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

Head coach Lance Leipold, center, and the Kansas football team go through spring practice on Thursday, March 6, 2025, in Lawrence.

The Kansas football team is entering what may be its most consequential fall camp during Lance Leipold’s tenure, or at least since his first season at the helm.

As coaches and players frequently noted during the spring, the introduction of a bevy of transfers across numerous positions has created a new level of competition on this year’s roster.

That will be borne out in camp — which begins on Thursday, about a week earlier than usual, because KU opens its season in week zero on Aug. 23 — as position battles unfold at wide receiver, tight end, the offensive and defensive lines, linebacker, cornerback and safety.

As a result, plenty remains to be determined in the month ahead, and in fact many key questions may not be answered until the season is well underway.

How quickly do summer additions adapt?: Leipold was broadly pleased by how successfully an unprecedented number of transfers got acclimated to his team and its culture over the course of spring practices. Now a new group has to do that again with the season looming.

Players like defensive end Alex Bray (Illinois), wide receiver Bryson Canty (Columbia), offensive tackle Enrique Cruz Jr. (Syracuse), cornerback Syeed Gibbs (Georgia Tech) and tight end Boden Groen (Rice) have been on campus for summer workouts, so they’ve developed a certain level of familiarity already. They are well situated to occupy significant roles on this year’s team and in some cases even start, but they’ll have to prove it on the field beginning Thursday.

How does the offensive line get by early?: With all-league center Bryce Foster expected to be significantly limited for the first week or two of camp following a recent medical procedure, right guard Kobe Baynes will be the only returning starter from last season guiding his fellow linemen in practice.

That’s a big responsibility for him to manage, especially at a time when position battles will likely be raging at left guard (with candidates including James Livingston and Tavake Tuikolovatu) and right tackle (Nolan Gorczyca and Cruz). Position coach Daryl Agpalsa did plenty of tinkering last year during camp and the result was a line that featured some of the best players and served as one of the most cohesive units on KU’s 2024 squad. He faces arguably an even tougher challenge this time around.

Can returning players still figure in at linebacker?: The KU coaching staff has long been quite high on redshirt sophomore Logan Brantley, who missed most of last season due to injury, and redshirt freshman Jon Jon Kamara, a still-developing prospect who played sparingly on special teams in his first collegiate season. Also, Jayson Gilliom’s transition to a full-fledged linebacker is apparently complete and he’s been in Lawrence longer than anyone else at his position.

But all of these players could face an uphill battle for significant playing time after KU inaugurated its offseason transfer class with Bangally Kamara at weak-side linebacker. (The presence of Trey Lathan and Joseph Sipp Jr. at middle linebacker doesn’t help their chances, either.) It’s a new spot for position coach Chris Simpson to be in after this position lacked depth in 2024. The Jayhawks have been known to rotate at linebacker, but not as comprehensively as they do on, say, the defensive line, and with a new defensive coordinator in D.K. McDonald it’s not clear how many linebackers could see extensive action.

Projected depth chart

Last year Leipold and KU’s communications staff came out of fall camp with a two-deep that did not feature any uses of the word “or” (after it had been deployed 15 times at the start of the previous season). In the interest of clarity and decisiveness, below is an attempt to do the same.

Note that KU will certainly deploy more than two players at quite a few of these positions, such as tight end and defensive tackle. Also, if the Jayhawks adopt a 4-2-5 alignment more frequently under McDonald, it’s still not clear exactly what the fifth defensive back position will look like or which players might figure in. For the sake of this exercise it will serve as a third cornerback.

LT: Calvin Clements / Jack Tanner

LG: Tavake Tuikolovatu / James Livingston

C: Bryce Foster / Tyler Mercer

RG: Kobe Baynes / Amir Herring

RT: Enrique Cruz Jr. / Nolan Gorczyca

TE: DeShawn Hanika / Boden Groen

RB: Daniel Hishaw Jr. / Leshon Williams

QB: Jalon Daniels / Cole Ballard

WR: Cam Pickett / Doug Emilien

WR: Levi Wentz / Bryson Canty

WR: Emmanuel Henderson Jr. / Keaton Kubecka

DE: Dean Miller / Dakyus Brinkley

DT: D.J. Withers / Blake Herold

DT: Tommy Dunn Jr. / Gage Keys

DE: Justice Finkley / Alex Bray

LB: Bangally Kamara / Jayson Gilliom

LB: Trey Lathan / Joseph Sipp Jr.

CB: D.J. Graham II / Austin Alexander

CB: Syeed Gibbs / Jameel Croft Jr.

S: Taylor Davis / Mason Ellis

S: Lyrik Rawls / Jalen Dye

CB: Jalen Todd / Jahlil Hurley

KO: Laith Marjan / Dane Efird

PK: Laith Marjan / Dane Efird

P: Finn Lappin / Efren Jasso

LS: Emory Duggar / Hollis Moeller

PR: Keaton Kubecka / Tate Nagy

KR: Emmanuel Henderson Jr. / Cam Pickett

HOLD: Finn Lappin / Efren Jasso