Kansas State Notches Surprise Matchups In Way-Too-Early Bowl Predictions

The college football season is entering its second week.

So why not make Bowl predictions in early September? ESPN made a few predictions for Kansas State, pinning Arkansas State (SERVPRO First Responder Bowl) and Florida (AutoZone Liberty Bowl) as possible matchups we could see in December.

Nevertheless, Kansas State has to get there first. The first two weeks haven't encouraged many that it's ready to leap toward championship glory. The Wildcats need a massive shift to have any chance at the postseason, which has dramatically plummeted with the first two performances. Their ugly loss to Iowa State and slim victory over North Dakota don't exactly encourage fans that they can keep up with the nation's best.

Forget CFP odds, the Wildcats may not even notch five victories playing the way they are. Some are already equating them to the 2024 Florida State team that won just two games last season.

"If we're gonna play like this every week, we're not gonna be the team that we want to be," K-State quarterback Avery Johnson said after the North Dakota game. "I just went straight to the leaders on the offense and the defense, and we have to take accountability for the game we had tonight. It was way too close for comfort."

K-STATE'S DYLAN EDWARDS AND LINKON CURE STILL QUESTIONABLE VS. ARMY

Kansas State's slow season start certainly hasn't been what many anticipated. The Big 12 title aspirations are starting to slip, leading many to question what the team can do to get back on track.

Among these question marks are the statuses of tight end Linkon Cure and running back Dylan Edwards, both anticipated to be key pieces in the Wildcats' rise this season.

Unfortunately, their return timetables are still unclear.

"I would say we'll learn more in the middle or later in the week on both," K-State coach Chris Klieman said in his Monday afternoon press conference. "For me to say they're definitely playing or definitely out this week, it would be hard to answer that right now."

He indicated that Cure is trending in the right direction, which is a positive sign for Wildcats fans waiting to see their five-star acquisition make his college debut.

"Linkon practiced last week, so that's positive," Klieman said. "He practiced on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. It was a little bit limited, but I saw a lot of semblance of what we saw earlier in camp. So he's really close, but Dylan didn't practice last week. So I don't know that one yet."