Lance Leipold says Kansas football is ‘flipping that switch’ as Liberty Bowl game nears
MEMPHIS — Kansas football’s bowl game is only a day away now.
Coach Lance Leipold and the Jayhawks aren’t far off from their 4:30 p.m. kickoff in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis. They aren’t far off from representing the Big 12 Conference in a battle against a Southeastern Conference program, Arkansas (6-6, 3-5 in SEC). And with a victory, Kansas (6-6, 3-6 in Big 12) would have its first bowl game win since 2008.
“We’re starting to get at that point now where we’ve gone through all this prep … which is all new territory for us, start getting ready,” Leipold said, “and I think you see us kind of flipping that switch and excited to get going.”
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Here’s more of what Leipold had to say:
Kansas isn’t happy just getting to a bowl game
Ending the drought between bowl appearances could be enough for some. The month of extra development could be enough, too. But Leipold was adamant the Jayhawks came to win the game.
The team is still developing its culture. It’s still early in Leipold’s tenure at the helm, given he is in just his second year in charge. A victory could give Kansas a lot of momentum moving forward.
RELATED:Kansas football arrives for Liberty Bowl matchup against Arkansas in Memphis
Lance Leipold sees a talented Arkansas roster, even with some key guys missing
Leipold understands there are some Razorbacks, including some key contributors, who aren’t going to be available for Arkansas in the game. But when he looked over the depth charts for his opponent’s past few games, he felt the Razorbacks were still going to be able to have a starting lineup that is pretty much intact. And on top of that, although Arkansas’ depth might be affected, it’s still a SEC-caliber roster in his eyes.
Leipold envisions Kansas will be able to tell how the game is going to unfold, personnel-wise, as the early moments are played. And it doesn’t sound as if he is anticipating any rust the Razorbacks will have to work off. Leipold pointed to how Arkansas has had multiple weeks to prepare for this game.
The past few weeks have been beneficial for quarterback Jalon Daniels
Earlier this season, Jayhawks junior quarterback Jalon Daniels missed four games due to injury. But in addition to being able to rest like others who played a lot during the season or got banged up, he’s also been able to maximize on the extra practice time to help make up for what he’s missed. Leipold hopes that all shows itself Wednesday.
It’s because of Daniels’ quality play to start the season, in large part, that Kansas was able to get off to a 5-0 start. Had he not suffered an injury in October against TCU, the Jayhawks’ first loss of the season, there’s a chance Kansas is in an even better position right now. He’s been that impactful.
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas football is ‘flipping that switch’ as Liberty Bowl game nears
