Why the Kansas Jayhawks’ QB duel is coming down to this pair of returning players
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Ballard and Marshall compete for Kansas’ starting QB job after Daniels’ exit.
- Coaching staff weighs decision-making, accuracy and limiting costly mistakes.
- Transfer Chase Jenkins offers depth but has limited spring reps due to injury.
For the past two seasons, Kansas Jayhawks quarterbacks Cole Ballard and Isaiah Marshall have battled for the right to be Jalon Daniels’ backup. Ballard won the job both times.
Daniels has exhausted his college football eligibility now, but Ballard and Marshall are engaged in a new competition this spring.
This time it’s for the starting job. Jayhawks head coach Lance Leipold must pick a new starting quarterback for the first time in years.
Ballard and Marshall are good friends, and Ballard indicated that hasn’t changed — not even in the heat of this battle to be No. 1.
“We come in with the same mindset every day,” Ballard said. “We’ve both been prepping. You never know — you’re always one snap away. So we’re just really coming in, competing and being there for each other.”
Ballard and Marshall aren’t Leipold’s only quarterback options. The Jayhawks also brought in Rice Owls transfer Chase Jenkins this offseason; he’s recovering from an unspecified injury, so he’s seen limited snaps this spring.
As a redshirt junior at Rice, Jenkins started 12 games for the Owls (5-8 in 2025). He was 119-for-172 as a passer (69.2%) for 1,025 yards, nine touchdowns and two interceptions. He also rushed for 531 yards and five more TDs on 151 carries.
KU passing game coordinator and QBs coach Jim Zebrowski said simply that the “best person will play.” But Leipold later made clear that the competition for the starting role is between Ballard and Marshall, at least for the present time.
“Do I see them getting pushed by him?” Leipold said of Jenkins’ eventual role. “Could I see it happening? Yes. Has it happened yet? Because of the limitations, it hasn’t yet. So we will see.
“Chase has a great attitude. He’s positive. He’s getting mental reps when he can, but we’ll have to see where that comes.”
Between Ballard and Marshall, Ballard is the more experienced signal-caller. He started a few games during the 2023 season, when Jason Bean — Daniels’ backup at the time, but thrust into the lead role when Daniels got hurt — suffered an injury of his own.
Ballard held his own as a spot-starter, especially for a guy who came to Lawrence as a walk-on. He finished with 286 passing yards, one touchdown and three interceptions in the two games he played, starting one.
The Jayhawks lost both contests, but Ballard gave KU a chance to win against K-State and Texas Tech. And those around him say he’s come a long way since then.
“Coming in, it was like a rude awakening, I guess, just being thrown in there,” Ballard said. “When committed, I was like, I’m just going to go out there and give it my best and hopefully it works out. It’s really cool to look back at where I was three years ago, sitting in my house in Indiana.”
Ballard and Marshall are different stylistically. Ballard is more of a gunslinger who can run when needed and absorb some contact. Standing 6-foot-2, 218 pounds, he’s unafraid of taking hits. He said he still sees himself as a walk-on with a chip on his shoulder.
Marshall, meanwhile, is a true dual threat who led his high school team to a Michigan state championship as a senior. The former three-star recruit was utilized multiple times last season in KU’s two-quarterback sets, running the ball nearly every time he was on the field. He averaged 10.7 yards on 15 carries in 2025.
Both QBs, Marshall and Ballard, have shown growth from last season to this spring.
“Confidence, comfortability,” Zebrowski said of what he’s seen from the pair. “(They r)eally just make decisions. ‘Hey, I see it, check it down,’ just understand what’s going on. They understand defensive structure, blitz and pressure so much more than they’ve done. I think they are really growing in the mental aspect.”
As for what will decide who wins the starting job?
“I would say the decision-making, being able to make the right decisions, getting the ball to the right guys,” Ballard said, from his point of view. “You’re going to make mistakes. I mean, quarterback is the hardest position in sports, so you’re going to make mistakes. t’s just about limiting those mistakes as much as you can.”
This story was originally published April 2, 2026 at 5:25 PM.
