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Kansas State Football: Chris Klieman takes Wildcats bowling in year one

By Cullen Jekel

MANHATTAN, KS - OCTOBER 1: Detail view of a Kansas State Wildcats football helmet being held in the air before the game against the Baylor Bears at Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium on October 1, 2011 in Manhattan, Kansas. The Wildcats won 36-35. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
MANHATTAN, KS - OCTOBER 1: Detail view of a Kansas State Wildcats football helmet being held in the air before the game against the Baylor Bears at Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium on October 1, 2011 in Manhattan, Kansas. The Wildcats won 36-35. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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Kansas State football (Photo by David K Purdy/Getty Images)
Kansas State football (Photo by David K Purdy/Getty Images) /

In the first season without Bill Snyder since 2008, the Kansas State Wildcats will reach bowl eligibility enabling to participate in their ninth bowl game in the past ten seasons as they finish with a .500 record.

What does that say about the program? Is 6-6 (4-5) and a middling placing in the conference standings good enough?

No, it’s not, but it is for Chris Klieman’s first year at the helm. This is a solid rebound after last year’s disappointing finish and Snyder’s mildly surprising departure. It should be a significant boost for this team going into quarterback Skylar Thompson’s senior season, and give Klieman the requisite cachet to recruit against conference rivals not named the Sooners or Longhorns.

As for the rest of the Big 12, I won’t get into each and every match, but here’s how I see it winding up after considering all tie-breakers:

More from Kansas State Wildcats

  1. Oklahoma Sooners, 10-2 (7-2)
  2. Iowa State Cyclones, 10-2 (7-2)
  3. Texas Longhorns, 8-4 (6-3)
  4. Texas Christian Horned Frogs, 9-3 (6-3)
  5. Oklahoma State Cowboys, 9-3 (6-3)
  6. Kansas State Wildcats, 6-6 (4-5)
  7. Baylor Bears, 6-6 (3-6)
  8. Texas Tech Red Raiders, 5-7 (3-6)
  9. Kansas Jayhawks, 5-7 (2-7)
  10. West Virginia Mountaineers, 2-10 (1-8)

Nine-game conference schedules are the best, and it’s something I hope the SEC soon adopts. In the Big 12, that conference schedule allows a team to face every conference opponent at least once. It also allows the conference to beat up on each other. It’s great. It’s college football at its finest.

Next. The 15 Best K-State Quarterbacks of All-Time. dark

And 2019 is a stepping stone for the Kansas State Wildcats to get back on top, something I foresee Klieman accomplishing within the next five years.

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