35 Days to 2026 Kickoff: Kansas State’s Gabe Powers brings a transfer edge at WILL

Kansas State’s 2026 season picture begins to take shape with the Wildcats looking at how their linebacker group fits together at game speed. In a 35-days-to-kickoff feature from Yahoo Sports BracketCat, Kansas State linebacker Gabe Powers is highlighted as a transfer addition who figures to matter in the day-to-day mechanics of the defense, particularly at WILL.

The profile identifies Powers as a linebacker who transferred in from Ohio State and arrived with the background of playing in a major program environment. The report also frames his role around Kansas State’s internal need to replace Austin Moore at WILL, a spot that often carries responsibilities tied to positioning, quick reads, and involvement in the opening phases of defensive plays.

According to the feature, Powers has been part of Kansas State’s effort to cover the WILL workload that Moore handled previously. That matters because, in most 3-4 and 4-2-5-style looks, the WILL position frequently becomes a hinge point for run fits and for responding to motion and tempo changes. The Wildcats’ ability to keep that “first decision” level consistent is a reliable barometer for how the defense performs late in drives.

The same piece notes Powers’ personal details as well, listing his birthday as Jan. 13, 2004 and noting his academic major in criminal justice. For college football players, the academic track can sometimes influence how they are integrated during the offseason, including the structure of summer routines and the timing of classroom commitments relative to team workouts.

From a roster-construction standpoint, the Kansas State linebacker room is the kind of unit that can look stable on paper while still requiring careful coaching to translate scheme concepts into consistent habits. A transfer linebacker can shorten that learning curve, but only if the fit is real at the position. The mention of Powers replacing Moore at WILL is therefore significant, not because it guarantees a final depth-chart outcome, but because it suggests the staff viewed him as capable of handling the specific needs of that role.

Still, the feature is a countdown profile rather than a roster announcement with official depth-chart language, and it does not provide measurable details such as snap counts, specific statistical production, or confirmed offseason plans. With that caveat, the central takeaway is straightforward: Kansas State appears to be working toward continuity in the WILL slot by leaning on Powers’ experience and fit after last season’s transition.

What to watch next for Kansas State is how Powers’ role is defined as the Wildcats move from offseason work into preseason evaluations. In particular, attention will likely turn to how quickly he settles into the responsibilities that come with the WILL label, and whether his assignment pattern changes as the staff packages run-defense and coverage packages for the 2026 opener.

If Powers is indeed the bridge at WILL that the report implies, his development will be less about headline moments and more about reliability. The defense’s ability to diagnose plays early, take correct angles, and respond to misdirection often starts with the linebackers’ first steps, and the WILL position sits near the heart of those first steps.