Kansas State Wildcats’ 2026 recruiting machine just went into turbo mode. The program is coming off a rollercoaster Big 12 year, featuring both on-field promise and off-field eyebrow-raisers. Chris Klieman and his staff have quietly turned up the heat this summer, building serious recruiting momentum. This includes an exciting commitment from Wildcat legacy Lawson McGraw, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound athlete who plays DE, LB, and TE. Fans know him as the son of Jon McGraw. What’s even bigger news is that McGraw is just one of six new additions among K-State’s impressive 16 commitments for the 2026 class so far.

Kansas State landed firmly back in the “winners” column this week. Thanks to six commitments in just four days. Heartland College Sports’ Pete Mundo listed it: “Kansas State is a winner this week in the Big 12. Kansas State has been very busy on the recruiting trail. Most recently, they picked up a legacy player out of the Kansas City area, Lawson McGraw, son of former Wildcat standout Jon McGraw.” Now, that may not have popped eyeballs nationally.

McGraw is currently unrated—but the full group made noise. Three-star DL Kingston Hall, three-star DB Garrick Dixon, athlete Hannibal Carter Navies, three-star safety Nick McClellan, RB HD Davis, and then, of course, McGraw. “That’s six guys in four days,” Mundo emphasized. “They’re seventh [in the Big 12] for 2026, but they’re making progress—and they desperately needed.”

The Wildcats aren’t trying to win a press conference. They’re building the long game. This staff isn’t one to flood the portal for quick fixes. Instead, it’s “three-star guys that they develop into four- and five-star players over the years,” Mundo said. “That’s what they are; that’s what they’re always going to be.”

One of those three-stars, HD Davis, has the juice to turn heads early. The Wolfe City (Texas) back earned 2A All-State honors as a junior after racking up 2,789 rushing yards and 33 touchdowns. He averaged 10.4 yards per carry while looking like a player too slippery for his level. Davis chose K-State over offers from Air Force, Navy, Rice, Wyoming, Tulsa, and UTEP. He becomes the fifth player to commit after visiting Manhattan last weekend.

Davis joins fellow Texan battering ram Tanner West, giving Chris Klieman a 1-2 punch of production and explosiveness. With the Wildcats having to replace some offensive firepower next year, building a fresh pipeline out of Texas seems intentional. But this isn’t just about future depth charts. This run of commitments confirms Klieman’s grip on his recruiting blueprint: prioritize players who want to be developed, not just discovered.

The timing couldn’t be much better. With Avery Johnson now entrenched as QB1, buzz is building. Johnson was listed as a second-team All-Big 12 QB in Phil Steele’s latest rankings, ahead of Sam Leavitt and Rocco Becht. The Wildcats are also climbing in national preseason projections, as ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg placed them at No. 21 in his most recent PFF rankings. In a Big 12 that’s looking increasingly unpredictable beyond the top two, K-State is lurking with confidence. They’ve already hit the No. 2 spot in the Big 12 for the 2025 class, per 247Sports. While not a recruiting giant, K-State is finding success by building their class in a less flashy manner.

What could happen in 2025 for Chris Klieman’s Kansas State with all of that?

There’s no more hiding in the weeds for Kansas State. Not with 2024 stars Avery Johnson under center and George Fitzpatrick Jr. holding down the left side. Chris Klieman is quietly stacking one of the deepest rosters he’s had in Manhattan. With the Big 12 looking more like a weekly street fight than a traditional power hierarchy, K-State’s consistency and top-end explosiveness could finally elevate this program from perennial contender to legit CFP threat.

That’s not an exaggeration. The pieces are there—on both sides of the ball—and the improvement is real. Per Yahoo! Sports, K-State was already very good, but this team has the ceiling to be great. And that’s where 2025 gets interesting.

There’s no Arizona State, BYU, or Houston on the schedule this time—three of the four teams that knocked them off last season. But don’t get too cozy. Oklahoma State, Kansas, and Texas Tech are all tougher outs than a year ago, and that trip to Arizona could get tricky.

If the Wildcats survive Iowa State in the opener, they’ll be right in the thick of the Big 12 title hunt come November. Expect them to win their fair share of coin-flip matchups. Set the Kansas State win total at 8.5.