Kansas football’s initial depth chart for the 2025 season featured four names that made the Jayhawks’ first game-week offensive line two-deep in 2024, with only two starters returning.
The offensive line isn’t too concerned about the lack of continuity. As far as chemistry goes, both cemented starters and linemen battling for playing time believe that the Jayhawks can play cohesively with any combination.
Chemistry is important for an offensive line. To work as a cohesive unit, the line has to understand how the other linemen are going to block against a specific front on a play. With a season playing together under their belts, right guard Kobe Baynes and center Bryce Foster have that chemistry.
“Me and Bryce have this internal clock, where we can just pass off the (block),” Baynes said. “If we have to run an A-combo, I know what Bryce wants, and Bryce knows what I like for that backside combo at ace on wide zone. He knows to pick that shoulder just a bit, so I can get down and rip.”
When it comes to Baynes and right tackles Nolan Gorczyca and Enrique Cruz Jr., the in-game chemistry hasn’t been developed yet, so Baynes and the two tackles are in constant communication about what they see, feel or think when it comes to how to execute a block on a specific play during practices.
Foster and Baynes are the two Jayhawks returning to the offensive line who started the season at the top of the depth chart. Left tackle Calvin Clements, who started at left tackle in the 2024 season finale against Baylor, has earned his starting job as the blindside blocker. Besides that, it’s a new front five and more faces on the second team.
However, the culture the Jayhawks have built, specifically in the offensive line room, has helped mitigate that concern. Foster, a redshirt senior, said the group doesn’t slack off and doesn’t require a traditional leader to get everyone to work together.
“The biggest thing is trusting the culture we built here at Kansas,” Foster said. “Being able to focus on something bigger than ourselves. It’s our team goals, (then) our teammates’ goals, then our goals. If we’re all built into one big well-oiled machine, then it all works well.”
Baynes said the offense is multiple in its style, meaning the Jayhawks will run a range of different run-blocking schemes based on situations within a game. That’s where versatility and depth can make the most significant difference for the Jayhawks. Baynes said the Jayhawks could go four-deep beyond the starters and still field a competitive offensive line.
When it comes to the on-field chemistry, the amount of rotating that the Jayhawks did during fall camp practices has helped the group develop chemistry with a multitude of different offensive line combinations, similar to how receivers rotate in different packages throughout a game to attack different mismatches.
“When you look at practice and you’re rotating, continuity is happening anyway,” offensive coordinator Jim Zebrowski said. “We throw guys in all the time. It’s like in the receiver world. Guys are in different packages… guys are used to it.”
The college football season is long, and offensive lines often have to go through different iterations to deal with injuries that come up. Baynes said the time the team has spent rotating will help in a likely scenario where someone has to miss time due to injuries.
“Somebody in the back of the room might be needed, so having someone who knows the offense and can play multiple positions shows how good our group can be,” Baynes said.
The versatility and depth are things that coach Lance Leipold feels good about, and also that the gap between the starters and second team on the two-deep is as close as it’s been since he’s been at KU.
In addition, the relationships the offensive linemen have beyond practices gives the group more confidence in their chemistry. It makes it easier for them to understand and play alongside each other with strong relationships that extend into their daily lives. Every day in positional meetings, one lineman has to tell a joke to the rest of the group.
“Hank Kelly is probably the best one at the jokes,” Baynes said. “We’ve got some guys who can play around and joke. Coach (Daryl Agpalsa) will start a meeting, we’ll watch some film, then he’ll be like, ‘OK guys, somebody step up and tell a joke.'”
Those moments set the foundation for the line’s relationships and help develop a strong bond. Even as the Jayhawks go through in-game reps with new iterations of the offensive line for the first time, the group is confident in its ability to fit together seamlessly.
“We’re all best friends with each other,” Cruz said. “We all hang out and we all have jokes with each other, and so the chemistry is automatically there. It’s just a matter of getting used to playing style, and that really takes just one play. After that, the chemistry is naturally there, because we’re just a tight-knit group.”
