The Wildcats are ESPN’s Big 12 favorite — can K-State turn prediction into reality?

The Big 12’s fiercely competitive landscape shows no signs of slowing down in 2025, but Kansas State is emerging as the team to beat.

ESPN’s Football Power Index gives the Wildcats the best chance—19.9%—to win the conference and earn a spot in the College Football Playoff.

Last season, the Big 12 was wild thanks to some serious parity, with tons of dramatic finishes. Tiebreakers made all the difference, and it looks like 2025 will be just as exciting for fans.

Behind K-State, defending Big 12 champ Arizona State checks in second, followed closely by BYU and in-state rival Kansas. Baylor, TCU, and the always unpredictable Texas Tech Red Raiders and their big spending round out the next tier of contenders. Completing the league are UCF, Iowa State, Cincinnati, Colorado, Oklahoma State, West Virginia, Arizona, and Houston.

The Wildcats enter the season with plenty of momentum. They kick things off against Iowa State on Aug. 23 in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic — a primetime showdown set for 11 a.m. CT from Dublin, Ireland, airing on ESPN.

Quarterback Avery Johnson returns after a breakout campaign, armed with playmakers like running backs Dylan Edwards, Joe Jackson, and wide receiver Jayce Brown. On defense, veterans Austin Romaine and V.J. Payne anchor a unit loaded with experience.

Kansas State also bolstered its trenches, adding transfer offensive linemen Terrence Enos (Pitt) and J.B. Nelson (Penn State), who are expected to make an immediate impact.

The preseason rankings are already buzzing about K-State as they are No. 12 in USA Today’s Top 25, No. 16 in FOX Sports analyst Joel Klatt’s post-spring poll, and the highest-ranked Big 12 team in ESPN’s FPI at No. 21.

Kansas State has the pieces in place to make 2025 a season to remember in Manhattan.