As the football season continues to roll on, it's hard to believe how far the Wildcats have come.

Throughout the year, head coach Bill Snyder has focused on improving each week, and early on, it sounded like typical coach-speak. However, with Saturday's 17-10 win over the Kansas Jayhawks, the Wildcats showed they have indeed improved, which in this year's Big 12 North race, is all they need to reach the Big 12 Championship game.

It's at this point in the season that K-State fans start to look back and wonder what the Wildcats could have done if they would have taken care of business against Louisiana-Lafayette. Or even if they had beaten a UCLA team that since beating K-State has lost five of six games and is near the bottom of the Pac-10 Conference.

However, with those games in the books, it's the future that fans will look toward, and it all starts this week against Missouri. The Wildcats have put themselves in a strong position to reach the postseason, but they still need one more win. At this point in the season, three things can happen.

The worst-case scenario has the Wildcats losing their next two games and ending the season at 6-6 overall and 4-4 in the conference. This puts Nebraska in the title game and ends the Wildcats' season without reaching the postseason despite tallying six wins.

Normally needing just six wins to reach bowl eligibility, the Wildcats need seven this season because they are allowed to count only one win against an FCS school. K-State played two FCS teams this season, UMass and Tennessee Tech, meaning one of those wins does not count toward bowl eligibility.

A win against Missouri and a loss in Lincoln, Neb., against the Huskers brings about a second scenario. This option sends K-State to a bowl, because they get their seventh win against Missouri. However, it gives Nebraska a tie-breaker in the North race, which probably seals it for the Huskers. With games remaining against Kansas, K-State and Colorado, the Huskers could potentially beat the Wildcats and still not be North champions, but it's a long shot with the Jayhawks' recent poor play and the inconsistency of the Colorado Buffaloes.

Then, there's the best-case scenario. This one sees K-State beating both Missouri and Nebraska and reaching the Big 12 Championship game in Snyder's first year back. In the Big 12 Championship, they will likely play an undefeated Texas team, giving them the chance to defy the odds like they did against Oklahoma in 2003.

While it's unlikely they would upset the Longhorns, the team would get a better bowl after appearing in the Big 12 Championship game. If the Wildcats did upset the Longhorns, they would earn a trip to the Fiesta Bowl, and with a win there, could have arguably Snyder's best season as a Wildcat.

So, there you have it. The sky is the limit for this team, and as it has been said for a couple weeks now, the Wildcats control their own destiny.

I see the Wildcats winning the North and going to a bowl, but Texas will be too much for the them to handle. With the Wildcats' success this season at home, the Missouri game should be a win. Then, with everything on the line in Lincoln, I think they will empty the playbook and come up with a narrow victory over the Huskers.

Either way, Snyder is telling his team the same things he always tells them: to take each game one at a time and to improve each week.

Time will tell if the coach behind the greatest turnaround in college football history can do it again — this time in one season.

-Grant Guggisberg is a senior in print journalism. Please send comments to sports@spub.ksu.edu.