KU interim head football coach, Clint Bowen, watches the Jayhawks during drills before the game against the Kansas State Wildcats in Manhattan.

With the departures of Ben Heeney and Jake Love, the Kansas University football team lost 180 tackles at the linebacker position from last year’s team.

And replaced those with a guy who made 31.

While the math might not line up favorably for the Jayhawks, the addition of South Carolina transfer Marcquis Roberts (pronounced Mar-Kweese), a 6-foot-1, 220-pound junior who joined the team this summer, could go a long way toward helping Kansas ease into life after Heeney and Love.

Although an official 2015 depth chart has not been released, it’s clear that Roberts is playing his way into the good graces of the coaching staff day by day.

Head coach David Beaty, on multiple occasions, has called Roberts a “natural” player. And Tuesday defensive coordinator Clint Bowen ditched his usually reserved demeanor to sing Roberts’ praises.

“‘Quis has played a lot of football and it shows,” Bowen said. “He’s an athletic young man, physical, a very good instinctual player. He’s been a really pleasant surprise.”

Bowen said he knew Roberts could help the team somehow but refers to his new linebacker as a surprise because he now has seen him play live right in front of him.

“‘Quis has obviously been well coached throughout his time (at South Carolina),” Bowen said. “He’s a legitimate BCS player.”