Kansas’ defensive line is shaping up as the kind of unit that can change the feel of a game before the ball ever gets to the second level.
That matters for a Jayhawks team that gave up 409.5 yards per game last season, including 184.1 on the ground and 225.4 through the air. Those numbers left plenty of room for improvement, and the front line looks like one of the clearest places Kansas addressed that need heading into next season.
At left defensive end, the Jayhawks have Alex Bray, David Santiago and Adrian Holley. Bray arrived after two seasons at Illinois and posted 21 tackles with 3.5 tackles for loss last season.
Santiago brings a more seasoned resume, with stops at Air Force and Michigan State and career totals of 62 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and 5 sacks. Holley, a former 4-star prospect, enters as a redshirt freshman and is still very much in the development stage.
The middle of the line features Tre’Von McAlpine, Eamon Smalls and Jibriel Conde at nose tackle. McAlpine transferred in from Tulane after one season there and recorded 35 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1 sack and 1 fumble recovery.
At 6-foot-3 and 305 pounds, he brings the kind of size that can make life difficult inside. Smalls spent three seasons at UAB and finished last year with 50 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 1 sack and 1 quarterback hurry.
He also turned in a strong outing against No. 15 Tennessee despite the 56-24 loss, finishing with 7 tackles.
Conde was the first transfer pickup Leipold and his staff made, and he arrives from Grand Valley State with 30 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. As a redshirt junior, he has a chance to become a key piece over the next two seasons if he gets rolling quickly.
Defensive tackle projects to include Blake Herold, Marcus Calvin and Kevin Oatis. Herold was one of the more productive players on the roster last season, finishing with 43 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 4 pass breakups, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery.
Calvin worked in a reserve role but still managed 15 tackles, 1 sack and 1 pass breakup, giving Kansas a useful second option with two years of eligibility left. Oatis is more of a long-term piece after logging just two tackles in four games at Arkansas, but he brings four years of eligibility with him.
On the right side, Leroy Harris III looks like the clear headliner. The true junior put together a strong sophomore season in his first year with the program, finishing with 31 tackles, 4.5 sacks, 6.5 tackles for loss and one blocked kick.
Dakyus Brinkley gives Kansas another option there after his redshirt freshman season, when he posted 15 tackles, 5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. Garrett Martin is the other name in the mix after appearing once as a freshman against Wagner.
Taken together, the group gives Kansas a front that looks deeper, more experienced and more disruptive than the one it rolled out a year ago.
In Other News...
KU Is Facing Another Ugly Fraternity Scandal Fans Know Too Well
Another fraternity case is putting Kansas back in a familiar and uncomfortable spotlight. A University of Kansas student has filed a lawsuit alleging severe hazing by Delta Upsilon, naming both the national and local chapters as defendants and saying the abuse escalated after he reported it. The university has already placed the fraternity on probation while it investigates, adding another layer of scrutiny to a campus that has dealt with fraternity discipline before.
For KU, the timing and the pattern matter as much as the allegations themselves. The school is again being asked to police conduct inside one of its Greek organizations while trying to reassure students and families that the situation will be handled seriously. The lawsuit leaves plenty still to be sorted out, but it has already revived the broader question of how much progress the university has really made in preventing the kind of behavior that keeps surfacing around fraternity life. [Read more 🡒]
Bill Self Still Has One Big Kansas Frontcourt Concern
Bill Self still has a little time before Kansas has to settle its frontcourt picture, but the early signs suggest the Jayhawks are not ready to call that group complete. Christian Reeves is on track to be available for the season, and the staff will get a better read on where the big-man rotation stands once the team moves into October and starts putting its roster through live evaluation.
Self also left the door open to adding another big man if the right fit surfaces, which says plenty about how much depth still matters inside. Kansas has three exhibition games on the schedule next month, and those tune-ups should offer the clearest look yet at whether the current options are enough or whether the Jayhawks need one more answer in the paint. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Still Has One Unsettling Question Heading Into Next Season
Kansas heads into next season with a familiar kind of offseason uncertainty at quarterback, even with Andy Kotelnicki back as offensive coordinator. The Jayhawks are expected to choose between redshirt junior Cole Ballard and redshirt sophomore Isaiah Marshall, two players with limited starting experience, while redshirt junior Chase Jenkins, the Rice transfer, gives the room a more experienced backup option if the competition tilts in that direction.
The bigger issue is not just who wins the job, but how quickly that player can settle into leading a Big 12 offense for the first time. Ballard and Marshall have both been around the program long enough to know the system, yet neither has much passing production to lean on, which leaves Kansas trying to pair Kotelnickis proven track record with a quarterback battle that still feels very much unresolved. [Read more 🡒]