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

Kansas cornerback Austin Alexander takes part in a drill during the first day of KU Football's fall camp on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026, in Lawrence.

Austin Alexander, then a redshirt freshman, took advantage of the opportunities he garnered in fall camp while the more experienced D.J. Graham II was dealing with nerve damage to earn a starting job at outside cornerback in 2025.

Then came the first game action of his career.

“He had to get thrown in the deep end,” Kansas defensive backs coach Brandon Shelby said. “And every once in a while he got some water in his nose, you know what I mean?”

Alexander had an up-and-down year in which key moments like a critical deflection to beat UCF were offset by frequent struggles against some of the Big 12’s top wideouts. Now, after an injury-plagued offseason of his own, he’s in the opposite position from last fall camp, attempting to defend his own starting job against challenges from some of KU’s other outside cornerbacks, headlined by Ball State transfer Roman Pearson.

“Each day, somebody has to make a play,” Alexander said. “Each day, it forces you to really like go out there and compete every day, because I know somebody could take my spot.”

Alexander came in alongside fellow cornerback Jalen Todd in the class of 2024. Both started on the outside last season, at least until injuries at nickel back forced Todd to move inside. But even with the position change, Todd was more consistent throughout 2025, albeit in a quiet year overall for KU’s cornerbacks.

With Todd firmly ensconced on one side heading into 2026, Alexander missed the spring due to an offseason surgery, and then “just when we were getting him back, he had another setback with a different injury, but he’s coming around,” head coach Lance Leipold said earlier this month.

“Each day I’m getting better,” Alexander said. “Each cycle, how we’re doing it, I’m getting better each day.”

Alexander added that, as he spoke to reporters on Monday, his most recent cycle of practices was his best, which certainly aligned with what Shelby said the same day: “I’ll tell you what now, he’s made a lot of plays over the last couple days. He’s right about that 100% and we’re starting to see his name just keep popping up when it comes about production.”

That bodes well, because if KU can get Alexander on the field early and often in 2026, it may see a different player than it did in 2025. For one thing he’s reached a listed 190 pounds, after he was about 180 heading into last year: “If you look at Austin, he looks a lot different than he has in the first couple years in this program physically, and he’s playing that way when he has an opportunity,” Leipold said.

But perhaps even more importantly, Alexander is displaying a much greater level of confidence. As he put it, that could make him “scary.”

“It could help us because now we can just play like that,” he said with a snap of the fingers, “and not have to go out there, maybe think about it. We can just react.”

How can Alexander best express that confidence as he attempts to reassert his presence in the starting lineup? Asked what he needs to do to show he’s the best choice to start opposite Todd, the redshirt sophomore said, “I definitely need to get my hands on the ball, you know? Kind of showing up in the run game, being aggressive.”

Shelby, whose unit did not get an interception from a cornerback in 2025, said he is looking for more than just a “catch and tackle” from Alexander and the rest.

“We need some interceptions, some PBUs, we need some game-changing plays, and these last couple days he’s shown that,” Shelby said. “So I’m really looking forward to these last couple weeks as these guys kind of come down to the wire to see who kind of is going to be the one who withstands this and takes control of it.”

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

Kansas safety Taylor Davis (left) collides with cornerback Austin Alexander during the first day of KU Football’s fall camp on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026, in Lawrence.

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

Kansas cornerback Austin Alexander (0) and safety Darrion Jones collide during the first day of KU Football’s fall camp on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026, in Lawrence.

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

Kansas cornerbacks Austin Alexander (left) and Jameer Moore wait for the whistle during the first day of KU Football’s fall camp on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026, in Lawrence.