FORT WORTH, Texas - Kansas had to turn to Cole Ballard on Saturday, and the result was a little bit of everything: a promising spark, a costly mistake and a final drive that came up short in a 22-16 loss to TCU.
Isaiah Marshall’s absence had been trending in the wrong direction all week. His status moved from probable to questionable on Thursday night, then he was listed as a game-time decision Saturday. But after the game, head coach Lance Leipold said Marshall was “not that close” to playing.
Marshall was dealing with a lower-leg injury and, Leipold said, might have been available only in an emergency. That made the decision to start Ballard “probably determined earlier than maybe came out.”
Ballard had not started since Nov. 18, 2023, but he was asked to handle a tough assignment against TCU’s defense. He finished with 285 passing yards and a touchdown, yet two second-half mistakes helped swing the game back to the Horned Frogs.
“It’s really frustrating,” Ballard said. “Can’t turn the ball over.
That’s on me. Can’t turn the ball over, but they played really well on defense, and we just got to execute better.”
The biggest turning point came with Kansas leading 13-0 and facing fourth-and-5 at the TCU 39. Ballard tried to force a pass into traffic, the ball was tipped, and Max Carroll took it back for a touchdown. That play gave TCU its first real momentum.
“Just trying to make a play when there was really nothing there,” Ballard said of the throw, which was intended for Nik McMillan, tipped by Kalen Carroll and picked by Max Carroll. “Just got to throw it away, give the guy a better chance.”
Even with the interception return, Ballard did have stretches where he looked comfortable. He worked underneath with Cam Pickett, and Pickett said the extra reps with Ballard this week helped.
“It’s definitely different,” Pickett said of working with another quarterback, “but really through the whole offseason and especially this week, getting a lot of extra work in with Cole, just so we got chemistry.”
Ballard also found Nahzae Cox on three deeper completions - 35 yards in the second quarter, 44 in the third and 50 in the fourth - that helped move the offense.
“All of our coaches, Coach (Jim Zebrowski), Coach (Andy Kotelnicki), do such a great job of putting us in positions to make plays, and Nahz is a great playmaker,” Ballard said.
But Kansas did not cash in enough once it got close. Those three drives produced only six points, and the Jayhawks couldn’t finish the job late.
After TCU’s Jaden Craig scored the go-ahead touchdown with just over a minute left, Ballard got one more chance. Kansas moved efficiently at first and reached the TCU 44 with 31 seconds remaining, but the drive stalled after a holding call on Tavake Tuikolovatu pushed the Jayhawks back. Ballard then couldn’t get a desperation throw off before time expired.
“I feel like we gave ourselves a chance,” Ballard said. “Got down there to the 45, battled, got the holding call (on Tavake Tuikolovatu, which backed KU up). I just couldn’t get that ball off at the end of the game, and that’s on me - got to give ourselves a chance at the end of the game.”
Leipold said Ballard “played hard. There are some throws and some reads I know he wished he had back.”
Ballard’s path to this start had already been interrupted. After losing the quarterback battle in camp, he injured his shoulder on a trick play in Kansas’ second game against Missouri. Rice transfer Chase Jenkins had to fill in as Marshall’s backup while Ballard recovered, and Jenkins saw action in select packages Saturday.
“Cole hasn’t practiced much in a month either, from the time he was hurt,” Leipold said. “And he was a game-time decision against Kansas State (on Oct. 17), and that would have been very, very similar to Isaiah’s situation today.
And then he got some work as the backup going into Baylor (on Oct. 24).
So this is the most work he had in prep.
“I’m not going to sit there and put it on Cole Ballard’s effort today. The interception was disappointing, the fumble was disappointing, but I thought he made some plays otherwise, but again, everybody’s got room for improvement, and Cole does too, for a guy who hasn’t started many games.”
What happens next at quarterback is still unsettled. Kansas, now 3-5, returns home Saturday to face UCF, which is 4-4 and 2-3 in the Big 12.
In Other News...
Kansas Faces One Huge Problem Heading Into TCU Showdown
Kansas heads into its matchup with TCU facing a familiar kind of pressure, only this time it comes with a major question at quarterback. Isaiah Marshall is listed as questionable because of injury, and his status could shape everything Kansas wants to do offensively against a Horned Frogs team that has earned a reputation for making life difficult in the Big 12.
The Jayhawks are already in the underdog role, which only adds to the challenge of dealing with one of the leagues better defenses. If Marshall is limited or unavailable, Kansas may have to adjust on the fly against a unit built to squeeze out mistakes and force opponents out of rhythm, turning an already tough road into an even steeper climb. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Makes A Crucial QB Change Before TCU
Kansas is making a quarterback switch at a vulnerable moment, turning to Cole Ballard for the Big 12 matchup with TCU after Isaiah Marshalls week took an uncertain turn. The move gives the Jayhawks a different look under center and puts Ballard back in the starting role for the first time since the 2023 season, a notable reset as conference play keeps tightening.
Ballards promotion comes with the kind of pressure that usually follows an injury-related change, especially when a team is trying to steady itself before a league game. For Kansas, the question now is not just whether the offense can adjust quickly enough, but how much the new starter can settle things down after a week that forced the staff to rethink the plan. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Could Crash The Title Race As SEC Hype Builds
Preseason conference chatter is already tilting toward the SEC, and the leagues case starts with the kind of roster depth and spending power that can reshape a title race before it even begins. The Big Ten just spent the 2025-26 season setting the standard, but the early read for 2026-27 is that the SEC is positioned to push back, with the usual mix of proven programs, aggressive roster building and a few teams that could move the whole conversation.
For Kansas fans, the interesting part is how much the Big 12 still fits into that national picture. The league remains full of uncertainty, from eligibility questions to coaching changes and the kind of roster turnover that can swing a preseason ranking quickly, and Texas is one of the teams that could complicate the race at the top. If the Longhorns settle in the way some around the sport expect, they would not just matter in the conference standings, they could also become part of the broader argument over which league really owns the season. [Read more 🡒]