NCAA Football
2025-08-23 - Iowa State Cyclones at Kansas State Wildcats
A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown
United States : College Football Week 0
Saturday 23rd August 2025 - Scheduled 12pm
5pm (British Time)
Preview
The College Football is ever-changing, but the Big 12 Conference has decided against using Divisions and that means it feels very wide open at the top.
Last year four teams finished with a 7-2 record and three more with a 6-3 record and there is every chance that the Big 12 Champion is going to have more than one loss on the record. However, that will not prevent them from joining the College Football Playoff, as Arizona State did last season.
The Sun Devils were far from disgraced as the Number 4 Seed with an 11-2 record and they gave the Texas Longhorns all they could handle.
There is no getting away from the surprising season that Arizona State put together and so every team in this Conference may feel they can put together the Football needed to replicate the Sun Devils 2024 season.
However, amongst the favourites in the Big 12 this season are the Kansas State Wildcats and Iowa State Cyclones, who both had strong records in 2024, and these two teams will head over to Dublin to open the 2025 season.
Farmageddon has gone international.
The fans who will be attending this game should have plenty of fun with the Kansas State Wildcats and Iowa State Cyclones holding onto a number of starters from last season, including having experienced Quarter Backs leading the way. This will feel like a big, early opportunity to lay down a marker to the rivals in the Big 12 Conference and both teams will arrive in Ireland full of confidence.
There is always some uncertainty as to what you are going to see from any team when they open a new College Football season, but having a number of starters return is clearly a bonus. Both the Wildcats and Cyclones are led by solid Head Coaches who have stamped their authority on the respective schools and that should pave the way for a really good season opener.
Injury is a major factor in College Football and the Iowa State Cyclones were hit hard by that bug, which makes reaching the Big 12 Championship Game most impressive. The Linebacker corps looks stronger and the Defensive Line is also shored up by Domonique Orange, and it will be important for the Cyclones to show a bit more strength at stopping the run.
Last season that was a real issue for them with the team allowing over 188 yards per game on the ground, which is something that the Kansas State Wildcats will be looking to exploit in this opener. Last season the Wildcats were amongst the best teams at running the ball and they have a solid tandem playing behind Quarter Back Avery Johnson, who is much more experienced himself.
That is key for the Wildcats and Johnson could have a decent game throwing the ball against this Iowa State Secondary that has been rebuilt. His Offensive Line is going to be a work in progress and some of the new Receivers may take a bit of time getting the chemistry going with the Quarter Back, but they are facing a Cyclones team that had issues picking up Sacks in 2024 and Avery Johnson should help establish a real balance to the Wildcats play.
The Cyclones also bring back plenty of experience from last year as they bid to go one better than 2024 when losing the Big 12 Championship Game.
A lot of that experience is on the Offensive side of the ball, led by Quarter Back Rocco Becht and he is supported by a number of skill players that will make Iowa State very dangerous.
Importantly, the Cyclones Offensive Line is very experienced and that will help massively on this side of the ball. And that will be needed against this Wildcats Defensive Line, which comes into the season with a huge sense of expectation around them as they look to make Offenses that face them one-dimensional.
This battle at the Line of Scrimmage is going to be a key factor to the outcome of the game and the Wildcats have players who may have more success disrupting the passing game and slowing down the run.
Getting to Rocco Becht will be key to just protect a Secondary that may need to be bedded in, and the Kansas State Wildcats can do that, which in turn may give the edge in this Big 12 opener.
It is the Cyclones who have dominated the recent head to head in this rivalry series, including beating Kansas State by 8 points last season. However, it was the Wildcats who had the most yardage in that game and they can earn revenge in this neutral field setting with the superior work at the Line of Scrimmage on both sides of the ball making the difference in Kansas State's favour.
Prediction
Lay the points with the favourite in this neutral site game.
The Pick :
Kansas State 34-24 Iowa State
