As everyone knows, Kansas State is now 7-0 after their dismantling of rival Kansas last Saturday. This has vaulted the Wildcats even higher in the various polls and has made some fans begin to just slightly wander about what could happen if they somehow can keep winning football games every Saturday.
The schedule definitely amps up down the stretch beginning with back to back games against Oklahoma & Oklahoma State respectively. The question now becomes what are the expectations for K-State in these final five contests and should they be any different than what was anticipated before the season started.
Let's take a look at the Wildcats remaining five games below and compare the thoughts and expectations of these contests now to what they were in the preseason.
10/29 Oklahoma - Before the season this was a definite sure fire loss since OU was almost the unanimous #1 team in the preseason polls. The Wildcats now enter as the higher ranked team although Las Vegas still puts the Sooners as a two touchdown favorite. While K-State fans should expect a competitive game if for no other reason than the game is in Manhattan, it would be a major stretch for anyone to expect a victory. Most people still have the same expectations that this game will be a victory for Bob Stoops and company although the Wildcat faithful hope for a repeat of 2003.
11/05 @ Oklahoma State - Yet another game that many people before the season penciled in as a loss for K-State and still have it that way on their mock forecasts. While many people have changed their mindsets about the Wildcats chances against OU, the prevailing thought is they have close to zero chance of traveling to Stillwater and knocking off Brandon Weeden and company.
11/12 Texas A&M - This is probably the first game of remaining five where many Wildcat fans will not just be hoping for a win but almost expecting one. The last time these teams met in 2009, K-State blew out the Aggies by a final score of 62-14. No one would be expecting a repeat of that performance but with this being the last Big 12 meeting between these two schools, Bill Snyder Family Stadium will be rocking and the fans will be expecting a victory. In the preseason, A&M was a highly ranked squad and this game looked like a solid road test for them but one that they should prevail in. Now this game should be looked at as pretty much a complete toss up.
11/19 @ Texas - Now we come to the almost infamous K-State v Texas matchup, a game which one could imagine Longhorn fans want to win very badly. Before the season started most every pundit and publication expected UT to recover from last years poor season and place themselves firmly back in the Top 25. This game was looked upon as one where the Longhorns should win and finally enact some revenge on the Wildcats. Now this game, much like the A&M contest, looks to be a total toss up scenario. Not one person would be surprised if K-State went down to Austin and came away with the victory nor would anyone be too overly surprised if the Wildcats went down and lost a close one.
12/03 Iowa State - This is the only game left on the schedule where most every fan or casual observer of college football expects a Wildcat victory. Before the season started most everyone had this marked down as one of the few Big 12 victories for Bill Snyder's squad so expectations have not changed much on this one.
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