Kansas State’s 2026 outlook starts and ends with Avery Johnson, but the Wildcats have more than one difference-maker worth tracking as Collin Klein settles in as head coach.
K-State is being viewed as a real contender in the Big 12 race, sitting just behind Texas Tech, BYU and Utah in the betting odds to reach the conference championship game at 14-to-1. That kind of expectation puts a spotlight on the players who can actually turn the hype into wins, and there’s a clear group at the top of the list.
Johnson, the senior quarterback from Wichita, is the obvious headliner. The sense around the program is that K-State’s ceiling is tied to how far he can carry it.
He’s had flashes in every phase of his career: as a freshman, he was a dangerous runner who still needed polish as a passer; as a sophomore, he set the program’s single-season touchdown pass record but lost some of that ground-game explosiveness; and as a junior, he was simply average while the Wildcats stumbled to six wins. Now Klein, the coach who recruited him and is back calling plays, gets the chance to unlock the full package.
Johnson has stayed at K-State through his entire college career and wants to finish strong.
Behind him, the Wildcats’ defense could be loaded with impact talent. Jordan Allen, a junior defensive end from Olathe, drew heavy buzz during camp after making life miserable for the offense in practice.
At 6-foot-4 and 263 pounds, he’s been tough to block, and this season he’ll line up both on the edge and inside at defensive tackle. His athleticism gives K-State another disruptive piece next to the rest of that front.
Wendell Gregory brings a different kind of problem for opponents. The sophomore defensive end is listed at 6-foot-3 and 265 pounds, a build more like a tight end than a pass rusher, but his production as a freshman at Oklahoma State - 27 tackles and four sacks - showed why K-State believes he can be its best defender.
Johnson called him, “Wendell is a stud. I remember playing against him last year.
His ability to rush the passer and drop into coverage, we can ask him to do a lot. He’s super athletic, and he trains like a pro.
He’s always at the facility.”
On offense, Joe Jackson might be the name most likely to surprise people if he keeps rolling from where he left off. The junior running back finished the regular season on a tear, opening eyes with 293 yards and three touchdowns against Utah, then following it with 142 yards and three more scores against Colorado.
Those numbers came against two of the Big 12’s weaker run defenses, so the challenge now is repeating that production with more attention on him. K-State also brought in Rodney Fields from Oklahoma State and Jay Harris from Oregon to help the backfield.
Then there’s Linkon Cure, the sophomore tight end whose profile still makes him one of the most intriguing players on the roster. A former five-star recruit, Cure caught only six passes for 37 yards last season, but injuries and missed spring work slowed him down.
He spent the offseason getting stronger and learning the position at the college level, and now he’s up to 6-foot-5 and 242 pounds. If he can become a more physical blocker and then create mismatches underneath as a receiver, he could finally start looking like the player K-State expected.
Those five give the Wildcats a pretty clear blueprint: Johnson at the center, Allen and Gregory chasing quarterbacks, Jackson stressing defenses on the ground, and Cure trying to become the kind of tight end who changes what a defense can do.
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Kansas State Still Has One Big O-Line Concern Before The Opener
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