The Kansas football team has earned its first transfer commitment of the offseason by way of a flip.
Defensive tackle Jibriel Conde, formerly of Division II Grand Valley State and for about two days committed to Wisconsin for the 2026 season, will instead attend KU, his agent Kyle Logan of Delta Sports Group confirmed to the Journal-World.
“It just felt right and had a really good connection with the D-line coach (Jim Panagos),” Logan told Jon Kirby of JayhawkSlant.com. “His heart was with Kansas.”
Conde, who is listed at 6-foot-5 and 270 pounds, recorded 30 tackles with 6.5 for loss and 2.5 sacks in 10 games during the recently concluded 2025 season at GVSU. Originally from Ypsilanti, Michigan, he was a redshirt sophomore this year and will have two seasons left to play.
His commitment, which occurs nearly a month before the standard Division I transfer portal will open, gives KU an early head start on rebuilding the interior of its defensive line. With longtime mainstays Tommy Dunn Jr., D.J. Withers and Kenean Caldwell all exhausting their eligibility and Gage Keys also having gone through senior day, the Jayhawks will have to make defensive tackle an offseason priority.
They have a rising star in Blake Herold and a rotational contributor in Marcus Calvin who will both be redshirt juniors next season, but the only other scholarship defensive tackle on the roster this year was Josiah Hammond, who redshirted in his first year in the program. The Jayhawks have one freshman coming in, Na’kwaine Carter from Southmoore High School in Moore, Oklahoma, but they recently lost another, Lucas Smalls-Allen, who flipped to Wake Forest. The early signing period begins on Wednesday.
Conde posted on social media about his initial scholarship offer from KU on Nov. 20. He was one of a pair of Division II transfers who reportedly visited KU early in the portal process, along with Kanye Thompson, a defensive back from Slippery Rock.
KU wrapped up its 2025 campaign on Friday with a 31-21 loss to Utah to complete the season with a 5-7 record.
