Quarterback
Kansas State: Two-year starter Jake Waters improved upon his 2013 campaign with a solid senior season this year. Waters completed 66.2 percent of his passes, throwing for 3,163 yards and 20 touchdowns to just six interceptions en route to earning second-team All-Big 12 honors. His 9.1 yards per attempt is good for fifth in the country. He has played especially well of late, completing 79.6 percent of his passes for 594 yards, six touchdowns and just one interception in the Wildcats’ last two games. Waters is also extremely effective on the ground, rushing for 471 yards and eight scores, good for second on the team in both categories.
UCLA: Brett Hundley enters his final game at UCLA as the school’s all-time leader in touchdown passes and is just 165 passing yards shy of 10,000 for his career. The three-year starter has thrown for more than 3,000 yards each season and finished his redshirt junior year as college football’s fourth-most accurate passer, completing 70.4 percent of his passes – just 0.5 below the top mark in the nation. Hundley once again proved himself a lethal runner, finishing the season with 548 yards and eight scores on the ground.
Edge: UCLA. Hundley and Waters posted extremely similar numbers through the air and on the ground, but the UCLA signal caller gets the edge. While Waters’ numbers take a hit against top-25 teams, Hundley’s completion percentage, yards per attempt, touchdown-interception ratio and quarterback rating have been higher against ranked squads.
Running Back
Kansas State: The Wildcats go with a by-committee approach in the backfield with three players – senior Jake Waters, sophomore Charles Jones and senior DeMarcus Robinson – carrying the ball more than 100 times each this year. Jones leads the team with 521 yards on the ground, with a longest rush of just 18 yards. He is extremely effective in the red zone however, totaling 13 touchdowns on the season. Meanwhile, Robinson averages just 4.1 yards per rush and has reached the end zone only four times this year. The Wildcats rarely use either of these running backs in the passing game, as the duo hauled in 16 receptions between them this season.
UCLA: Paul Perkins emerged out of a crowded Bruins backfield to lead the Pac-12 in rushing, finishing the regular season with 1,378 yards. The redshirt sophomore running back proved himself extremely consistent, topping more than 90 yards on the ground in nine contests and averaged 6 yards per carry for the year. Perkins is also a viable threat in the passing game, totaling 26 receptions for 201 yards and two scores.
Edge: UCLA. While Jones and Robinson are effective enough rushers, neither have surpassed 100 yards rushing in a single game this year, with Jones’ 76 yards against UTEP the highest mark among them.
Receivers
Kansas State: Senior wideouts Tyler Lockett and Curry Sexton account for 154 of Waters’ 231 completions, and are the only Wildcats’ receivers with more than 20 receptions. While Sexton hauled in 69 of those for 955 yards, Lockett is the standout of the two.
The senior broke every major Kansas State career receiving record, surpassing his father Kevin Lockett in receptions, yards and touchdowns on his way to earning first-team All-Big 12 honors. He exceeded 100 yards receiving in seven contests, including the final four of the regular season – posting 44 receptions for 669 yards and four scores over that stretch.
UCLA: Junior Jordan Payton is Hundley’s go-to option with 63 receptions, 896 yards and seven touchdowns – first in every category. Hundley likes to spread the ball around though, as seven players enter with more than 20 receptions. Junior receiver Devin Fuller is always an option in the flat, while sophomore receiver Thomas Duarte – when healthy – provides a big target in the intermediate passing game.
Edge: Kansas State. Quality or quantity? It’s a fairly even matchup but the nod goes to the Wildcats, who will have the most dynamic threat – Lockett – when the two teams square off on Jan. 2.
Offensive line
Kansas State: The Wildcats are led up front by redshirt senior center B.J. Finney – the Big 12’s 2014 Co-Offensive Lineman of the Year and a finalist for the Rimington Trophy, which is presented to the nation’s top center. Redshirt junior Cody Whitehair protects Waters’ blind side at left tackle and earned second-team All-Big 12 honors for his efforts this season and last.
UCLA: After a rough start to the year, UCLA’s O-line came into its own down the stretch of the season, seeing much improved play once redshirt sophomore Conor McDermott took over at left tackle. However, the Bruins offensive line struggled mightily in their most recent outing, surrendering five sacks to the Stanford Cardinal on Nov. 28. UCLA’s 39 sacks allowed are the most in the Pac-12.
Edge: Kansas State. While UCLA played better in the latter half of the season, Kansas State is an overall more experienced, polished group that has consistently protected Waters throughout the year, allowing 24 sacks in 12 games.
Defensive line
Kansas State: The Wildcats are led up front by first-team All-Big 12 selection Ryan Mueller, who finished the regular season with team-highs in both sacks – 5.5 – and tackles for loss – 9.5. The senior earned conference Defensive Lineman of the Year a season ago and plays the game with a tremendous motor. Junior Travis Britz provides a physical presence inside.
UCLA: The Bruins interior tandem of sophomore defensive linemen Eddie Vanderdoes and Kenny Clark is among the best duos in the nation. When both are on their game, they can take one over by clogging run lanes and getting in the quarterback’s face. Defensive end Owamagbe Odighizuwa emerged as UCLA’s best pass rusher in the latter half of the season, totaling four sacks in the Bruins’ final six games. The redshirt senior also has the versatility to line up on the edge or inside along the defensive front. Takkarist McKinley – a hyper-athletic sophomore – comes in on passing downs.
Edge: UCLA. While Mueller is a standout player in his own right, Clark and Vanderdoes are two of the better players at their position while Odighizuwa has played extremely well as of late.
Linebackers
Kansas State: Redshirt senior Jonathan Truman went from walk-on to second-team All-Big 12 during his stay in Manhattan, Kan. The outside backer has a nose for the ball, as his 114 tackles are 41 more than the next closest Wildcat. Freshman Elijah Lee leads all linebackers with 4.5 sacks, which ranks second on the team.
UCLA: The Bruins are led by two of the best linebackers in the country, sophomore Myles Jack and redshirt senior and 2014 Butkus Award-winner Eric Kendricks. Jack is an athletic marvel who excels in coverage and is capable of covering a team’s best receiver. Meanwhile Kendricks is incredibly instinctual and flies all over the field, posting a Pac-12-high 96 solo tackles. Sophomore Deon Hollins provides a pass rushing threat off of the edge while freshman Kenny Young has done an admirable job in the team’s 3-4 defense.
Edge: UCLA. It doesn’t get much better than Kendricks and Jack, two versatile playmakers who are among the best linebackers in the nation.
Defensive backs
Kansas State: The Wildcats boast perhaps one of the best secondaries in the Big-12, led by former walk-on turned first-team All-Big 12 selection Randall Evans. The senior, who can play either corner or safety, led the team in breakups and passes defended and tied for third in the conference with four interceptions. Junior safety Dante Barnett is a two-year starter and, like Evans, has a nose for the ball after tallying three interceptions and 73 tackles – both good for second on the team. Junior cornerback Danzel McDaniel is a junior college transfer who excelled in his first year with the Wildcats, earning second-team Big 12 honors in helping Kansas State to the conference’s third best pass defense.
UCLA: Junior Ishmael Adams earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors while fellow junior cornerback Fabian Moreau played better down the stretch after a disappointing start to the season. Freshman safety Jaleel Wadood has not looked like a first-year player after taking over for injured junior safety Randall Goforth early in the season. Sophomore safety Tahaan Goodman is a big-hitter in the middle of the field. Like Adams, redshirt senior Anthony Jefferson has the versatility to play both cornerback and safety and do it well. Together, the group ranked second in the Pac-12 in pass defense after allowing 243.3 yards per game.
Edge: Kansas State. It’s a fairly even matchup, with both secondaries allowing less than 245 pass yards per game.
Special Teams
Kansas State: Lockett is a two-time Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Year after returning two punts for scores this season. Redshirt punter Nick Walsh averaged 40.5 yards per punt in his first year as the starter while fellow redshirt freshman kicker Matt McCrane had a sensational year, converting 16 of 17 field goals.
UCLA: Like Lockett, Adams is a dynamic return man who affects opposing kick coverages like few others. Junior kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn connected on 80 percent of his field goals this year, and has hit 11 of his last 12. But questions surround his ability to make clutch kicks after missing a potential game-winner in UCLA’s loss to Utah. Like Walsh, junior Matt Mengel is a serviceable punter, averaging 39.7 yards per attempt.
Edge: Kansas State. Lockett and Adams are two of the most dangerous returners in college football, so that’s a wash, as are Walsh and Mengel. The Wildcats get the edge due to McCrane, the more consistent of the two kickers.