#15 K-State (1-0, 0-0) gets set for their yearly matchup against a “group of five” team, with this year’s opponent being Troy (1-0, 0-0).

The Wildcats have had their struggles against group of five teams under fifth-year head coach Chris Klieman. He has a record of 2-2 against said teams with losses in 2020 against Arkansas State and a loss last year against eventual Cotton Bowl champion Tulane.

The Trojans shouldn’t fly under the radar like the two teams previously mentioned. Troy comes off a Sun Belt Championship in 2022, a bowl win against then-ranked UTSA to secure a final record of 12-2 and a #19 ranking in the final AP Poll. The Trojans are picked to repeat by the coaches in the Sun Belt West division.

Their only losses were against an Ole Miss team that started the year 8-1 and was ranked #11 in the country before losing their last four games, and at App State on a Hail Mary touchdown as the time expired.

The two teams square off for just the second time with the first time being on August 30th, 2003, with the Wildcats winning 41-5 when they were going by “Troy State”.

Trojan senior quarterback Gunnar Watson had some impressive home run throws and a couple of impressive performances statistically in 2022. He threw for 464 yards and five touchdowns against Alabama A&M and surpassed 300 yards on three other occasions, including the Sun Belt Championship game where he threw for 318 yards and three touchdowns against Coastal Carolina.

However, his accuracy was a tad lacking and his arm talent won’t blow you away. Watson finished the season with 2,812 yards with 14 touchdowns and 12 interceptions with a completion percentage of 61%. Watson looked solid in his season opener against Stephen F. Austin, going 14-for-22 with 198 yards, four touchdowns and an interception. The Trojans defeated the Lumberjacks 48-30.

The way that Troy was beating teams last year was by winning low-scoring dog fights. They could out-coach you with Sun Belt Coach of the Year Jon Sumrall, they could out-defend you and they could milk the clock like a cow with 12 udders.

Their top two ball carriers combined for 1,802 yards at 4.8 yards per carry in 2022. Their leading rusher, junior Kimani Vidal, had 1,132 yards and 10 touchdowns in his sophomore season, which resulted in him getting Second Team All-Sun Belt honors.

All he did in his junior debut was break the single-game rushing record with 248 yards at 9.9 yards per clip. Vidal is the current leading rusher in college football after one week. He also led their team in receiving with 54 yards.

The offensive line wasn’t even that impressive last week. Watson was under duress fairly often and Vidal had to work for those yards. He did have some holes to run through, but Vidal took advantage of some really poor tackling from the Lumberjack defense.

Troy doesn’t have any pass catchers that will scare you. Their top two pass catchers from a year ago are both gone, but their third leading receiver senior Deshon Stoudemire returns after 41 catches, 507 yards and two touchdowns last season. Stoudemire missed the Stephen F. Austin game for undisclosed reasons and is questionable to play Saturday.

Junior tight end Ethan Conner had a good debut for the Trojans after transferring in from East Mississippi Community College. He grabbed two touchdown catches along with 51 yards receiving. Conner doubled his touchdown total from his final year at EMCC in just one game at Troy. He stands at a sturdy 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds, so he will be an interesting matchup for K-State linebackers and secondary.

Their best defensive player, junior defensive end T.J. Jackson, was suspended in early August for breaking team rules. He was reinstated a week before their season opener and practiced with the team leading up to the game, but he didn’t play.

Jackson had a team-leading 14.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks and 55 total tackles with two forced fumbles. He was also a First Team All-Sun Belt pick last year and was on the Preseason All-League Team. His status is up in the air, according to Sumrall, after not playing last week.

They also have Preseason First Team All-SBC junior defensive lineman Richard Jibunor and senior cornerback Reddy Steward who was also on the Preseason First Team All-League team and had an interception in their Week 1 win.

K-State has dealt with some injuries with none of them being serious. Wide receiver Keagan Johnson missed the first game and Klieman is uncertain about the status of the Iowa transfer. “We will find out this week. He did some limited things [Monday], and so we’ll just have to play it as the week goes,” Klieman said. Johnson was listed on the depth chart.

Linebacker Jake Clifton has been said by Klieman during his press conference on Tuesday to be “doubtful” after not being listed on the depth chart.

Offensive lineman John Pastore had missed time due to an injury in fall camp. He didn’t play in their Week 1 win, but he has been cleared to play. Klieman said he isn’t sure if they’ll put him out there, but he said he’s happy to have an extra body there for some depth.

One thing that we didn’t know about the backup quarterback situation with true freshman Avery Johnson and sophomore Jake Rubley, is the fact that Rubley has been “nicked up”, according to Klieman. He said that he missed about a week of practice. In the end, though, the biggest factor in Johnson getting backup reps was to get him multiple looks instead of just a drive or two.

The offense comes off one of the best offensive season openers in school history with 588 total yards. Will Howard became the sixth player in Big 12 history to make a touchdown throw, run and catch in the same game and the first since 2019.

Prediction: If K-State’s offensive line improves on a somewhat lack-luster Week 1 performance, the duo on the defensive line for Troy (assuming Jackson plays) won’t be too big of an issue.

I expect more of the same for K-State with Howard airing it out and Giddens and Ward having nice days. Troy’s defense looked pretty solid last week despite losing a lot from last year’s team. The Cats might not get another 550+ yards, but they should be able to do enough to get the win.

Don’t be surprised if K-State comes out swinging with many players on the roster being constantly reminded of what happened against Tulane a year ago.

I expect things will be much, much different. I am predicting to win and cover.

K-State 41, Troy 13

My picks head-to-head: 1-0

My picks against the spread: 1-0

Our coverage begins at 9:00 a.m. on 92.1 FM KMZA and 103.9 FM KNZA from the K-State Sports Network.