photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas running back Leshon Williams takes part in spring practice on Thursday, March 6, 2025, in Lawrence.

Leshon Williams wasn’t exactly an avid follower of the Kansas football team during his five seasons at Iowa.

But when he happened to watch KU play Illinois on television in the team hotel before one of the Hawkeyes’ games, he immediately got a clear impression of the Jayhawks’ play style.

“They looked pretty good,” he recalled on Tuesday. “Just a lot of explosive plays, and I liked the creativity on offense.”

That proved to be exactly what Williams was looking for when he entered the transfer portal: a chance to play in a more diverse scheme.

“Just from really looking at Devin (Neal) last year, seeing their versatility with the offense, explosive plays, all the shifts and motions, keeping the defense on their toes,” he said, “I feel like it was just a good fit for me and would make the game a lot easier for me.”

Williams will in turn make the game easier for his peers on the Jayhawks’ offense.

The 5-foot-10, 215-pound running back from Chicago won’t exactly form a thunder-and-lightning duo with returnee and fellow sixth-year senior Daniel Hishaw Jr. — in fact, position coach Jonathan Wallace calls him “a 2.0 of Daniel” — but he’ll instead help KU double down on its physical run game.

“He is a violent player, and he’s going to be a lot of fun to watch,” Wallace said.

But he’s not just the kind to deliver punishment. Hishaw praised his “quick feet.”

“His violence is going to make people probably overstep, and he’s going to be able to slide right by them and everything,” Hishaw said. “Y’all going to see a lot from us.”

For Wallace, Williams’ decisive running style made him appealing in the portal, as did his past experience in the Big Ten Conference. Williams has 1,324 rushing yards to his name, 821 of which came during the 2023 season, when he was one of the top players on Iowa’s struggling offense. (As Williams himself pointed out, he has a lot of experience running against stacked boxes.)

An injury hampered his 2024 season and, given the emergence of fellow running back Kaleb Johnson, Williams only carried the ball 11 times before redshirting and entering the portal in October. He was committed to Memphis before flipping to KU in early December.

“I love it so far, man,” Williams said on Tuesday, nearly done with his lone spring as a Jayhawk. “Good teammates, they got a lot of energy, they bring it every day, and everybody (comes) out to compete, and we all got the same goal, just to get better and continue to improve for the season.”

His affection for the team has been reciprocated. Redshirt sophomore running back Johnny Thompson Jr. said it was immediately apparent he would fit in: “He is a brother to us, honestly.”

“He’s low, he’s a good pass protector, he’s a cool dude,” Hishaw said. “He keeps his head down, staying grounded, he doesn’t get high, (doesn’t) get too low.”

Hishaw and Williams are the leading contenders for carries now that the all-time rushing leader Neal has graduated.

“I feel like we both can do everything, as you can see,” Williams said. “Powerful, strong, explosive.”

They are followed by a pair of younger options in Thompson and Harry Stewart III.

“I feel like truthfully, Coach, if he wanted to, he could close his eyes and pick a back and we’ll get the job done,” Williams said.

photo by: Chance Parker/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas running back Leshon Williams runs through drills during the first practice of spring on Sunday, March 2, 2025.