Why this KU Jayhawks team leader means so much to new football coach Lance Leipold
After answering the Facetime call, Kansas coach Lance Leipold realized this wasn’t going to be a typical conversation.
It was a few weeks ago, and though Leipold had become accustomed to near-daily check-ins from KU safety Kenny Logan, this one came from his hometown ... and while he was relaxing on a boat.
“I got a chance to see St. Augustine, Florida,” Leipold said Thursday with a smile, “so it was good.”
The moment is just one example of the pair’s quickly budding relationship ... just months after their lives converged when Leipold was hired by KU in May.
For Logan — KU’s leading tackler last season and “a leader of the defense” according to Leipold — the relationship began with trust. He met with Leipold the day after Leipold was hired, talking with him and immediately believing his message.
“Just what won me over was just understanding he wants to help us grow as people and players,” Logan said. “So that was the biggest thing with me.”
Logan was ready to make a statement about that too. On May 7 — as other teammates were considering a transfer away from KU — Logan tweeted a photo of him and Leipold holding his No. 1 jersey with the caption: “Lets rock and roll.”
The message was clear to others on KU’s football team: Logan wasn’t going anywhere.
And Leipold barely has gone a day without talking to him since.
The two text frequently. Not only that, but Logan has made it a habit to check into Leipold’s office each time he comes to the football facility, either to see how he’s doing or to lighten the mood.
“I tell him all the time when he’s got a little frown on his face, I say, ‘Coach, you’ve gotta smile more,’” Logan said.
That was helpful on a day like Thursday, when Leipold was frustrated that storms had grounded a flight scheduled to send KU’s team representatives to Arlington, Texas, for Big 12 media days. The Jayhawks used Zoom video calls to attend the event virtually, and Leipold said he was reminded three different times by Logan to cheer up.
“He cracks me up each and every day, to be honest with you, but in a good way,” Leipold said. “I really like him, and again, a guy that ... we can have some fun, and yet, when he knows it’s time to get down to work, we can do that as well.”
Logan’s season will be one worth tracking. He earned honorable mention all-Big 12 honors as a kick returner last season, taking one back 100 yards for a score against Iowa State.
He also should be one of the top playmakers on KU’s defense, setting a lofty goal Thursday of seven interceptions in 2021.
“He’s a talented player,” Leipold said. “I can’t wait to really watch those talents come out.”
The two, in the meantime, are keeping up their frequent contact.
While at a family wedding near Washington, D.C. over the Fourth of July weekend, Leipold Facetimed Logan so he could get a look at some of his life outside football. The coach says there are even times at night he’ll text Logan before he’s headed to bed, telling the safety he should consider getting a much-needed eight hours of rest too.
“I tell him, ‘Good night,’ and I hope he’s doing the same,” Leipold said with a laugh. “So we kind of have a good time with that.”
Logan, for his part, says he’s mostly working to keep his coach loose — especially during these first few months at KU.
“Sometimes he’s been thinking about a lot,” Logan said. “So I’ve just been trying to tell him, ‘Coach, relax just a little bit. We’re all good.’”
