Thirteen newcomers have officially joined the Kansas football program, KU announced earlier this week.
All 13 arrived in Lawrence out of the transfer portal, and nearly all of them are expected to have an immediate impact on the 2023 Kansas football season.
Five of the new faces from the transfer portal will play defense and five will play offense, with KU also adding a pair of place kickers to attempt to fix what was a significant issue during the 2022 season.
The positions most addressed in this group of 13 transfers were edge rusher, where KU will look to replace departed sack leader Lonnie Phelps Jr., and offensive line, where the Jayhawks will need to replace left tackle Earl Bostick Jr., from a group that was one of the Jayhawks’ biggest strengths during their recent bowl season.
Although he could not talk specifically about any of them until they were signed and on campus, Kansas coach Lance Leipold said in general terms in December that he was pleased with how KU’s efforts in the portal had gone.
Like all programs, Kansas did also lose a few players to the portal but nearly all of the former Jayhawks who left town for other opportunities wound up signing with programs who compete on a lower level and not among the Power 5.
Here’s a quick look at the 13 players Leipold officially announced as members of the team earlier this week. Twelve of the 13 came from other Division I programs and the Jayhawks also announced the early addition of four high school prospects who graduated early and enrolled at KU for the spring semester.
Those players were: Free State offensive lineman Calvin Clements and Eudora High tight end Jaden Hamm, along with three-star California athlete Surahz Buncom and three-star defensive lineman Tony Terry.
Here’s the complete transfer class:
OL Hunter Barlow – 6-foot-3, 330-pound Hutchinson CC lineman has four years of eligibility remaining.
DE Austin Booker – 6-foot-6, 240-pound edge rusher transfer to KU from Minnesota with three years of eligibility remaining.
LB JB Brown – 6-foot-2, 230-pound linebacker from Bowling Green was one of the highest graded players on the BGU team last season per Pro Football Focus.
OT Logan Brown – 6-foot-6, 311-pound former five-star prospect comes to KU from Wisconsin. He committed to KU in October and he’ll have two years of eligibility left.
DE Patrick Joyner Jr. – 6-foot-3, 245-pound Utah State transfer is one of the few transfers with just one season left. Given the position he plays and KU’s need there, it could be a pretty important season.
PK Seth Keller – The former Texas State kicker known for his consistency and solid numbers on middle distance kicks was a former walk-on and could be in line to be the favorite to handle KU’s kicking duties in 2023.
DL Gage Keys – Another Minnesota transfer, the 6-foot-5, 280-pound interior lineman came to KU largely because of his previous relationship with D-Line coach Jim Panagos. Keys still has three years of eligibility left.
OL Spencer Lovell – You might remember him for the photo he posed for featuring him and KU OC Andy Kotelnicki standing shirtless. 6-foot-6, 335-pound lineman has played snaps at both Cal and Arizona State.
RB Dylan McDuffie – One of KU’s newest pick-ups, the 6-foot, 217-pound McDuffie was with a lot of the KU coaching staff at Buffalo, where he played from 2018-21 before moving on to Georgia Tech last season and now KU for his final year of college football.
CB Damarius McGhee – 6-foot, 170-pound cornerback who can also play special teams as a kick return, McGhee comes to KU as a former four-star prospect who played two years at LSU and has three seasons of eligibility remaining.
TE Max Muehlberger – Kansas City-area native is leaving Oklahoma State with four years of eligibility remaining to return closer to home. The 6-foot-4, 215-pound tight end did not play any snaps during his freshman season in Stillwater.
DL Devin Phillips – 6-foot-2, 305-pound defensive lineman comes to KU after a solid career at Colorado State, where he started more than 40 games for the Rams.
PK Charlie Weinrich – Another expected walk-on, Weinrich is a Kansas City-area native who will have four years of eligibility remaining after leaving Nebraska, where he spent his freshman season but did not play.
