Fall Camp Recap: 8 Days Until Kansas Football

With the preseason camp completed, we take a look at the biggest stories and position group updates as the Jayhawks transition to the season.

The Kansas Jayhawks have finished their third preseason camp under head coach Lance Leipold, and there are plenty of updates to go through as we head into the first game week of the season.

With most of the team returning from last season, it was reasonable to assume that we had a pretty good handle on what this team is going to look like. But there have been some big developments during Fall Camp that have led to some updated situations.

Jalon Daniels Injury Update

Early in camp, Lance Leipold noted that starting quarterback Jalon Daniels was dealing with some back tightness that limited his ability to participate in practice. The Lawrence Journal-World has a good breakdown of the timeline for the injury.

But while many can be rightfully concerned about Daniels being injured, it seems like he is both on the mend and has been making good use of the time. He has been able to work with the trainers to rehab the injury, but the lack of physical reps hasn't stopped him from continuing to develop the mental side of the game. And that is particularly handy, since that was one of the areas that he highlighted as where he could improve.

And his inability to practice has opened up some reps for other quarterbacks to show what they can do. While Jason Bean has been running with the ones, the transfer of Ethan Vasko opened up the third-string spot on the depth chart. Stepping into that role is freshman walk-on Cole Ballard. He has impressed both coaches and teammates with his ability to make good reads and perform well in the third-string snaps. He wouldn't have had that opportunity if Daniels was taking snaps. It seems like the silver lining to Daniels' injury is the ability to find an emergency backup for later in the season.

Developing Linebacker Depth

We've already had multiple updates about how the defensive line is showing out in camp. But the final press conferences, highlighted another area where the defense has had some huge leaps: linebacker depth.

I highlighted the position as a spot of worry in our latest roundtable, given the wide variety of roles that the linebackers were asked to fill last season. But indications are that Craig Young will be playing linebacker full time this season. Additionally, Jayson Gilliom returns to the unit, JB Brown transferred in from Bowling Green, and freshman Logan Brantley has impressed early. Each of these players are providing some much needed depth to either spell the starters, serve in a hybrid role or fill in for injuries.

Increasing Speed

Kansas strength coach Matt Gildersleeve spent his time at the podium talking about the big gains for the Jayhawks this off-season. Last year, the team needed to add some size. This year, the team pushed to add speed. Gildersleeve mentioned that they have 69 players on the roster that can hit 20 miles per hour during football activities, which is a big increase from the last couple years.