Lance Leipold Pinpoints a Frustrating Offensive Weakness for Kansas

Kansas head coach Lance Leipold voiced his displeasure about the Jayhawks' offensive struggles in recent weeks during his press conference on Monday.

Over the past two games, KU has scored just 17 points in each, including a combined three points in the second half against Texas Tech and Kansas State.

During that stretch, the team dropped to 4-4 on the season and the offense has seemingly taken a significant step back from where it was earlier in the year, even when it scored 31 and 34 points in losses to Missouri and Cincinnati, respectively.

Leipold identified one area of the offense that has been particularly frustrating for him to deal with and said it will be a major point of emphasis heading into Saturday's matchup against Oklahoma State.

"As tough as these last two games have been and probably what you’re saying in the second half is we’ve had the ball one or two times, still within a score or the ability to take the lead and had third and one," Leipold stated. "I think multiple times and we have not converted and we are well aware of that. Very frustrated by that and we have to get that improved."

Kansas Needs To Capitalize on Third Downs

This is something that we've been hammering here at Kansas On SI since the Tech game. The final score won't tell you this, but the Jayhawks had a chance to go up in the second half against the Red Raiders — if Leshon Williams didn't get stuffed up the middle and Jalon Daniels didn't take a nine-yard sack on separate 3rd-and-1 opportunities.

Kansas is now 12-for-33 (36.3%) on third downs across the last two contests, a significant step down from a Big 12-best mark of 51.0% a year ago.

"Obviously we analyze the plays that are being called and, you know, and revamp and what those packages are in those parts of the field," Leipold continued. "We need to continue to do that and to better."

Oct 11, 2025; Lubbock, Texas, USA; Kansas Jayhawks head coach Lance Leipold before the game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Jones AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael C. Johnson-Imagn Images | Michael C. Johnson-Imagn Images

Simply put, Daniels hasn't played his best football lately, especially against the Wildcats. In the Sunflower Showdown, he threw for just 129 yards on 17-for-35 passing, tossing one interception and losing a fumble in the process.

He was missing throws he routinely makes and did not look like the Heisman-caliber quarterback he has shown he can be. The team's signal-caller is responsible for making the right reads on third-down opportunities, particularly on RPOs where he is making the decision himself.

Thankfully for the Jayhawks, this upcoming matchup should provide a good opportunity to regroup and build confidence back up. Oklahoma State sits at 1-7 on the season and is in the midst of a disastrous campaign after firing longtime head coach Mike Gundy.

If the Jayhawks can improve their third-down conversion rate, it would go a long way toward salvaging the final few games of the regular season.