Versatile Back Dylan Edwards Commits to Kansas Jayhawks

The Jayhawks land Edwards over multiple Power Four interests. This will be Edwards’ third Big 12 Conference school and he will be with his previous school’s arch-rival.

Edwards: Phenom Back?

Edwards came out of high school as one of the top recruits in the state of Kansas. He had offers from the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Oklahoma Sooners and Nebraska Cornhuskers, among others. He chose to go play for Deion Sanders and Colorado on Jan. 11, 2023.

At Colorado, Edwards played in all 12 games his freshman year, totaling 620 yards from scrimmage, five touchdowns and averaged about 5.5 yards per touch. He was quickly proving his worth as an up-and-coming star; however, his Colorado team wasn’t so fortunate. The Buffaloes went 4-8 with a 1-8 conference record. Edwards decided to take the jump into the transfer portal after this year, looking for opportunities to play with stronger programs.

Edwards entered the transfer portal on April 24, 2024. It didn’t take him long to find a new home, even with strong P4 interest. Edwards made his way back to his home state to play with his childhood friend, Avery Johnson. He committed to Kansas State on April 28, 2024. At Kansas State, Edwards was splitting carries with star running back DJ Giddens. They made up one of the best backfields in the Big 12, with Johnson having strong scrambling capabilities as well.

Edwards played in all 12 games for Kansas State in 2024 as well, totaling 679 yards from scrimmage, seven touchdowns and averaging 7.3 yards per touch. Kansas State went 9-4 with a 5-4 conference record. The Wildcats also won the Guaranteed Rate Bowl, winning over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights 44-41.

This was a promising season for this young Wildcats team. Johnson and Edwards were entering their junior season as two of the favorites for the all-conference team. They were a duo that was a big part of why the Wildcats had 2,801 yards rushing and the third-best rushing attack in a Big 12 that featured the likes of Tahj Brooks, RJ Harvey and Devin Neal. Another season where the Wildcats were expected to dominate on the ground, Edwards was set for his strongest season yet.

A Disappointing 2025

Unfortunately, an ankle injury occurred while attempting to catch a punt during the first game of the season. A frustrated Edwards would proceed to kick a bench on the sideline, only aggravating what was going on. An injury that continued to nag at him, Edwards was officially shut down for the season after four games. He managed 222 yards from scrimmage, two touchdowns and an average of six yards a touch.

After a disappointing 2025, Edwards entered his name into the transfer portal once again on Nov. 7, 2025. This was announced before the season even ended, signaling potential tension with the Kansas State staff. Given that one of his best friends was the star quarterback, it was a surprising announcement, but not unexpected to a degree. Edwards had apparently not been attending team activities for some time.

It was rumored that Edwards and his camp were not satisfied with how things were going staff-wise with the Wildcats, and that Edwards felt he wasn’t being put in situations that best utilized his abilities. Many fans and media believed that Edwards had maturity issues and that he was making a selfish decision by transferring. His having a massive NIL check did him no favors in this argument, though he would lose part of that due to sitting out. Nonetheless, Edwards proceeded to explore other options.

Committing to the Arch-Rival

After drawing interest from multiple different P4 schools, including the Oregon Ducks and Nebraska once again, Edwards decided to stay at home in Kansas. This time, Edwards made his commitment to the in-state rival of the Wildcats, the Jayhawks. Edwards visited Lawrence on Jan. 16, where he took in the Kansas basketball team beating the Baylor Bears 80-62. The game was not the only hot commodity in Allen Fieldhouse that night. Edwards making an appearance made significant waves and signaled the imminent transfer.

The Kansas faithful are excited about Edwards. He has a ton of skills both as a running back and as a receiver. He’s quick, shifty and versatile, which in an Andy Kotelnicki offense is the ideal back. An offense that utilizes their backfield heavily in multiple different sets, Edwards and Kotelnicki are a match made in heaven, in terms of skill fit. Kotelnicki actually recruited Edwards heavily out of high school during his previous stint at Kansas. Kotelnicki makes his return to Kansas after a stint with the Penn State Nittany Lions, which could be a driving force behind this commitment.

If Edwards can stay healthy and curb his apparent maturity issues that stemmed from last year, this is a fantastic get for Kansas. Edwards’s versatility is the biggest factor in what will potentially make his career at Kansas great. Kotelnicki can have a lot of fun with the combination of Edwards, quarterback Isaiah Marshall, other new running back additions Jalen Dupree and Yasin Willis and new transfer dual-threat quarterback out of Rice, Chase Jenkins.

The number of play combinations Kotelnicki can come up with for this group is unimaginable. Kansas’s offense could return to being one of the highest-producing offenses in the country once again with this group. If Edwards can take the reins as a veteran leader, the sky really is the limit. Questions regarding his health and his maturity still remain, but with a system that complements him well, the onus will fall on Edwards.

Unlike at Kansas State, the system is set up for him to succeed. Should he take the bull by the horns, put all pride aside and step up to be a leader in this offense, he could bring the Jayhawks the most success they’ve seen, even since before their historic 2023 turnaround season. Should he continue to be an off-field issue, things could be disastrous, more for Edwards than for the Jayhawks. Edwards could either make his legacy great, or he could be driven deep into the depth chart of what’s setting up to be one of the deeper running back rooms in the conference. The choice is his and the ball is in his court.