Chris Klieman Breaks Silence: The Unfiltered Truth Behind K-State’s Crushing Iowa State Defeat

So, the No. 17 Kansas State Wildcats kicked off their season under the Dublin skies, clashing fiercely with the No. 22 Iowa State Cyclones — and ended up falling just short in a tight 24-21 loss. Now, it wasn’t exactly a flawless display from either side; in fact, the first half was quite the mess, with both squads fumbling for rhythm before heading into halftime deadlocked at 7-7. Coach Chris Klieman didn’t mince words postgame, acknowledging the inevitable rookie jitters of opener chaos—but it was that second half that really tipped the scales. You ever wonder how much a single half—or a couple of missed chances—can shape a whole season’s story? Klieman’s take? Disappointing, sure, but far from defining. The Wildcats got beaten by a solid team, yet pride and grit remain firmly intact as they look to bounce back and shake off the sting by next Saturday’s matchup against North Dakota. Sometimes, a heartbreaking loss just fuels the fire for what’s next. LEARN MORE

As the No. 17 Kansas State football team clashed with the No.22 Iowa State Cyclones in Dublin, Ireland, it ended with the Wildcats suffering from a 24-21 loss. It was a sloppy start for both the Kansas State football program and Iowa State, head coach Chris Klieman would speak about the game as a whole.

With both teams heading into halftime with a 7-7 tie, Klieman would say after the loss that with it being the first game of the season, there would be mistakes, but it came down to the frustrating second half, according to Simon Carroll.

“A really good football game. I knew two really good teams were playing each other, and it was game one, so there was going to be some mistakes, and I thought, kind of went back and forth, and at 7-7 in the first half, both teams had an opportunity, and both teams defenses stepped up and got big stops or turnovers in the red zone,” Klieman said. “And then we get to the second half, and we struggled with a little bit of rhythm at first offensively, and then they got a little bit of rhythm and were able to get up and score, proud of our guys, to come back and fight and get tied and go down again.”

“Bottom line, we’re disappointed.”

Chris Klieman on K-State’s 21-24 loss to Iowa State in Dublin pic.twitter.com/qVuTZJP6dw

— Simon Carroll (@NFLDraftSi) August 23, 2025

Kansas State football’s Chris Klieman on the opening loss

With the Kansas State football team looking to make a splash in the Big 12, there’s no doubt that the opener against Iowa State is a disappointing start. Klieman would echo the same sentiments after the game, expressing how the goal is not to let this game define them for the rest of the year.

“Bottom line, we’re disappointed. Came here expecting to win, and didn’t win,” Klieman said. “But I’m proud of the guys and like I told them in the locker room, regardless of what this game was, we have 11 more left, and if we allow it to eat us up. If we allow the outside noise to become a factor, which these guys ain’t let it happen.”

“I know that they’re not gonna let it happen because they see what I see, a really good football team,” Klieman continued. “They got beat by a really good football team. And so we’ve gotta go back, regroup, get some guys healthy. We were down some guys. We gotta get some guys back and get ready to go Saturday.”

At any rate, the Wildcats look to bounce back against North Dakota next Saturday.

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