photo by: Kahner Sampson/Journal-World photos

Isaiah Marshall, left, and Cole Ballard are pictured at Kansas football's spring practice on Thursday, March 26, 2026, in Lawrence.

Jim Zebrowski keeps looking around for former Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels but finding only a freshman quarterback with a homophonous name.

“He’s been around so long, I’m like, ‘Where is Daniels?'” Zebrowski said of the four-year team captain. “Oh, Jaylen Mason. OK, got it.”

The graduation of Daniels, who played in 49 games over the course of six seasons in Lawrence — most as a starter, and some even predating the arrival of head coach Lance Leipold, Zebrowski and the rest of his coaching staff — marks a sea change for KU. Daniels and Jason Bean competed at times early in their careers, but it’s been four years at minimum since the Jayhawks had any sort of non-injury-related quarterback intrigue.

This year is markedly different, as after biding their time behind Daniels, redshirt junior Cole Ballard and redshirt sophomore Isaiah Marshall are vying for the starting job.

“Whoever’s out there is out there because he can make plays,” said Zebrowski, who this year will serve as passing game coordinator. “The great thing about our team is they respect both those dudes a lot. All of the guys, but especially those two because they’ve worked so hard.”

Rice transfer Chase Jenkins, another redshirt junior, is also in the mix, at least in theory. (Zebrowski, asked if Jenkins is in fact part of the competition, responded, “Best person will play. How about that? See, isn’t that a good answer?”) Ballard, for his part, said Jenkins is one of the fastest players on the team. But Jenkins has been somewhat limited by injury early in his time in Lawrence, and with the uncommon background of having been briefly converted to wide receiver and then essentially running the triple option for the Owls in 2025, he isn’t an incredibly experienced passer at the collegiate level in the sort of offense KU uses.

So much of the spotlight at the moment is on Ballard and Marshall, the two returners.

“They’re both making plays, they’re both developing as leaders and they do what we need for our team to keep moving forward,” redshirt senior wide receiver Cam Pickett said.

Their respective backgrounds are well known at this point, as they are program veterans, but as a quick summary: Ballard came to KU in 2023, initially as a walk-on, and was thrust into action as a true freshman due to injuries to Daniels and Bean. He started one game that season against Kansas State, a narrow loss. He then served as the primary backup to Daniels in both 2024 and 2025, last year going 10-for-22 for 108 yards with a touchdown and an interception and also rushing 15 times for 92 yards.

Marshall was a well-regarded recruit out of Southfield, Michigan, in the class of 2024, who garnered comparisons to Daniels early in his career based on his mobility and play style. He did not appear in a game during his redshirt season but made the most of a special package of plays that used him as a rusher in 2025, as he took 15 carries for 160 yards. He has thrown just three in-game passes.

The two will have their performances graded and charted in the weeks and months ahead. Leipold has said there is no specific timeline for naming a starter.

From an on-field perspective, Ballard said he believes the competition will be decided by decision-making: “Quarterback’s the hardest position in sports, so you’re going to make mistakes, but it’s just limiting those mistakes as much as you can.” Zebrowski said he feels both Ballard and Marshall have become significantly more confident and comfortable operating the offense.

“The other part is the intangible part of being somebody that can be a leader in the locker room, be a leader in the huddle, get guys lined up and do all the little things that we need at that position and go,” Leipold said. “And I think both those guys understand it, both continue to show the ability to lead our football team.”

When KU has had multiple quarterbacks it likes, it has tended to use all of them. That’s how Ballard and Marshall found their way into games in 2025 even as Daniels was healthy. Further back, Kotelnicki, before leaving for Penn State in December 2023, frequently put Daniels and Bean on the field at the same time to stress opposing defenses.

This sort of judicious usage remains within the realm of possibility. But Leipold doesn’t sound keen on the prospect of a full-time two-quarterback system.

“I think you have to give people an opportunity to get into the flow of the game at that position instead of going back and forth,” he said.

So there will indeed be one starter — most likely still four to five months away from being revealed. For Ballard and Marshall, battling for the top spot rather than just jockeying for positioning on the depth chart doesn’t seem to be all that significant of a change.

“We come in with the same mindset every day,” Ballard said. “You never know. You’re always one snap away. So just really coming in, competing, being there for each other.”

He also added that he’s attempted to make leadership part of his value to the Jayhawks, beginning long before he was in contention to start: “I’ve tried to attack, especially the last couple years since my first year in the program, really just being able to be a guy guys can go to, whether I was the starter or not. So I feel like I haven’t really changed too much, but there’s definitely been a bigger emphasis on it.”

Zebrowski said both players are competitive enough as to make them naturally well suited for this sort of situation.

“Cole more wants to punch you in the face,” Zebrowski said. “Like, tough, you know what I mean. Zeke, I think he does, but he’s got the ‘Just give me the ball and get the hell out of the way and I’ll make plays.’ … You don’t say much to any of them. They make a bad play, they’re going to make a good play next play.”

As usual, and as at every position (something Leipold has emphasized frequently of late), the hope is that the unsettled environment will bring the best out of all the players involved. Zebrowski cited a situation during the 2017 season at Buffalo when starting quarterback Tyree Jackson got injured, Drew Anderson excelled in his absence before getting hurt himself and then when Jackson came back he elevated his own level of play.

History suggests KU may need multiple quarterbacks at some point down the line. But the battle to be the first choice will be one of the offseason’s most prominent storylines.

“Those guys have done a fantastic job of having the desire to want to grow and improve, and they’ve been super critical of themselves, which is what happens at that position, or really any position, when you’re in a competition,” Kotelnicki said. “But nobody’s (shrunk) away or felt the pressure and anxiety of doing — they’re just going out there and playing, and I really, really appreciate it about all those guys.”