[4] Kansas State finished their regular season with an overall 7–5 record, 4–5 in Big 12 games.
Kansas State faced two ranked teams in FBS during the season, losing to Oklahoma and Baylor.
LSU finished their regular season with an overall 6–6 record, 3–5 in SEC play.
[7] With the loss to Kansas State in the bowl game, LSU suffered their first losing season since 1999.
Kirklin had not played as a quarterback since high school in 2016 but was still picked as the starter over Nussmeier in order to preserve his redshirt status.