Through three games of Kansas’ 2026 season, there’s been plenty to criticize. The offense has had its issues.
Special teams has too. But the part that has stood out most - and probably the part fans expected least - is the defense.
For a KU team that opened 1-2, the defensive unit has been the clearest bright spot. That’s not because it has been flawless.
It hasn’t. But compared with where this group was a year ago, the improvement is real.
Last season, Kansas often seemed undone before the snap. The playcalling put the Jayhawks behind the eight ball, and the results showed up in ugly ways: strange rushing touchdowns that finished games off and a string of fourth-quarter losses.
This year, the structure looks cleaner. Players are showing up in the right spots before the ball is even snapped, and the busted coverages haven’t been nearly as frequent when they weren’t caused by the players themselves.
That’s a good sign for D.K. McDonald, who is in his second season as defensive coordinator. With Missouri and Arizona State already on the schedule, he’s checked most of the boxes so far.
Kansas has also benefited from having more veterans on the field. Even with former Boston College transfer Daveon Crouch out, New Mexico State linebacker Quincy Davis has filled that spot without the defense taking a major step backward.
The raw scoring totals don’t exactly jump off the page. Giving up 38 and 24 points can make it look like nothing much has changed. But those numbers need context.
Against Missouri, three touchdown drives began on Kansas’ half of the field, with starts at the 12, 14 and 34-yard lines. That kind of field position puts any defense in a brutal spot, no matter how well it’s playing.
After the Border Showdown loss, head coach Lance Leipold said his defense had its “ back to the wall too many times.”
“…And I think our coverage still needs to continue to work on having some things corrected, but it all ties together with pressures and things like that. I thought we played extremely hard. I think our defensive ends continue to play really good football for us, but there were probably some times where I think we got a little tired and wore down, But I still think defensively overall, they gave us a chance to win tonight, and we put their backs to the wall too many times.”
The Arizona State game told a similar story. In KU’s 24-17 loss in the Union Jack Classic, a shanked punt handed ASU the ball at the Kansas 25. A second-half kick return touchdown hurt, and another Sun Devils drive started at the KU 2-yard-line.
None of that excuses every mistake. Kansas still had a busted coverage against Austin Simmons in week two, when Austin Alexander was caught out of position. But through this first stretch, there haven’t been many reasons to point the finger at McDonald’s defense.
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The most immediate pressure point comes when the Jayhawks return to action, because the schedule offers little chance to ease back in. Kansas will spend the week sorting through the rest of its forecast, including the updated win probabilities and implied betting spreads that now frame each remaining matchup, with the trip to Utah looming as the kind of game that can quickly tilt the entire outlook one way or the other. [Read more 🡒]