Kansas’ trip to Utah now has a start time and a television home.
The Jayhawks will kick off at 9:15 p.m. CT next weekend in Salt Lake City, with ESPN carrying the game. A broadcast crew has not been announced yet.
It will be Kansas’ first road game at Utah this century, and the matchup comes with a little history attached. KU is trying to end a three-game skid against the Utes after last year’s 31-21 loss, a game that slipped away in the fourth quarter.
Before that, the teams hadn’t played since 1996. They also met in a home-and-home set in 1993 and 1996, with Utah winning in Lawrence in 1993 and in Salt Lake City in 1996.
Utah leads the series 3-2.
Utah will be coming off its only bye week of the season. The Utes opened 4-0 with Power 4 wins over Arkansas at home and Iowa State on the road, and every one of their victories has come in control.
Kansas has a game against Middle Tennessee this week before turning its attention west. The Jayhawks are 5-11 on the road since the start of the 2023 season.
Utah is in its first season under head coach Morgan Scalley. He took over after Kyle Whittingham’s departure last offseason. Scalley had been Utah’s longtime defensive coordinator, and his connection to the program runs deep - he spent his entire coaching career there after playing defensive back for the Utes in the early 2000s.
In Other News...
Kansas Backfield Just Became Lance Leipolds Biggest Early Problem
Kansas early-season injury list keeps growing, and the latest blow has hit the part of the roster that can least afford it. The Jayhawks have already been dealing with absences across both sides of the ball, with linebacker Bam Crouch, wide receiver Cam Pickett, tight end Carson Bruhn and cornerback Syeed Gibbs among the players sidelined, but the backfield has quickly become the most immediate concern for Lance Leipold and his staff.
Running back Yasin Willis is now out after surgery, leaving the Jayhawks scrambling to keep depth intact in the ground game. To help steady things, Kansas added defensive tackle Clifton Thompson and running back Chase Belcher last week, a move that underscored just how thin the room has become with three scholarship backs unavailable. The bigger question now is how long the Jayhawks can piece things together before the strain starts showing on Saturdays. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Just Got A Melvin Council Twist Fans Werent Expecting
A legal wrinkle has put Melvin Council Jr. back into the Kansas conversation just as the offseason picture was starting to settle. A judge in Monroe County, New York, issued a preliminary injunction that keeps the guard eligible for the 2026-27 basketball season and bars the NCAA from reaching back with retroactive penalties against him or any school that might roster him.
For Kansas, the immediate intrigue is less about a finished answer than the uncertainty around where this leaves Council next. He was recently listed in the student directory, but the university has not confirmed enrollment, and the injunctions length is still unclear. The NCAA also could appeal, which means the situation remains fluid even as Jayhawks fans look for signs that one more roster piece may be falling into place. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Just Reentered A Debate Jayhawks Fans Will Love
Kansas found its way back into a conversation that had initially left the Jayhawks on the outside looking in. CBS Sports analyst Gary Parrish revised his preseason college basketball rankings and slid Bill Selfs team into the mix at No. 18, a notable turn after Kansas had been omitted in his first pass. The update reflects the kind of roster optimism that tends to travel well in Lawrence, with fifth-year forward Tre White back in the fold and a recruiting class that adds real buzz, headlined by top prospect Tyran Stokes.
Kansas case, though, is still built on a few moving parts. Parrishs view points to a blend of returning pieces and incoming talent as the foundation, but the picture is not fully settled yet with eligibility questions still hanging over some players. For a program that expects to be talked about in the national title picture every year, even a preseason ranking can feel like a small referendum, and this one suggests the Jayhawks have already reentered the kind of debate their fans love to win. [Read more 🡒]
