Kansas HC Lance Leipold Sounds Alarm on This Position Group’s Health

The Kansas football team's secondary is one of the bigger question marks surrounding this Jayhawk squad heading into the 2026 campaign. While DK McDonald boasts plenty of talented players in this defensive unit, it is unclear how cohesive they will be together.

But before fans can worry about the defensive backfield's effectiveness, the unit must get healthy. During Monday's press conference, head coach Lance Leipold expressed concern over his cornerback room with less than a month until Week 1.

"We have a lot of guys competing [at cornerback], and part of it, we're looking for guys to be able to be out there every day consistently," Leipold said.

Of the five corners with a real shot to receive significant playing time this season, two are currently working their way back from injuries. The most significant of those is redshirt sophomore Austin Alexander, who underwent surgery in the spring.

"Austin Alexander is getting healthier, but really he's been limited for over six months," Leipold added. "Just when we were getting him back, he had another setback with a different injury. But, he's coming around."

Leipold praised Alexander's physical transformation in the offseason, though it appears that Alexander suffered a new setback while working his way back from the surgery months ago. He was one of KU's top corners as a redshirt freshman, finishing with 34 solo tackles, two pass breakups, and a massive fumble return for a touchdown in the Border Showdown against Missouri.

Another corner whose health remains up in the air for the opener is former Georgia Tech defensive back Syeed Gibbs. The versatile defensive back still isn't 100%, creating some uncertainty around the HAWK/nickel corner position.

"Syeed Gibbs is another guy that has been slowed, and again, he's shown an ability to help us out at the corner position as well as a nickel," Leipold said.

If either player isn't fully healthy for Week 1 on Sept. 4 against Long Island University, the Jayhawks would be left with returning junior Jalen Todd and transfers Roman Pearson and Elijah Cannon as their only corners with experience. There isn't much time for the group to get healthy, especially considering how much they struggled a year ago.

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