photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World Photo

Kansas cornerback Cobee Bryant knocks the ball loose from BYU’s Parker Kingston on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. Bryant recovered the ball for a touchdown.

No one told Lance Leipold, when he was considering joining Kansas as its head coach back in 2021, that the school hadn’t gone 4-0 in consecutive years for over a century.

“I’m glad I didn’t do all my research,” Leipold quipped Saturday night.

As it turned out, the Jayhawks needed just three seasons under Leipold to end what became a 108-year drought. They used an opportunistic defense and a clock-chewing run game to outlast BYU in the Big 12 Conference opener for both teams, claiming a 38-27 win at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium and extending their undefeated start.

“Sometimes you don’t know what you’re really stepping into until you get there,” Leipold said. “But I tell you what, like I told our team, I’m really proud of them.”

Cornerback Cobee Bryant leveled Parker Kingston for a fumble-return touchdown on BYU’s second play from scrimmage — “The lightest guy on the field probably making the biggest hit of the day,” Leipold called it — and safety Kenny Logan Jr. corralled a deflection for a pick-six on the third play of the second half. That pair of defensive touchdowns helped jump-start KU’s scoring amid an uneven start that saw the Cougars match them blow for blow.

BYU suffered more and more as the game went on from a one-dimensional offense, as it ran for just 9 yards while forcing quarterback Kedon Slovis to pass the ball 51 times. Bryant forced a third turnover late in the third quarter when he seized on an underthrow from Slovis, which gave KU possession with an 8-point lead and set up a touchdown pass from Jalon Daniels to Luke Grimm.

It was the fumble, though, that stuck with Bryant as one of his favorite plays of his college career. He got a text message from his mother saying she didn’t know he could hit like that.

“I said, ‘Mom, I ain’t know I could do that either,'” Bryant said, adding that “A lot of people say I can’t tackle. So I guess just making that hit, I guess a lot of people know now.”

On offense, Daniels was an efficient 14-of-19 for 130 yards with three touchdowns (two to Grimm, one to Trevor Kardell), plus 54 yards on the ground, with KU reinstating the quarterback run game after mostly eliminating it from the game plan at Nevada last week. Devin Neal added 91 rushing yards, and Daniel Hishaw Jr. had 60, all contributing to the landmark victory.

“We’re a long way from an 0-9 program (in 2020),” Daniels said. “… The fact that my class, the 2020 class, who were freshmen that year, are finally able to see the changes that we made in this program, it means the world to us.”

The KU offense needed to be productive from the opening whistle because BYU was so efficient early. Slovis responded to Bryant’s defensive score with a clinical 10-play, 75-yard drive that included four catches from tight end Isaac Rex, culminating in a touchdown catch for Darius Lassiter, returning to the field where his father Kwamie starred for the Jayhawks.

The teams traded efficient scoring drives, with Daniels finding Kardell for the latter’s first score of the year a week after a near-miss at Nevada and Slovis connecting with running back LJ Martin. But the KU offense ran out of steam and punted on two straight drives, and the Cougars were able to take their first lead, killing the clock ahead of halftime and adding a 33-yard field goal from Will Ferrin, all the more significant because they received the second-half kickoff.

OJ Burroughs saw a potentially game-changing interception slip through his hands on the first play after the break, but KU’s fortunes turned for the better soon after.

“Two plays later,” Burroughs said, “my brother, you know, he made a great play. Proud of him.”

An errant pass from Slovis hit its intended target, then got batted up by reserve KU linebacker Jayson Gilliom before hitting the ground, then was snagged out of the air by Logan and taken back for a quick KU score.

Despite allowing a 50-yard completion from Slovis to Chase Roberts on the ensuing drive, the Jayhawks shut down BYU thanks to a 14-yard loss on a sack from Austin Booker, holding the Cougars to a field goal that made it 21-20. Daniels found Grimm for a score, then another BYU drive followed a similar outline: Slovis lofted a deep ball to Keelan Marion for 37 yards, only to see the drive stall out a few plays later.

Daniels hit Grimm for a second score on an “instinctive” look that Daniels said they hadn’t worked on in practice.

“He’s a magician when it comes to route running,” Daniels said.

BYU had an answer on offense once more, but KU ran the ball 11 straight times to consume nearly six-and-a-half minutes and set up a chip-shot field goal, sealing the result at 38-27.

How they scored

First quarter

10:38 — Cobee Bryant 22-yard fumble return. Seth Keller PAT good. Kansas 7, BYU 0

5:48 — Darius Lassiter 7-yard pass from Kedon Slovis. Will Ferrin PAT good. 10 plays, 75 yards, 4:50 TOP. Kansas 7, BYU 7.

1:33 — Trevor Kardell 15-yard pass from Jalon Daniels. Keller PAT good. Eight plays, 86 yards, 4:10 TOP. Kansas 14, BYU 7.

Second quarter

11:00 — LJ Martin 10-yard pass from Slovis. Ferrin PAT good. 13 plays, 75 yards, 5:25 TOP. Kansas 14, BYU 14.

00:13 — Ferrin 33-yard field goal good. 12 plays, 68 yards, 4:07 TOP. BYU 17, Kansas 14.

Third quarter

14:38 — Kenny Logan 30-yard interception return. Keller PAT good. Kansas 21, BYU 17.

10:55 — Ferrin 34-yard field goal.

4:53 — Luke Grimm 5-yard pass from Daniels. Keller PAT good. 10 plays, 75 yards, 6:05 TOP. Kansas 28, BYU 20.

Fourth quarter

13:36 — Grimm 13-yard pass from Daniels. Keller PAT good. Seven plays, 64 yards, 3:38 TOP. Kansas 35, BYU 20.

8:02 — Keelan Marion 6-yard run. Ferrin PAT good. 13 plays, 75 yards, 5:34 TOP. Kansas 35, BYU 27.

1:33 — Keller 23-yard field goal good. 12 plays, 69 yards, 6:29 TOP. Kansas 38, BYU 27.

Game Stats

BYU 7 10 3 7 – 27

Kansas 14 0 14 10 – 38

BYU | Kansas

First downs 23 | 23

Rushing yards 9 | 221

Passing yards 357 | 130

Total offense 366 | 351

Fumbles lost 1 | 0

Interceptions 2 | 0

Penalties-yards 3-30 | 7-70

Individual Stats

Rushing: BYU – Martin 11-28; Smith 4-10; Marion 1-6; Kingston 1-(-11); Slovis 5-(-24); Kansas – Neal 17-91; Hishaw 8-60; Daniels 9-54; McDuffie 2-17; Team 1-(-1).

Passing: BYU – Slovis 30-51, 357; Kansas – Daniels 14-19, 130.

Receiving: BYU — Lassiter 8-84; Rex 7-76; Roberts 5-89; Hill 3-34; Marion 2-47; Smith 2-17; Martin 1-10; Gunther 1-3; Fakahua 1-(-3); Kansas — Arnold 4-34; Neal 3-14; Casey 2-27; Skinner 2-22; Grimm 2-18; Kardell 1-15.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World photo

Kansas wide receiver Luke Grimm strikes a pose for the cameras after scoring a touchdown against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: MIke Gunnoe/Journal-World photo

Kansas wide receiver Luke Grimm pulls in a catch for a touchdown against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World photo

Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels leaps up over defenders to get the first down against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World photo

Kansas defensive lineman Austin Booker makes a shoestring tackle against BYU quarterback Kedon Slovis on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World photo

Kansas wide receiver Quentin Skinner runs upfield after making a catch against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World photo

Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels tosses a pass against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World photo

Kansas head coach Lance Leipold gives a hug to Dana Anderson after a recognition during the game against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World photo

Two F-35 Lightning fighter jets fly over before the game against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World photo

Two F-35 Lightning fighter jets fly over before the game against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World Photo

Kansas head coach Lance Leipold looks to the video board after a touchdown by BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World Photo

Kansas safety Kenny Logan Jr. breaks up a pass to BYU’s Isaac Rex on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World Photo

Kansas offensive lineman Ar’maj Reed-Adams lifts tight end Trevor Kardell up after scoring a touchdown Saturday against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World Photo

Kansas cornerback Cobee Bryant crosses the end zone for a touchdown against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World Photo

Kansas cornerback Cobee Bryant scoops up the fumbled football for a touchdown against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World Photo

Kansas cornerback Cobee Bryant knocks the ball loose from BYU’s Parker Kingston on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. Bryant recovered the ball for a touchdown.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World Photo

Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels fires off a pass against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Journal-World Photo

Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels releases an off-balance pass to a teammate for a first down against BYU on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.