Game notes
- Time and date: Saturday, September 19 at 12:00 p.m. ET
- Network: ESPN2
- Location: Bill Snyder Family Stadium — Manhattan, KS
- Spread: Kansas State (-20.5)
- Over/under: 49.5
- All-time series: Tulane leads, 2-1
- Last meeting: Kansas State 34, Tulane 27 — September 7, 2024
- Current streak: Kansas State, 1 (2024)
Setting the scene
Tulane and Kansas State will meet for the third time in five years. This series has been friendly to the road team.
In 2022, Tulane stormed into the Little Apple of Manhattan and knocked off the Wildcats, 17-10. Both teams eventually won their conferences, participated in New Year’s Six bowls, and finished top 15 in the AP Poll.
In 2024, Kansas State exacted revenge in the Big Easy, taking down Tulane 34-27 on a goal line stand. While neither team won their conference, both enjoyed successful seasons
and wound up with nine wins.
The Green Wave and Wildcats square off once again, and the setting flips to Manhattan. This time, Kansas State enters as a heavy favorite considering the Wildcats’ early-season success, combined with Tulane’s simultaneous struggles. Can the Green Wave reverse course, or does Kansas State start 3-0 for the third time in the 2020s?
Tulane Green Wave outlook
Tulane (1-1, 0-0 American) is the standard of the American Conference. The Green Wave earned that title after appearing in four-straight conference championship games with two titles, along with appearances in the 2022 Cotton Bowl and 2025 College Football Playoff. Although conference play hasn’t started yet, Tulane’s seat atop the throne is being threatened.
The Green Wave struggled immensely in Week 1 at Duke, hampered by 15 penalties and an inconsistent offense in a 17-3 loss. Tulane found better offensive success in Week 2, but its passing defense took a step back. The Green Wave required a go-ahead touchdown in the final 90 seconds to escape South Alabama at home. This is a challenging Week 3 road matchup, but it presents an opportunity for first-year head coach Will Hall and his team to shift the narrative after two subpar performances.
Tulane made a major offensive change between its first and second games, subbing out Zeon Chriss-Gremillion for Kadin Semonza at quarterback. Semonza, who did not see a snap last year at Tulane, generated 212 passing yards and the game-winning touchdown in his first start since 2024. He doesn’t offer Chriss-Gremillion’s mobility, but Tulane has increased the verticality of its passing game with him in the lineup.
The ground game is being handled by Florida State transfer Jaylin Lucas, who erupted for an FBS-best 214 rushing yards in Week 2. Tulane’s starting running back Jamauri McClure has been out with a foot injury, but Lucas handled RB1 duties fine last Saturday, after only taking three carries in the opener. His 19.5 yards per carry were an American Conference record for running backs with at least 10 attempts in a game. However, the success of the run game hinges upon the offensive line, which showed improvement in Week 2 after struggling with blocks and committing constant holding penalties in Week 1.
Along with Lucas, the other playmaker to watch offensively is Destyn Hill. The former Florida State and LSU wide receiver has established himself as the Green Wave’s top receiving threat with 158 yards and a touchdown through two weeks. Hill has thrived against one-on-one coverage, and that was evident on his game-winning touchdown against South Alabama, where he got perfect leverage on his defender and adjusted for a jump ball in the end zone.
Last season, the Green Wave made the CFP due to its defensive prowess, particularly its ability to control games at the line of scrimmage. That element of Tulane has not shown up in 2026, as the Green Wave are tied for last in the FBS with one sack — breaking in an all-new starting defensive line led by South Alabama transfer Ed Smith IV.
In Week 1, Duke running back Nate Sheppard carved up the defense with 227 rushing yards — the most by any FBS player this season. Tulane slightly improved its run defense in Week 2, but the Green Wave’s pass defense struggles from 2025 persisted. After allowing the 11th-most passing yards per game in the FBS last year, Tulane surrendered an efficient 296 passing yards to a South Alabama team not known for its aerial presence.
The Green Wave will rely on veteran defenders such as inside linebacker Dickson Agu (23 tackles), outside linebacker Chris Rodgers (9 tackles), and reigning First Team All-American Conference free safety Jack Tchienchou (17 tackles) to step up against a Kansas State offense which has faced little resistance to date.
Kansas State Wildcats outlook
Kansas State (2-0, 0-0 Big 12) entered the 2025 campaign with lofty expectations and a preseason ranking, but this year, the Wildcats are flying under the radar. A 71-3 annihilation of an FCS opponent and a 34-7 thrashing of Washington State (which would have been a shutout if Kansas State just threw a Hail Mary on the final play of the half instead of a screen to the flats, which got pick-sixed) only netted the Wildcats one AP Poll vote.
The Wilcats remain home for the third-straight week, where they look to remain undefeated in the Collin Klein era. Klein has vivid memories of the last time Tulane visited Manhattan. As offensive coordinator of that 2022 team, he only led the Wildcats to 10 points that afternoon. However, his offense is starting from a stronger place in 2026.
Quarterback Avery Johnson will be making his 29th start in royal purple, and the senior is off to a stellar start. His completion percentage has improved year-by-year, peaking at 59.8 percent last season. So far, he’s at 67.3 percent through two games, and he’s remained poised in the pocket. Johnson is averaging 8.4 yards per rush on 12 attempts, and he hasn’t taken a single sack yet.
The offensive line has been a pleasant surprise for the Wildcats, considering they lost Second Team All-Big 12 offensive tackle John Pastore for the season due to a lower leg injury in fall camp and didn’t return any other primary starters from 2025. But the unit starting two redshirt freshmen and two redshirt sophomores is dominating up front. Not only have they not allowed a sack, but they’ve paved the way for Kansas State to have the eighth-most rushing yards per game nationally (303.5) with the sixth-highest rushing average (7.2).
Oklahoma State transfer Rodney Fields Jr. is leading the backfield after consecutive 100-yard performances, while racking up 7.6 yards per game. He is supplemented by Joe Jackson, who posted a team-high 911 rushing yards last year and is operating as a frequented receiving back this fall. The tailbacks are involved in Klein’s power-spread scheme, which features a heavy emphasis on RPOs, as well as running the quarterback.
Kansas State will feature heavy personnel in its offense, and tight end Garrett Oakley can be equally dangerous as a pass-catcher and as a blocker. Even though he didn’t record a catch last week, his blocking was instrumental to the team’s 295-yard rushing performance against the Cougars. Other targets in the receiving game include Josh Manning and Jaron Tibbs, who combine for 19 receptions and a touchdown.
The Wildcats have played 120 minutes of action this year and still haven’t surrendered a touchdown to an opposing offense. Washington State had no answers for first-year coordinator Jordan Peterson’s defense. The Wildcats were highly inefficient in the passing game, finishing 9-of-20 for 65 yards, while only averaging 3.4 yards per carry on the ground.
Kansas State has bottled up everything near the line of scrimmage with excellent tackling and coverage. The longest passing play completed on the Wildcats this year, through 39 opposing pass attempts, went for just 12 yards. Safeties Koy Beasley and Wesley Fair have been among the top players on the back end for a passing defense which is currently first in the FBS, surrendering just 47.5 yards per game on a 41 percent completion rate.
The pass rush has been very complementary of the coverage. Another Oklahoma State transfer, defensive end Wendell Gregory, is a disruptive presence for offensive lines, registering 3.5 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks in his first two games at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
Prediction
Everything is clicking for Kansas State on both sides of the ball right now. The Wildcats own one of the most efficient rushing offenses in the FBS and are home to the best passing defense. However, that’s just through two games, and Tulane could be Kansas State’s toughest competition yet, even if the Green Wave have played below expectations.
Kansas State’s run game should fare well against Tulane’s retooled front, after Duke’s Nate Sheppard accrued 227 yards and South Alabama moved the ball quite effectively. South Alabama succeeded with the quarterback run game against Tulane, and Kansas State will bring a heavy dose of that element with Avery Johnson.
Tulane’s offense might generate the occasional breakaway play, especially through usage of Jaylin Lucas or Destyn Hill. But the Green Wave’s inability to sustain long possessions doesn’t bode favorably for this matchup against a Kansas State defense which has been unforgiving at the line of scrimmage and on the back end.
The home team finally wins in this series.
Prediction: Kansas State 31, Tulane 13
