KU football actually has high expectations for 2024.
It’s not even August yet, and we’re talking about the football program in Lawrence, KS?
It’s not even August yet, and we’re talking about the FOOTBALL program in Lawrence, KS???
It’s not even August yet, AND WE’RE TALKING ABOUT THE FOOTBALL PROGRAM IN LAWRENCE, KS!!!
That’s right folks. Expectations are sky high for football season on the Kaw, especially when you juxtapose those expectations against what we witnessed from 2010 through 2020.
The Jayhawks were picked to finish fourth in the new-look Big 12 Conference media poll, with five (!!!) first-place votes. For some perspective, the last time KU recorded any first-place votes in a preseason poll was 2009, Todd Reesing’s senior year, and that was just to win the division.
Somehow, Devin Neal didn’t make the Preseason All-Conference team, but CBs Mello Dotson and Cobee Bryant did.
So, with camp starting today, let’s do some quick hits on three things I’ll be watching for out of Kansas Football this fall. (Clarification: Not three things I’m looking for out of fall camp, but rather, out of the season. I’m too excited, I can’t help but look ahead!)
Jalon Daniels
This probably goes without saying, but it’s so important that it really has to be said. This year’s squad has what I think are some decent backup pieces in redshirt freshman Cole Ballard and true freshman Isaiah Marshall, but it’s highly likely that neither is the quality that we saw out of Jason Bean last year. KU will go as Jalon Daniels goes this year; if he’s healthy, Kansas will have a (good) chance to win every game on its schedule. If he’s not, several more games become much more of a toss up.
Additionally, it would obviously be best case scenario if players like Devin Neal, Cobee Bryant, Mello Dotson, and Michael Ford play a full season as well, but Daniels is the key to the offense and Kansas needs him at the helm if they’re going to come anywhere near preseason expectations.
The Schedule
Let’s talk about the schedule for a minute. It actually breaks out pretty nicely for KU. The Jayhawks miss Utah, Oklahoma State, and Arizona, who were picked to finish first, third, and fifth, respectively. The only team that garnered any first-place votes who sits on KU’s schedule is, of course, K-State, making the Sunflower Showdown in Manhattan on October 26 a HUGE barometer for KU’s conference championship game aspirations.
As far as the non-conference, we should know a lot more about KU after Week 2 and a trip to Champaign, IL, to take on Illinois. The ‘Hawks handled the Illini in Lawrence last year, and another dominant performance against them in 2024 should bode well for the outlook on the rest of this season.
Home Field Disadvantage
How well will KU perform at “home” this year? After all, Kansas will be playing its entire home slate away from Memorial Stadium for the first time since 1920. (OK, that’s not really fair since Memorial opened in 1921, but still.) The nonconference games will be played at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, KS, while the Big 12 games will be played at Arrowhead Stadium.
I anticipate great crowds and a packed house at CMP, if nothing else due to the limited seating capacity, giving KU a decent homefield advantage against Lindenwood and UNLV. However, I am concerned about what the atmosphere will be like in Arrowhead. Even if 50,000 fans come through the gates, that’s still less than 2⁄3 capacity. And when Iowa State comes to town, well, I expect a heavy ISU contingent in attendance.