These aren’t your same old Kansas Jayhawks. Not by a long shot.
The continued ascension of Kansas’ football team under fourth-year head coach Lance Leipold got some more momentum as the Jayhawks landed at No. 20 in a preseason Top 25 poll from The Athletic’s Stewart Mandel.
The Jayhawks were one of five teams in the Top 25 along with No. 8 Utah, No. 11 Oklahoma State, No. 13 Arizona and No. 15 Kansas State.
Kansas will get a big lift from the return of a healthy Jalon Daniels at quarterback. Daniels was an All-Big 12 pick in 2022 but only played three games in 2023 due to a back injury after he was named Preseason Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year.
Kansas opens the season on Aug. 29 against FCS Lindenwood but doesn’t open Big 12 play until Sept. 21 at West Virginia.