Kansas Jayhawks Spring Football Report: Wide Receivers
The Kansas Jayhawks returned from spring break and hit the practice field again. Afterwards, wide receivers coach Terrance Samuel took to the podium to discuss his new role and the current competitive state at practice. Also taking the podium was red-shirt sophomore Lawrence Arnold and junior Luke Grimm.
Coach Samuels Impact on the Wide Receivers at Kansas
Coach Terrance Samuel was hired in December 2021 by head coach Lance Leipold to be the wide receivers coach after working at Syracuse. Coach Samuel has a long history of coaching dating back to 1998 when he was a graduate assistant at Nebraska-Omaha. Coach Samuel talked about his philosophy, saying, "I am very hands-on because I played wide receiver" he continued to express his coaching strategy "comes from a perspective of experience."
Coach Samuels discussed working with many unproven wide receivers after losing such a talented receiver in Kwamie Lassiter II. He said, "I want Kwamie here," and chuckled but said, "these guys play hard they're giving themselves, they're laying themselves out on the line" he continued saying, "The way I see these guys practice, I am not having to teach effort, these guys give effort." One thing he did say about coaching the unproven wide receivers is, "I need to teach them how to be efficient." He elaborated, saying, "Body position themselves to make more efficient catches. They need to be a little bit more efficient in how they're running their routes. How they burst off the line of scrimmage."
You could tell he was excited to be coaching at Kansas and coaching wide receivers under head coach Lance Leipold.
Wide receiver Lawrence Arnold was asked about working with coach Samuels saying, "He has a real strong passion for the game. He knows what he is talking about." He continued saying, "He wants us to be the best that we can be." Arnold is a red-shirt sophomore looking to impact the upcoming season.
Competition at the Wide Receiver Position
Super-senior Kwamie Lassiter II has moved on from the Jayhawks football program leaving behind some big shoes to fill. The team expects some players to step up, and the competition is heating up. Arnold is one of those looking to fill a hole, and he was asked about his mindset heading into spring practice saying, "My mindset really hasn't changed" he continued saying, "Just be a leader, be me, make sure I am here for the team, here for the position group."
A wide receiver that could step up in a big way is Luke Grimm. Grimm talked about what he needs to do to be one of the top guys in the rotation, saying, "Continuing being consistent with catching the ball, running good routes, making weight gains, being stronger, getting faster, and kind of just rounding out my game."
Another wide receiver competing for a spot in the rotation is Tanaka Scott. Grimm talked about what he has seen from Scott in spring practice saying, "He's matured a lot everyone's a freshman at some point" he continued saying, "As Tanaka's gotten older, he's really matured through this offseason and through this spring he showed a lot of gains in his game."
The wide receiver position will be one to watch as spring practice continues, and we get closer to the regular season.
