Kansas Slips in ESPN's 2026 College Football Recruiting Class Rankings

ESPN updated its 2026 College Football Recruiting Class Rankings on Thursday and Kansas dropped from No. 37 to No. 38 in the most recent list. Considering the Jayhawks finished 5-7 a year ago, head coach Lance Leipold should probably just be happy to see his team crack ESPN's Top 40 List.

Kansas caught college football off guard two years ago when the Jayhawks went 9-4 and beat UNLV in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl, but with star quarterback Jalon Daniels failing to take the next step forward in his development after showing signs of stardom in 2022, Kansas never got going in 2024.

In order for Kansas to land a strong recruiting class, it can't afford another 5-7 season. And the man who's most responsible for making sure that doesn't happen again is Daniels.

No, not Leipold. Daniels. You can make the argument that every team's quarterback will dictate how a team does, but when Daniels played lights out three years ago, Kansas was unstoppable.

Kansas went 3-0 in Daniels' three starts in 2023, but a back injury prevented the gunslinger from playing the rest of the season. Leipold has done great wherever he's been.

Whether it was at the Division III level at the University of Wisc onsin-Whitewater or at Buffalo, the veteran coach has always somehow managed to exceed expectations. And prior to last year, he had done exactly that at KU.

But this is by far the most important year of his entire coaching career. If the Jayhawks can win 10 games and a bowl game, which they're capable of, don't be surprised if Leipold's 2026 recruiting class improves dramatically and moves up all the way to 30 in the overall recruiting class rankings.

However, if Kansas misses out on a bowl game again, Leipold and his staff could be in for a disappointing 2026 recruiting class.

Right now, Kansas has only one ESPN 300 recruit in its 2026 class, but again, that could change depending on how this season goes. The strength of the Jayhawks' 2026 recruiting class is their offensive line, w hich is led by 4-star recruit Kaden Snyder, but KU is going to need more players like Snyder if they're going to compete in the Big 12 year in and year out.

Defensive back JJ Dunnigan is another 4-star recruit headed to Lawrence next fall, but after that, the Jayhawks have zero four-star recruits in their class.

Overall, KU fans should currently be happy with the 2026 class, but that could change for better or worse depending on how this year goes.