Published Nov 15, 2021
Notebook: Kenny Logan calls win over Texas a momentum booster
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Conner Becker  •  JayhawkSlant
Staff Writer
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@ctbecker

After Kansas’ first Big 12 road victory in over a decade, the program caught national attention and was one of the major storylines on Saturday night.

Lance Leipold picked up the program’s first-ever win over Texas in Austin and his first conference win as the Jayhawks’ head coach. The first-year coach says the win means a lot to the team after the struggles they’ve endured this season.

“They’ve been starving,” Leipold said. “It’s one win and we’ve got to build on it. This will be a great 24-48 hours but you have to keep working at it and either way, we’ve got to get back to work and see if we can finish this thing even stronger.”

Kansas’ remaining schedule consists of another road test at TCU and the season-finale hosting West Virginia in Lawrence. Leipold knows a win like this can stir up emotions, and he’s hoping to translate that motivation into next week.

“We haven’t beaten an FBS football team in this program here for a couple of years,” Leipold said. “And to have some success here, we’re coming back to this state (TCU) next week and we’ve got to be ready to play.”

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Daniels has grown mentally since last year

Getting the start against the Longhorns in Week 10, Daniels was tasked with taking control of the offense after injuries shook up the quarterback room the previous week.

The redshirt debate intensifies after Daniels’ performance against the Longhorns, as the sophomore completed 21-30 passes for 202 yards and 3 touchdowns.

“We showed a lot of grit,” Daniels said. “We showed that we’ve been working. We’ve been in a lot of tough, close games this year but weren’t able to finish it. In this game, we were able to go through the second half and be able to show grit all over the field.”

Following the successful 2-point conversion, Daniels shared a special moment with Leipold on the field.

“He said he was proud of me and looking forward to the future,” Daniels said.

Daniels was also asked about some of the changes he’s seen in himself just one year separated from his freshman debut.

“It’s a totally different quarterback out there,” Daniels said. “As the mental aspect of the game grown for me, being able to see blitzes pre-snap, being able to see overages pre-snap, seeing what they’re doing. These are stuff that coming into college I had to learn and this offseason really did that for me.”

Kenny Logan calls the win a momentum booster

Senior safety Kenny Logan Jr. stepped up Saturday night for the Jayhawks’ defense, racking up 11 solo tackles on the evening. The upperclassman said the win shows just what kind of changes are taking place in the program.

“This is what we paved the way for,” Logan said. “This is what we put day in and day out the effort, to just see it finally come together is just exciting. This is what I stay for, I stay for moments like this, to go out there with my team and compete at the highest level.”

Logan believes the win not only says a lot about the program but sets the right tone to move forward in a positive direction.

“I feel like this is a momentum booster,” Logan said. “You can’t do nothing but look at this and just keep your heads up and just push forward. When you put it all together, this is where we can play. We can play with the best of the best. We just got to keep putting it in week in and week out.”

Kansas had lost eight-straight games leading up to Saturday’s win. Logan knows this win has a greater significance and believed it was only a matter of time before his group entered the win column again.

“I never doubted that this win wouldn’t come,” Logan said. “It’s just, we didn’t know when. Coach (Leipold) always harped on that when we have our captain meeting that you never know when the outcome is going in your favor, but you’ve just got to keep working at it till it does. And tonight, it actually showed. I’m grateful that I stayed here and I was just able to help my team fight for victory.”

Casey comes up big on final play

Freshman fullback Jared Casey didn’t expect to be in the tight end position Saturday night against the Longhorns.

But after losing Mason Fairchild to an injury midway through the contest, the Kansas-native found himself hauling in the 2-point conversion to defeat Texas on its home turf.

“I just saw the play open up,” Casey said. “I was going to the right and it just popped in my hands.”

Casey has spent the season on the special team's side of the ball and hadn’t seen any offensive reps until Saturday night’s showdown in Austin. With his family in attendance, the young Jayhawk talked about the unique experience he shared with his family after the score.

“I secured (the pass) and right when I secured it, I got rocked,” Casey said. “I ran to my parents, just a surreal moment, a great moment.”

He continued: “Shout out to my parents. They travel every single game. Duke, Coastal, they drove 11 and half hours here. They love me, they’re proud of me. Being a walk-on, (Kansas) knows I have it in me and I do too. Like I said, ‘next man up mentality, I took my opportunity, and there it was.”