| Year: | 2023 |
| Team: | Kansas State Wildcats |
| Sport: | football |
| Conference: | Big 12 Conference |
| Short Conf: | Big 12 |
| Coachrank: | 19 |
| Aprank: | 18 |
| Record: | 9–4 |
| Conf Record: | 6–3 |
| Head Coach: | Chris Klieman |
| Hc Year: | 5th |
| Off Coach: | Collin Klein |
| Oc Year: | 2nd |
| Off Scheme: | Multiple |
| Def Coach: | Joe Klanderman |
| Dc Year: | 4th |
| Def Scheme: | 3–3–5 |
| Stadium: | Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium |
| Champion: | Pop-Tarts Bowl champion |
| Bowl: | Pop-Tarts Bowl |
| Bowl Result: | W 28–19 vs. NC State |
The 2023 Kansas State Wildcats football team represented Kansas State University in the Big 12 Conference during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Wildcats were led by Chris Klieman in his fifth year as their head coach.
They played their home games at Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas. The Kansas State Wildcats football team drew an average home attendance of 51,957 in 2023.
See main article: 2022 Kansas State Wildcats football team.
The Wildcats finished the 2022 regular season 10–4 and 7–2 in Big 12 play and appeared in the 2022 Big 12 Championship Game, where they defeated the TCU Horned Frogs in overtime, 31–28. They earned a berth in the Sugar Bowl, where they were defeated by the Alabama Crimson Tide, 45–20.
The Big 12 preseason poll was released on July 6. Kansas State was picked 2nd in the conference.
First place votes in parentheses.
| Big 12 media poll | |||
| 1 | Texas (41) | 886 | |
| 2 | Kansas State (14) | 858 | |
| 3 | Oklahoma (4) | 758 | |
| 4 | Texas Tech (4) | 729 | |
| 5 | TCU (3) | 727 | |
| 6 | Baylor | 572 | |
| 7 | Oklahoma State (1) | 470 | |
| 8 | UCF | 463 | |
| 9 | Kansas | 461 | |
| 10 | Iowa State | 334 | |
| 11 | BYU | 318 | |
| 12 | Houston | 215 | |
| 13 | Cincinnati | 202 | |
| 14 | West Virginia | 129 | |
See also: 2023 Southeast Missouri State Redhawks football team.
| Statistics | Southeast Missouri State | Kansas State | |
|---|---|---|---|
| First downs | 13 | 28 | |
| Total yards | 227 | 588 | |
| Rushes/yards | 26/6 | 40/228 | |
| Passing yards | 221 | 360 | |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 25–37–0 | 22–31–1 | |
| Turnovers | 0 | 1 | |
| Time of possession | 30:35 | 29:25 | |
| Penalties–yards | 5−65 | 4−36 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southeast Missouri State | Passing | Paxton DeLaurent | 24/36, 213 YDS |
| Rushing | Darrell Smith | 6 CAR, 18 YDS, 11 Long | |
| Receiving | 10 REC, 96 YDS, 24 Long | ||
| Kansas State | Passing | 18/26, 297 YDS, 2 TDS, 1 INT | |
| Rushing | 15 CAR, 128 YDS, 43 Long | ||
| Receiving | RJ Garcia II | 5 REC, 119 YDS, 1 TD, 44 Long |
See also: 2023 Troy Trojans football team.
| style= | Pregame line! | style= | Over/under |
|---|---|---|---|
| K-State −15.0 | 50 |
| Statistics | Troy | Kansas State | |
|---|---|---|---|
| First downs | 15 | 20 | |
| Total yards | 286 | 397 | |
| Rushes/yards | 28/70 | 38/147 | |
| Passing yards | 216 | 250 | |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 22–38–1 | 21–32–1 | |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 | |
| Time of possession | 30:23 | 29:37 | |
| Penalties–yards | 3–22 | 5–45 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Troy | Passing | 17/32 167 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INT | |
| Rushing | 17 CAR, 83 YDS, 46 Long | ||
| Receiving | Chris Lewis | 5 REC, 50 YDS, 1 TD, 21 Long | |
| Kansas State | Passing | 21/32 250 YDS, 3 TD, 1 INT | |
| Rushing | Treshaun Ward | 16 CAR, 58 YDS, 20 Long | |
| Receiving | 7 REC, 94 YDS, 1 TD, 39 Long |
See also: 2023 Missouri Tigers football team.
| Statistics | KSU | MIZZ |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 19 | 20 |
| Total yards | 74–408 | 64–430 |
| Rushes/yards | 35–138 | 28–74 |
| Passing yards | 270 | 356 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 25–39–1 | 23–36–0 |
| Time of possession | 34:00 | 26:00 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas State | Passing | Will Howard | 25-39, 270 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT |
| Rushing | Treshaun Ward | 10 carries, 54 yards | |
| Receiving | 5 receptions, 78 yards, 2 TD | ||
| Missouri | Passing | 23-35, 356 yards, 2 TD | |
| Rushing | 10 carries, 58 yards | ||
| Receiving | 7 receptions, 114 yards, 2 TD |
See also: 2023 UCF Knights football team.
| Statistics | UCF | KSU | |
|---|---|---|---|
| First downs | 19 | 32 | |
| Total yards | 407 | 536 | |
| Rushing yards | 143 | 255 | |
| Passing yards | 264 | 255 | |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 | |
| Time of possession | 25:37 | 34:23 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| UCF | Passing | Timmy McClain | 14-24, 264 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT |
| Rushing | Johnny Richardson | 6 carries, 76 yards | |
| Receiving | Kobe Hudson | 6 receptions, 138 yards, 2 TD | |
| Kansas State | Passing | Will Howard | 27-42, 255 yards, 1 INT |
| Rushing | D.J. Giddens | 30 carries, 207 yards, 4 TD | |
| Receiving | D.J. Giddens | 8 receptions, 96 yards |
See also: 2023 Oklahoma State Cowboys football team.
| Statistics | KSU | OSU |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 18 | 20 |
| Total yards | 372 | 412 |
| Rushing yards | 220 | 174 |
| Passing yards | 152 | 238 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 15-32-3 | 20-36-0 |
| Time of possession | 25:18 | 34:42 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas State | Passing | Will Howard | 15/34, 152 yards, TD, 3 INT |
| Rushing | Will Howard | 10 carries, 104 yards, TD | |
| Receiving | Phillip Brooks | 3 receptions, 50 yards | |
| Oklahoma State | Passing | 19/35, 235 yards | |
| Rushing | 21 carries, 136 yards, TD | ||
| Receiving | Jaden Bray | 4 receptions, 77 yards |
See also: 2023 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team. Starting quarterback Behren Morton exited the game at halftime with an undisclosed injury.[7] Morton had been dealing with a sprained AC joint in his throwing shoulder ever since he took over for the injured Tyler Shough.[8]
See also: 2023 Houston Cougars football team.
See also: 2023 Texas Longhorns football team.
Fox's Big Noon Kickoff show was on Texas's campus for the first time this season.[11]
102,846 is the 5th highest attendance for a game at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium to date
| style= | Pregame line | style= | Over/under |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas -3.5 | 50[12] |
See also: 2023 Baylor Bears football team.
See also: 2023 Kansas Jayhawks football team and Sunflower Showdown.
| Kansas State | –6.5 |
In the first matchup in Sunflower Showdown with both teams ranked in 28 years, the teams traded scores early in the game. In the beginning of the second half, Kansas took an 11 point lead. K-State would come back to win the game. It was the 15th straight loss for KU in the rivalry. The loss also officially eliminated Kansas' slim hopes to play in the Big 12 championship game.
See also: 2023 Iowa State Cyclones football team.
| Statistics | ISU | KSU |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 10 | 32 |
| Total yards | 488 | 497 |
| Rushes/yards | 23/258 | 54/209 |
| Passing yards | 230 | 288 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 8–12–0 | 24–48–1 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 17:48 | 42:12 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| ISU | Passing | 8–12, 230 YDS, 3 TD | |
| Rushing | 16 CAR, 276 YDS, 3 TD | ||
| Receiving | 3 REC, 160 YDS, 2 TD | ||
| KSU | Passing | 24–48, 288 yards, TD, INT | |
| Rushing | 31 CAR, 114 YDS, TD | ||
| Receiving | 10 REC, 136 YDS, TD |
See also: 2023 NC State Wolfpack football team.
| Statistics | No. 18 NC State | No. 25 Kansas State |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 17 | 22 |
| Total yards | 62–399 | 71–435 |
| Rushes/yards | 33–235 | 40–257 |
| Passing yards | 164 | 178 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 14–29–1 | 14–31–0 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 29:06 | 30:54 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. 18 NC State | Passing | 14/28, 164 yards, INT | |
| Rushing | Brennan Armstrong | 17 carries, 121 yards, TD | |
| Receiving | 7 receptions, 72 yards | ||
| No. 25 Kansas State | Passing | 14/31, 178 yards, 2 TD | |
| Rushing | 28 carries, 151 yards, TD | ||
| Receiving | Jayce Brown | 5 receptions, 52 yards, TD |