‘I think he’s made a great transition to the head coaching role’: What Kansas coach said about Utes

Kansas is ready for a late kickoff in Salt Lake City.

Saturday, the Jayhawks travel to Rice-Eccles Stadium for the first time since 1996, when the Utes, led by quarterback Mike Fouts and running back Chris Fuamatu-Ma’afala, defeated No. 20 Kansas 45-42. Fouts threw the game-winning touchdown pass to Rocky Henry.

Thirty years later, the Jayhawks will be back in Utah to face a 4-0 and 12th-ranked Ute team that is heavily favored in the after-dark game. ESPN’s FPI matchup predictor gives Utah an 88.9% chance of improving to 2-0 in Big 12 play, and the Utes are currently favored by 11.5 points.

Unlike Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek, Kansas coach Lance Leipold isn’t making a big deal out of the 8:15 p.m. MDT kickoff time.

“As you go through time zone changes, you try to acclimate yourselves best to the same schedules that you can for what a local seven o’clock kickoff would be the best we can,” Leipold said.

“Adjust the wake-up times, done that. There’s nothing we’ll do differently in practice format. We’re a morning practice team. That’s what our schedule and academic calendars allow. Again, just keep emphasizing the other thing is elevation, hydration, things like that all kind of are part of the component there to go and go and play well.”

The Jayhawks are coming off a 55-0 win over Middle Tennessee that improved their record to 2-2. Kansas lost both of its Power Four games — 38-21 to Missouri and 24-17 to Arizona State in London — while beating up on Long Island University and Middle Tennessee.

Partly a result of those two games, Kansas enters the game with the nation’s eighth-best rushing offense (254 yards per game) and the eighth-best total defense (244.8 yards allowed per game).

Narrowing to Kansas’ two Power Four games, those numbers slip, with the Jayhawks averaging 129.5 rushing yards and allowing 348.5 yards per game.

Make no mistake, Kansas’ rushing attack, led by former Kansas State running back Dylan Edwards and dual-threat quarterback Isaiah Marshall, will be another test for the Utes. Utah was able to stop the run against Iowa State, holding the run-heavy Cyclones to 111 yards.

They’ll have to do it again against Marshall, Edwards and the Jayhawks on Saturday.

Kansas’ running back depth has taken a big hit with injuries to Yasin Willis, Justin Thurman and Kory Amachree. The injury to Willis is an especially big blow after the Syracuse transfer started the season with 125 yards and two touchdowns before suffering the injury against Arizona State.

“The injuries at running back have been a blow to us, not just physically, but mentally into that side of the ball. It’s like you know you’re getting thin, but the nice thing is that we’ve had guys step up,” Leipold said.

Edwards has been the bell cow back with 296 yards and three touchdowns on 50 carries, but Jalen Dupree has stepped up as well with 103 yards and two scores on 21 carries.

“The nice thing is we’ve had guys step up and we saw, again, continued signs of what Dylan Edwards can bring to this offense and he showed that on Saturday and played really well,” Leipold said. “I think I said it before a week ago at this time that Jalen Dupree needed to step up and had some good practices for us and he did and he ran hard.

“Then Khi Cummings was a nice spark. Even Donald Collier got in there for a couple carries. It’s great when you get the reserves in there and you got your second O-line in there and you’re still having success, you can get excited about what you’re going to need here down the stretch.”

As the Jayhawks prepare for the Utes, who denied them bowl eligibility in the final game of the 2025 season, there’s a lot to take in on film.

“Utah does a lot of great things creative-wise, offensively, using their personnel a lot of different ways, big bodies, things that make you (have to) be really sound,” said Leipold.

Morgan Scalley is 4-0 in his first full season as Utah’s head coach and has allowed Kevin McGiven free reign to experiment on offense. Though defensive coordinator Colton Swan has put his own twist on things, the Utes’ defense is largely similar to what it was under Scalley.

So far, Scalley has been able to continue the success of former coach Kyle Whittingham and add to it.

“They’ve been a highly successful program. They obviously hired Coach Scalley from within. That was something that was set for years past that it was going to happen. He’s done an excellent job,” Leipold said.

“As a defensive coordinator, well respected in that regard. I think he’s made a great transition to the head coaching role and kind of kept a lot of the same blueprint philosophies, but I’m sure there’s some small little nuances that he’s added.”