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Kansas State football should be ranked higher than one Big 12 team in first AP ranking

The AP Top 25 ranking has officially come out and the Wildcats are ranked, but one team is ranked higher than they should be.

ByEricka Brockish|
Kansas State's Marques Sigle (21) breaks up a pass intended for Oklahoma State's Brennan Presley (80) in the first half of the college football game between the Oklahoma State University Cowboys and the Kansas State Wildcats at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater. Okla., Friday, Oct. 6, 2023. OSU won 29-21.
Kansas State's Marques Sigle (21) breaks up a pass intended for Oklahoma State's Brennan Presley (80) in the first half of the college football game between the Oklahoma State University Cowboys and the Kansas State Wildcats at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater. Okla., Friday, Oct. 6, 2023. OSU won 29-21. | SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

The first AP Top 25 rankings of the season have officially come out and while the SEC and Big Ten took up most of the spots, the Big 12 had five teams of their own representing the conference.

Kansas State showed up in the rankings after finishing the season popping in after a big win over ranked NC State in the Pop-Tarts Bowl. The Wildcats come in ranked 18th in the first rankings of the season, a solid starting spot for the season.

Now it is no surprise that Utah was ranked higher than K-State as they are the favorites to win the conference, but another team found themselves just one spot ahead of the Wildcats and it seems a bit unfair.

Oklahoma State came in ranked No. 17, just one spot ahead of K-State, but they are projected to actually finish below K-State in the conference at the end of the season. Now I know what the argument could be, yes the Cowboys were the runners-up in the conference championship game in 2023, and yes they have Ollie Gordon back, but there are easy counterarguments to be made.

Every team goes through changes which means Oklahoma State has gone through its own and has lost players as well. While the return of Ollie Gordon is beneficial as he was the best running back in college football last season, teams have had an entire offseason to look at footage and figure out how to stop the high-flying rusher.

With that being said, Gordon could have gotten better, but we can't completely forget about his legal issues. Oklahoma State is not the same team they were last season and neither is K-State, the question is, which team got better?

K-State has a new quarterback under center this season with Avery Johnson taking the reigns. With a lot of young talent around him, the Wildcats look like the team that could be better on paper and on the field.

Chris Klieman and crew, however, are probably not even worrying about who is ranked above them, just about how they will move up the rankings and that is all they need to worry about. K-State fans can be the ones talking about the rankings themselves.

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