In three seasons under head coach David Beaty, The Kansas Jayhawks have an abysmal record of 3-33. So wondering if the Jayhawks can surpass their projected win total of three for the 2018 season sounds like a stretch. Asking a team to win as many games in one season as the previous three sounds tough, but Kansas has a different situation than most teams. Can the Kansas Jayhawks double up on Beaty’s win total in his fourth season?
Kansas Jayhawks 2018 regular season win total
Over 3
Under 3
Odds courtesy of BetDSI Sportsbook
What Happened Last Year
After a Week 1 38-16 victory against Southeast Missouri State, things looked to be OK in Lawrence< Kansas. The Jayhawks took care of their Division I FCS opponent and quarterback Peyton Bender tossed four touchdowns and 364 yards. Then Central Michigan rolled into town as former Michigan quarterback Shane Morris led the Chippewas into Kansas and tore up the Jayhawks for 467 yards passing and four touchdowns. Things went downhill fast for the Jayhawks after their 1-0 start by losing the following 11 games including the most polarizing moment of the season when Kansas didn’t shake hands with future Heisman Trophy winner and No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft Baker Mayfield. Mayfield went on to do his thing on the field against the Jayhawks, as well as doing other things on the sidelines.
What Will Change This Year
Bender is back under center for his second season as the starting quarterback since joining Kansas out of Itawamba Community College. Last season he threw 10 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, completed 54.21 percent of his passes for 1,609 yards and had a quarterback rating of 108.48. Bender’s top target Steven Sims Jr. is back as well as Evan Fairs and Jeremiah Booker to make a formidable receiving corps. Khalil Herbert was the team’s leading rusher with 663 yards rushing, which isn’t catching anyone’s eye, but 5.5 yards per carry is solid and he’ll look to get a few more touches and get closer to 1,000 in 2018. If Herbert can hit that 1,000 yard rushing mark and Bender with an experienced receiving corps can improve their game, the Kansas offense will be in decent shape.
Defensively, the Jayhawks are loaded with returning players. Joe Dineen Jr. led Kansas with 137 tackles while adding 2.5 sacks and he’ll return to lead the linebacking core. Safety Mike Lee and cornerback Hasan Defense both led the team with two interceptions while Defense had nine pass breakups. The defensive line will be led by Daniel Wise who had a team-high seven sacks and will return as well.
With Kansas now three years into Beaty’s system and experienced athletes all over the field for the Jayhawks, if there was going to be a breakout year for Kansas to surprise people this would be the year. Things really can only go up for Kansas, but will the win total go above three?
Outlook & Prediction
The first quarter of the season falls in favor of the Jayhawks. Kansas hosts Division I FCS Nicholls State before heading to Mount Pleasant to try to get payback for what CMU did to the Jayhawks in Week 2, and don’t worry Shane Morris’ eligibility is up so the Chippewas will have a new quarterback which sets up well for the Kansas defense. Then in Week 3 the Jayhawks return to home to host Rutgers, who is the Kansas of the East.
A 3-0 start is not only possible, it’s almost likely Kansas hits the mark right out of the gate. The trick comes when the Big 12 schedule begins and who can the Jayhawks knock off? Week 4 Kansas travels to Baylor, who had one win last year that came in Kansas, home games against Texas, Oklahoma State, Iowa State and TCU while visiting West Virginia, Texas Tech, Kansas State and Oklahoma.
If all goes right for Kansas, the best chance to get four wins is to start the year 4-0 at Baylor. The Jayhawks will need to ride into Waco hot, but once they fall they’ll drop back into reality. I’m not sold Kansas can go 3-0 to start and I’m certainly not sold the Jayhawks can win multiple games in the Big 12 so I’m not sold on the over.
