KU quarterback Turner Baty leaving the program

By Matt Tait     Jan 19, 2013

John Young
Kansas quarterback Turner Baty looks to the sideline to make a pass during a drill at the Fan Appreciation Day open practice Saturday, Aug. 11, 2012, at Memorial Stadium.

Kansas University quarterback Turner Baty, a 6-foot-2, 215-pound sophomore who joined the Jayhawks before the 2012 season after transferring from City College of San Francisco, has decided to return to CCSF.

“With Jake Heaps and Michael Cummings both competing for time at the quarterback position, I have decided it would be in my best interest to go back to City College of San Francisco and get some game experience,” said Baty of the school he helped lead to a juco national championship in 2011. “I have not ruled out the idea of returning to Kansas after getting a season of play under my belt. I love it here and I want to thank everyone in the Jayhawk community for their support.”

Despite KU’s persistent struggles at quarterback during 2012, Baty never was able to work his way into the mix and spent most of his red-shirt season working with the scout team.

Throughout his one year in town, Baty was very outspoken about his fondness for his new home.

“This decision was really tough because I truly love KU and love Lawrence and, most of all, my teammates,” Baty said.

In the same news release, KU coach Charlie Weis referred to Baty’s talk of a possible return in the future.

“We would like to thank Turner for his participation in our program this year,” Weis said. “We wish him well upon his return to junior college. After meeting (Saturday) we agreed that a return to KU is a possibility.”

Baty played just one season at CCSF before transferring to KU and, therefore, has three years of eligibility remaining and three years to use them.

His absence leaves KU with just two quarterbacks with college playing experience. Heaps, a junior-to-be, played a season at BYU before sitting out after transferring last year, and Cummings, who will be a sophomore in 2013, started five games — and played in eight — for the Jayhawks last fall.

High school QB commitments Jordan Darling and Montell Cozart will bring added depth to the position when they make their commitments to KU official on national signing day, Feb. 6.

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.