Director of Sports Performance Matt Gildersleeve talked with the media on Thursday. Gildersleeve discussed the impactful addition of Katie O’Connor, director of sports nutrition, and the progress various players have made, including Dean Miller and DJ Warner.
Katie O’Connor making an impact as director of sports nutrition
O’Connor joined the staff in January 2024 and oversees the nutrition of the football team. Gildersleeve has gotten a lot of credit on social media for the physical transformation of some of the Kansas players, but he says a lot of the love needs to go to O’Connor.
“Katie O'Connor has been a tremendous addition to our staff,” Gildersleeve said. “I cannot tell you guys how much she has done for our program and her nutrition staff. You know, I think from a standpoint of a lot of different ways, but she has been huge in everything. The cultural aspect of things, what she's done for the players, ideas she's brought in. Like, it has been a huge uptick, and I think that has been a huge part of some of these changes.”
Gildersleeve said O’Connor has combined her unique ideas with the culture of Kansas football to yield impressive results. He said she’s demanding of the players, which they need.
“She’s made it her mission to take it one step higher, and she’s done that,” Gildersleeve said. “And so we’re really happy with her. And I know she’s not satisfied by any means, that she wants to keep on growing it and elevating it as well. But I think that is going to be a tremendous part of the continued progression of our program.”
Dean Miller bought into nutrition, has a lot of potential
Miller has been one of the talks of camp, both for his chance at an increased role on the field and his physical transformation. Gildersleeve said that Miller had a “hard meeting” with head coach Lance Leipold, which Miller responded to well, leading him to train harder.
“He just wouldn’t fuel, he wouldn’t do those things. And for whatever reason, he wasn’t willing to at those moments,” Gildersleeve said. “And he’s totally changed that and what he’s done with his body… it’s as impressive as a guy has taken. And really, that progress was all this year.”
Miller now has the combination of strength and speed to have a lot of potential heading into this season.
“But to be a guy that works like that and then Dean’s a guy that can run 22 miles an hour, I mean, to have that kind of speed and the potential to have that kind of size, he’s going to be a special one,” Gildersleeve said. “I don’t think it’s going to be a huge fall off from some of the things we’ve had in the past at that position.”
DJ Warner giving a lot of effort
It’s fair to say there are a lot of expectations for Warner, a guy who became the highest-rated recruit to ever commit to Kansas. However, Gildersleeve doesn’t want there to be any expectations for Warner. Instead, he wants Warner to focus on what he can control.
“For DJ, it’s about reaffirming in his mind that nothing else besides those four things I said matter when you go home at night,” Gildersleeve said. “Whether you make 28 mistakes or you make eight mistakes, I want to know, did you give your best effort, yes or no? Did you have a great attitude? Were you coachable when you got coached? Were you able to take the coaching and apply? And did you show up on time?... You do those four things and that becomes your process.”
Gildersleeve called Warner’s effort “tremendous.” He wants to see Warner show up and get a bit better every day.
“When you become inspired by the outcome and just motivated by the process, and it’s not the other way around to where, yeah, the results, outcome that motivates me, but I’m inspired by the day to day,” Gildersleeve said.
“When those relationships get inversed, then that’s when you get guys that are stressed and anxious and all those things. And so with DJ right now, it’s just about showing up and getting better every day. And he has given a hell of an effort.”
