When the Kansas coaches started their recruiting road trips after spring football the first area of emphasis was the local schools.

The Jayhawks had nine assistant coaches visit local schools in Kansas and Missouri over the last two weeks.

Lee’s Summit North is a school they have been building good relations with.

North is stacked with talent in several classes and have multiple division one prospects. Head coach Jamar Mozee has been impressed by what he has seen from the KU coaching staff.

“They’ve done an excellent job,” Mozee said. “It's way better than it's been, and that's not to insult anybody, but they've done an excellent job. They've been in our building. We've been there. They've definitely invited us to come spend time with them in the spring.”

Mozee has seen a lot of traffic at his high school with players like son Isaiah, who holds 30 division one offers. Another player getting national attention is Williams Nwaneri ranked the third best defensive end in the country according to the Rivals.com ratings.

The Kansas coaches are still building relationships with local coaches. That will come with time but Mozee likes what he has seen from Leipold and his staff.

“I think Coach Leipold is really good at what he does,” Mozee said. “He seems like he's very organized. He knows what he wants to do, kind of has an old school feel to him. He can adapt and cater to the players today and do the different things that he needs to do to win. And so, I am very, very impressed with him.”

Another local player getting national headlines is Jayden Woods from Mill Valley. The defensive end in the 2025 class is racking up offers at a consistent rate.

Woods has been to Lawrence for unofficial visits and was on campus during spring football. On his most recent visit he took in a practice and talked with the coaches.

“I got to learn more about KU in depth and build on the connection with coaches,” Woods said. “I had a great time watching the defense work and seeing many different guys getting reps.”

He spoke with several coaches on the visit.

“I got to speak with Aligo, Svarczkopf, Coach O (Onatolu), Bonneau, Coach Leipold, Coach Kotelnicki, and all the strength coaches,” he said. “All of the conversations went great.”

Woods visited Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Kansas State this spring. Recent offers have come from Notre Dame, Tennessee, Missouri, and Oklahoma to name a few.

He is one of the most highly recruited prospects in the 2025 class in the region.

“It’s been very humbling and I’m very grateful,” Woods said.

He is running track this spring but found time to get out and visit a lot of schools. Woods wants to take as many visits as he can before he starts narrowing down his list.

“I’m looking to see where I fit in a school to help me with my decision in narrowing down colleges,” he said.