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60 Days Until Kansas Football: Video Game All-Stars - Daniel Wise

We begin our series looking at the best Kansas players that didn't make it into an NCAA Football video game. Up first is DT Daniel Wise.
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A couple weeks ago, we looked at the latest news surrounding the return of the NCAA Football video game, noting that there were many Kansas players that didn't get an opportunity to appear in the series. And on the podcast, we looked at a rating system that includes individualized ratings of college players, combining their base talent level with their actual college production to come up with an overall look at their performance.

Our Video Game All-Stars series will look at recent Kansas players who played well at Kansas but never got an opportunity to be captured with a virtual version of themselves. We will look back at their careers, and include a projection of what their overall rating would have been had the games been around.

The first Jayhawk on our list is someone that everyone who has been following the team for any length of time should remember: Daniel Wise.

Recruiting Bio

A 6'3", 290-lb defensive lineman out of Hebron High School in Carrolton, TX, Wise was recruited to Kansas as part of the 2014 class put together by Charlie Weis and staff. He was a 3-star prospect who came to Kansas over offers from Colorado, Missouri, SMU and Texas Tech. 

Production at Kansas

Daniel Wise Production at Kansas

SeasonTotal TacklesSolo TacklesPasses DefendedSacksFumbles Forced

2015

26

17

0

3.5

0

2016

37

30

0

3

0

2017

54

33

1

6.5

1

2018

34

27

0

5

0

Wise's redshirted during the 2014 season, a season that saw Charlie Weis get fired 4 games into the season. He would go on to play all four of his seasons under new coach David Beaty.

His best season came in 2017, when he paired with Dorance Armstrong Jr along the line to put some serious pressure on opposing offensive lines. Unfortunately, his good seasons were accompanied by abysmal offenses and thin depth along the defense, leading to late game situations where opponents racked up the yards and points. 

Best Game

There are two games that stand out as Wise's best in his time in Lawrence:

November 19, 2016: 24-21 OT Win over Texas

Stat line: 5 total tackles, 4 solo, 2 sacks, 3 tackles for loss

Wise and Dorance Armstrong combined to give Texas quarterback Shane Buechele fits all game long. They combined for 4 sacks, and the pressure they provided led to numerous errors by the Longhorns all day long.

October 28, 2017: 30-20 Loss to Kansas State

Stat line: 4 total tackles, 2 solo, 2.5 sacks, 3 tackles for loss

While this game ended in a loss, Wise was the main threat along the line for the Jayhawks. His big plays helped keep the game from getting entirely out of hand, and the Jayhawks made a late push to keep the game in doubt until late in the game.

After Kansas

Wise was invited to the 2019 NFL Draft Combine, but went unselected in the 2019 NFL Draft. He signed with the Dallas Cowboys and ended up on the practice squad, not seeing any action.

He was signed by the Washington Football Team for the 2021 season, appearing in 3 games.

Video Game Rating

Base Rating: 79
Production Bonus: 18
Total Rating: 97

Daniel Wise rates extremely high in the video game ratings, thanks to an average recruiting rating and a very productive career. While these ratings aren't broken down to the various attributes you would find in Madden, given his strengths on the field, I would imagine that his strength and agility ratings would have to be his top attributes. 

A reminder that our video game ratings are provided by CFB Winning Edge, which is an independent outlet focused on college football analytics that has developed team, player and coach ratings based on a wide range of current and historical data.

Patreon supporters have access to their FBS Team Profiles, which includes ratings for over 11,000 individual players across all 131 FBS teams, as well as ratings for every head coach, offensive coordinator and defensive coordinator, and strength of schedule metrics. In addition to stats, recruiting data, injury reports, and player movement information, they also offer three sets of projected point spreads for every FBS game based on separate projection models, as well as projected win totals.

You can find more information about what they offer by going to their Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/CFBWinningEdge

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