Kansas had enough flashes to stay in contact with Utah, but the big plays and the missed chances kept piling up, and the Jayhawks walked out of Saturday’s matchup with a 41-24 loss that dropped them to 2-3 overall and 0-2 in Big 12 play.
Utah set the tone early with a drive that took a little more than five minutes and ended on Parker’s five-yard touchdown run. Kansas answered with a three-and-out, and the Utes quickly added another strike when Dampier hit a 12-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-0.
The Jayhawks finally got a break when Santiago forced a takeaway that put them in the red zone. Isaiah Marshall made that possession count, finding Dylan Edwards on a three-yard touchdown pass early in the second quarter to trim the margin to 14-7.
Utah punched back right away. Dampier connected with Noah Bennee for a six-yard score to push the lead back to 21-7, but Kansas did enough on defense to hang around.
Leroy Harris came through with a fourth-down sack to stop a Utah drive inside field-goal range, and Marshall followed by leading a five-play, 66-yard march that ended with his own six-yard touchdown run. Kansas tacked on a field goal before halftime and went to the break trailing only 21-17.
The first half also included Jalen Todd’s first career interception.
Even then, the Jayhawks had only 154 total yards, compared with Utah’s 210.
Kansas had a chance to flip the script after the break, but a penalty erased a potential fourth-down conversion and forced a punt. Utah answered with a long, seven-minute possession that ended with Johnson scoring from a yard out. The missed extra point kept it 27-17.
Marshall kept Kansas alive by hitting Nik McMillan for a 29-yard touchdown on a 75-yard drive, pulling the Jayhawks within 27-24. Utah still carried a three-point edge into the fourth quarter, then stretched it again when Taulanga scored on a one-yard run to make it 34-24.
From there, Kansas couldn’t finish two more fourth-and-goal chances. Utah slammed the door with the knockout punch: Wayshawn’s 90-yard touchdown run for a 41-24 cushion.
Marshall finished 19-of-37 for 333 yards and two touchdowns, leading both teams through the air. Cam Pickett paced all receivers with 134 yards, while Johnson’s 171 rushing yards led Utah. Harris was the only player to register multiple sacks.
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Kansas Let A Winnable Utah Game Slip In A Familiar Way
For much of the night, Kansas had reasons to believe it could turn a trip to Utah into something better than a discouraging road loss. The defense showed some real signs of growth, forcing turnovers and limiting the Utes on the ground before the game started to tilt late. For a team searching for traction, those are the kinds of strides that can get overlooked when the final score turns sour.
What kept this from becoming a breakthrough was the same issue that has too often undercut winnable games: self-inflicted mistakes. Kansas was flagged 10 times for 90 yards, and those penalties helped hand Utah extra chances that eventually showed up on the scoreboard. Even with the defensive improvement, the Jayhawks left with a 41-24 loss and the familiar frustration of knowing they were close enough to make the result sting. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Let A Shootout Slip Away As Sideline Frustration Boiled Over
Kansas had plenty of offense to keep pace in a wild one at Rice-Eccles Stadium, but it still walked away with another painful conference loss. Isaiah Marshall threw for 333 yards and accounted for three touchdowns, yet Utahs balanced attack kept answering, with Wayshawn Parker powering the ground game and Devon Dampier doing damage through the air and on the move as the No. 12 Utes stayed unbeaten with a 41-24 win.
For the Jayhawks, the bigger concern was how quickly a promising shootout turned into frustration on the sideline as the game slipped further away. A team that had hoped to get moving in conference play instead fell to 2-3 overall and 0-2 in the league, leaving Kansas to sort through a loss that had enough explosive plays to feel competitive, but not enough stops to make it matter. [Read more 🡒]
Lance Leipold Weighed In On A Costly Kansas Penalty Vs Utah
Kansas game against Utah had its share of frustration before a late explanation added another layer to the night. During a drive that ended in a touchdown, cornerback Syeed Gibbs was flagged twice for pass interference, and the sequence left Lance Leipold clearly annoyed as the flags piled up on a possession that swung the momentum.
Leipold was later penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct after an official believed he was charging toward the referee to argue, when he was actually heading over to check on Gibbs. In his postgame media session, Leipold clarified what happened and said the pass interference calls were difficult ones, a reminder of how quickly confusion can turn an already costly stretch into an even bigger sideline headache. [Read more 🡒]