Kansas’ backfield took another hit this week, and this one looks serious.
Yasin Willis, who left the Arizona State game in the second half and was later spotted in street clothes with a boot on his leg, is now out indefinitely after surgery last week, Lance Leipold said Monday. The Kansas coach said a return this season is “up in the air,” and “probably leaning towards doubtful, unfortunately. Which then leads into kind of some of the things that we've done.”
That news lands in the middle of a messy start for the Jayhawks, who are 1-2 and dealing with far more than just the scoreboard. The injury list has been stacking up since preseason, when Tre’von McAlpine went down.
Since then, Kansas has also lost linebacker Bam Crouch just two drives into the season, while wideout Cam Pickett has barely been available because of injury. Tight end Carson Bruhn did not play against Arizona State, and cornerback Syeed Gibbs was one of the players hurt in that game as well.
Leipold said the program added defensive tackle Clifton Thompson and running back Chase Belcher last week, and both are expected to help. The timing makes sense, because Kansas is suddenly thin at a spot that looked like a strength not long ago.
“Because that's three scholarship running backs that are out for the season. So, you know, it's an unfortunate thing right now.”
That’s the reality now for a room that opened the year with Dylan Edwards, Willis and Jalen Dupree as the expected top three. Edwards battled an injury-riddled 2025 season and appeared in only four games for the Wildcats last season. Willis is now done for the year, and Dupree wasn’t fully healthy enough to get snaps against Arizona State.
Willis had been productive before the injury hit. Through three games, he ran for 125 yards, averaged 4.6 yards per carry and scored two touchdowns. With him out, Dupree is next up in the No. 2 role, though his own injury history makes that a shaky handoff for Kansas as it tries to piece things together.
In Other News...
Kansas Defensive Front Has Become An Early Surprise For One Reason
Kansas went into the season bracing for a dent on its defensive front when Tulane transfer TreVon McAlpine was ruled out, but the early returns have been encouraging anyway. Through the first three games, the Jayhawks have gotten noticeably better play up front, with the defense looking more disruptive and more steady than it did a year ago.
A big part of that change has come from the staff additions of Joe Dineen and Jim Panagos, whose impact is already showing in the way Kansas is attacking the line of scrimmage. The front has produced meaningful pressure and created more problems for opposing offenses, and even with McAlpine sidelined, the group has found enough answers to turn a preseason concern into one of the teams early bright spots. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Fans Are Starting To See A New Go-To Target Emerge
Kansas has spent the early part of the 2025 season sorting out a receiver room that looks very different from a year ago, and the transfer additions are already shaping the offense. With injuries thinning out other options, Nik McMillan and Nahzae Cox have stepped into heavier roles, giving Isaiah Marshall a pair of dependable targets as the Jayhawks work through the first month under returning offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki.
The passing game still has room to grow, especially with Kansas sitting near the middle of the pack nationally through three games, but the volume has ticked up from previous seasons and the new-look receiving corps is starting to settle in. McMillan has been the steady presence, while Cox has provided the more explosive threat, and that combination is beginning to give Kansas fans a clearer sense of where the ball is headed when the Jayhawks drop back. [Read more 🡒]
Jalon Daniels Suddenly Has A Huge NFL Chance With The Bucs
Jalon Daniels is suddenly getting the kind of opening most undrafted quarterbacks can only hope for when they sign their first NFL contract. After impressing in the preseason, the former Kansas star is now in line to run Tampa Bays offense against Green Bay as the Buccaneers navigate a shakeup at quarterback and look for someone ready to keep the ship steady.
The opportunity comes with real stakes, because the job is open at a time when the margin for error is thin and the spotlight will be bright. Tampa Bay will be watching Daniels closely when the game kicks off Oct. 4 on FOX, and what happens next could say plenty about whether his strong summer can carry over into a much bigger stage. [Read more 🡒]