Fresno State vs. Kansas Picks & Predictions: August 23, 2025

Our Week 0 coverage continues, and the Sunflower State is getting plenty of love early in the college football season. Not only are the Kansas State Wildcats taking on the Iowa State Cyclones in a marquee matchup in Dublin, Ireland, but the Kansas Jayhawks are opening things up in their newly renovated stadium by hosting the Fresno State Bulldogs, and we’ve got our favorite picks and predictions in the contest.

Check out the latest odds at the best online sportsbooks. Plus, you’ve still got some time to add more futures to your portfolio so be sure to check out our Power Four Conference Previews below.

Fresno State Bulldogs vs. Kansas Jayhawks NCAA Football Insights

Jalon Daniels is back to lead the Jayhawks this NCAA Football season

As stated above, Kansas is breaking in a brand new stadium this season. Last year, they played at Children’s Mercy Park (Home of Sporting KC) and Arrowhead Stadium while renovations took place. They aren’t quite finished with the new build, but they’ve done enough to have it game-ready for this fall.

There’s plenty of excitement surrounding Jayhawk football recently, and even after they didn’t exceed expectations last season, they’ve got their QB back for one more go around.

Jalon Daniels is back again to lead the Jayhawks’ offense. He turns 23 in October making him one of the country’s oldest football players. Nevertheless, the senior has another year of eligibility and he expects to get the Jayhawks into the Big 12 Championship discussion.

As for the Fresno State Bulldogs, they begin life after Mikey Keene, who transferred to Michigan after throwing for nearly 3,000 yards in each of his two seasons as a starter. They bring in E.J. Warner to lead the offense. He threw for 3,000 yards in each of his two seasons at Temple, and for 2,710 yards with a 62% completion rate last season at Rice. However he has control issues.

Warner has throw at least 12 interceptions in each season as a starter, tossing just 17 touchdowns with 13 picks last season. Will that be enough for the Bulldogs to pull off this upset, or at least cover, in Lawrence?

Bryson Donelson leads the Bulldogs this season as their lead running back

Matchup Information – Fresno State vs. Kansas – August 23

Venue & Location: David Booth Memorial Stadium (Lawrence, KS)
Date: Saturday, August 23, 2025
Kick Off: 6:30 p.m. Eastern
Broadcast: FOX

Fresno State vs. Kansas Betting Odds

Odds are courtesy of BetOnline, one of our favorite online sportsbooks, as of August 19, 2025 at 2:07 p.m. eastern. Sign up today with Promo Code FREE250 for a 50% deposit bonus up to $250 as well as 100 Free Spins at the online casino.

Spread

Fresno State +12.5 (-110)
Kansas -12.5 (-110)

Moneyline

Fresno State +350
Kansas -450

Total

Over 50.5 (-110)
Under 50.5 (-110)

The Jayhawks put up 28 points per game last season, and even scored 33.7 at home. They’ve got some intangibles on their side as well, as the atmosphere surrounding the first game in a new stadium has to be electric. Daniels is at the helm of the offense with senior RB Daniel Hishaw taking over the lead rushing role for Devin Neal.

All Hishaw knows is how to run linebackers over, and his presence should certainly set up some play-action long balls over the top of the defense. The problem for the Jayhawks last season was their defense, but they have a revamped secondary who are ready to stop holding this team back.

One thing we know, Kansas is going to score. The Fresno defense is good, but the Jayhawks new wide receivers might be too much to handle, so I’ll be backing the hosts to find the end zone plenty.

Fresno State vs. Kansas NCAA Football Picks and Predictions

Daniel Hishaw takes over as the Jayhawks’ lead running back

Fresno State vs. Kansas Prediction: Kansas Wins, Fresno Covers, Over 50.5

Best Bet: Kansas 1H Team Total Over 16.5 (-120) Bovada

Last season, the Jayhawks were a top 30 team in terms of first half scoring, putting up 17.3 points in the first two quarters last season. They cleared this number in 6/12 contests last year, scoring 14 total points in the first half three separate times as well.

Kansas won three of their last four games down the stretch, all three over ranked opponents. Things were trending in the right direction, and being inside a newly renovated building, I expect this offense to show out and give their fans something to cheer about, building off last season’s momentum-filled finish.

It was announced that David Booth donated another 300 million dollars (on top of the already donated 50 million) towards the football program. At the very least, the players should respond with a resounding “Thank You” coming from their excellent play on a field named after the donor.

I trust this Jayhawks’ offense to put some points on the board, just like they did last season with Daniels leading the offense all year. Taking the defense out of the equation, I believe the offense is more than capable of three scores before the break on Saturday at home.

Now, this is a number the Bulldogs only gave up three times in the first half last season. But they gave up double digits in the first half four separate times, including three scores in the first half twice, resulting in 13 points allowed. On the road, with all the excitement surrounding the Jayhawks football team, the Bulldogs’ defense might be a little star struck, leading to some early mistakes and chunk plays by the Kansas offense.

Give me 17 quick points from the Jayhawks in their first game at the newly renovated Booth!

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Fresno State Bulldogs vs. Kansas Jayhawks Picks and Predictions