Kansas football grades: Analysis of KU Jayhawks’ dominant showing against UCF Knights

Third-year Kansas football coach Lance Leipold admits he was a bit apprehensive heading into Saturday’s Big 12 battle against UCF at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

“I had my concerns to be quite honest. I didn’t know how we could handle that (matchup) because of last week being disappointed in so many different ways. To see us do that today, I’m really proud of them,” Leipold said of the Jayhawks, who rebounded from a 40-14 setback at Texas to blast the Knights (3-3, 0-3 Big 12) 51-22.

“This is a really good bounce back for us (and) for this program,” Leipold added after his squad improved to 5-1 overall (one win from bowl eligibility) and 2-1 in the league.

KU, which played its second consecutive game without starting quarterback Jalon Daniels (back injury), didn’t miss Daniels on this day.

The Jason Bean-led Jayhawks led 24-0 at halftime and 31-0 in the third quarter before UCF finally scored. The 29-point margin of victory was KU’s biggest in a league game since a 31-point decision over Kansas State during the 2008 season. Kansas’ 51 points were its most in a Big 12 home game since a 52-point outburst against Colorado in the 2010 season.

Kansas has scored 171 points through its first four home games, all victories. That is KU’s most points at home through the first four games since 2007 (214 points).

Here are some grades handed out after the blowout victory...

Kansas football offense: A

The Jayhawks gained 490 yards, 399 on the ground.

Running back Devin Neal’s 154 yards off 12 carries marked a season-high and the third-highest single-game rushing total of his career. It was the eighth 100-yard game of the Lawrence native’s career and his most rushing yards since he gained 190 yards at Texas Tech in 2022.

Running back Daniel Hishaw set a new career-high with 134 rushing yards off 19 attempts. He scored two touchdowns. Neal and Hishaw became the first two Jayhawks to gain 100 yards in the same game since Pooka Williams and Khalil Herbert did so against Boston College in 2019.

The last time two KU backs reached 100 rushing yards in the same conference game was 2014, when Corey Avery and Tony Pierson went for 100-plus against Iowa State .

Running back Dylan McDuffie gained 91 yards on 13 carries — the most yards he’s had in a game as a Jayhawk.

Bean was efficient. He went 8-for-12 passing for 91 yards and one touchdown. He is now 12th in school history with 3,035 yards passing. Receiver Lawrence Arnold caught his first TD pass of the season and eighth of his career. He scored from 5 yards out with nice extension of his right arm, making sure the ball crossed the plane.

Tight end Mason Fairchild had a team-high three receptions for 19 yards. He is tied for fifth in school history for career receptions by a tight end with 68.

Kansas football defense: A

UCF entered with the fifth-most explosive offense in the country and No. 1 offense in the Big 12 at 545.8 yards per game. The Jayhawks held the Knights to 371 yards. UCF didn’t score a point until the third quarter when the game was out of reach; KU led 31-0.

Defensive lineman Austin Booker totaled four solo tackles. He had two tackles for loss, one sack and a forced fumble. Booker leads the team with eight tackles for loss and five sacks.

On a Booker forced fumble, defensive tackle DJ Withers recovered and advanced the ball six yards.

Linebacker Taiwan Berryhill led the Jayhawks with a career-high eight tackles, including seven solo. He also recorded an 8-yard sack in the fourth quarter. Cornerback Cobee Bryant set a season-high with seven tackles. Safety Kenny Logan also had seven tackles and has 329 for his career.

Linebacker Jayson Gilliom totaled two tackles, including his first career sack. Defensive end Patrick Joyner also had a sack.

Special teams: B

Trevor Wilson had an 82-yard punt return for a score.

Seth Keller converted a 25-yard field goal that completed KU’s first drive. He later missed a 32-yard attempt for his first miss of the season. Keller is now 7-for-8 on field goal attempts and 24-for-24 on extra point tries.

KU’s Tabor Allen had nine kickoffs, all for touchbacks. But the Jayhawks did botch an extra point try: Demari Henderson picked up a fumbled snap and lugged the ball all the way into the end zone for two points on the play.

Play of the Game

Wilson returned a UCF punt 82 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter to give KU a 24-0 lead at the break. It looked as if a pair of UCF defenders thought he’d be calling for a fair catch. Instead he caught the punt and raced for a TD, thanks in part to a block by Donovan Gaines.

It’s the second straight week that Wilson scored a touchdown. The 82-yard return tied for the fifth-longest punt return for a score in Kansas football history and the first punt return touchdown by a Jayhawk since Nick Harwell had a 76-yard punt return for a score against West Virginia in 2014.

It marked the first special teams touchdown scored by KU since Cobee Bryant’s 61-yard return on a blocked field goal attempt in last year’s season opener against Tennessee Tech.

Up next: KU will travel to Oklahoma State for a 2:30 p.m. kickoff on Saturday. With a win, the Jayhawks will become bowl eligible.