This isn’t your average college football ranking.
My Ultimate 136 is a set of rankings that is fluid, but it’s my job to look ahead and make a claim for all FBS teams based on what I know and why I know it. Here are the three pressing questions I started by asking when putting together this list:
- Who do I think is good?
- Why do I think they’re good?
- What are the chances they will finish above or below my expectations?
Here is a look at where Kansas State lands in my Ultimate 136.
Kansas State ranking: 19
Last year’s ranking: 18
Top player: QB Avery Johnson: Threw for a school-record 25 TDs last season while also rushing for 605 yards and 7 TDs; led Kansas State to a school-record 6.57 yards per play last season, as well as the fourth-highest yards per game average in school history (426.8).
[Kansas State’s 2025 schedule]
RJ’s take: In his first season as a starter, quarterback Avery Johnson set the program record for passing touchdowns (25) while throwing for 2,712 yards, and adding 605 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground. He was one of just four Power 4 quarterbacks to pass for 2,700 yards and rush for 600 yards last year.
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In Year 2, he and running back Dylan Edwards will make up perhaps the fastest backfield in the sport as they make an attempt to earn the program’s first appearance in the CFP.
Along with Johnson and Edwards, nine starters return from last year’s team, including five on the defense.
K-State has won nine games or more in each of the last three years, and won the Big 12 title in 2022. And, in Year 7, Chris Klieman has kept expectations high with this year looking like his best chance to earn K-State’s first CFP invitation. The problem is that going 9-4 last year yielded a tie for eighth in the Big 12.
This year, the schedule features absolutely no team that should outclass K-State.
[Check out RJ Young’s Ultimate 136 College Football Rankings here]
Kansas State Win Total: Over 8.5 (-110) Under 8.5 (-110)
Have an issue with my rankings? Think your alma mater is too low, or your school’s rival is too high? Get at me on X, @RJ_Young, and I’ll select my favorite tweets and respond to them in a future article.
RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports. Follow him at @RJ_Young.
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