Kansas Football’s Season-Ending Loss Sums up a Year Full of Frustration

The past two Kansas football seasons have started with high expectations and ended with baffling results. Regardless of the situation, the Jayhawks never seemed to build a comfortable lead, nor could fans ever trust them to close out a tight game down the stretch.

That stood true today in the regular season finale against Utah, which was the eventual final game of the 2025 campaign for KU.

Kansas fell by a score of 31-21 and fell to 5-7, but that doesn’t tell the whole story. Three red-zone interceptions from quarterback Jalon Daniels ruined what was otherwise a stellar defensive performance for a unit that has struggled mightily this year.

A 97-yard pick-6 in the fourth quarter capped off a Jayhawks season that has left fans just as confused as they were a year ago.

How can one team look so good at times and completely crumble when it matters most? Nobody, especially Lance Leipold’s coaching staff, seems to have an answer.

Time and time again, Leipold has been blamed for passive late-game decisions that came back to haunt him. However, today’s loss cannot be pinned on coaching.

A false start that led to a missed field goal, the aforementioned untimely interceptions, a turnover on downs, and several other avoidable mistakes were entirely on the players.

It leaves Jayhawk fans with more questions than answers heading into next year. Daniels and several other key pieces of the offense, including Daniel Hishaw Jr. and Emmanuel Henderson Jr., have now graduated and will not suit up in crimson and blue again.

Kansas Jayhawks quarterback Jalon Daniels (6) passes the ball against Iowa State during the first quarter in the senior day on Nov. 22, 2025, at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, Iowa | Nirmalendu Majumdar/ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Daniels started at least one game in each of the past six seasons at KU. The only viable option currently on the roster to replace him appears to be Isaiah Marshall, who still hasn’t proven himself when it comes to throwing the ball.

Kansas led by as many as four points in the final quarter of play before its second interception, and even the most frustrated fans had some hope that the team could at least clinch bowl eligibility and extend the season by one more game. But unfortunately, this group proved for what feels like the millionth time that it was not capable of getting it done when it mattered.

There is no telling where the program will go from here, but this loss perfectly encapsulated the disastrous 2025 season for Kansas football. All fans can do now is hope it gets better, because KU knows it can get worse.