Kansas went into the transfer portal looking for help at safety, and what it brought back was a different kind of defensive back than it has leaned on there in recent seasons.
Losing three safeties and adding four gave the Jayhawks a chance to reshape the position, and the result is a pair of bigger, more coverage-friendly options in Corey Gordon and Christian Pritchett. Gordon, who previously played at Louisville and Baylor, and Pritchett, a transfer from Georgia Tech, give KU a look at strong safety that defensive coordinator D.K. McDonald said was missing a year ago.
“Last year, we’re kind of playing with some more box safeties and that’s just what we had and we made the best of it,” McDonald said, “but I think this year we got a couple guys who can kind of play out in the field, can cover some slots, can play in center field, get sideline to sideline and cover down the seam.”
That shift could matter across the secondary, not just at safety. Kansas is also counting on Jaden Harris, who came from Georgia, to push returning leader Taylor Davis at free safety, while Khijohnn Cummings-Coleman, an Iowa State transfer, adds another piece at nickel. McDonald sees the group fitting together better because of the new skill sets.
“Having Pritchett, having Corey able to do that, having Mason Ellis able to do that, some guys who can run, I think that’s going to help us out a lot this year,” McDonald said.
Gordon arrives with the most experience of the bunch. He spent his first three seasons at Baylor, where he appeared in 25 games and made six starts, so the Big 12 isn’t new territory for him. He said that familiarity matters.
“Honestly, I feel like that plays a big part of knowing what you’re looking for, knowing what type of game is played in the Big 12, just situational football,” he said. “Some of those teams do a lot of good things, and just (having) already played here, I feel like I know what some of those teams like to do, so that definitely plays a big part for sure.”
Kansas wasn’t a school Gordon already knew through previous coaching ties, but that didn’t stop the Jayhawks from making him a priority. He said McDonald, Brandon Shelby and the rest of the staff stayed on him throughout the process.
“They were some of the main coaches that were really consistently on top of me the whole time, and I just felt the love and could feel like that they really wanted me here,” Gordon said.
At Louisville, Gordon posted 53 tackles, including eight in a bowl win over Toledo. McDonald thinks the athleticism shows up fast.
“One thing about him, he can run, he can cover ground,” McDonald said. “Sometimes it don’t look like he’s moving fast, but next thing you know he’s right up with a wide receiver.”
Gordon, an Oklahoma City native now at his third power-conference school, has settled in quickly in Lawrence. His experience and, by his own description, “real talkative” personality have made him a useful voice for the younger players around him.
“Just with how much football I’ve played overall, teaching those guys some of those things that you can only learn from experience and from play, to be honest,” Gordon said. “Because we got a lot of younger guys in the room, or guys that just haven’t gotten the chance to play yet.”
Pritchett fits the same general mold physically. He’s listed at 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, and KU sees a similar coverage profile.
The difference is that he arrives far less seasoned. According to Pro Football Focus, he played only 45 defensive snaps in two years at Georgia Tech, spending more time on special teams as a freshman before his role shrank as a sophomore.
The speed, though, jumps off the page. Pritchett’s top speed is 22.64 mph, making him one of the fastest players on the roster, and strength coach Matt Gildersleeve said he is “a guy that I think is going to catch a lot of your guys’ eyes throughout this camp and then into the season as well,”
McDonald sees the same raw tools.
“He can run,” McDonald said. “You know, he’s still a young guy, so he’s still kind of learning football, but as far as his skill set, man, he can run, he can cover ground, he can cover, and like I said, it’s fun to have that in the program.”
For Pritchett, the next step is about turning that athleticism into dependable football. Gordon has already become a guide in that process.
“I’ve just seen so much growth from him, and I feel like I’ve played a part in that,” Gordon said, “just because it’s a lot easier when you can see somebody who’s doing it, it makes it easier on you.”
Pritchett echoed that sentiment and called Gordon a mentor.
“I wouldn’t say I’m as experienced as him, but he just helps me get edges on the offense and just be able to play fast.”
The Harvey, Louisiana, native is aiming to use that speed in a conference where offenses throw the ball plenty. And from McDonald’s perspective, Kansas may have finally found the kind of coverage safety it has been missing.
“It’s good to have a piece like that,” McDonald said of Gordon. “That’s something we haven’t had here in a little while. So it’s nice to have that in the program.”
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