reminder of how much production Romaine brought to the defense before moving on, and why his next step is worth watching. Texas Tech clearly believes it added a player who can help elevate the middle of the defense, and the buzz around him is only growing as he settles into his new program and tries to build on the foundation he established in Manhattan. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas State Freshman Garrick Dixon Could Help Sooner Than Expected
Garrick Dixon arrived in Manhattan with the kind of rsum that usually comes with a little more long-range planning, even for a freshman cornerback. The St. Louis product signed with Kansas State after being rated one of Missouris top prospects at the position and stacking up multiple high school football honors, which is part of why he entered the program with real buzz despite the expectation that he would take the slower developmental route.
Stanton Weber said Dixon is expected to redshirt, but the special teams coordinator also made it clear the rookie should have a role there right away, which can change a freshmans timeline in a hurry. For Kansas State, that makes Dixon one of those early-camp names worth tracking: not necessarily because he is being asked to jump into a full-time defensive role, but because special teams can become the quickest path from promising newcomer to useful contributor. [Read more 🡒]