In his latest column, ESPN's Travis Haney lists a few programs that will undoubtedly be ranked early in the 2012 college football season who run the risk of also falling out based on their early schedule. Leading the list? Bill Snyder's K-State squad. Despite boasting a Heisman darkhorse in Collin Klein, the Wildcats also have a couple of early gauntlets they'll have to endure before the season's midpoint.
"Some think K-State is a potential Big 12 dark horse," writes Haney. "We'll know early on, after a Sept. 22 trip to Norman in the teams' conference opener. As a reminder, the Sooners had won 39 consecutive games at Owen Field until Texas Tech knocked them off a year ago. As another reminder, the Sooners won by 41 last season in Manhattan. The Wildcats also welcome Miami for the return end of a home-and-home. They were fortunate to escape with a victory this past season in Joe Robbie/Pro Player/Dolphin/LandShark/Sun Life Stadium."
Haney concludes by writing positively about both Klein and Snyder's ability to get the most out of his players. It's also clear, however, that K-State still has to overcome the perception that they overachieved to a great degree last year, and that they will likely revert to the predictions of old.