Kansas’ DK McDonald Reveals Which Jayhawks Defender Had Best Fall Camp

As the Kansas football season opener approaches, Lance Leipold and his coordinators spoke to the media yesterday. In preparation for Friday night's showdown, the entire coaching staff had a lot of intriguing things to say about this KU squad.

While Isaiah Marshall is the talk of the town after being named the starting quarterback, the Jayhawk defense has a lot to prove in 2026. Defensive coordinator D.K. McDonald could be entering hot-seat territory with another poor effort from his unit in the upcoming campaign.

The defense made a lot of notable additions in the offseason and returns some key starters. However, McDonald has been most impressed with an acquisition who has flown under the radar. He says Michigan State transfer David Santiago had the best fall camp of anyone on the defense.

"You talk about a guy like David Santiago, who had probably the best camp of anybody on our defense," McDonald said. "He's a great complement to Leroy [Harris] and Dak [Brinkley] when it comes to pass rush. He's a physical guy, too."

Santiago brings plenty of size to the defensive line at 6-foot-4 and 255 pounds. The redshirt junior spent last season at Michigan State, where he recorded 1.5 sacks and 24 combined tackles across 12 games. He'll give McDonald another big body off the edge who can make an impact when he's on the field.

Michigan State's David Santiago, left, tackles Boston College's Turbo Richard during the second quarter on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Santiago's most recent stop was in East Lansing, but he first spent two years at the Air Force Academy, where he put himself on the national radar. He didn't play as a true freshman, then tallied 3.5 sacks, five tackles for loss, and three passes defended in his first season as a starter.

Spending time in the Air Force developed Santiago into the type of veteran presence McDonald values in his players. Playing at a military academy demands extensive discipline, and those traits have carried over into his leadership skills at KU.

"The great thing about David now that he's getting comfortable, being a guy who was at a former military school, you can see those leadership abilities starting to come out of him," McDonald continued. "Which is awesome to see. He's fun to be around, and he has an infectious smile. But that smile turns into a mean growl when he turns on the field, and that's exciting to see."

While Santiago was listed as the second-string defensive end on the strong side on the team's first depth chart of the year, McDonald noted that he plans to use a four-man rotation between Santiago, Leroy Harris III, Dak Brinkley, and Alex Bray. Santiago will likely receive the majority of his reps in passing situations since he excels off the edge.

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