Kansas State head coach Chris Klieman pulled out the game film from 2022 when they played Kansas. One of the first things he noticed was how many players from both teams are still on the roster and will play on Saturday night.

Klieman wanted to watch the 2022 game to be ready for the Jayhawks because Jalon Daniels was the quarterback. Daniels did not play against Kansas State last year. They played West Virginia last week who has a mobile quarterback in Garrett Greene.

“I know that Daniels is a bigger than Greene and has hurt us rushing the football,” Klieman said. “I know he did in 2022. He hurt us rushing the football and went back and watched that game yesterday. So, we've got to tackle better, and we've got to keep leverage better. Those were the two main issues.

“I watched the game in 2022, and you see a lot of the same faces and a lot of the same names. And the positive thing is you see a lot of the same guys for us, too. Both are a veteran group of guys; you can throw the records out. It doesn't matter what anybody's done last week, a month ago, a year ago. It's going to be a great football game Saturday night.”

Klieman recalled last year’s game when the Jayhawks had an 11-point lead in the second half and said many of the same players will be on the field for Kansas.

He said they did not come off the bus against West Virginia with the energy he hoped, but playing a night game and returning home should be a different story.

“Another night game gives us an opportunity to get our bodies back and get our minds fresh with the extra time we have on Friday and Saturday,” he said. “We're going to need that extra time on Friday and Saturday.”

The last two games Kansas State played have been on the road in different time zones. Two weeks ago, they played in Boulder followed by the trip to West Virginia. He said it will take some time to adjust after arriving home late from the evening kickoff in Morgantown.

They quickly turned their attention to Kansas and what Klieman said will be a challenge. He said Daniels and the Kansas run game and their multiple schemes the Jayhawks do on offense concerns him.

“He's a really talented kid, and I'm glad for him that he's healthy and gotten an opportunity to play because I know that he's missed some time,” Klieman said of Daniels. “He’s a terrific talent, and obviously a real big leader on their team.”

Running the ball early in the year was the calling card for Kansas, but over the last few games the passing game has been clicking.

“They can do everything,” Klieman said. “Meaning you can't just say we're going to try to stop the running backs because if you do, the quarterback will pull the ball and beat you or they'll run option and beat you as well. You can't commit everybody up there because they're talented enough with their wide receivers, tight ends and quarterback to throw the football.

“We have to do a great job of mixing our coverages, mixing our pressures, mixing some of our base defense. You're not going to stop these guys. They're too good. You've got to try to limit some of their success.”

Communication is one area Klieman said they have to do better on defense.

"We're continuing to get better at communication, and if we're not on point this week with communication, we're going to have a big problem because of all the misdirection and all the things that KU does," he said.