Kansas football was in full pads for the first time this fall camp on Monday. Following practice, Lance Leipold talked about how the competition along the offensive line, defensive end, linebacker, and backup quarterback groups.

Cross-training offensive linemen to keep the group versatile

Leipold’s main goal with the offensive line is to get the five best players on the field regardless of position. Therefore, a lot of the players are getting reps at both guard, tackle, or even center. For example, Bryce Foster, the Texas A&M transfer who started all 12 games at center for the Aggies last season, has gotten work at guard as well.

“For anybody that's a newcomer, especially when you're upper classman newcomer, because obviously we want Bryce to be contributing, so you throw him in there with the first two units and you got a lot of things happening at a faster pace,” Leipold said. “But been very pleased with him. He's played some center, he's played some guard. As we know, he's a big body that can be physical. So he's going to help this football team.”

Leipold doesn’t just want each position to have a strict backup. Instead, he wants to find out who the best 10 players are so he can keep the best group on the field rather than just by position. The cross-training and mixing of pieces allow for more depth within the group.

“The more we can cross train, the more we can have guys that can step in, you know, will it be, you know, Shane Baumgartner has really gotten better. Darryl Simmons has really gotten better,” Leipold said. “So that's what we're trying to work out a little bit this week and then we'll kind of get back to where that's going to settle. But yeah, we're going to play around with that a little bit.”

It also helps that Kansas has a lot of depth on the offensive line. Leipold said it could be trending to the most depth he’s had since he arrived in Lawrence.

“I think what we're really, I think from where you guys are at, maybe from that is, I think visually it's probably where we want it to be the best it's been, but we've got some development to do there,” Leipold said. “Our first year, we weren't quite where we wanted to be. We had some bigger bodies, some older bodies. It wasn't quite, and we were all learning on the fly that camp at that time. But I like where we're trending with our younger linemen and the length we've been able to put in this program.”

Who’s standing out at defensive end?

Kansas has a big hole to replace in the production of Austin Booker. The Jayhawks’ sack leader was drafted by the Chicago Bears, leaving Kansas with needed to replace a lot of production. Leipold mentioned multiple players standing out in the early days of camp.

“You know, Dean Miller continues to get better,” Leipold said. “Dylan Wudke has shown up a little bit. You know, he was hampered with a hamstring last spring. Really, it was hard to get a read on him. Jereme Robinson made a nice play here today. He's been so consistent.”

The Jayhawks also have a highly-touted freshman duo in Dak Brinkley and DJ Warner. The pair of four-star recruits have a ton of upside according to Leipold.

“Young guys, Dak and DJ, you know, their upside is so positive, you know, again, we just keep them coming and understanding between, you know, understanding all the things that we keep adding to the package and then also being consistent in run and pass,” Leipold said.

While there are a lot of moving pieces, Leipold thinks the depth of the defensive ends gives them a chance to be productive.

“But at the same time, I think as the position continues to grow and guys, you know, will eventually maybe separate and establish along, you know, who's really going to be out there the longest,” Leipold said. “I think through rotation and depth of that, I think that position can be very productive.”

Linebackers continue to solidify themselves

Another position with some question marks heading into the season is linebackers. Rich Miller graduated, who had played a ton of snaps and been a vocal leader of the defense. Therefore other players will have to step up and play a bigger role this season. Leipold said Cornell Wheeler and Taiwan Berryhill have continued to be steady, while JB Brown is playing very good football.

“The guy that's probably stood out and really playing some good football right now is JB Brown,” Leipold said. “He's playing fast and confident. You could tell he's really comfortable with what he's supposed to be doing within our defense and he keeps showing up.”

Leipold also said Alex Raich and Jayson Gilliom are proving that they can help Kansas as well as Logan Brantley, the redshirt freshman who’s put in a lot over the offseason.

“Alex Raich has had a really good spring. I think he continues to get better,” Leipold said. “He's a heavy special teams guy, but he can be in that top five. And Jayson Gilliom continues when Jayson’s healthy and he can help this football team as he's moved down from safety over a year ago.

"And then a guy that's Logan Brantley, still got a, you know, he's going to be a really good football player. He is fast. He'll hit. He just, again, continued to process and understanding assignments and where it's at when things are changing, but he's working at it.”

Backup quarterback battle

Kansas has a pretty clear backup quarterback battle between Cole Ballard and Isaiah Marshall. Leipold said that having both quarterbacks during the spring has allowed them to feel much more comfortable as fall camp ramps up.

"You see them much more comfortable,” Leipold said. “I can't tell you how much the spring and the early enrollment for Isaiah really has helped him. You know, we don't have that. Every quarterback was with us in the spring, so there's not that extra delay pause that you get sometimes when it really starts happening fast with our quarterbacks getting them out.”

Some of the things that have stuck out to Leipold about Ballard are his improvements physically and how competitive he is.

“Cole is stronger, he's faster, he's worked on delivery, he continues to get better,” Leipold said. “And he is so competitive and that's what I love about him. And he's not going to get flustered. And you can get after him a little bit. And he takes coaching.”

For Marshall, the thing that impresses Leipold the most is his demeanor.

“Isaiah is so even-keeled and it's unbelievable,” Leipold said. “And they say that's the way he's been ever since. But yeah, you know, good, bad or indifferent. If you started watching him, I don't know if you put, if you put a solo camera on him, I don't know if you could tell just by watching with him if the play was really good or really bad which is [what you] really want in that position that his highs aren't too high and his lows aren't low."