KU hoops GM talk, Bill Self successors + QB battle highlight Kansas Jayhawks Q&A
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Hoops coach Bill Self said KU has not yet hired a general manager and doubts he will soon.
- Sources ID Tommy Lloyd, Dusty May, Ben McCollum and Jacque Vaughn as coaching candidates.
- Kansas QB competition between Isaiah Marshall and Cole Ballard will extend into camp.
Why hasn’t the Kansas Jayhawks men’s basketball team hired a general manager?
I asked KU head coach Bill Self about it more than a year ago. Here’s what he said then:
“I think that in today’s new time, I think you think about everything. Now, I will tell you this: You don’t hire somebody just to hire somebody or to fill a position. What role does somebody like that really see being in your program?
“Could it be beneficial? Absolutely. Could it be detrimental? Absolutely. How much weight are you going to give to somebody to have that much influence when you may not trust that judgment on certain things?”
Self also noted what he’d look for if KU decided to hire a general manager.
“I’m not going to say I am going to do that (hire a GM),” he said, “but I would say the biggest thing that they could probably do is be an elite fundraiser.
“If you can bring in dollars that you’re not presently bringing in, I would say that would be a great role that somebody could potentially have.”
Candidly, I’ve had several people in the basketball world tell me that they’d be interested in KU’s general manager position, if such a job existed. Some of these folks, who are well-connected in the world of hoops, would leave some pretty big cities to move to Lawrence, Kansas.
That should tell you something about the desirability of this potential job. Within the industry, it would be a coveted opportunity.
That said, I’d be surprised if KU hires a general manager for the rest of Self’s tenure — however long that may be.
With that, let’s jump into another Kansas Jayhawks Q&A. Thanks, as always, for the questions …
Love to know what kubball team morale was like last season. Can’t imagine it was great given the results and exodus. Is this simply a function of the disruption of transfers & NIL or is there something deeper going on/wrong in the organization? @MaryHowle
It was quite good for most of this year. It was certainly better than the previous season’s team, on which certain players just didn’t get along.
Members of this team liked each other and understood the Darryn Peterson situation. Former KU guard Elmarko Jackson told The Star that he and his teammates were at the practice when Peterson had to go to the hospital for full-body cramps.
So, there wasn’t any real animosity when Peterson struggled to play throughout the season. As for the five rotation players who went on to other schools, I can break down their reasons.
Jackson and Jamari McDowell: Georgetown and Wake Forest give the pair fresh starts. I was told the KU staff liked both quite a bit, but the expectation was that, even if they were to return, each would be recruited over and would likely become 10th or 11th men, rather than the first two players off the bench.
Flory Bidunga: Money-related mostly. I had several sources tell me that the KU big man got paid upward of $5 million by Louisville. I don’t think KU wanted to pay that amount for Bidunga, no matter how much they wanted him back.
Bryson Tiller: His benching at the end of the season made things difficult. The KU coaching staff wanted more aggressiveness and physicality from Tiller this season. It was difficult behind the scenes after he was benched against Houston. As Tiller noted when he committed to Missouri this week, he wanted a new start.
Samis Calderon: Like Jackson and McDowell, it was hard to find a role for him on next season’s squad. If he returned, the expectation was for him to improve and even earn playing time on next season’s squad. The KU staff liked his potential but hopes for more experienced players who can play on and really contribute to next season’s team.
My main question is who is the next head coach of the Hawks after Bill retires. Is Jacque Vaughn the heir apparent, or will they bring in someone new? @Bryan_J_Hawk
I actually did a big story on this a few weeks ago, but the four serious names that KU looked at, according to multiple sources, were: Tommy Lloyd, Dusty May, Ben McCollum and Jacque Vaughn.
When Self decides he is ready to retire, KU will look at high-character candidates to succeed him. Some of the names that surfaced on social media of late were never very high on KU’s list of possible targets.
Whenever the time comes, I expect the Jayhawks to conduct a real coaching search.
Vaughn will be a considered, but to be honest, I am unsure where he stands. It seems he really likes the role he is in right now. He worked closely with Peterson and Bidunga this past season, and both of those players spoke highly of Vaughn.
Is Isaiah Marshall starting at QB 2026? @EodPol
It’s too early to tell who KU’s starting quarterback will be for the 2026 season. The competition between Marshall and Cole Ballard is quite fierce, but neither has separated himself from the other.
Look for this battle to come down to which quarterback is more consistent on a daily basis. The Jayhawks have to make sure mistakes on offense don’t compound and build upon themselves.
I expect this competition will extend into training camp this summer.
