Reasons for Pessimism in 2023 - 91 Days Until Kansas Football

It's the annual tradition for a fan of the Kansas Jayhawks: trying to figure out just how bad things can go each season. I have to admit that this article was a lot harder to write than I thought it would be, because there are so many reasons to be optimistic for the upcoming season.

The returning production is again one of the highest in the nation. The transfer class looks great once again. Multiple Jayhawks are among the best in the conference at their position. 

But a lot of things had to go right last year for the Jayhawks to sneak into a bowl, including some incredibly unfortunate injury luck for Oklahoma State. And while you can point to some bad injury luck for the Jayhawks, those injuries came in places where Kansas was the deepest on the depth chart. So if things do end up falling apart this season, what could some of the culprits be?

Weight of Expectations

The Kansas Jayhawks had the luxury last season of playing the "no one believes in us" card. The Vegas win total was a lowly 2.5. They were picked last in the conference by a large margin. And the fact that a dominant win over Tennessee Tech in the opener was such a positive sign tells you all you need to know about where this team has been.

But this year, there will be no sneaking up on anyone. Kansas was one of the biggest stories in the early part of the season, and they played in one of the most entertaining bowl games in recent bowl history with their thrilling comeback against Arkansas before falling in triple overtime.

The Vegas win total is 6.5. The national expectation is that they go bowling. And the team hasn't done anything to remove pressure, as there are reports that the internal expectation for the team is 9-3 this year. Fans are excited. Players are excited. And lots of people are dreaming big for this team.

But Kansas has been optimistic before. The win over Texas under David Beaty was considered by many to be a possible turning point. Sadly, it was not. The expectations overwhelmed that team, and they faltered the next season.

I don't think this team is setting up for the same kind of let down. But this team hasn't had to deal with these expectations in the past. While I think Lance Leipold and staff will have the team ready to handle the extra weight of those expectations, we won't know for sure until they actually shoulder them this season.

Strength of the Schedule

While I don't know the schedule has taken a huge step up in difficulty, it's easy to make the claim that it is on par with last year. Missouri State is at least as good as Tennessee Tech was, even if it likely ends in a similar fashion. The Illinois defense will be an early test for this offense. Playing at Nevada will be on par with Houston last season. And while Kansas plays three of the four new teams, they still have Texas, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State on the schedule.

Defensive Issues

This has been the question for the team for a long time, and every step forward seems matched by the loss of some really big pieces. The loss of Lonnie Phelps, Marcus Lee, Sam Burt and Caleb Sampson has seriously depleted the front line of a boom or bust defense.

The Jayhawks have a habit of pulling together a competent defense, but they have done it with a large cast of interchangeable parts more than a two-deep of guys that can stand up to Big 12 offensive lineman. The hope is that Austin Booker, Devin Phillips and the rest of the transfers can shore up the line, but it's easy to imagine how that may not be as easy as it would seem.

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