The rain in Dublin didn’t just soak the turf, it drenched Kansas State’s hopes of starting the 2025 season on the right foot. The Wildcats flew across the Atlantic with +550 odds to win the Big 12 and a No. 17 ranking, only to get smacked in the mouth by #22 Iowa State, 24–21, in a muddy Farmageddon classic that felt more like a fist fight than a season opener. For the first time in five years, Chris Klieman’s crew starts 0-1, and Wildcat Nation is already throwing haymakers. But Klieman wasn’t panicking. In fact, his locker room message after the loss hit a little different.

Kansas State’s offense had moments of brilliance, especially in the second half when quarterback Avery Johnson decided to air it out like he was playing 7-on-7 in the summer. He dropped a 65-yard bomb to Jerand Bradley and a 37-yard dime to Jayce Brown, proving the arm talent is very real. Johnson finished with 273 passing yards, and 3 total touchdowns. Those are winning numbers. But football isn’t just about pretty stat lines. And that’s exactly where K-State came undone.

Chris Klieman knew it. At the presser, he didn’t sugarcoat the loss. “Regardless of what this game was, we’ve got 11 more left,” he said. “If we allow it to eat us up, if we allow the outside noise to become a factor, which these guys ain’t letting happen. I know that they’re not going to let it happen because they see what I see, a really good football team. They got beat by a really good football team. And so, we’ve got to go back, regroup, get some guys healthy. We were down some guys. We’ve got to get some guys back, and get ready to go Saturday.” That’s coach-speak, sure, but it’s also perspective. Klieman isn’t sweating September in Ireland when there’s a full Big 12 grind ahead.

But it is true that the Wildcats flat-out lost the situational battle. Fourth downs? Iowa State went 3-for-3. K-State? A brutal 1-for-4, including a failed gamble deep in their own territory that gift-wrapped a short field for the Cyclones. Iowa State’s Rocco Becht cashed that in with a 7-yard TD run that stretched the lead. Toss in two costly fumbles, a muffed punt, and 48 penalty yards, and suddenly Johnson’s highlight reel was nothing more than window dressing on a missed opportunity. It wasn’t that Kansas State got outplayed for 60 minutes, they failed to execute when it mattered most. Efficiency, not volume, won the day.

Kansas State’s schedule gives them a chance to reset. North Dakota and Army are up next. Games that should help clean up the sloppiness before the major conference games. National outlets call the Wildcats’ slate “fairly challenging,” but not impossible. CBS Sports ranked it middle-of-the-pack, SI.com slotted it 50th nationally, and Yahoo pegged it 10th-toughest in the Big 12. In other words: there’s no room for pity parties, but the season is far from doomed.

Still, the loss stings harder because of what went down early, and this is where things get messy. Kansas State lost more than just the scoreboard in Dublin. Their RB1, Dylan Edwards, went down before he even had a chance to show his burst. And that injury might be the biggest headline of all.

Chris Klieman on RB1 Dylan Edwards injury

The first gut-punch of the game came before the scoreboard even tilted. On K-State’s opening drive, Dylan Edwards muffed a punt, tweaked his left ankle, and suddenly the Wildcats’ best back was out of the picture. One snap. That’s all he played. Trainers taped him up, but by the time the camera caught him on the sideline, helmet off, Gatorade towel draped over his head, you could feel the bad vibes. Edwards eventually walked to the locker room under his own power, but he never returned. For a player coming off a breakout bowl game, the timing couldn’t have been worse.

Last December, Edwards had his national moment. He lit up the Rate Bowl with 196 rushing yards and three total touchdowns, straight-up cooking his opponent and taking home Offensive MVP honors. That night, Edwards looked like the future of Kansas State’s backfield. Fast forward to Dublin, and that future got put on ice before the offense even settled in.

Klieman didn’t have much to offer when asked postgame. “I don’t know. They told me after the first couple of plays that he was no longer available,” he admitted. That’s not exactly the clarity fans were hoping for. Backup Joe Jackson stepped in and gave it a go, logging 12 carries for 51 yards, but he also coughed up a fumble. Solid effort, but no one confuses that with Edwards’ explosiveness.

Without their RB1, Kansas State’s ground game sputtered to just 110 rushing yards. The only good news? Edwards walked under his own power, so maybe the ankle isn’t catastrophic. The bad news? Kansas State doesn’t have the luxury of time.