Breaking Down Kansas State Wildcats’ Strengths, Weaknesses, & 1 Thing That Could Beat Oklahoma State
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Add Collin Klein to the list of program legends attempting to lead their alma mater to success as a head coach.
Klein rejoins the Kansas State Wildcats after spending the past few seasons as the offensive coordinator at Texas A&M under head coach Mike Elko. Before that, the former Wildcats quarterback and Heisman Trophy finalist was an assistant coach under both Bill Snyder and Chris Klieman.
There are few former players as prepared for the job as Klein. But the same was said about Scott Frost when he took over at his alma mater, Nebraska. Everyone knows how that turned out.
As the Oklahoma State Cowboys prepare for their Nov. 7 showdown with the Wildcats, here are the Wildcats’ strengths, weaknesses and the one thing that could beat the Cowboys.
Strengths
Quarterback
There are few quarterbacks in the Big 12 with more experience than Avery Johnson. In three seasons with the Wildcats, he’s thrown for 5,576 yards and rushed for another 1,378 yards with 70 total touchdowns. He’s only thrown 16 interceptions across three seasons. But there is belief that he has yet to untap his true potential.
That’s one of the reasons why the Wildcats lured Klein back as head coach. He helped get Johnson to Kansas State in the first place and he could be the coach that unlocks Johnson’s best season. At minimum he’s one of the more elusive position players in the conference.
The Skill Positions
Klein lucked out as he takes over. It isn't just Johnson that returns for K-State. Running back Joe Jackson, wide receiver Jaron Tibbs and tight end Garrett Oakley were all starters last year. Jackson is worth tracking because he dropped a school-record 293 yards on Utah a season ago.
Klein worked the transfer portal well and landed former Oklahoma State running back Rodney Fields Jr, along with wide receivers like Josh Manning and Izaiah Williams. Between the returning players and the transfers, the Wildcats have plenty to work with.
Weaknesses
Offensive Line
The Wildcats do a really good job of churning out quality offensive lineman, many of which get shots at NFL jobs. But it's going to be a tricky season up front as left tackle John Pastore is the only returning starter from last season.
Klein and his coaching staff lean on transfers or little-used holdovers from last season to provide protection for Johnson and blocking for Jackson. How quickly the line gels in Klein’s offensive system will guide how well Kansas State plays this season.
Run Defense
The Wildcats gave up 163.8 rushing yards per game which was good for No. 87 in the country. The Wildcats also gave up 23 touchdowns and while the 4.06 yard per carry average looks good on paper, it was clear the unit had issues.
Those issues were only exacerbated by the transfer portal as most of Kansas State's defense turned over. Now stopping the run will be up to transfers like nose tackles Kamari Burns and returning backup Holden Bass, along with transfer linebacker Mekhi Mason and holdover Rex Van Whye.
The One Thing That Could Beat Oklahoma State
The Pass Rush
One area where Kansas State did great in the transfer portal was on the edge and it partially came at Oklahoma State’s expense. One of the projected starters is Wendell Gregory, who was the Big 12 defensive freshman of the year after he had four sacks and 12 tackles for loss with the Cowboys. The other projected edge rusher is Jordan Allen, who returns after finishing with five tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks a year ago. The pair could make the Wildcats’ pass rush much more dangerous than a season ago.
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Matthew Postins is the publisher of Oklahoma State on SI. He is an award-winning sports journalist who was formerly the editor of the College Football America Yearbook and covers the Big 12 Conference for Heartland College Sports.
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