Despite 1-3 Start, Kansas State Still Can Turn Around Season

Time is dwindling, but Wildcats’ goals still can be reached

KSU coach Chris Klieman is using his team's bye week to search for their identity. | Scott D. Weaver/K-State Athletics

For Kansas State, a bye week couldn’t have come at a better time. Even a necessary time, you might say.

The Wildcats are reeling, 1-3 with three one-score losses. Going into Friday’s 23-17 loss at Arizona, Kansas State was six points away from being undefeated in 2025. Six strategically placed points, but only six points nonetheless.

“We’re going to give our kids some rest,” K-State coach Chris Klieman said after the Arizona game.

“It’s been a gauntlet here in this four-game stretch with the travel and stuff, but that’s what we signed up for.

“It’s not an excuse, so we have to find some ways to recalibrate and get the guys rested and come back. We have the meat of our schedule ahead of us.”

What lies ahead for Wildcats

Eight games remain in what was expected to be a season where the Wildcats would challenge for the Big 12 title. They still can be a major factor in the conference, but with a shrinking margin of error.

K-State’s next game is Sept. 27 at home vs. 2-0 UCF. (The Arizona game, weirdly, was considered non-conference since it wasn’t scheduled by the conference. It was scheduled by the schools in 2016, when Arizona was a Pac-12 member.)

So while all might seem to be lost for the Wildcats, their main goal is directly in front of them. Also right in front of them: Plenty of hard work, changing the vibe of a team that has lost three close games, and restoring confidence in a team that hasn’t defeated a FBS team yet.

The Big 12 schedule isn’t a cakewalk. Big 12 schools are 35-11 so far this season. Three Big 12 teams are ranked in the AP Top 25:

12. Iowa State
16. Utah
17. Texas Tech

Four more conference teams are among “others receiving votes”: BYU (26th), TCU (30th), Arizona State (31st), and Baylor (35th).

Kansas State’s remaining schedule includes Utah, Texas Tech, TCU and Baylor. And in the middle of the schedule is the game at arch-rival Kansas on Oct. 25. Check out K-State's rankings from major media outlets.

Wildcats’ reset

K-State needs five wins in its final eight games to become bowl eligible. While a Big 12 title still is possible, bowl eligibility also is a worthy goal. The Wildcats are coming off a 9-4 season that included a 44-41 win over Rutgers in the Rate Bowl.

Last season was considered a jump-start to a fruitful 2025 season. It still could be.

“We need to reset,” Klieman said. “We need to make some adjustments offensively and defensively to give our kids a chance to be successful.

“We have to get together as a staff. Right now, I don’t know what our identity is. I thought I knew after the first game [loss to Iowa State in Dublin], but that has not been sustained with our identity.

“That’s not an excuse, that’s the reality, that I don’t know what our identity is.

“We're going to figure that out in this open week.”

What K-State’s rankings mean

K-State’s total offense and defense rankings are below average among the 136 FBS teams. In total offense, the Wildcats rank 108th, averaging 320.8 yards per game. In total defense, K-State ranks 78th, allowing 350.8 yards per game.

Kansas State defensive end Tobi Osunsanmi tackles Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita. The Wildcats have lost three games by one score. | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

Football orthodoxy, once uttered by former NFL coach Bill Parcells, says a team is what its record says it is. Fair enough. The Wildcats are 1-3 … close losses or not.

More football philosophy: Stats don’t tell the whole story about a team. True, but sometimes stats are unavoidably insightful. K-State’s offense and defense rankings are not only low but painfully so for a team with such high aspirations.

Those aspirations still can be met, but there is serious work to do and not much time to do it.

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