Kansas Jayhawks upset on the road by Illinois Fighting Illini 23-17
The 19th-ranked Kansas Jayhawks were stunned on Saturday night, suffering their first loss of the season to the Illinois Fighting Illini 23-17.
It was a challenging evening for the KU offense even though it still outperformed Illinois in several statistical categories. That includes total yards and first downs, although those minor victories paled in comparison to the lopsided 4-1 turnover margin deficit for the Jayhawks. That’s the most giveaways by Kansas in a single game during the Lance Leipold era.
Quarterback Jalon Daniels struggled to find a rhythm all night, finishing 18-of-32 passing for 141 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions. In three games played last season, Daniels threw just one interception. He also lost a fumble on Saturday.
Lawrence Arnold led the Jayhawks in receiving with four receptions for 44 yards and a score, while Luke Grimm tied for a game high with nine receptions and also scored a touchdown, but he tallied just 40 yards for 4.4 yards per catch.
“We didn’t create enough plays ourselves and they made some really nice plays tonight,” Leipold said.
Running back Devin Neal was KU’s most effective offensive player in the loss but recorded just 14 touches, all carries. He finished with 101 yards and is now just 552 yards away from setting the all-time program record for career rushing yards.
In two games, Neal now has 22 carries for 213 yards, good for 9.7 yards per carry.
The Jayhawks’ defense stood out despite the loss, in fact it was one of their best performances under Leipold and defensive coordinator Brian Borland. Kansas held Illinois to just 271 total yards and limited the Illini to just 2.3 yards per carry on 34 rushing attempts. Linebacker Cornell Wheeler also forced a fumble that was recovered by defensive end Jereme Robinson.
“I thought we played the run pretty decent there, especially halfway through the first to halfway through the fourth,” Leipold said.
Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer went 16-of-25 for 192 yards with no touchdowns or turnovers in the win.
The Illini were able to exact some revenge on the Jayhawks for last year’s meeting in Lawrence, when huge games by Daniels and Neal led KU to a 34-23 victory. This was also the first sellout for Illinois since 2016.
Kansas has a short week before its next game against the UNLV Rebels, who are 2-0 after obliterating the Utah Tech Trailblazers 72-14 this weekend. That game will be a rematch of last season’s Guaranteed Rate Bowl, a history KU win, will be played at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas, and is coming up Friday at 6:00 p.m.
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