PH'15: Meet the 2016 Kansas Jayhawks

Coach Jerry Brawner enters his fourth season at the helm of the Kansas Jayhawks, after a dissapointing 5-7 season in 2015 saw the Jayhawks miss a bowl for the first time since his hiring. Last year was more of a rebuilding year than anyone expected, and while most of the offense returns, a few key defenders have graduated. Last year's Achilles' heel was the defense, so losing key players to graduation was the last thing the Jayhawks can afford. Will 2016 be more rebuilding, or will the returning offensive seniors go out in a blaze of glory?

Quarterbacks

Player	Pos.	Ht, Wt	Year	Rating	Comp	Att	Yards	TD	INT	Comp Rate	Yards/ Att.	Sacks	Sack Rate
Ryan Willis	QB	6-4, 199	Jr	93	471	603	4804	41	34	78.1%	8.0	27	4.3%
Carter Stanley	QB	6-2, 196	Jr	86	46	61	368	5	7	75.4%	6.0	0	0.0%
Matt Barrow	QB	6-2, 206	Fr	79	Redshirt

Ryan Willis had a freshman year beyond expectations, but those expectations came burning to the ground in 2015. 4800 yards was a great mark in a 12 game season, but Willis' 41:34 TD:INT ratio cannot continue this season. Jayhawk coaches hope that the running game can alleviate some of the pressure Willis faced last season, and the junior forces less passes into tight coverage.

Carter Stanley returns for his second season as Willis' backup, and Matt Barrow will be the third quarterback after taking a redshirt last season.

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Offensive Skill Players

Player	Pos.	Ht, Wt	Year	Rating	Touches	Rushing Yards	Receiving Yards	Return Yards	TD	Yards/ Carry	Yds/ Catch	% of Team Touches	% of Team Yards
Corey Avery	WR		Grad		113		1101	38	7		9.7	18.4%	21.3%
Ben Johnson	TE		Grad		10		92		1		9.2	1.6%	1.8%
Derrick Neal	WR	5-10, 173	Sr	90	90		871		6		9.7	14.7%	16.9%
Bobby Hartzog Jr	WR	5-11, 188	Sr	84	76		867		8		11.4	12.4%	16.8%
Darious Crawley	WR	5-11, 192	Sr	84	72		829		8	2.0	11.7	11.7%	16.0%
Bryan Webb	WR	6-5, 218	So	78	42		381		3		9.1	6.9%	7.4%
Tyler Patrick	WR	6-0, 178	Sr	83	80		717		8		9.0	13.1%	13.9%
Emmanuel Moore	WR	6-0, 190	Jr	83	24		200		4		8.3	3.9%	3.9%
Taylor Martin	HB	5-9, 194	Jr	83	44	197			2	4.5		7.2%	3.8%
Jordan Darling	TE	6'4, 241	Sr	85	11		114		1		10.4	1.8%	2.2%
Pat Chambers	CB	6-3, 181	Sr	88				1155	1			0.0%	0.0%
George Glover	TE	6-4, 233	Fr	76	:3star:
Jason Taylor	HB	5-11, 181	So	79
Anthony Chavez	HB	6-0, 195	Fr	68	Redshirt
Anthony Brothers	TE	6-3, 273	Fr	66	Redshirt
Quarterbacks	QB				51	-203			3	-4.0		8.3%	-3.9%

With the graduation of Corey Avery, a converted halfback, the Jayhawks find themselves with four senior wide receivers, but no proven dynamic playmaker. Derrick Neal is easily the best receiver on the field for the Jayhawks, and will assume the #1 role played by Avery last season. Like with the quarterback, Jayhawk coaches hope that an improved running game can take the pressure off the passing game, and may lead to more open receivers downfield. Jayhawk coaches also hope that new 3-star tight end, George Glover, can put new pressure on the defense, as the Jayhawks will return to more 11 personnel this season than last year.

Due to his imposing 6-5 frame, sophomore Bryan Webb will move up to the #2 receiver this year, ensuring he stays on the outside. That leaves Bobby Hartzog, Darious Crawley and Tyler Patrick, all returning seniors with 70+ catches last season, filling out the slot and interior roles when the Jayhawks have 3-to-5 receivers on the field. Taylor Martin returns as the starting halfback, with Anthony Chavez, a very impressive pass blocker, expected to e to be the 3rd down back.

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Slobs

Player	Pos.	Ht, Wt	Year	Rating	Car. Starts	Car. P'cakes	Car. Sacks
Jayson Rhodes	RT		Grad		12	0	2
Will Smith	LG		Grad		8	1	2
Jacob Bragg	C		Grad		12	1	1
Joey Bloomfield	LT		Grad
D'Andre Banks	RG		Grad		4	5	5
Lee Mitchell	LT	5-11, 303	So	81	Redshirt
Apa Visinia	LG	6-4, 380	Sr	90	26	6	11
Joe Hill	C	6-4, 320	So	81
Aaron Garza	RG	6-3, 327	Jr	84	25	5	11
Dan West	RT	6-7, 291	Sr	84	12	1	7
Marco Clark	RT	6-5, 321	Fr	74	Redshirt
Kevin Jones	LG	6-3, 294	So	78
Cory Burks	C	6-4, 269	Fr	68	:2star:
Marcus Rush	RG	6-6, 339	Fr	74	Redshirt

Apa Visinia returns from a knee injury last season to lead the Jayhawk offensive line in his senior year. That's the good news for the Jyahwks. The bad news is that three other starters graduated, leaving the Jayhawks in the position of madly replacing starters for the season year in a row. The Jayhawks know they return skill at quarterback and outside -- but can the offensive line protect and open up holes long enough to utilize that skill?

Aaron Garza returns for his junior year as well. Garza was the only returning starter on the field last season, and the continuity will be welcome this year. Dan West will move from left tackle to right tackle, with JUCO transfer Lee Mitchell sliding into the left tackle spot.

Overall, the Jayhawk line will be more talented in 2016 than it was in 2015, but how quickly the returning starters gel with the new ones will be crucial to the success of the Jayhawk offense.

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Defensive Line

Player	Pos	Ht, Wt	Year	Rating	Tackles	% of Team	TFL	Sacks	Int	PBU	FF	FumRec
Loren Massey	DE		Grad		16	3.4%	7	5	1		1	1
Jacky Dezir	DT		Grad		9	1.9%	1
Jace Sternberger	DE	6-4, 228	Jr	78	1	0.2%	1
DJ Williams	DT	6-4, 287	Sr	82	19	4.0%	5	4
Mike Caldwell	DE	6-5, 270	So	78	15	3.2%	6	4
Josh Ehambe	DE	6-2, 234	Sr	79
Michael Massey	DE	6-6, 264	Fr	78	Redshirt
Steve Atkinson	DE	6-5, 245	So	75
Tyrone Jenkins	DT	6-1, 307	Fr	74	Redshirt
Lay Trion Jones	DT	6-3, 293	Sr	78

Loren Massey graduates after two years starting for Kansas, leaving behind replacements that barely saw the field last season. Whether it's a sign of how quickly opposing offenses scored, or just a lack of rotation by Jayhawk coaches, only two non-starters on the defensive line registered even a tackle last season. Thankfully, two starters are back, leaving only Massey to be replaced by the young but talented Jace Sternberger. Sternberger brings a sideline-to-sideline range other Jayhawk defensive linemen don't have, and coaches hope that range will lead to more pressure on the quarterback.

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Linebackers

Player	Pos	Ht, Wt	Year	Rating	Tackles	% of Team	TFL	Sacks	Int	PBU	FF	FumRec
Kyron Watson	MLB		Grad		57	12.1%	9		1	4
Joe Dineen	OLB		Grad		45	9.5%	12				2	1
Colton Goeas	OLB		Grad			0.0%
Daniel Wise	OLB		Xfer			0.0%
Travis Bridges	MLB	6-2, 235	Jr	87	28	5.9%	6
Kyle Whitmore	MLB	6-0, 221	Jr	85	Redshirt
Marcquis Roberts	OLB	6-1, 223	Sr	85	24	5.1%	3	1	1			1
Keith Todd	OLB	6-1, 221	So	75	Redshirt
Andrew Wiggins	MLB	6-0, 236	So	77	1	0.2%
Dorance Armstrong	LEO	6-4, 220	Jr	78	12	2.5%
Mike Gray	MLB	5-10, 250	Fr	80	Redshirt
Paul Doty	OLB	6-4, 242	Fr	72	Redshirt
Nathan Wright	OLB	6-4, 236	Fr	78	:4star:

Two starters leave the linebacking corps this season, which, like the defensive line, was inexplicably without much contribution from their backups. The two backups that did contribute, MLB Travis Bridges and OLB Marquis Roberts, both of whom saw roles in the base 3-4, return, and they'll be complemented by two JUCO transfers that see the field after redshirt seasons.

Dorance Armstrong, the DE/OLB hybrid in the LEO role, will return to that role again this season, pushing JUCO Keith Todd for time on standard downs. Redshirt freshman Mike Gray and four-star freshman Nathan Wright are the most likely young players to push for time as well.

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Secondary

Player	Pos	Ht, Wt	Year	Rating	Tackles	% of Team	TFL	Sacks	Int	PBU	FF	FumRec
Bazie Bates	SS		Grad		45	9.5%	4				1	1
Colin Spencer	CB		Grad		30	6.4%	2		3	1
Jonathan Green	SS		Xfer		15	3.2%	2			1
Matthew Boateng	CB	5-11, 178	Sr	90	48	10.2%	3			2
Pat Chambers	CB	6-3, 181	Sr	88	32	6.8%	1		2	2
Tyrone Miller	FS	6-0, 183	Jr	87	49	10.4%	3	1		1	2	1
Fred McGuire	SS	6-4, 229	Jr	79	Redshirt
Shaquille Richmond	CB	5-11, 183	Jr	80	17	3.6%			3	3
Lee Davis	CB	6-2, 197	So	78	5	1.1%
Damon Gibson	CB	6-0, 174	Fr	72	Redshirt
Robbie Wilson	FS	6-2, 210	So	75	4	0.8%				4
Donte Harrison	FS	6-1, 213	Fr	72	Redshirt
Steven Willis	SS	6-5, 217	Fr	76	Redshirt

Another year, another depleted Jayhawk secondary. While three of the four starters return, the lost pieces contributed 90 tackles and three interceptions.

Pat Chambers, a JUCO transfer two years ago, was a revelation last year, with 32 tackles among the team leaders, while also returning kicks, including one for a touchdown. Chambers, across from four-year starter Matthew Boateng, will probably be expected to be able to take on receivers without help, a risk Jayhawk coaches may be forced to take.

Tyrone Miller's knee injury in the middle of the season may be what led to the three game slide the Jayhawks suffered to end the yaer, as Miller's backup Robbie Wilson proved to not be up to the task of starting, and caused the coaches to get creative with their lineup. Miller's return should provide a stabling force in the middle of the secondary, and is welcome after the way last season ended.

Former JUCO Fred McGuire will slide into the starting role as strong safety, with redshirt freshman Steven Willis available to provide backup.

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Specialists

Player	Pos	Ht, Wt	Year	Rating	PAT	FG	FG Pct	Punts	Net Avg	TB	P I20
Ethan Greene	K	6-0, 174	So	89	52	9	90%			1 K/O
JD Frederick	P	6-3, 196	Jr	93				7	46.3	37 K/O	4

Juior punter JD Frederick will, for the second year, potentially be the most talented Jayhawk, even those fans and coaches alike would prefer he never takes the field. Frederick will also continue to serve as the kickoff specialist.

After hitting 90% of his kicks last season, sophomore Ethan Greene will hope to match, or exceed, that mark this season.