Kansas State football's unorthodox schedule has made it 'hard to get in a rhythm'
NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...
MANHATTAN — For the third time this season, Kansas State football spent a weekend watching games from the couch, rather than suiting up to take the field for a game at Bill Snyder Family Stadium or somewhere on the Big 12 road.
Due to the Wildcats’ Week 0 game in Dublin, Ireland, they had three idle weeks instead of the typical two.
“I think everybody would have agreed upstairs that it was probably too many,” Wildcats coach Chris Klieman said on Monday, Nov. 10, during his weekly media availability. “You want to get in a rhythm. I know when we played early in August that we had three bye weeks, but it’s hard to get into a rhythm.”
Kansas State (4-5, 3-3 Big 12) returns to the field for an 11 a.m. game against Oklahoma State (1-8, 0-6 Big 12) on Saturday, Nov. 15, in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
The Wildcats are 2-0 out of idle weeks this season, beating UCF 34-20 on Sept. 27 and winning at Kansas 42-17 on Oct. 25. The Wildcats are coming off a 43-20 loss to Texas Tech when they take the field on Saturday.
None would argue the importance of Kansas State‘s first idle week, which followed its loss at Arizona to cap off a 1-3 start to the season, but the third has felt redundant outside of getting the team healthier.
“It’s a little different,” tight end Will Swanson said. “Having three is a big changeup. I think our coaching staff does a great job looking at what we need to accomplish as a team and where we’re at and what we need to accomplish for our goals in the coming weeks.”
Klieman’s comment is notable, considering how teams tend to struggle after participating in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic, and previous comments regarding how the Wildcats used their first open date to steer their season in a more positive direction.
When starting its season in Ireland, Florida State lost to Georgia Tech in 2024 before finishing the season with a 2-10 record. The Yellowjackets ended their season poorly, too, losing four of their last six games. Two years prior, Northwestern beat Nebraska in Ireland, which was followed two weeks later by the Cornhuskers’ firing of Scott Frost and the Wildcats finishing the year with a 1-11 record.
Kansas State, of course, started the year 1-3, which included a loss to Army. After its first open date, it won three of its first four games before losing by 23 points to Texas Tech, entering its third idle week. The Wildcats need to win two of their last three games to become bowl eligible.
Klieman previously said the Wildcats used their first idle week, from Sept. 7-13, to have a “fall camp”-like week, making up for the time lost when preparing for the Week 0 game.
Iowa State, which K-State played in Week 0 this year, will have its third idle week this week, coming off a 20-17 win at TCU. The Cyclones started their season strong at 4-0, which included a win over Iowa, but they lost four straight games, including a loss at Colorado.
The unorthodox schedule, coupled with an overseas game to start the season, is still having an impact.
“We’re excited to be back playing, without a doubt,” Klieman said. “We’re going to play three games in a row now, and I’m glad that we’re going to be able to do that.”
Wyatt D. Wheeler covers Kansas State athletics for the USA TODAY Network and Topeka Capital-Journal. You can follow him on X at @WyattWheeler_, contact him at 417-371-6987 or email him at wwheeler@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas State football schedule has been difficult on Wildcats
More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos