The Kansas Jayhawks football team has high expectations heading into the 2024 college football season.
To say expectations are high for the 2024 Kansas Jayhawks football team would be putting it very lightly. In the 28 years I have been alive for Jayhawk football, this is at worst the second most hyped team coming into a season. The year after going 12-1 and winning the Orange Bowl, the 2008 Jayhawks were ranked 14th in the preseason poll. Although they faced a much tougher schedule than the year prior, the five losses were a bit of a letdown. The 2024 Jayhawks will benefit from having an easier schedule than last year, adding even more fuel to the fire.
Kansas Jayhawks 2024 Schedule
Last year, two of the Jayhawk’s four losses came against ranked opponents, while a third came when KU quarterbacks Jalon Daniels and Jason Bean were injured. In 2024, there is just one preseason top-25 team on the schedule for Kansas. Additionally, they will play just two teams that were picked to finish eighth or higher in the Big 12 standings. That means they will play six of the bottom seven teams in the preseason conference poll. The schedule is built for success, and so is the roster.
The Jayhawks Offense
On offense, the skill position group will look virtually identical to last year’s team, which was 17th in the country in points per game. Daniels will lead a group that includes the 2023 team’s top two rushers and top five wide receivers. While the offensive line lost three starters, they will be replacing two of them with upperclassmen. The group as a whole may take a slight step back after losing an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention left tackle and center, but it should still be a solid unit in front of Daniels. As was the case in 2023, the offense will likely be the driving force for the Jayhawks.
The Kansas Defense
On defense, the Jayhawks will have to fill the void left by a few key players. Kansas lost their top pass rusher, linebacker, and safety from last season. However, they bring back one of the best cornerback duos in the entire country, which should help ease those losses. Like the offensive line, I expect the defense to take a step back, at least early in the season. It should be a group that gels as the year goes on, though. The entire projected starting lineup is made up of juniors and seniors, while the second unit has just one underclassmen, and even he is a redshirt sophomore.
The Staff
Whenever a team starts to have success, especially one that is in a smaller market, they run the risk of losing their coaches to higher caliber jobs. Unfortunately for the Jayhawks, that came to fruition this offseason. Andy Kotelnicki, who was Lance Leipold’s offensive coordinator at Wisconsin-Whitewater, Buffalo, and Kansas, was hired by Penn State in early December to fill the same role. He has been one of the key parts of this Kansas turnaround.
To fill his spot, the Jayhawks brought in Jeff Grimes, who has spent the past six seasons as the OC for BYU and Baylor. He was the play caller at BYU during Zach Wilson‘s tenure and helped Baylor go 12-2 in 2021. He is certainly no slouch and knows a thing or two about leading potent offenses.
There will also be a couple position groups with new coaches in 2024. Jordan Peterson, who had coached the secondary since 2020, took the same job at his alma mater Texas A&M. Filling his spot will be D.K. McDonald, who spent the past three seasons on the Philadelphia Eagles staff. However, while the Jayhawks pulled a coach from the NFL ranks, they also lost one.
Offensive line coach Scott Fuchs has joined the Tennessee Titans in the same role. Having coached seven All-Big 12 selections in his three seasons at Kansas, his replacement will have big shoes to fill. Daryl Agpalsa was Leipold’s choice to step into the position.
Agpalsa just so happened to have coached seven All-Conference selections in his five seasons at Northern Illinois. He is also very familiar with Leipold, having been on his staff for two seasons at Wisconsin-Whitewater and four seasons at Buffalo. Both of these coaches have the pedigree to replace those who left.
Expectations for the Kansas Jayhawks Football Team
Expectations are astronomical for this Kansas team compared to every other KU team in the past 15 years. In the past, it was considered a miracle if KU football made a bowl game. Now, there’s rumblings that Kansas has the potential to make the college football playoffs.
It has already been a monumental turnaround after just three seasons under coach Leipold, but now the pressure has risen with the expectations. With a litany of returning stars and a favorable schedule, the Jayhawks have more than just a bowl game on their minds. They have a CFP invitation in their crosshairs.
