Isaiah Marshall gave Kansas fans the full spectrum again tonight, but this time there was enough on the good side to leave real optimism behind.
In the Jayhawks’ 41-24 loss to Utah, the redshirt sophomore turned in the best outing of his KU career, piling up a career-high 333 passing yards while throwing two touchdowns and adding another score on the ground. The arm talent was obvious. Several of Marshall’s downfield throws flashed the kind of juice that can make a defense back up in a hurry, and there were moments that drew comparisons to former Jayhawk quarterback Jalon Daniels.
Still, the early game issues were impossible to ignore. Marshall opened by completing just 4 of 10 passes for 17 yards, and Kansas was forced to chase from behind almost immediately after Utah built a 14-0 lead. One of the biggest early swings came on a third-down play when Marshall tried to throw the ball away and instead ended up with an interception to James Chenault Jr. on the sideline.
That's how you make a play. @ZekeMarshall07 → @NahzaeC 🎯 pic.twitter.com/GPYxK1UkGU
For a stretch, it looked like Kansas might be headed for another runaway loss, and the possibility of a quarterback change had to at least be on the table. But Marshall settled in and kept the Jayhawks competitive once the game began tilting fully against them.
That has become the pattern. Marshall’s raw ability is clear, and there’s no question he can make plays 25-plus yards downfield or hurt defenses with his legs.
The problem is putting everything together for four quarters. Too often, he seems hesitant early, only to open up once Kansas is already trailing.
By then, the offense looks freer and Marshall looks more decisive.
The same thing happened in the loss to Arizona State a few weeks ago, when Kansas didn’t score its first touchdown until the fourth quarter but Marshall caught fire after halftime and threw for nearly 200 yards in a 20-minute stretch.
At this point, the challenge is as much about coaching as it is about the quarterback himself. As an inexperienced redshirt sophomore, Marshall needs to be put in better position to settle in from the opening whistle, and Andy Kotelnicki has to help get him comfortable sooner.
From here, Marshall’s path as a starter feels pretty clear: either the early-game mistakes keep piling up and he stays a weekly wild card, or the promise finally starts matching the production and he grows into the elite quarterback Kansas believes he can be. The talent is there. The question now is whether Kansas can unlock it early instead of waiting until the game is already slipping away.
In Other News...
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 🡒]