Kansas State’s Week 3 showdown against Arizona could be Top 25 showdown

Kansas State and Arizona are both on pace to be title contenders in the Big 12 Conference in 2024 — something neither team could have known when they scheduled what would ultimately become their Week 3 matchup on Friday, Sept. 13 at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas.

In a scheduling quirk, the two teams now play in the same conference but will play each other in a non-conference game. Arizona is one of four teams from the Pac-12 Conference making their Big 12 debut in 2024 along with Arizona State, Colorado and Utah.

Bleacher Report has the game singled out as one of the best games in the country in the early season.

From Bleacher Report: “You might want to reserve this Friday night. Arizona and Kansas State are key contenders in the expanded Big 12, but there's a twist here. Because this had been scheduled before the latest wave of realignment, it remains a nonconference game. In other words: We get a legitimate preview of the Big 12 race, yet the result won't affect the league standings. Arizona lost coach Jedd Fisch to Washington yet returns a dynamic QB/WR tandem in Noah Fifita and Tetairoa McMillan. Kansas State, meanwhile, is shifting to dual-threat quarterback Avery Johnson after he impressed mostly as a part-time player in his freshman season.Even though the stakes aren't as high as possible, it's a valuable game for the dueling Wildcats.”