Kansas Jayhawks Q&A: KU football thoughts, Bill Self’s recruiting tear + best transfers

Kansas football is one week from kickoff against Missouri State and there’s more hype/pressure around KU than there’s been for nearly a decade.

It marks a pivotal third year for the Lance Leipold tenure — a season in which winning wouldn’t surprise the Jayhawks’ fanbase.

How Kansas plays also goes hand-in-hand with renovations at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. If the Jayhawks win just four games, it’s likely the momentum that’s building around the football program will vanish. KU still hopes to raise $135 million of its $300 million fundraising goal, so qualifying for another bowl seems crucial.

Collecting alums’ money amid and after another successful season would undoubtedly be easier.

Here are three more things to consider as the season opener nears:

Jalon Daniels’ health

The health of Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels is paramount. He missed four games last season with a shoulder injury but still earned second-team All-Big 12 honors — a testament to his talent.

But Daniels has been dealing with tightness in his back since Aug. 7. When asked about it Wednesday, coach Lance Leipold said he’s progressing. “If I am saying (this) in a week or so from now,” Leipold noted recently, “we can probably dive in deeper.”

It’s been almost three weeks since he said that. Look, I doubt Daniels misses the first game, but missing half of camp wasn’t a great sign.

His health is critical to KU’s success.

KU’s defense should be better, but how much better?

I expect KU’s defense, which ranked No. 127 in the nation last season, to be better. How much better remains to be seen.

Thanks to internal improvement and transfers, KU’s defense is poised to make a leap. And that’s crucial to the Jayhawks’ hopes of making another bowl appearance and competing for the conference title.

KU’s special teams will be excellent

Leipold hired former K-State coordinator (and punter) Sean Snyder in April, and his special-teams resume is outstanding.

KU’s special teams ranked No. 128 in ESPN’s SP+ last season. SP+ is a tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency. Between the addition of Snyder and the arrival of some notable transfers, I expect Kansas to be a top-50 unit in SP+ by the end of the season.

With that, it’s time for another Kansas Jayhawks Q&A. As always, thank you for the questions!

The answer to the first question is offensive lineman Calvin Clements, who’s impressed his coaches and teammates during fall camp. He’s already playing second-string snaps!

As for your second question, I will go with Daniels or running back Devin Neal. If Daniels stays healthy and puts together another stellar season, I suspect he will declare for the NFL Draft. Neal was excellent last season; if he’s a little better this fall and declares, he, too, would be drafted.

I’m not sure about the biggest trap game — maybe Wichita State?

As for the leading scorer, it’ll be big man Hunter Dickinson. He’s going to get a lot of touches and the offense will run through him. And he’s said he plans on shooting more 3-pointers.

For football, it’s Colorado State transfer Devin Phillips. The defensive tackle has started every game in his college career (36) and should immediately help ease concerns about KU’s defensive line.

In basketball, the easy answer is Dickinson. He should have a monster year.

Leipold has undoubtedly put together an impressive showing with the class of 2024, but next to Bill Self, it’s hard to compete.

Self not only landed Dickinson this summer, but also Flory Bidunga (the best center in the class of 2024), Arterio Morris (one of the best guards in the class of 2022) and Johnny Furphy (a four-star forward).

That doesn’t include Self’s other transfers. And he’s been on an absolute recruiting tear lately. No other coach in college basketball can compete.

I think the answer to both questions is Neal, who will get more touches and opportunities than Hishaw.

Ooh, that’s a good question. I will say about 2% — which might be overestimating it.