Kansas is heading into one of its biggest tests of the season with a brand-new offensive line, and Kasen Carpenter has already given the Jayhawks a reason to feel better about it.
With the Border Showdown against Missouri less than 24 hours away, Kansas knows the challenge only gets steeper after opening the year overseas against Arizona State and with the annual Sunflower Showdown against Kansas State always waiting on the schedule. This one matters, and if the Jayhawks are going to stand up to an SEC opponent, the line in front of the quarterback has to be sharp.
That’s where Carpenter comes in. The former Oklahoma State transfer was graded by PFF as the nation’s top center after Week 1, a strong early marker for a unit that is still trying to build chemistry after bringing in three transfers. That kind of turnover up front is never ideal, since offensive lines usually live and die by continuity, and replacing 60% of the depth rarely leads to instant improvement.
Carpenter’s path to Lawrence has taken a few turns. Out of Allen High School in Allen, Texas, he drew offers from 17 programs, with Texas Tech standing as the only power-conference option among them.
He signed with Tulsa, redshirted in 2023, then moved into a starting role the following season. He started 11 of a possible 12 games as the Hurricanes went 3-9.
From there, he transferred to Oklahoma State, where he made two starts and appeared in seven games on a team that struggled badly. The Cowboys won just once in 2025, beating Tennessee-Martin in the opener, before Carpenter entered the NCAA Transfer Portal again and ended up at Kansas.
His first game in a Jayhawks uniform gave plenty of encouragement. Against Long Island University, Kansas rolled up 613 total yards in a 51-6 win, with 336 coming through the air and 277 on the ground. The offense also piled up 29 first downs, and the line kept the day remarkably clean.
Lance Leipold praised the group afterward, though he also made clear there’s still work to do.
“I thought they played well again, as we talked all fall long, we got a lot of guys in, got a lot of reps with those guys, first time really working together, rotating a lot of tackle spots, so we’ll have to continue to strike the consistency across the board,” opened head coach Lance Leipold following the season-opening win.
“But, for a first game, I think we had one negative play, maybe on a pass, play to be outside. Other than that, we didn’t have any sacks, or negative runs.
That part was really clean. Need to clean up the holding…We know it's gonna be a lot different test on Friday night.”
Kansas and Missouri are meeting in the Border Showdown for the second time since 2011, and the last matchup was a 42-31 thriller that went the Tigers’ way. If the Jayhawks are going to come anywhere close to matching last week’s offensive output, Carpenter and the rest of that rebuilt front will have to keep delivering.
In Other News...
Kansas Fans Should Notice What Just Changed In The Border Showdown
The Border Showdown already had plenty of attention around it, and the betting market has only sharpened that edge. Missouri opened as the bigger favorite, but the number has tightened at FanDuel Sportsbook after both teams handled FCS opponents in their season openers, with the Tigers carrying a national ranking and Kansas trying to sort through an early test that now looks a little more manageable on paper.
Part of the shift appears tied to Kansas backfield situation, with running back Ahmad Hardy unavailable because of an offseason injury. For a rivalry game that rarely needs extra juice, the changing line suggests there is real respect for what Kansas can bring into Columbia even before the full picture is clear, and it leaves one of the more interesting questions in this matchup still hanging over the week. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Leans Into Border War Tension With Provocative Missouri Message
The Border War is back on the schedule, and Kansas is making sure the old rivalry arrives with the kind of edge that has always made it matter. With No. 23 Missouri coming to face the Jayhawks, Kansas football rolled out a Civil War-themed hype video to stir up interest around a series whose name carries more than just football baggage.
The matchup has long been tied to the states deep historical conflicts, from the Kansas-Nebraska Act to Bleeding Kansas and the Lawrence Massacre, and the program clearly wanted to lean into that weight. The timing adds another layer to a game that already needs little selling, even if Kansas is leaving some of the full message to the imagination for now. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Is Tied To A Big Man Decision Still Waiting On NCAA
A big-man target with a legal wrinkle has put Kansas in the middle of one of those offseason waiting games. Emmanuel Ogbole, the former Rutgers center, is seeking a fifth year of eligibility for the 2026-27 season, and the lawsuit he filed against the NCAA says Kansas had already gotten involved by pushing for a hardship waiver and an extension of his eligibility before the sport moved to a new eligibility model. For a program still mapping out its frontcourt future, that kind of early interest is at least a sign the Jayhawks are keeping tabs on options well ahead of time.
Ogboles case has drawn attention beyond Lawrence, with Georgia, Oklahoma, Tennessee and UNLV also showing interest if he is cleared to play. The catch is that nobody is moving all the way to a roster spot or scholarship until the NCAA makes its call, and the lawsuit says that call is still very much in limbo. For Kansas, it leaves one more name on the board, but not yet on the roster, as the program waits to see whether the governing body will open the door. [Read more 🡒]