When: Noon Saturday

Where: Folsom Field

TV: TNT

Radio: 850 AM, 94.1 FM

BetMGM Line: CU +2.5, 46.5 over/under

Weather: 63 degrees, cloudy with possibility of showers

Series history: CU leads 45-22-1, with the Wildcats winning the last matchup, 24-14, in Manhattan last year.

Three storylines

Wildcats’ QB conundrum: All four Kansas State quarterbacks are dealing with injuries, giving the CU defense a chance to assert control in this game. KSU head coach Collin Klein said Monday that starting quarterback Avery Johnson is “day-to-day” after Johnson missed his first career game as a starter last week at Arizona State with an unspecified injury. Everyone else in the room is banged up, too, in a situation Klein called “crazy.” Perhaps Blake Barnett -- who played at Erie, a short drive from Boulder -- will get reps on Saturday at Folsom.

Short time for Prime?: CU head coach Deion Sanders addressed the latest drama this week, saying his friend/YouTuber Christopher Neely’s comment that Coach Prime would give critics “$50,000 to not mention my name for a year” was a joke. But what isn’t a joke is CU’s lackluster performance under the Pro Football Hall of Famer’s direction. Beyond a 3-0 start in his first year in 2023 that turned out to be fool’s gold, and a 9-4 bowl season in ‘24, the Buffs have been awful. It’s past time for Coach Prime to start living up to the hype.

Klein comes home: Kansas State named Klein, a former Loveland star, its head coach in December. CU and CSU didn’t recruit the dual-threat QB, but the Wildcats took a flier on him, and he ended up starting for KSU for two seasons. That included a Big 12 title in ‘12, when he was a Heisman Trophy finalist. Klein returns home to Colorado for his head-coaching debut against the Buffs as the Wildcats try to gain traction in the Big 12 amid quarterback uncertainty and after a 28-17 defeat to Arizona State in Tempe last week.

Predictions

Kyle Newman, sportswriter: Kansas State 20, CU 17

Forgive me for not believing in the Buffs, even if the Wildcats have to roll out an emergency quarterback. This CU team has too many distractions, is far too undisciplined, and has not proven it can put together a complete game against a quality conference opponent. The Wildcats win on a late field goal, take advantage of CU turnovers, and capitalize on a couple of botched special teams plays, and the chorus for possible change at the helm of the Buffaloes grows louder.

Troy Renck, sports columnist: Kansas State 23, CU 20

The Buffs cannot be trusted. They have yet to show they can play four quarters of disciplined, mistake-free football in the Big 12, undermined by penalties and turnovers. Kansas State is likely the most winnable game left on the schedule. And if the Buffs are not victorious for the first time since Sept. 12, they must win out to qualify a bowl, the floor expectation for a coach making $10 million. Even with the Wildcats’ quarterback issues, they are better off at the position than CU with Julian Lewis hanging around to film commercials and Isaac Wilson trying to avoid face-palm interceptions.

Sean Keeler, sports columnist: CU 23, Kansas State 21

Julian Lewis is hurt. Most of K-State’s quarterbacks are hurt. Deion Sanders is hurt (emotionally). Little birdies keep telling us that former Erie star Blake Barnett has a chance to make the start in Saturday’s matinee at Folsom Field for the visitors, which would be very cool for Barnett ... but also makes the Wildcats a true wild card. It might also be good for a CU defense that, during an up-and-down season, has played its best ball at home. Coach Prime is acting cornered, which means his Buffs are due for one of those ’25 Iowa State moments ... assuming Isaac Wilson just takes care of the ball. And that’s never a safe assumption.

Nate Peterson, sports editor: Kansas State 28, CU 24

This looks like a winnable game for Colorado with K-State dinged up at QB and Collin Klein in his first season as a head coach. But until the Buffs, who lead the Big 12 in penalties, get out of their own way, they won’t win another game this season. Coach Prime shouldered the blame for an ugly 2-5 start, but talk is cheap and CU fans are getting tired of the bluster. They want results on the field from the Big 12’s highest-paid coach, not more off-field headlines about lawsuits or what some hanger-on said in a YouTube video about paying off Coach Prime’s critics.