With the Kansas football team’s May 1 spring game just a few days away and the Jayhawks nearing the completion of this critical stretch of the offseason, the players remain optimistic about what they’re getting accomplished.
It was just a year ago, of course, that the program didn’t even have a single practice in the spring, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With that as a backdrop for where they are now, junior linebacker Nick Channel said the Jayhawks expect by the completion of their 15-practice schedule that all of those reps will make a significant difference for a team coming off an 0-9 season.
“You always just get better with practice, and the more practice you get the better you’re going to get,” Channel told reporters this past week. “So last year we didn’t get that spring, and all we had was (preseason) camp before the season started. We weren’t quite at the potential we could have been, I don’t think. And with having spring ball this year, I think we’re going to be able to make more strides and get better and better, all the way up until the upcoming season.”
From a big picture point of view, the Jayhawks all are working toward putting a more competitive team on the field in 2021. Individually, specifics of objectives can vary.
For sophomore offensive lineman Armaj Adams-Reed, his entire offseason, including the spring, is about “continuing on this weight loss journey,” as he put it, and “getting better, stronger and faster.”
Last season, KU listed the hefty 6-foot-5 guard at 391 pounds during his freshman season. Adams-Reed said this past week he’s currently at 368 pounds.
“It’s a gift and a curse right now,” the right guard said of being an O-lineman with that kind of girth. “I’m trying to get it down. But my size helps out a lot.”
The Jayhawks are scheduled to practice twice more this week before Saturday’s spring game at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium (6 p.m. kickoff, ESPN+).
Veteran defensive lineman Caleb Sampson said they still have some things they would like to accomplish during this portion of the offseason.
“I think we need to keep coming together as a whole,” Sampson, a senior, began.
According to Sampson, who first joined the program as a transfer in 2019, he sees the program “getting closer” to where it needs to be every year.
“And I feel like this year is really going to be our year,” Sampson continued, “so I feel like we need to continue to get closer and trust in each other and trust in the coaching.”
With the future of the program’s head coaching position still unresolved as they wrap up spring ball, the players often have credited interim head coach Emmett Jones with keeping everyone on track during what had the potential to become a challenging few weeks.
Channel echoed one of Jones’ primary messages this offseason when asked what the Jayhawks need to accomplish before the spring game gets here.
“You can always accomplish something every day. We always talk about getting 1% better every day,” Channel said, referencing Jones’ message to the team.
At every practice, Channel said, the Jayhawks are working toward the 2021 season.
“Adding days on top of days of just getting 1% better every single day up until the spring game.”
