The Big 12 Conference won’t look like it did last season thanks to the addition of four teams from the Pac-12 Conference.
Kansas State won’t look anything like last year, either, with starting quarterback Will Howard now the starting quarterback at Ohio State — a move the Wildcats seemingly did nothing to stop because of their faith in sophomore quarterback Avery Johnson.
ESPN has the Wildcats as one of their favorites to win the Big 12 and believes Johnson, a Wichita, Kansas, native and former Top 100 recruit might be the difference maker. The small sample size from Johnson’s freshman season was encouraging — he had the No. 3 quarterback rating in the country at 87.0 for quarterbacks with a minimum of 100 action plays in 2023.
From ESPN: “Despite just 127 action plays (71 dropbacks), that's pretty good company. Johnson completed only 56% of his passes while spending much of his freshman year as a run-first, change-of-pace guy. But he averaged 13.0 yards per completion, threw no picks, took only one sack and averaged 6.1 yards per carry. His dual-threat potential is otherworldly.”
Johnson ended the year on a high note by earning Pop-Tarts Bowl MVP honors after Kansas State defeated No. 19 North Carolina State 28-19.
Appreciate K-State QB @avery2johnson for taking time at the end of a busy day to talk 1-on-1, as seen tonight on @KWCH12.
— Brandon Zenner (@KWCHBrandon) July 10, 2024
He said the highlight of the day was playing as himself on NCAA 25, and he was also gifted a Pop-Tarts Bowl t-shirt. pic.twitter.com/8l87IA89Fb
