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Texas at Kansas State prediction and game preview. Projecting who wins the game between the Longhorns and Wildcats.

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Texas vs. Kansas State Game Preview

When: Saturday, October 22 – 12:00 p.m. ET
Where: Bill Snyder Family Stadium, Manhattan, KS
Broadcast: ESPN2

Every game from here forward matters to Charlie Strong, who’s clinging for dear life to his Texas gig. He and his Longhorns enjoyed a big boost last week, rallying from an early deficit to handle Iowa State, which had almost knocked off Baylor and Oklahoma State earlier in the month. It’s incumbent upon Texas to build a head of steam now, because unbeaten Baylor and West Virginia are still on the schedule. K-State is a .500 team in every sense of the measure, with the .500 record to back it up. The Wildcats have hung with Stanford and the Mountaineers in losses, but were thoroughly outclassed last week by Oklahoma, 38-17, in Norman.

What To Know About Texas

Last weekend, the Horns sputtered in the red zone, yet gave their best defensive effort of the season. What gives for a team that was all offense and no D through the first five games? Texas will need an even better day from QB Shane Buechele and RB D’Onta Foreman, the cornerstones of the offense. And if Saturday versus underrated Iowa State, Strong’s second game calling defensive plays, was the start of a defensive trend UT may be ready to go on a run. Spurred by 14 stops for loss and eight sacks, including 2.5 from DE Naashon Hughes, Texas kept a Cyclone team that averaged 40 points in its previous three games out of the end zone.

What to Know About Kansas State

What you see is what you’re going to get from the Wildcats. They’re sound on defense and special teams, when not facing the Sooners, but they lack consistency on offense … when not facing Texas Tech. And now erratic quarterback Jesse Ertz is dealing with a shoulder injury, which could press senior Joe Hubener into action. If K-State is going to get back to winning, it’ll likely be fueled by a defense that leads the Big 12 against the run and is no lower than fourth in scoring D, total D and third-down stops.

Advantages

Offense: Texas. Strong may be in trouble, but coordinator Sterlin Gilbert has boosted his career prospects in his Austin debut.

Defense: Kansas State. It’ll be very interesting to see of the Horns can build off Week 7, but a front seven of linemen Jordan Willis and Will Geary and linebackers Elijah Lee and Charmeachealle Moore give the Cats a distinct edge.

Special Teams: Kansas State. The Wildcats have scored twice on returns, and punter Nick Walsh and placekicker Matthew McCrane form a solid duo in the kicking game.

Coaching: Kansas State. The Horns have gained ground at the coordinator position, but Bill Snyder trumps Strong.

Intangibles: Texas. Against Iowa State, the Longhorns played their best half of football since the Notre Dame opener, a performance on which they can build.

Matchup To Watch

Foreman vs. Lee

While it’s tough running the ball on Kansas State, that won’t stop Gilbert from trying to unleash his best back. Foreman has rushed for at least 100 yards in each of the last seven games he’s played, and Lee & Co. yielded 88 yards on 19 carries to Sooner Joe Mixon, who supplanted injured Samaje Perine last week.

Texas at Kansas State Betting Odds

Spread: Kansas State -3.5
Over/Under: No over/under as of post

Texas at Kansas State Prediction

It’s a risky proposition, but the hunch is that Texas is about to go on a mini-second-half run. The Longhorns learned in Week 7 that they can win games with defense, an important revelation for a team that had struggled so mightily on that side of the ball. And against K-State, with or without Ertz, the Horns can further build their defensive confidence. True, the offense will sputter for a second straight week, but Foreman will grind out enough yards to carry his team to a hard-fought road win.

Texas at Kansas State Score Prediction: Texas 26, Kansas State 23

MORE: No. 1-128 College Football Rankings – Week 8