Kansas State is one of the biggest question marks in the Big 12 for next season. On one hand, the program is bringing back a legend who's had success on the field and the sidelines. On the other hand, the Wildcats are coming off a rollercoaster season and must bounce back after losing multiple stars from last year's roster.
Well, it does have one thing in its favor: the 2026 schedule. The Wildcats' opponents don't strike a ton of fear in onlookers, which can set up the comeback year the program needs. College football analyst Josh Pate ranked Kansas State on his list of the country's easiest schedules for next season.
"They’re bringing Nicholls to town, the ghost of Washington State to town, and then Tulane to town," Pate said Saturday on his online show. "I know that maybe five years ago, that out-of-conference portion there would’ve looked legitimate. I don’t know how legitimate those tests will be this year. And then they hop into a conference play. They go to draft and portal-ravaged Cincinnati, and then they got a bye before they play Houston."
At the same time, it could be underwhelming to some, as the Wildcats won't have a competitive schedule.
"The Big 12 has a lot of teams that have good out-of-conference tests," Pate said. "Baylor‘s gonna play Auburn, Arizona State plays [Texas] A&M, you've got the Iowa-Iowa State thing, Kansas plays Missouri, Oklahoma State plays Oregon. Kansas State, it’s not that they didn’t try. This is not a Penn State mail-it-in job on out of conference scheduling. They tried to schedule decently out of conference, and the wheel just didn’t spin their way. Not that they’re mad at it, but it does make for a pretty soft opening for Colin Klein and company up there."
Still, you could probably bet any money that Kansas State fans just want to rebound after last year's near-disaster. What was supposed to be an all-time year for the program ended up being one of the worst seasons of the past decade. The typical consistencies fell way short, leading to a borderline bowl contention and Chris Klieman's retirement. New coach Collin Klein is anticipated to come in and shift the trajectory, and it starts with hitting each bullet point in Year 1.
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