Here’s where the K-State Wildcats and KU Jayhawks could end up playing in bowl games

Here’s a potential sign that the Sunflower Showdown is on its way to becoming a more competitive football rivalry: KU and K-State are about to play each other in a game that will have bowl implications ... for the second consecutive season.

Last year, the Wildcats clinched a spot in the Big 12 championship game by defeating the Jayhawks 47-27 and then went on to the Sugar Bowl while Kansas settled for an invitation to the Liberty Bowl.

This year, a wide range of bowl possibilities exist for both teams.

Both K-State (7-3, 5-3 Big 12) and KU (7-3, 4-3 Big 12) remain alive in the race for a Big 12 championship. The winner of Saturday’s game in Lawrence will strengthen its position in the league standings and improve its bowl stock as the regular season draws to a close.

With that in mind, it’s never too early to explore bowl possibilities.

Here is a look at the latest projections:

K-State Wildcats bowl outlook

Remaining schedule: at Kansas, Iowa State.

Current Big 12 rank: T2

Bowl projections: Pop-Tarts Bowl vs. North Carolina State via The Action Network, Pop-Tarts Bowl vs. North Carolina via The Athletic, Liberty Bowl vs. Tennessee via Yahoo! Sports, Liberty Bowl vs. Kentucky via Sporting News, Liberty Bowl vs. Mississippi State via CBS Sports.

Analysis: College football teams usually begin to gain clarity on their bowl outlook at this time of year, but that is not the case for anyone in the Big 12 this season.

Now that BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF have joined the league, uneven schedules have led to never-before-seen parity in the conference standings. Texas is all alone in first place. Four teams are tied for second. Three more remain alive in the pursuit of a league championship.

Things are so chaotic that there is even one scenario in which eight teams could tie for first with 6-3 conference records.

With so much uncertainty clouding the final two weeks of the regular season, it is more difficult than ever to accurately predict where any team will end up this bowl season.

Still, some bowl destinations seem more likely than others for the Wildcats. Their best-case scenario is another automatic berth into one of the New Year’s Six bowls. K-State can clinch a spot in one of the major bowl games by winning the Big 12. Last year, it was the Sugar Bowl. This year it would more likely be the Cotton Bowl, because the Sugar Bowl will host a semifinal game in the College Football Playoff.

If K-State falls short of another Big 12 title, the next best option would be the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio followed by the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando and then the Texas Bowl in Houston.

Should the Wildcats win their final two games and miss out on a return trip to the Big 12 title game, they would be well positioned to play in the Pop-Tarts Bowl. K-State has never played a bowl game in Florida, so that could make the Wildcats an attractive choice over other Big 12 teams.

The Alamo Bowl could also become a realistic destination if the Wildcats keep winning, but some assume that bowl would rather grab Oklahoma and USC before both teams leave for other conferences.

If K-State misses out on both of those games, the Texas Bowl would be next in line. The Wildcats beat LSU there at the end of the 2021 season.

It’s interesting that so many bowl projections have K-State going to Memphis for the Liberty Bowl. The Wildcats have played there twice in recent years. The guess here is that K-State would rather play in the Guaranteed Bowl in Phoenix than go back to Memphis for a third time in seven years.

Phoenix could also become a realistic destination for the Wildcats if they drop either of their final two games.

Kansas Jayhawks bowl outlook

Remaining schedule: K-State, at Cincinnati

Current Big 12 rank: T6

Bowl possibilities: Guaranteed Rate Bowl vs. Northwestern via The Action Network, Texas Bowl vs. Auburn via CBS Sports, Texas Bowl vs. Texas A&M via Yahoo! Sports and The Athletic, Pop-Tarts Bowl vs. Duke via Sporting News.

Analysis: The Big 12 will send at least seven teams to bowl games this season, and the Jayhawks will be one of them.

Depending on how Lance Leipold’s team plays over the next two weeks, KU could end up in one of the Big 12’s best postseason games.

Two more wins would push the Jayhawks to a 9-3 record, which would force every bowl game with a Big 12 tie-in to consider them. That would put them in the running for the Alamo Bowl or the Pop-Tarts Bowl. Even a NY6 bowl is on the table until KU is eliminated from Big 12 championship contention.

If KU splits its final two games and finishes 8-4 some of those games may be off the table. But the Jayhawks would still be prime candidates for the Texas Bowl and the Guaranteed Rate Bowl.

The Liberty Bowl seems like less of a possibility after KU played there last season.

Most of the bowl projections have KU ending up in Houston in the moment, which makes sense because it has never before played in the Texas Bowl.

If Kansas loses its final two games, then it may be hoping for a spot in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl with the Armed Forces Bowl, First Responder Bowl and Independence Bowl serving as backup options.