Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels (6) runs against UNLV linebacker Jackson Woodard (7) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)
Kansas City, Kansas – Even when Kansas’ offense struggled occasionally in 2022 or 2023, no one could accuse the Jayhawks of being one-dimensional.
And that’s exactly what happened on two drives in the third quarter of Friday night’s loss.
KU quarterback Jalon Daniels had just thrown his second interception of the game and sixth in just over eight quarters when he failed to see UNLV linebacker Jackson Woodard on a short throw underneath. The Jayhawks defense somehow kept the Rebels from scoring a field goal on a drive that had started with first-and-goal at the 4-yard line, and so they defended a one-point lead. Only a strong series could have put them back in control of the game.
Instead, both series featured short first-down runs that went nowhere, short second-down passes that either went nowhere or were incomplete, and then short third-and-long runs where KU seemed to resign itself to the prospect of punting. The crowd at Children’s Mercy Park even booed at times.
Poor field position and penalties didn’t help either offense, but whether the reluctance was the quarterback or the coaching staff, they weren’t willing to throw the ball far. As head coach Lance Leipold put it, “that’s where they got a little predictable.”
“We tried to give our playmakers the ball in space,” Daniels said after the game. “At the end of the day, that’s what we’re always going to try to do. No matter what the play is, it’s the best play that can be called in that situation. That’s how I’ve thought since 2021 when Coach Leipold and her first came here, and I’ll continue to do it that way.”
Finally, offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes released Daniels on the next drive, and after he crawled out of the pocket in his own end zone and found backup running back Sevion Morrison for 18 yards on a drive that resulted in a field goal, it seemed like he had found his mojo again.
But the next time he touched the ball, he failed to complete a pass during a two-minute drill and was sacked for the second week in a row in KU’s final game, resulting in its second straight loss.
Since Leipold’s arrival, Daniels has not had such a phase.
In 2022, even after a shoulder injury, he was good enough to inspire hope for the long-dormant program’s future. And even when he played sparingly last year because of a back injury, he looked like the dynamic, golden-armed improviser he had been throughout the 2022 season, like the preseason Big 12 Player of the Year.
Since returning from injury, however, he hasn’t been himself. And Leipold said that “his confidence got into a fragile state as a result of the interceptions.” Before Woodard’s interception, Jalen Catalon had changed the course of the game by intercepting Daniels as he ran up the seam to score before halftime. So instead of taking a 20-6 or 24-6 lead, KU allowed a touchdown and went into halftime down just 17-13.
“I’m sure he didn’t see the guy on the first interception, and what’s causing that now, I don’t know exactly right now, because I think every play is different, of course,” Leipold said. “I don’t know if it’s visual or if he’s not seeing something on the back of the field. We’ll have to talk about that this weekend.”
“But obviously I thought some of his shots were low most of the day and afterward. I think he’s trying to protect. You know, he plays hard… but he doesn’t play like the Jalon we know. But blame that on me, I’m not going to blame it on the kids right now.”
In fact, Leipold repeatedly emphasized that the blame lies with the head coach.
“Sometimes you see him make throws that are just as good, if not better, than he’s ever made,” Leipold said. “And then there are times when he’s not, but it’s just the way it is — anybody can do better. Anybody, like I said, and it starts with the head coach. I’ve got to do better, our staff has to do better, and we’ll find a way.”
For his part, Daniels said the right things after the game, like not letting one play affect the next and, as quarterback coach Jim Zebrowski tells him, “Make your next play the best.” When asked if he thought he could beat the team in the ill-fated two-minute drill and score, he said, “I’m always going to have 100 percent confidence in the guys, no matter what situation we’re in.”
But even Leipold admitted that by the final drive, momentum had shifted to the team’s disadvantage due to KU’s offensive problems in the second half of the game, and the general mood before the series was therefore “not quite the same as before.”
Think of all the big offenses the Jayhawks put together in the Leipold era when Daniels was healthy, and there’s a good chance his unwavering confidence was at the core of that success. There’s an oft-shared video of Daniels calmly nodding on the KU sideline in Morgantown, West Virginia, in 2022 as the hostile crowd chanted the White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army” after the Mountaineers tied the game at 42-42 with half a minute left. Daniels, of course, led KU to an overtime win shortly after that helped the Jayhawks get on the national stage.
Will they have the same Daniels when they return to Morgantown next Saturday?
“No matter what negative happens, no matter what positive happens, I’m going to come to work every day with the same smile because that’s just who I am,” Daniels said Friday.
The question is whether this attitude and behavior will again match his style of play and his results on the field.
Leipold said Grimes, Zebrowski and Daniels need to work on “finding ways to get some shots back and some things that come naturally to him again.”
“The good thing is he’s such a driven guy. I’m not worried about his work ethic or his film study or where we go from here,” Leipold said. “We just need to get back into the swing of things.”
Nick KrugKansas head coach Lance Leipold watches as the Jayhawks are forced to punt in the third quarter on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas.
PREVIOUS POST
Photo gallery: Jayhawks lose second game against Rebels 23-20
NEXT POST
Daniels and Leipold must regain the quarterback’s confidence – and quickly
Written by Henry Greenstein
