After a week off to think about what they’ve done, the Cats return to action.
Last time out, K-State suffered through weather and failure. A week off might help cure some ills, but the Cats return to action against a team that was supposed to be bad and turns out to… not be that.
As a result, what was supposed to be the third week of an easy month is now potentially problematic. The Cats cannot lose again if they hope to reach the first edition of the new 12-team playoff. On the other hand, if they do win out, they should be in one way or another — as long as they get a little help, again, one way or another.
That march starts now.
The Game
The 16th-ranked Kansas State Wildcats (7-2, 4-2 Big 12) host the Arizona State Sun Devils (7-2, 4-2 Big 12).
This is the seventh meeting between the two schools. The Sun Devils have a 5-1 lead, having thrashed the Wildcats at every opportunity prior to K-State’s 34-27 win in the 2002 Holiday Bowl. The closest of those five losses was a 21-10 setback in their first meeting in 1964; in 1970, 1972, 1982, and 1989, Arizona State just absolutely destroyed K-State, the worst being the 1972 game which the Sun Devils won 56-14.
Of course, that means K-State technically has a “winning streak”, so that’s something.
Under second-year coach Kenny Dillingham, Arizona State has rebounded from a terrible 3-9 campaign to put themselves in the Big 12 Championship Game discussion. However, their schedule has not been great. Their four conference wins have been against four of the five worst teams in the conference, plus they’ve lost to mid-table teams Texas Tech and Cincinnati. Their non-conference Power 4 win was against Mississippi State, the worst team in the SEC. This game will be their first game against a team with a pulse (and next week it gets worse, as they host BYU).
The Sun Devils are led by quarterback Sam Leavitt (1631 yards, 14 touchdowns and only four interceptions); half of those touchdowns and about 40% of the yards are courtesy of wide receiver Jordyn Tyson, who got run out of Colorado when Deion Sanders took over there. The real threat, however, is running back Cam Skattebo, who’s run for 1001 yards and 11 touchdowns, and is also the Sun Devils’ number two receiver with 27 catches for 404 yards and a couple of scores.
Arizona State is averaging over 31 points and 400 yards a game, but again they’ve been playing pretty bad defenses for three months. They’ve given up almost 24 a game, and 330.8 yards.
K-State probably has the edge here, but if they’re not on the ball it could turn into yet another disaster.
Kickoff
Saturday, November 16, 6:00pm CT at Bill Snyder Family Stadium (50,000) in Manhattan, Kansas.
Tickets
It’s officially a sellout, though there are still some standing room tickets available. It’ll cost you at least $40 to get in via the secondary market, with the average at around $70; some tickets are going for over $200.
Weather
It’ll be a pretty nice day in Manhattan, albeit a bit cloudy. Early tailgating will see temperatures in the low-60s, and it’ll get up to 66° in midafternoon before dropping back to 60° at kickoff. Things won’t chill down too badly during the game; it shouldn’t get below 55° before you’re heading home.
Odds
The line opened at -6.5 for the Cats and moved slightly toward Manhattan; DraftKings now has K-State as a 7.5-point favorite with the over at 51.5. That calculates out to a 29-22 win for K-State. The money line is -278 for K-State, +225 for the Sun Devils. Oddshark’s computer mostly concurs, but thinks it will be closer and there will be more offense, projecting a 32-29 win for the Wildcats.
Television
K-State is once again on ESPN proper, with Dave Flemming, Brock Osweiler, and Stormy Buonantony on the call. Be on guard for some irritation, as Osweiler is an Arizona State alum.
Radio
As always, Wyatt Thompson, Stan Weber, and Matt Walters will be on hand on the K-State Sports Network as well as via satellite on SiriusXM 106 or 199.
Internet Streaming
The game will stream on the ESPN app (cable/satellite subscription required). Audio available via kstatesports.com. Live stats provided by StatBroadcast.
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