Kansas football is entering another preseason cycle with plenty of skepticism attached, and the Jayhawks are feeling it on multiple fronts.
Around the Big 12, Kansas is not drawing much confidence from the people doing the ranking. That’s a sharp turn from the rise Lance Leipold engineered when he took a program that had been college football’s doormat and turned it into a team with back-to-back bowl appearances.
For a while, the next step seemed obvious: Kansas had the pieces to push into the Big 12 title picture. Instead, the Jayhawks stumbled late in halves and games in 2024 and finished 5-7.
Last season brought more of the same, with both sides of the ball slipping and another 5-7 finish following. Even so, five wins is still more than Kansas had in any single season for 12 years.
That recent slide has also cooled the national view of Leipold. Through the Phog’s Connor Maridan argued that USA Today’s Big 12 head coach rankings undersell him, pointing to Leipold landing 11th in the conference.
Maridan’s case is simple: Leipold is still an excellent coach, and he’s one win away in each of the last two seasons from sending Kansas to four straight bowl games. The coach who pulled KU out of obscurity and into relevance hasn’t disappeared.
But after two straight seasons of falling short of bigger expectations, he has to earn that broader respect again.
The preseason doubt doesn’t stop there. Brad Crawford of CBS Sports projected Kansas to win only three games in 2026, with victories over LIU, Middle Tennessee, and UCF as the lone Big 12 win.
It’s a bleak forecast, and there’s no denying the uncertainty around the roster, especially at quarterback. Leipold has not named a starter yet, and that kind of unknown makes it hard for outsiders to feel good about Kansas’ outlook.
Leipold, though, has also been clear about where the blame belongs. He has pointed to a handful of different outcomes over the past two seasons that could have changed everything, and he knows that if a few of those games break differently, Kansas is talking about four straight bowl trips instead of another round of questions.
The Jayhawks have lost seven games over the last two seasons by less than one score, which is half of their defeats. In a few others, they were right there before the game slipped away in the fourth quarter.
Some of that comes down to players making plays. But Leipold has made it clear the bigger responsibility is his: coaching it better, preparing it better, and getting Kansas to finish.
In Other News...
Darryn Peterson Just Had The Kind Of Night KU Fans Feared
Darryn Peterson had been rolling through summer league like a player who was already comfortable at the next level, which is why his latest outing in Las Vegas stood out. The former Kansas star, now the No. 2 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, managed 15 points in the Jazzs 94-82 loss to the Spurs, but he did it on 4-of-16 shooting after stringing together a run of high-scoring games in Salt Lake City and Vegas.
For KU fans, the night was a reminder that even elite young scorers can hit a rough patch once the defensive attention tightens and the schedule piles up. Jazz summer league coach Steve Wojciechowski and several scouts still came away focused on Petersons offensive upside, which is why one off night does not seem likely to change how people around the league view him. [Read more 🡒]
Leroy Harris III Just Sent A Strong Message About Kansas In 2026
Leroy Harris III used Big 12 media days to put a spotlight on where Kansas football is headed, and he sounded like a player who is comfortable with both his role and his decision to stay in Lawrence. The defensive end talked about his growth since moving from safety and outside linebacker, and he made it clear that his development as a pass rusher has become the biggest part of his game. He also pointed to a handful of teammates fans should keep an eye on, giving a little glimpse of the depth Kansas hopes to lean on this fall.
Harris return to Kansas was framed as a chance to keep building, not just for the season ahead but for his long-term future. He said the fit with the coaching staff and the defense mattered, along with the chance to show more of what he can do with his athleticism after adding size and strength. With a trip overseas on the schedule and his own career arc still unfolding, Harris sounded like someone betting on both the program and himself. [Read more 🡒]
Jayhawks Offense Faces A Huge 2026 Question Fans Can't Ignore
Kansas offense spent much of 2025 trying to find its footing after turning over so many key pieces, and the results showed up in the efficiency numbers as well as the scoreboard. The Jayhawks finished 40th nationally in EPA per play and 32nd in success rate, but the bigger concern was consistency, with the unit averaging 28.1 points and 390.5 yards per game in what became the least productive offense of Lance Leipolds tenure.
Now the conversation shifts to whether the 2026 version can look more settled on paper, starting with a position-by-position look at how the roster has changed. There is still a familiar voice helping guide the offense, but the most important question for Kansas is whether the pieces around him are enough to lift a group that never quite clicked last fall. [Read more 🡒]