Homecoming in Manhattan
Kansas State opens a new era with Collin Klein as head coach, per FOX Sports. The former Wildcats star quarterback — a 2012 Heisman finalist who led the program to No. 2 nationally — takes over at his alma mater after Chris Klieman's retirement, with the charge to return the program to form.
The Roster Reality
Klein inherits a team that slipped to six losses in 2025, five of them one-possession games, and needed one-score wins over FCS North Dakota and Oklahoma State. The offseason added pain: leading receiver Jayce Brown transferred to LSU, and offensive linemen John Pastore and George Fitzpatrick were lost to season-ending injuries.
The Partnership
He will not rebuild alone. Trey Scott — Klein's former backup at Kansas State — returned as the program's general manager after an 11-year NFL front-office run with the Commanders and Raiders. Klein's take on the reunion: "He's a football guy, I'm a football guy. We both love working. We both love overcoming challenges."
Thin Margins in the Big 12
Klein's message to the locker room is about details, not overhaul. Quarterback Avery Johnson said last year's issue was letting "small things slip through the cracks," and this year's emphasis is hammering down on them. Klein preaches thin margins in the Big 12 — a league where a possession or two decides every race.
What This Means for CFB 27
In CFB 27 terms, this is a roster-value story: new offensive-minded head coaches with prior coordinator experience tend to get a system-fit bump for quarterbacks in the first season. Treat Avery Johnson as a mild sleeper in dynasty formats, and note that K-State's early-season schedule — opening against Nicholls State — is a low-risk data point before Big 12 play calibrates the ratings. The Klein-era system is closer to a modernized spread, so expect passing-volume ratings to drift up over the first month.
