DeShawn Hanika had several reasons for picking Kansas
DeShawn Hanika knew what he was looking for in a school. He has been through the recruiting process twice and knows how it is supposed to work. After an unofficial visit to Kansas over the weekend he saw everything needed to decide.
Hanika was receiving a lot of interest from college coaches from the Pac 12 to SEC but decided to stay close to home, committing to the Jayhawks.
His visit started Saturday morning watching the team go through practice preparing for the Guaranteed Rate Bowl.
“I was really impressed with practice and how Coach Leipold runs his practices, the organization, the energy that everyone seemed to have in late December, they were flying around like it was early August and fall camp,” Hanika said. “So that made me feel really good.”
After practice there was time to meet with the coaching staff before they went to Allen Fieldhouse to watch the Missouri basketball game.
He met with quarterbacks coach Jim Zebrowski and new offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes. Grimes will also be his position coach. Then there were conversations with Jalon Daniels that helped sell him on the program.
“Sitting down with Coach Z and the new tight ends coach Grimes, I felt like we all really hit it off,” Hanika said. “I was happy to hear what they had to say and how they would use me. Then I've been talking to Jalon Daniels a little bit here and there and he said that he's ready to do big things. You know, it's hard not to play for a quarterback that thinks like me and that wants the same.”
Hanika earned an offer from the Jayhawks during a home visit from general manager Rob Ianello, who was on the road recruiting the last couple weeks. At 6-foot-6, 240 pounds he caught the attention of the coaches when he went in the transfer portal. In 2022 he led the Iowa State tight ends in receiving.
The coaches believed he would be a good fit for their offense.
“They told me that they like how big and how fast I was,” Hanika said. “They kept saying it's hard to find big body tight ends that can move like I do. And that they had really big plans for what I can do in that offense and the things that I can open up for the offense. They were just really excited about my speed and my ball skills and my physicality in the run game.”
Hanika was a standout at Topeka Hayden High School, where he earned all-state honors. He signed with Butler County Community College out of high school. He redshirted at BCCC while he recovered from a knee injury. He signed with Iowa State in the spring of 2020. At Iowa State he was twice selected to the Big 12 Academic Second-Team and made the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll four times.
Playing close to home was an attractive aspect and another reason he chose Kansas.
“I would say that was a big part of my decision,” he said. “I had a rough summer, some unfortunate events, but I think that happened for a reason. I believe that God does everything for a reason. So, he put me in the position to get closer to my family and to come back home and really be close with them and enjoy all the success that I could have at Kansas with them.”
Hanika said he has followed the Jayhawks progress as a program since Leipold took over. He had a front row seat watching the program grow since he was playing KU in the Big 12.
“It's definitely not the Kansas that I remember growing up with,” he said. “Coach Leipold came in and they've done a complete 180. They're a very respected team now in the conference, if not one of the top teams in the conference now. And with 90% of their guys coming back, they're ready to go win a Big 12 championship. And I want to be a part that.”
Hanika will make the move to Lawrence in a month. He will be on campus for spring football and back near his family and fiancé.
“It's a big weight off my shoulders for me and my fiancé,” Hanika said. “I can finally sit and just enjoy it and be happy to be home 30 minutes away from family. They'll be there for us. They'll be there for me. I'm truly happy to become a Jayhawk.”