Kansas fans got a dose of reality this week, and it was not the kind that comes with a smile.
After Big 12 Media Days last week, there was at least a little room for optimism around Kansas heading into next season. Nobody was talking about a run to the Big 12 Championship, sure, but a respectable ceiling still felt possible. Seeing Lance Leipold front and center, and getting a look at some of the players in front of the media, gave the sense that there was something to build on.
Then CBS Sports dropped its Big 12 game-by-game predictions.
Brad Crawford’s forecast is the sort that can send Jayhawks fans straight into a spiral: a 3-9 finish.
Crawford’s write-up acknowledged the progress Leipold has already made in Lawrence, noting, “That momentum Lance Leipold had after winning nine games and finishing in the top 25 in 2023 feels like it was so long ago, but it's important to note that he has raised the floor in Lawrence. The Jayhawks beat three ranked opponents in 2024 and got off to a 4-2 start last fall before capsizing down the stretch.”
That late-season fade is exactly the kind of thing Kansas supporters know too well, and Leipold addressed those fourth-quarter issues during media days.
Crawford also pointed to the early stretch as the key pressure point, writing, “The swing games this season come early -- the rivalry matchup with Missouri and the showdown with Arizona State across the pond. Losing both of those could spell doom. The biggest worry is the lack of returning starters after losing several veterans who made a notable impact on the program.”
That roster turnover is no small thing. Kansas is bringing in 30 new Jayhawks, and while names like Dylan Edwards and Nik McMillan are expected to add intrigue, there’s still no telling how quickly everything will click.
In Crawford’s projection, Kansas handles LIU at home, Middle Tennessee at home and UCF at home. Everything else goes the other way: Missouri at home, Arizona State at a neutral site, Utah on the road, Kansas State on the road, Baylor at home, TCU on the road, West Virginia on the road, BYU at home and Oklahoma State on the road.
It would be a rough outcome for Leipold’s program, and by far the most disappointing season of his tenure. Still, it feels a little severe.
Kansas does have real questions to answer on the field, but with Andy Kotelnicki back to call the offense and defensive coordinator D.K. McDonald entering year two, it’s hard to look at this group and see only three wins, even with a difficult Big 12 schedule.
In Other News...
Cam Pickett Just Sent A Strong Message About Kansas Footballs Future
Cam Pickett has been around long enough to know that optimism in college football has to be backed up by something real, and the Kansas wide receiver sounds convinced there is more coming in Lawrence. The redshirt senior spoke with confidence about the coaching staff and the direction of the offense, pointing to a group that already has some playmakers in place and, in his view, enough talent to keep building on what the Jayhawks have started.
Pickett also made clear that last seasons close losses still linger, which is part of why he sounds so invested in what comes next. He singled out Dylan Edwards as a versatile threat and suggested Tate Nagy could become more than just a special teams piece, while also sounding genuinely fired up about the trip to Wembley Stadium for Kansas game in London. For a program trying to turn promise into something sturdier, that kind of buy-in from an experienced receiver matters. [Read more 🡒]
Lance Leipold Just Raised More Questions About Kansas At Quarterback
Kansas is heading into camp with a very different feel at quarterback after moving on from the Jalon Daniels era, and Lance Leipold made it clear the next starter will have to earn the job the hard way. The Jayhawks are sorting through redshirt junior Cole Ballard and redshirt sophomore Isaiah Marshall, two young passers who both got limited chances last season but flashed enough in brief action to keep the competition open. Leipolds message was straightforward: the winner will be the one who is most consistent and gives the offense the best chance to win.
Ballard and Marshall each bring a different look to the race, which is part of what makes this one worth watching through camp. Marshall showed more as a runner, while Ballards cameo included a touchdown pass and some mobility of his own, but neither has separated from the other yet. With Kansas trying to settle the position before the season turns serious, the next few weeks will be about whether one of them can turn those scattered reps into something more convincing. [Read more 🡒]
Former Jayhawks Shared A Summer League Stage And One Stole It
Melvin Council Jr. got his first taste of NBA Summer League with New Orleans and held his own in a crowded Pelicans backcourt, finishing with six points in 20 minutes while adding a couple of assists and a steal. For Kansas fans, though, the bigger storyline in Vegas came from an old familiar face in the frontcourt, as former Jayhawks center Hunter Dickinson gave the Pelicans a major lift in a comeback win over Charlotte.
Dickinson paced New Orleans with 21 points and knocked down three shots from deep, the kind of outing that stood out even on a night when the Pelicans had to dig out of an early hole. Kansas presence in Summer League stretched beyond that matchup, too, with Tre White and Zeko Mayo also getting their own run with different teams, keeping the Jayhawks well represented on the July circuit. [Read more 🡒]