Kansas State football vs. NC State in Pop-Tarts Bowl: Score prediction, scouting report

When Kansas State football faces North Carolina State in the Pop-Tarts Bowl on Dec. 28 in Orlando, it will mark the first-ever meeting between the two schools on the football field and also the Wildcats' first bowl appearance in Florida.

Kickoff for the game, which will be televised by ESPN, is scheduled for 4:45 p.m. CT at Camping World Stadium.

K-State finished the regular season at 8-4 with a 42-35 loss to Iowa State on Nov. 25 and tied for fourth in the Big 12 with a 6-3 record. The Wildcats were ranked No. 25 in the final College Football Playoff poll.

North Carolina, 9-3 overall, closed the regular season on a five-game winning streak and finished third in the Atlantic Coast Conference at 6-3.

Here are five things to know, plus a prediction, ahead of the Pop-Tarts Bowl:

Related: Kansas State football's transfer portal departures piling up following regular season

NC State coach Dave Doeren no stranger to Kansas

North Carolina State coach Dave Doeren has plenty of ties to the state of Kansas.

He was born in Shawnee, his first coaching job was as an assistant at Shawnee Mission Northwest High School, and he served as co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Kansas in 2005 under Mark Mangino.

Mangino, a former K-State assistant, is not Doeren's only connection to the Wildcats. He also was an assistant at Wisconsin under Brett Bielema, a former K-State defensive coordinator.

Related: Kansas State football senior quarterback Will Howard enters transfer portal, won't return

Kansas State has a new starting quarterback

With senior Will Howard entering the transfer portal last week, true freshman Avery Johnson will make his first start at quarterback for K-State in the Pop-Tarts Bowl.

Johnson played in seven regular-season games for the Wildcats this year and was separated from Howard by only the word "or" on the depth chart for much of the season after tying a school record with five rushing touchdowns in a 38-21 victory at Texas Tech on Oct. 14.

For the season, Johnson completed 65.7% of his passes for 301 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. He also rushed for 225 yards and six scores.

Related: The regular season is over, so what's next for Kansas State football?

Two Wolfpack players to watch

North Carolina State linebacker Payton Wilson was named ACC defensive player of the year and leads the team with 138 tackles, including 17.5 for loss and six sacks. He also has three interceptions, six pass breakups and two fumble recoveries.

The Wolfpack also boasts a rising star in freshman wide receiver Kevin Concepcion, a second-team ACC selection and the conference's rookie of the year and offensive rookie of the year. He is N.C. State's leading receiver by a wide margin, catching 64 passes for 767 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Related: Kansas State football's Cooper Beebe repeats as Big 12 offensive lineman of the year

Chris Klieman expects most Wildcats to play

While Howard, senior running back Treshaun Ward and sophomore cornerback Will Lee are transferring, K-State coach Chris Klieman said Sunday that he doesn't anticipate any of his seniors to opt out of the game.

That includes All-American Cooper Beebe, an Outland Trophy finalist and projected first-round NFL Draft pick.

"We've kind of met with a lot of our players last week, and I think everybody's really excited about playing one more time together in this bowl game," Klieman said.

Pop-Tarts Bowl just the latest name for this game

While this is the first year for the game to be known as the Pop-Tarts Bowl, it has been around for quite some time.

Since the turn of the century alone, it has been known as the Tangerine Bowl (2001-03), Champs Sports Bowl (2004-2011), Russell Athletic Bowl (2012-16), Camping World Bowl (2017-19) and most recently as the Cheez-It Bowl.

During their Pop-Tarts Bowl news conference, both head coaches were asked for their favorite Pop-Tart flavors. Klieman chose chocolate fudge and Doeren countered with brown sugar.

Prediction: North Carolina State 28, K-State 24

While momentum is difficult to sustain from the regular season through a late-December bowl game, N.C. State won its last five games, beating Clemson, Miami and North Carolina during that stretch. K-State is breaking in a new starting quarterback and lost a handful of key contributors to the transfer portal, so give the edge to the Wolfpack.

Arne Green is based in Salina and covers Kansas State University sports for the Gannett network. He can be reached at agreen@gannett.com or on Twitter at @arnegreen.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas State football vs. NC State in Pop-Tarts Bowl scouting report