Game 4
K-State at Arizona
Date: Friday, September 12, 2025
Kickoff: 8 p.m. (CT)
Location: Tucson, Ariz.
Stadium: Arizona Stadium (50,800)
Series: Arizona Leads, 5-2-1
TV: FOX (Watch)
Jason Benetti (Play-by-Play)
Robert Griffin III (Analyst)
Alexa Landestoy (Sidelines)
K-State Radio: K-State Sports Network; k-statesports.com (Listen)
Wyatt Thompson (Play-by-Play)
Stan Weber (Analyst)
Matt Walters (Sidelines)
SiriusXM Satellite Radio Ch. 381, and on the SiriusXM App
X Updates: @KStateFB and @KStateStatsInfo
THE TOP 51) Following a tough 24-21 loss at home to Army, ā a game that saw the Wildcats possess the ball for just over three minutes in the second half ā K-State now turns it attention to a quick turnaround and Friday night game at Arizona. The contest inside Arizona Stadium kicks off at 8 p.m. (CT) and will be shown on FOX with Jason Benetti (play-by-play), Robert Griffin III (analyst) and Alexa Landestoy (sidelines) on the call.
2) Quarterback Avery Johnson is set to make his 18th-career start under center. The Wichita, Kansas, product enters the game with a 148.9 pass efficiency rating and is 64-of-98 (65.3%) for 763 yards and six touchdowns on the year. He enters the week ranking third nationally in total passing yards (763) and 26th nationally in completions per game (21.3).
3) K-State has seen 12 different players record catches this season, and wide receiver Jayce Brown had a career-best 12 catches for 109 yards and a touchdown against North Dakota, while Jaron Tibbs and Brown each have two touchdown catches on the year. Brown leads the team in receiving with 19 catches for 216 yards and three scores, while Jerand Bradley has 10 catches for 152 yards and a touchdown.
4) In three games, K-Stateās defense has held its opponents to an average of 3.1 yards per rush on 149 attempts and also has 20 tackles for loss and seven sacks. Austin Romaine leads the way in tackles with 28 stops thanks to 10 tackles in each of the last two games, while Des Purnell had a career-high 10 tackles against Army. Tobi Osunsanmi has a team-leading 3.0 sacks and 4.0 tackles for loss.
5) The Wildcatsā defensive backs have totaled 10 pass breakups through the first three weeks of the season. Cornerback Zashon Rich leads the way with three passes defended, and he is fifth on the team with 13 tackles. Fellow cornerback Donovan McIntosh has two pass breakups, while five other Wildcats have recorded one each. The Cats also have three fumble recoveries on the year.
STATISTICAL SPOTLIGHTS375 ā K-State has totaled at least 375 offensive yards in 34 games since 2022, which is tied for fourth among Power 4 teams.
65.3 ā Completion percentage by Avery Johnson through three games in 2025. Last year, he completed 58.3% of his passes.
24 ā Consecutive games that Jayce Brown has recorded at least one catch, which dates back to the 2023 Texas Tech game.
5.7 ā Despite the loss, the Wildcats averaged 5.7 yards per play against Army. K-State only had 43 total plays in the game.
3:16 ā Kansas Stateās time of possession in the second half. Its total time of possession of 19:31 was the lowest since 2008.
TEAM NOTESNON-CONFERENCE NOTABLES
ā¢ Since 1990, K-State holds a 102-21 (82.9%) record in regular-season non-conference games.
ā¢ That stretch includes an 85-10 (89.5%) mark at home. Over that period of time, the Wildcats have had perfect regular season non-conference ledgers 18 times and unblemished marks at home on 27 occasions.
CATS vs. NON-CON P4
ā¢ K-State is 4-1 in the regular season against non-conference Power 4 opponents under Chris Klieman. The Wildcats won at Mississippi State in 2019 before defeating Stanford in the 2021 season opener and Missouri at home in 2022. The lone loss was a last-second field goal by Missouri in Columbia last season.
ā¢ Last season, the K-State vs. Arizona contest was also a non-conference matchup with the Wildcats winning in Manhattan, 31-7.
ā¢ Dating back to his days at North Dakota State, Klieman is 7-1 in the regular season against non-conference Power 5 opponents, as his Bison teams defeated Iowa State in 2014 and Iowa in 2016.
FRIDAY-NIGHT LIGHTS
ā¢ This is the second-straight season the Wildcats will play a regular-season Friday night game as they defeated Arizona, 31-7, on a Friday night in Manhattan last season.
ā¢ K-State will try to reserve the current trend of Friday road games as it has dropped its last two such contests. The Wildcats lost their season-opener at Stanford (26-13) in 2016 on a Friday, while they fell at Texas in the 2021 regular-season finale (22-17).
RECENT RALLY
ā¢ K-Stateās 38-35 triumph over North Dakota marked the fifth come-from-behind victory since the beginning of 2024 when trailing in the fourth quarter.
ā¢ It represented K-Stateās first game-winning touchdown with under 1:00 left in regulation since Skylar Thompson connected with Isaiah Zuber on the final play in a home game against Iowa State in 2017.
TOWARD THE TOP IN CONSISTENCY
ā¢ K-State is one of only 10 Power 4 schools that have won at least nine games in each of the last three seasons, joining Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, LSU, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State and Tennessee.
ā¢ Among those teams, only Kansas State, Alabama, Clemson, Georgia and Oregon have accomplished that feat in addition to winning a conference championship during that timeframe.
ā¢ The Wildcats rank 15th among Power 4 teams and are tops among current Big 12 programs with 29 total wins over the last three seasons.
AMONG THE NATIONāS BEST
ā¢ K-State has a total of 232 victories since 1996, which is tied for 21st nationally.
ā¢ Among active Big 12 teams, the Wildcats rank fourth behind BYU (241), TCU (239) and Utah (235).
A WINNING TRADITION
ā¢ Kansas State has totaled 144 Big 12 victories since the conferenceās formation in 1996, which stands as the most among active Big 12 programs.
ā¢ The Cats are also second among active Big 12 members in winning percentage since non-divisional play began in 2011. They sit at 59.1% (75-52), trailing only Oklahoma State (61.1%; 77-49).
ā¢ During that stretch, the Wildcats are 42-21 (66.7%) at home in Big 12 play and 33-31 (51.6%) on the road/neutral.
RETURNING EXPERIENCE
ā¢ The 2025 Wildcats are tied for sixth in most returning letterwinners since 2003 with 45, which is impressive considering the roster limits that took effect over the summer.
ā¢ Among the group, K-State returns 13 starters from last season ā which is tied for 10th in the nation ā while its 15 returning starters from the Rate Bowl are tied for seventh in the nation.
STATE PRIDE
ā¢ Of the 13 returning starters, seven hail from the state of Kansas.
ā¢ On offense, the Kansans are quarterback Avery Johnson (Wichita), running back Dylan Edwards (Derby) and offensive linemen Taylor Poitier (Kansas City) and Sam Hecht (Shawnee).
ā¢ Defensively, the list includes defensive tackle Damian Ilalio (Manhattan), linebacker Des Purnell (Topeka) and defensive end Cody Stufflebean (McPherson).
NOCTURNAL CATS
ā¢ Kansas State played nine night games a year ago ā going 6-3 in those contests ā and the Wildcats begin the season with each of their first four games kicking off at 5 p.m. local time or later.
ā¢ The season opener against Iowa State kicked off at 5 p.m. (Irish Standard Time), while K-Stateās first two home games each kicked off at 6 p.m. (Central Time). This week, the Wildcats travel to face Arizona in a game that will kick off at 6 p.m. (Mountain Standard Time).
ā¢ Last season was the first time that K-State played nine night games during the regular season in the Big 12 era (1996).
A TRACK RECORD OF WINNING
ā¢ A proven winner with a championship history, Chris Klieman holds a 121-43 career record, as his 73.8% career winning percentage ranks fourth among current FBS coaches that have completed at least 10 seasons. He is also one of just 16 current Power 4 head coaches with at least 100 career victories.
ā¢ Klieman, who is 49-30 since arriving at K-State, has led the Cats to five victories over teams ranked in the top 10 of the AP Top 25, the most of any active Big 12 program since 2019.
CARDIAC CATS
ā¢ K-State earned four come-from-behind wins in 2024 when trailing in the fourth quarter ā which tied for the second most in the country (Illinois, 5) ā and the Cats added another one in 2025.
ā¢ The Wildcatsā four wins last season when trailing in the fourth quarter tied the school record originally set by the 2011 squad.
ā¢ At Tulane, a Dylan Edwards touchdown run and a Jack Fabris fumble return erased a 27-20 deficit in a 34-27 win.
ā¢ At Colorado, a 50-yard touchdown pass from Avery Johnson to Jayce Brown with 2:14 remaining swung a 28-24 deficit to a 31-28 victory in the Buffaloesā lone home loss of the season.
ā¢ K-State trailed Kansas, 27-26, until Chris Tennantās 51-yard field goal with 1:42 left earned the Wildcats a 29-27 win.
ā¢ The Wildcats recorded their largest bowl come-from-behind victory in the 2024 Rate Bowl as they trailed Rutgers by 17 points in the third quarter and by 12 points in the fourth quarter before a 44-41 victory.
ā¢ In this yearās home opener against North Dakota, the Wildcats trailed, 35-31, with 1:33 remaining and needed to go 81 yards for a touchdown. Johnson connected with Joe Jackson on a six-yard touchdown pass with 0:42 left for the win. It was the first game-winning touchdown with less than 1:00 remaining in regulation since a Skylar Thompson-to-Isaiah Zuber pass on the final play of the game against Iowa State in 2017.
CATS TOPS IN NON-OFFENSIVE TDs
ā¢ K-State is the nationās best in non-offensive touchdowns over the last 25-plus seasons as it has 136 since 1999, 10 more than the next closest team (Alabama ā 126) and 18 more than the next Big 12 program (Utah ā 118).
ā¢ K-State recorded four non-offensive scores during the 2024 season, its most since also recording four in 2020.
ā¢ The Wildcats got on the board in 2025 thanks to Bryce Noernbergās 99-yard kickoff return against Army.
OFFENSIVE NOTESWELLS LEADING THE CHARGE
ā¢ After spending the 2024 season coaching the K-State quarterbacks and serving as co-offensive coordinator, associate head coach Matt Wells is now the full-time play caller in 2025.
ā¢ All Wells did during his first season on staff was tutor Avery Johnson to a school-record 25 touchdown passes, while his sophomore signal caller ranked fifth in school history in passing yards (2,985) and completions (238).
ā¢ Wells and Johnson helped guide a K-State offense that finished in the top 15 nationally in four categories and in the top 10 of school history in 15 game or season categories.
TOTAL OFFENSEā¢ K-State has totaled at least 375 yards of offense in 34 of the last 43 games dating back to the beginning of the 2022 season.
ā¢ The 34 games with at least 375 yards are tied for seventh among Power 4 programs and second among Big 12 schools. ā¢ Georgia leads the way with 38, followed by Oregon (36), USC (36), TCU (35), Texas (35) and Washington (35).
ā¢ During that stretch, K-State holds a 27-7 record when totaling at least 375 yards, while the Wildcats are 2-7 when going under that mark.RED ZONE SUCCESSā¢ Since Chris Kliemanās first season at K-State in 2019, the Wildcats have been the best in the Big 12 in terms of converting red-zone opportunities into points.
ā¢ The Wildcats rank first in the Big 12 with an 89.9% (276-of-307) success rate in the red zone since 2019, just ahead of both Texas Tech (88.1%) and Oklahoma State (87.7%).
ā¢ K-State also ranks first in the league in touchdown success rate at 66.8% (205-of-307), ahead of Kansas (66.4%) and Utah (65.5%).RED ZONE THREATSā¢ Kansas Stateās tight end unit combined for 13 touchdown receptions in 2024, which led the nation.
ā¢ The 13 touchdowns came from four different players who are all back in 2025 in Garrett Oakley (5), Will Anciaux (3), Will Swanson (3) and Brayden Loftin (2).GROUND AND POUNDā¢ K-State finished the 2024 season ranking 11th nationally by averaging 215.5 rushing yards per game, while the Cats were second in the country by averaging a school-record 6.08 rushing yards per carry.
ā¢ The Cats rushed for at least 200 yards in eight games last year, the most in the Big 12 and the second most among Power 4 schools.
ā¢ The average was driven by 95 rushes of at least 10 yards to rank seventh in the nation, while K-Stateās 34 rushing plays of 20 or more yards last season ranked second (UNLV, 36).NEW ā BUT EXPERIENCED ā OLā¢ Kansas State brought back seven offensive linemen who have seen playing time in a Wildcat uniform prior to the start of 2025 but only three that earned starts. However, K-State is not void of experience thanks to the addition of a few transfers.
ā¢ The Wildcatsā six primary offensive linemen in the first two games have totaled 172 games played and 58 starts, led by left guard Taylor Poitier (34 games, 19 starts).
ā¢ The other primary linemen to open the 2025 season are center Sam Hecht (33 games, 16 starts), right guard JB Nelson (33 games, 9 starts), tackle/guard Andrew Leingang (30 games, 5 starts), left tackle John Pastore (13 games, 3 start) and tackle Terrence Enos Jr. (29 games, 6 starts).VERY EFFICIENTā¢ Quarterback Avery Johnson had one of his better outputs in terms of efficiency in the season opener, completing 70.0% of his passes and producing a 168.4 pass efficiency rating.
ā¢ Johnson went 21-of-30 for 273 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions against Iowa State. His 70.0% completion clip was a career best (minimum 10 attempts), bettering his 66.7% mark in last yearās season opener against UT Martin. His pass efficiency rating was the second highest of his career, only to be outdone by a 186.0 mark last year at West Virginia.THROWING FOR 300ā¢ Avery Johnson backed his season-opening performance up with the first 300-yard passing game of his career as he threw for 318 yards and a career-high tying three touchdowns on 28-of-43 aim against North Dakota. His completion and attempt totals were also a career high.
ā¢ It was the 46th 300-yard passing game in school history and the first since Will Howard went for 327 during an overtime contest at Texas in 2023.
MULTIPLE TD PASSESā¢ Avery Johnson threw multiple touchdown passes in five-straight games until that streak was snapped against Army.
ā¢ It was the longest streak of games with multiple touchdown passes since Will Howard held a five-game streak in 2023 against TCU, Houston, Texas, Baylor and Kansas.
WINNING FROM A YOUNG AGEā¢ Despite only starting 17 career games, Avery Johnson has led the Wildcats to 11 wins to rank 11th in school history in wins among K-State signal callers since 1990.
ā¢ Additionally, his 64.7% winning percentage ranks 10th among those that have started at least 10 games.
FAVORITE TARGETā¢ Avery Johnsonās favorite target to open the 2025 season has been wide receiver Jayce Brown, who has 19 receptions for 216 yards and two touchdowns over the first three games.
ā¢ Brown hauled in 12 catches against North Dakota, which tied for the seventh-most catches in a single game in school history, doubled his previous career high of six (last year at Colorado) and were the most by a Wildcat since Tyler Lockett had 13 in the final game of his career in the 2014 Alamo Bowl vs. UCLA.
ā¢ A native of Fort Walton Beach, Florida, Brown produced the third 100-yard receiving game of his career against the Fighting Hawks, going for 109 yards.
ā¢ He had at least 100 scrimmage yards in the final two games of 2024 and the first two games of 2025 after only one such performance in the first 21 games of his career.
CATCH STREAKā¢ Jayce Brown has recorded at least one reception in each of the last 24 games dating back to the 2023 Texas Tech contest.
ā¢ It is the longest streak of games with at least one reception by a Wildcat since Phillip Brooks went 25-straight games with a reception over the 2022 and 2023 seasons.
DEFENSIVE NOTESCONTINUITY ON THE STAFFā¢ Each of the Wildcatsā full-time coaches on the defensive side of the ball have been the same since 2020, as Kansas State and Iowa are the only two programs in the country to lay that claim.
ā¢ However, Iowa utilizes four positional coaches on defense, whereas K-State employs five.
ā¢ Safeties coach Joe Klanderman was promoted to defensive coordinator in 2020, the same year that cornerbacks coach Van Malone was elevated to assistant head coach and Steve Stanard joined the staff to coach the linebackers. Defensive tackles coach Mike Tuiasosopo and defensive ends coach Buddy Wyatt ā along with Klanderman and Malone ā were members of Chris Kliemanās original staff at K-State in 2019.
LIMITED POINTS PER GAMEā¢ Since the 2021 season (56 games), the Cats are allowing just 22.1 points per game, which is tied for 25th nationally and third among current Big 12 teams.
ā¢ Additionally, the Cats have allowed 142 offensive touchdowns (2.5 per game) over that time to rank 22nd among Power 4 schools.
ā¢ The Wildcats have finished each of the three previous seasons allowing less than 24.0 points per game, their longest streak since going 13-straight years from 1991 through 2003.
ā¢ Since head coach Chris Kliemanās first year of 2019, the Wildcats have held 42 of their 54 Big 12 opponents under their season average at the time it faces the Wildcats (excluding 2025 season opener against Iowa State).
NONE OVER 200ā¢ Kansas State did not allow a team to rush for 200 or more yards in any game last season, the first time the Wildcats accomplished that feat since 2016.
ā¢ They continued that trend in the first two games of 2025 as Iowa State only managed 130 rushing yards on 46 attempts (2.82-yard average) and North Dakota had 102 yards on 33 carries (3.09-yard average). However, Army ran for 237 yards last week but it came on a whopping 70 carries (3.4-yard average).
ā¢ K-State was one of only two Big 12 teams to not allow a 200-yard rushing game in 2024 (Arizona State).
ā¢ The Wildcats yielded minus-29 rushing yards last year at Colorado, which was the third fewest in school history, the second fewest allowed by an FBS team in 2024 and the fewest allowed in a Big 12 game since 2006.
CREATING TURNOVERSā¢ Since the beginning of 2022, K-State has totaled 65 forced turnovers, which is the most among active Big 12 teams and is tied for 15th among Power 4 teams.
ā¢ Of the 65 turnovers, 39 have been via interception to rank third among all active Big 12 programs and tie for 20th among Power 4 teams.
BEHIND THE LINEā¢ K-State finished the 2024 season ranked 25th nationally and second in the Big 12 with 2.69 sacks per game.
ā¢ It was the Wildcatsā best national ranking since 2015 (No. 9) and highest sacks per game mark since 2020 (2.80).
ā¢ Kansas Stateās 35 sacks a year ago resulted in 249 lost yards, which ranked 11th in the Power 4 and first in the Big 12.
ā¢ It was the most sack yardage by the Wildcats since 2003 (345) and tied for the fifth most by any K-State team since 1996.
ā¢ K-Stateās six sacks last year at Colorado resulted in 74 yards of loss, the fourth-most ever by a Big 12 team in a league game and second most by a Big 12 team in any game since 2012.
ā¢ It was the most sack yardage accumulated by the Wildcats in a single game since at least 1995. Their previous best over that timeframe was 72 yards against Baylor in 2002.
ā¢ The Cats are tied for 11th nationally with seven total sacks in 2025.
ROMAINE LED THE WAY IN 2024ā¢ Junior linebacker Austin Romaine, a 2024 All-Big 12 Second Team selection, returns after leading the Wildcats and ranking ninth in the conference with 96 tackles (7.38 per game).
ā¢ Romaine was the first Wildcat with at least 90 tackles in a season since Jayd Kirby had 99 in 2017.
ā¢ A native of Hillsboro, Missouri, Romaine had two sacks at Tulane, the second of which caused a fumble that was returned for a 60-yard, game-winning touchdown in the fourth quarter.
ā¢ It was his first of two forced fumbles on the year that led directly to the game-winning points. He also had one against Kansas prior to the game-winning field goal in a two-point victory.
ā¢ Romaine has opened the 2025 campaign with a team-leading 28 tackles over the first three games, including 10-tackle performances each of the last two weeks.
BRINGING THE PAYNE
ā¢ Senior safety VJ Payne enters his final season in a Wildcat uniform with 43 career games played and 33 starts, both of which are the most among returning players.
ā¢ Additionally, he has started a team-high 32-straight games, which dates back to the 2022 Kansas game.
ā¢ The Buford, Georgia, product was around the football all year in 2024. Aside from his 64 tackles, he also had a pair of interceptions to halt potential scoring drives as he had one in the end zone with five seconds remaining to seal the win at Tulane and another in the red zone at Colorado.
ā¢ Payne also forced a fumble at Tulane and another against Kansas, the latter being on the final fourth-down stop of the game.
SPECIAL TEAMS NOTESSCORING IN THE THIRD PHASEā¢ The Wildcats continue to lead the nation in total return touchdowns since 2005 with 63, which is 23 more than the next closest team in Alabama (40) and 29 more than the next closest Big 12 programs, Oklahoma State and TCU (34).
ā¢ Of the 63 total returns, a nation-leading 32 are on kickoff returns, and the next closest team is Houston with 21.
TO THE HOUSEā¢ Redshirt freshman Bryce Noernberg returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown against Army. It was Kansas Stateās first kickoff-return score since Malik Knowles went 93 yards against Oklahoma in 2021.
ā¢ Noernbergās return was the longest by a Wildcat since Knowles went 99 yards earlier in the 2021 season against Oklahoma State.
ā¢ A product of Olathe, Kansas, who was a quarterback at Olathe South High School, Noernberg recorded Kansas Stateās 12th kickoff return of at least 99 yards.
SEVEN STRAIGHTā¢ K-State has blocked a punt in seven-straight seasons, tied for the longest streak in the nation with San Diego State.
ā¢ Oregon, Iowa State, Rutgers and South Carolina are tied for third at five-straight years.
BREAKING IN A NEW KICKERā¢ Kansas State has a new place kicker in 2025 as Chris Tennant departed after serving as the primary place kicker each of the last three seasons.
ā¢ In the first two games of 2025, special teams coordinator/special assistant to the head coach Nate Kaczor has turned to community-college transfer Luis Rodriguez, who has been true on all nine extra-point attempts and all three field goal attempts.
ā¢ Rodriguez came to K-State in July from College of the Canyons after being named to the California Community College Football Coaches Association (CCCFCA) All-America Team. In his lone season playing for the Cougars, Rodriguez was true on 21-of-25 field goals with a long of 54 yards, while he connected on 31-of-34 extra points.
McCLANNAN IS BACKā¢ Although K-State is relying on the services of a new place kicker, the Wildcats do have their regular punter back in sophomore Simon McClannan.
ā¢ The Omaha, Nebraska, native is coming off the 2024 season in which he averaged 42.34 yards on 47 punts to rank third in the Big 12 in average among qualified punters and fifth in school history among freshmen (minimum 25 attempts).
ā¢ McClannan saved his best effort of 2024 for the final game as he tallied a career-best 46.5-yard average (minimum 3 attempts) in the Rate Bowl against Rutgers, which was the fourth-highest average in K-State bowl history.
DEFENSE ON KICK RETURNSā¢ K-State has not allowed a kickoff return for a touchdown since the 2013 season, going the last 154 games and 445 returns without allowing its opponent to find paydirt.
ā¢ The streak is the longest among the active Big 12 teams, 262 returns better than the next closest team (Arizona State ā 13).
ā¢ Since K-State allowed its last kickoff-return touchdown, the Wildcats have scored 15 of their own.