Kansas State vs. Iowa State football prediction: What the analytics say

So far, the models are taking a view similar to the bookmakers, and are giving the Wildcats a healthy advantage against the Cyclones on the same field.

Kansas State is favored by a decent margin according to the index, coming out ahead in the majority 62.3 percent of the computer’s updated simulations of the game.

And while Iowa State wasn’t projected to win outright, it did come out ahead of the Wildcats in a strong minority 37.7 percent of the other simulations.

In total, the Wildcats emerged as the outright winner in 12,460 of the index’s calculations, while the Cyclones edged out K-State in the other 7,540 predictions.

How does that translate into an expected margin of victory in the game? Expect a close one.

When taking an average of the 20,000 simulations, Kansas State is projected to be just 4.3 points better than Iowa State on the same field, according to the model’s latest forecast.

If so, that would be enough for the Wildcats to cover the spread against the Cyclones.

That’s because Kansas State is a 3.5 point favorite against Iowa State, according to the updated lines posted to FanDuel Sportsbook.

FanDuel lists the total at 50.5 points for the game.

And it set the moneyline odds for Kansas State at -162 and for Iowa State +134 to win the game outright.

More... Iowa State vs. Kansas State predictions: What the oddsmakers say

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What the bettors say

A slight majority of bettors expect the Wildcats will take care of the Cyclones, according to the latest spread consensus picks for the game.

Kansas State is getting 53 percent of the bets to cover the spread in a victory.

The other 47 percent of wagers project Iowa State will either win the game outright in an upset, or keep the game to a field goal or less in a loss.

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College Football Power Index

The Football Power Index (FPI) college football rankings and computer prediction model are a measure of team strength that predicts a team’s future performance.

Rankings and scores predictions are based on 20,000 simulations of a team’s season and games, using a combination of key analytics, including scores to date, quality of opponents, team talent, recruiting, and a team’s schedule.

Teams are ranked not in order of talent like in other rankings, but by a projected point margin per game against an average team on a neutral field.

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How to watch Kansas State vs. Iowa State

When: Sat., Aug. 23
Where: Dublin, Ireland

Time: 12 p.m. Eastern
TV: ESPN network

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