The moment we have all been waiting for is the start of the 2025 college football season. Getting us started will be a ranked Big 12 matchup featuring two Big 12 title contenders. The Kansas State Wildcats and Iowa State Cyclones are looking to make a statement in the first game of the season. Let’s take a closer look at this #17 versus #22 matchup.
#17 Kansas State vs. #22 Iowa State
Location: Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland
Spread: Kansas State (-3)
Over/Under: 51.5
ML: Kansas State (-155), Iowa State (+135)
The Quarterback Matchup
Kansas State’s Avery Johnson and Iowa State’s Rocco Becht will be looking to lead their teams to a 1-0 start to the 2025 season. The two quarterbacks are looking to push for All-Big 12 contention and have been afforded a primetime game to start their campaigns.
Avery Johnson will be looking to beat the Cyclones’ defense through the air and on the ground. Johnson’s yardage through the air will not come easily, as the Cyclones ranked 2nd in opponent completion percentage last season. However, the bright spot for Johnson is that Iowa State also ranked 130th in sack percentage. On the ground, Iowa State finished the 2024 season ranked 125th in opponent yards per rush. This weakness plays right into Johnson’s strength of running the ball. Kansas State targeted multiple wide receivers in the transfer portal. We’ll see if these receivers can help Johnson break through the Cyclone passing defense.
Rocco Becht has been a 3,000+ yard passer for two straight seasons, so the Wildcats’ defense will be looking to slow down the Iowa State air attack. Fortunately for Becht, Kansas State ranked 85th in opponent passing yards per game and 52nd in opponent yards per pass. Becht will be playing his first game without both his former 1,000-yard wide receivers, Jaylin Noel and Jayden Higgins. Becht will need to get his new weapons comfortable early in the game. He’ll be protected by 3 returning starters on the offensive line, so we can expect Becht to look comfortable against a Kansas State defense that lost its top pass rusher in the offseason.
The Coaching Matchup
Head coach Chris Klieman has won 4 straight season openers at Kansas State; however, none of the opponents in those games are the caliber of Iowa State. Similarly, Matt Campbell has won 4 straight season openers at Iowa State against sub-par competition.
Since Klieman arrived at Kansas State in 2019, the Wildcats have been 10-10 versus opponents ranked at the time of the game. In that same timespan, under Campbell, the Cyclones are 9-16 versus ranked opponents. Despite their records in ranked matchups, both coaches are highly respected across the country, and we can expect solid game plans for both teams.
Rocco Becht and Iowa State OC Taylor Mouser will have the advantage of working together for one full season already, while Avery Johnson and Kansas State OC Matt Wells will be playing in their first game together. Both teams will feature veteran defensive coordinators. Iowa State DC Jon Heacock has been with the Cyclones since 2016 and was a Broyles Award finalist last season. Kansas State defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman has been with the Wildcats since 2020.
Immediate Transfer Impact
Kansas State has five projected starters from the transfer portal, and Iowa State has four. Each team has two transfers projected to start at wide receiver. Which of these offenses will have the wide receivers and quarterbacks flowing early? With Iowa State returning its offensive coordinator and a talented passer in Rocco Becht, we should lean toward Iowa State when it comes to answering that question.
Kansas State will have two transfers starting on the offensive line. JB Nelson brings 27 appearances and 8 eight starts from his last two seasons for Penn State. Terrence Enos Jr appeared in 13 games while making 4 starts for Pittsburgh last season. These two transfers will make up the right side of the Wildcats’ offensive line.
Iowa State will have two transfers starting on defense, both of whom are transferring from lower levels of football. Tamatoa McDonough will play an important role on the Cyclones’ defensive front. He’s coming off a 2025 season in which he totaled 6.5 sacks for Yale. Iowa State will be relying on him to help contain Avery Johnson in the pocket. Tre Bell totaled 1 INT and 6 pass deflections for Lindenwood last season. At 6’2 205 pounds, he’ll provide Iowa State with great size on the outside. Considering Johnson’s ability to escape the pocket, the Cyclones will need to have physical players on the outside.
Takeaway
We’ve got a great game in store for us. Both teams will rely on their star quarterbacks to take them to victory. Widely respected head coaches lead both teams, and both teams will be relying on wide receiver transfers to make an immediate impact.
These are two teams that have bright spots at quarterback but many questions in their supporting casts. No matter the outcome, as college football fans, we can’t ask for anything better than a stand-alone noon kickoff game in Dublin, Ireland.
