Why Kansas Jayhawks’ O-line, usually so stout, struggled mightily vs. Texas Tech
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- Kansas offensive line collapsed vs. Texas Tech, allowing nine sacks Saturday.
- Jalon Daniels absorbed eight sacks; backup Cole Ballard took one late.
- Leipold identified Tech’s defensive talent as primary cause of protection failures.
For too much of Saturday night’s football game in Lubbock, Texas, Kansas Jayhawks quarterback Jalon Daniels found himself on the ground.
The most apparent talent gap during No. 9 Texas Tech’s 42-17 drubbing of KU was in the trenches. Time after time, the Red Raiders’ defensive line broke through KU’s offensive line.
Texas Tech registered nine sacks in the game.
Until Saturday, the Jayhawks had surrendered a mere five sacks all season. In previous games, and seasons, Daniels and the Kansas O-line had done an excellent job in that department. KU allowed just 10 sacks in all of 2024.
The fact that the Red Raiders had nine Saturday is a testament to how good Texas Tech is this season.
“They’re a really good defense, and we had troubles protecting all day long,” Kansas coach Lance Leipold said. “They’ve got some pretty highly touted players there, and you can see why, and we struggled. There was no doubt, unfortunately.”
It’s the most sacks KU has allowed in a game under Leipold. The Red Raiders sacked Daniels eight times and KU backup Cole Ballard once.
Those eight sacks were the most Daniels has taken in a single game since his freshman year at KU. Under former head coach Les Miles, the Jayhawks surrendered eight in a 62-9 loss to Oklahoma.
And sacks weren’t the only issue for KU against Texas Tech. The Jayhawks also committed multiple holding penalties, some of which negated pivotal plays.
No KU offensive lineman had a great game against the Red Raiders, but left tackle Calvin Clements had an especially forgettable one: He allowed nine pressures, per PFF. As a team, KU was assessed a dismal PFF pass-blocking grade of 10.1 out of 100.
Despite the constant pressure he faced Saturday, Daniels actually played well. He made multiple throws with opponents in his face, finishing 27 of 33 for 228 yards and two touchdowns through the air (and no interceptions).
Still, he didn’t absolve himself of blame.
“I think we kind of knew what type of front seven that they had,” Daniels said. “Hats off to Texas Tech and everything they did defensively to be able to create a lot of pressure, but at the end of the day I think there’s still some plays out there that I left on the field ...
“I think I have to do to be able to put our team in a better position.”
Leipold’s estimation, Saturday was a learning experience for the Jayhawks. Kansas now has a week off before playing host to rival K-State in the Sunflower Showdown on Oct. 25.
The coach knows what happened against Tech — and how his team can improve from it.
“You’ve got to trust technique at times,” Leipold said. “Fundamentally, there are ways we’re getting beat. We tried to help at certain times with chipping and things. There are lots of things we have to look at — from the player, technique-wise, but also schematically, what else we’re calling, what else we can do. “We went to some short passing-game stuff, but they were just really short gains, and we’ve got to do more and be able to get the ball down the field more.”
This story was originally published October 13, 2025 at 5:30 AM with the headline "Why Kansas Jayhawks’ O-line, usually so stout, struggled mightily vs. Texas Tech."
