Kansas Jayhawks crack The Athletic’s Top 25 college football preseason rankings

It’s a new era for Kansas football, and that includes something usually not seen around Lawrence — preseason hype.

The Athletic’s Austin Mock put Kansas at No. 23 in his preseason Top 25 rankings, with the Jayhawks one of five teams from the Big 12 Conference to make it alongside No. 14 Utah, No. 15 Kansas State, No. 18 Oklahoma State and No. 21 Arizona.

Kansas returns quarterback Jalon Daniels after her earned All-Big 12 honors in 2022 but only played three games in 2023 due to a back injury. Running back Devin Neal has rushed for over 1,000 yards each of the last two seasons and returns, as does cornerback Cobee Bryant, who is being projected as  possible first-round pick.

Kansas opens the season on Aug. 29 at home against Lindenwood.