Big 12 championship? Kansas Jayhawks will need to rally just to qualify for bowl
Kansas Jayhawks quarterback Jalon Daniels responded candidly when asked to describe the mood inside the KU locker room following Saturday’s 38-27 loss to TCU at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
The defeat was KU’s fourth straight following a win in the season opener.
“There’s no other way to say it than ‘upset,’” Daniels said. “Obviously, that’s four consecutive games in a row that come down to the fourth quarter. As much as we try to put an emphasis on finishing, that’s something we haven’t been able to do.”
KU (1-4, 0-2 Big 12) has opened league play with two straight losses for the first time since 2021 — coach Lance Leipold’s first season in Lawrence.
Daniels, who has struggled mightily this season, had another subpar game. He finished 15-of-34 for 179 yards and a touchdown as a passer. He was also intercepted once, during KU’s final possession, and gained just six yards on four carries.
Once considered the face of this football program’s turnaround, Daniels has yet to pass for 200 yards this season. He’s also had 10 turnovers through five games.
Most importantly, he doesn’t look like the same player he was in 2022, or even 2023. There are flashes, but he hasn’t been able to put together what he would call a complete game.
“I didn’t put my team in the best position, especially when it comes down to the last two drives,” Daniels said. “That’s something I have to look at and get better at.”
With the exception of KU’s first game against FCS Lindenwood, the 2024 Jayhawks have yet to score 30-plus points in a game. Last year, KU failed to score 30 just four times.
“(It’s) a lack of execution,” said running back Devin Neal, who found the end zone Saturday against TCU. “In key drives, we’re not really clicking. …
“We are not running our routes. We are not running the ball efficiently. We are not doing things (well) from a whole-offense standpoint. We’ve got to find a way to be better.”
Noted KU coach Lance Leipold: “Today is probably the most we’ve punted in a game. We’ve got to be more consistent.”
For the fourth straight week, the Jayhawks allowed a touchdown before the end of the first half. TCU scored with a mere 25 seconds remaining until intermission.
Perhaps most alarming? In FBS games — in other words, all but the game against Lindenwood — KU has been outscored a combined 31-0 in the final 2 minutes of the first half.
The Jayhawks will get another chance to alter their losing course in a week, of course, but it comes on the road. KU plays new Big 12 contemporary Arizona State in Tempe, Ariz. next Saturday. Kansas’ open date, or bye week, follows.
The team’s Big 12 championship aspirations are out the window now, but if KU can’t beat the Sun Devils next weekend, the Jayhawks might not even reach a bowl game.
Shocking stuff for a team whose preseason aspirations were through the roof.
“I(W)e are not going to have moral victories and play things to be close,” Leipold said. “None of us expected it to be this way right now.”
