It was a stop-and-start day for the Kansas offense in Fort Worth, Texas, on Saturday, in KU’s’ 22-16 loss to TCU.
But at the intermittent moments when the Jayhawks got going, it often had something to do with wide receiver Nahzae Cox.
When all was said and done, Cox was responsible for more than half of quarterback Cole Ballard’s 285 passing yards, about a third of KU’s 451 total yards and three of the Jayhawks’ four longest offensive plays on the day. His five-catch, 145-yard showing, with increasingly consequential 35-, 44- and 50-yard grabs over the course of the day, was one of the most impressive by a Jayhawk on offense this year.
And what made it particularly striking was that TCU never left him open — he essentially went up and grabbed all three passes over the outstretched arms of various Frogs.
“We talk to our guys in the perimeter all the time about going up and fighting for the ball, and he was able to do that,” associate head coach Andy Kotelnicki said, “and he can’t do that unless someone’s giving him a chance to make that play, and then the protection has to be right in order for that ball to get thrown.”
The first big catch, in the second quarter, was the one on which Cox earned the greatest level of separation. He did have a step on safety Jordan Lester as he worked his way through his corner route, but he still had to hold on to the well-placed ball from Ballard as Lester threw him out of bounds.
In the third quarter, the 6-foot-3, 215-pound Cox made full use of his 2-inch and 35-pound advantage on TCU cornerback Teon Parks. Ballard didn’t exactly hit him in stride on that one, but he got inside positioning on Parks and had strong enough hands to make the play.
Finally, in the fourth quarter, Kotelnicki’s aggressive play call — a shot play from KU’s own 8-yard line what felt like mere moments after Ballard had been strip-sacked and TCU had taken its first lead of the day — paid off when Ballard chucked the ball about 55 yards from his own goal line and somehow Cox reeled it in despite Jamel Johnson pulling on his right leg and Vernon Glover Jr. sticking a hand in as Cox went to the ground.
“We need to do those kinds of things, and he’s done a great job, and Cole did a great job giving him a chance to make those plays,” Kotelnicki said.
That last one, Cox said, was his favorite of the day’s three 50/50 balls. The fifth-year wideout now has just 15 catches on the year, but he’s made them count to the tune of 404 yards and two touchdowns.
“It’s been a blessing to just go out there and just play and show what I could do, and show I’m one of the best receivers out there,” Cox said.
The Middle Tennessee transfer, who earlier this year caught a touchdown against his former team, had 40 receptions last year, but they went for just 473 yards, a mark he will surely outpace in his move to the Big 12 level.
Cox has been one key piece in a rather successful receiver group that also features Nik McMillan and Cam Pickett. McMillan still leads the team in yards, but Pickett had 10 catches for 113 yards (including 77 after the catch) and a touchdown in a dynamic display against TCU.
“We know we can go out there and get 100, all three of us. If it’s all three of us, if it’s two of us, we’re going to be happy for each other,” Cox said. “I feel like that’s just been good. Even when Cam got the first 100 of the year (against Utah), I was happy for him, because he just came back, he was going through a lot of stuff, going through injuries and stuff like that, and he deserved it too.”
Also newly healthy is Keaton Kubecka, although his biggest contributions may not necessarily even be in the passing game. Cox praised his blocking, and the Jayhawks have had a fair bit of success giving him the ball on jet sweeps this year; one went for 40 yards at TCU. Cox joked that Kubecka is the type of player to rewind and repeat his good plays in the film room, and that his fellow receivers will in turn give him guff for failing to score.
“When he got the ball in the game, I was smiling,” Cox said.
Cox’s own niche will continue to be as the contested-catch guy, a skill he said he derives from his experience playing basketball when he was younger. He lettered in the sport at Fresno High School in California.
“I feel like that’s what got me there,” Cox said. “I just feel like when I see the ball in the air, I’m (going to) go take it.”
He added that when the ball’s in the air, he thinks, “Don’t panic, you’ve done it 100 times, go catch it.”
Now the Jayhawks need to convert some of Cox’s production into wins as they head into the final stretch of their season, whether they’re doing it with Ballard or Isaiah Marshall at the controls.
“I feel like I repped with both of those guys throughout fall camp, so whoever go out there, I feel like I got confidence in whoever to go put the ball in the air,” Cox said.
Cox said there was no time for the Jayhawks to mope after they lost their lead to TCU, because “that next morning, you got to lift. You got that lift, and Coach (Matt Gildersleeve) ain’t having it.”
“I know we fell short last week, but we got to learn from our mistakes, and now we can’t learn no more, we got to go out there and execute them,” Cox said.
Kansas wide receiver Nahzae Cox, back, reaches over the top of Baylor cornerback Reggie Bush II (22) to catch a 33-yard pass during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Lawrence, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026.
AP Photo/Colin E. Braley