With 55 days to go until the 2026 kickoff, Kansas State is still pointing to Kyle Rakers as one of its young offensive line pieces to watch.
Rakers, born Oct. 7, 2005, arrived in spring 2024 from Dowling Catholic High School in Iowa and is majoring in accounting. The offensive guard redshirted and did not see game action in 2024 while he worked to add strength and muscle to his frame.
He did get on the field last season, appearing as a reserve offensive lineman against Kansas and Texas Tech. In all, he logged eight offensive snaps and finished the year as an Academic All-Big 12 performer.
Before college, Rakers built a strong résumé at Dowling Catholic under head coach Tom Wilson. ESPN ranked him as the 71st-best offensive guard nationally in the Class of 2024, and both 247Sports and ESPN listed him as the 10th-best overall prospect in Iowa.
A three-year starter, Rakers helped the Maroons go 19-4 over his final two seasons. He was named to The Des Moines Register All-Iowa Elite Team among all classes as both a junior and a senior, and he also earned first-team all-state honors in both seasons.
That recognition extended to the Iowa Football Coaches Association and the Iowa Print Sports Writers Association, both of which also named him first-team all-state as a junior and senior.
As a senior, he helped Dowling Catholic put up 1,988 rushing yards, 1,402 passing yards and 42 total touchdowns.
Rakers chose Kansas State over offers from Boston College, Illinois, Iowa State, Kansas, Miami (Ohio), Michigan State, Missouri, Nebraska, Northern Illinois, Oklahoma State, Purdue, Tulane and UNLV, along with recruiting interest from Arkansas, Cincinnati, Iowa, Minnesota and Notre Dame.
In Other News...
Joe Jackson Embraces New Backfield Competition At Kansas State
Joe Jackson is back in the role Kansas State wants him to own, coming off a breakout junior season that put him on the All-Big 12 radar and made him the Wildcats featured runner again. After rushing for 911 yards and eight touchdowns a year ago, Jackson has every reason to view the backfield as his, but he is approaching the next step with the kind of confidence that usually comes from knowing what he can do.
Kansas States additions of Rodney Fields and Jay Harris only seem to have sharpened that mindset. Jackson has talked up the way their skill sets fit together and the relationship the three have already built, a sign that the Wildcats are trying to create more than a simple depth chart battle. For Jackson, the competition is part of the appeal, and how that rotation settles in could shape one of the more important position groups on the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Collin Klein Just Set A New Tone For Kansas State Football
Collin Kleins first Big 12 media days as Kansas States head coach offered a clear glimpse of the standard he wants to set. The former Wildcats quarterback leaned hard into toughness, energy and grit, framing his program around a more physical, more demanding identity while also leaning on the same steady presence that made him such a natural fit for the job in the first place. It was the kind of appearance that reminded everyone why Kansas State hired him, because he sounded like someone intent on carrying the programs edge forward rather than simply preserving it.
Avery Johnson is right at the center of that vision, and Klein made it clear the quarterbacks next step is about playing with more freedom and aggression in 2026. Kansas State also has some early momentum behind the scenes, with Kleins first recruiting class drawing strong national respect and giving the staff a foundation to build on. The bigger question now is how quickly that tone turns into results once the Wildcats get back on the field. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas State Is Already Pushing Hard To Build Its Next Wave
Kansas State is not waiting around to see how the next few recruiting cycles unfold. The Wildcats have already been active with offers across future classes, including 2027 cornerback Riley Lewis, 2027 quarterback Ty Snell, 2029 wide receiver Colton Laisure and 2029 tight end Caiden Snow, a sign the staff is trying to get in early on players who are already drawing attention from Division I programs.
Lewis and Snell are both deep into crowded recruiting battles, while Snow is also hearing from some of the biggest names in the sport. Even the younger names in the mix show how wide Kansas State is casting its net as it tries to stack talent well ahead of time, and the real question now is how many of these early relationships the Wildcats can turn into something more down the road. [Read more 🡒]