Neither the Kansas State Wildcats nor the Iowa State Cyclones are the favorites to win the Big 12 Conference. But it’s a good bet that both will be in the discussion for a Top 25 spot, and if they get a few favorable bounces, one of them might find themselves in the expanded College Football Playoff.
A key part of all that is the season opener, which they’ll contest against each other on Saturday (morning, their time).
For years this rivalry has been known as “Farmageddon,” but for purposes of Saturday action it is the “Aer Lingus College Football Classic,” and it is taking place at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland.
The kickoff is slated for Noon ET (11 AM CT) on ESPN.
Kansas State favored in neutral territory
In the college football betting odds posted on this game by the folks at BetOnline, the Wildcats are laying a field goal:
Kansas State Wildcats -3 (-113)
Iowa State Cyclones +3 (-107)
Over 50 Points -110
Under 50 Points -110
Kansas State will run with authority, and there’s new freshman star
Avery Johnson is one of those dual-threat quarterbacks, and that makes sense for a program that has shown a lot of balance in recent history for coach Chris Kleiman. Johnson ran for 605 yards last year and tossed 25 touchdown passes. He came to Manhattan as something of an exception to other signal-callers, in that he was a very highly-touted recruit.
The Wildcats will run the ball; don’t make any mistake about it. Dylan Edwards is going to be one of the best backs in the country if he stays healthy; he averaged 7.4 yards per carry last season and was named an offensive MVP of the Rate Bowl, which KSU won over Rutgers.
Also keep your eye on 6’5″, 230-pound Linkon Cure, a freshman tight end who was a five-star recruit and track star in high school. Cure might just be the best tight end in the entire freshman class. He also holds the Kansas state high school record in the 110-meter hurdles.
Don’t sleep on Matt Campbell
Matt Campbell leads Iowa State, and he ranks among the nation’s best coaches. In last year’s expanded Big 12, the Cyclones reached the conference title game, but Arizona State handled them.
The Cyclones won their first seven games of the 2024 season before losing to Texas Tech and Kansas. They beat Miami 42-41 in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, but of course Cam Ward excused himself out of that one early.
Ultimately , coming out of the whole thing with a #15 national ranking and the first double-digit win total in program history was not a bad result.
Becht can get the job done, but can ISU stop the run?
Campbell has a quarterback who is fully capable in Rocco Becht, who threw for 3505 yards and 25 touchdowns last season. Carson Hansen and Aby Sama are a pretty good RB tandem. Xavier Townsend and Chase Sowell have transferred in from UCF and East Carolina, respectively, to become the top two wide receivers.
Iowa State allowed opposing ground attacks to ramble for 5.3 yards a carry last season, but Campbell likes his set of linebackers, the best of which all return for another season. How well they come forward to stop the run will go a long way toward determining who wins.
And so who WILL win between Kansas State and Iowa State?
I can understand where some bettors would look at Iowa State and figure they’re getting some value with the points. I get it.
But I see Kansas State advancing the ball on the ground when they want. And there’s a wild card here in the presence of Matt Wells, who has now taken over the offensive coordinator duties all by himself for KSU.
Wells, the former head coach at Texas Tech and Utah State (where we had Jordan Love) likes a wide-open attack, and will play the “tempo” game as well. He might have some new wrinkles for the Iowa State defensive staff to deal with.
I think Kansas State may be more ready to make a move this year, and for that reason, we’ll lay the points.
THE PLAY: KANSAS STATE -3 (-115)
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