You can exhale, Kansas fans.
On a wet, rainy night in Orlando, the Jayhawks prevailed in a one-score game against the UCF Knights.
Despite trailing by 14 early, Kansas shut out the Knights in the second half and held on for a 27-20 nailbiter at the Ascrisure Bounce House on Saturday.
KU outscored the Knights 20-3 from the middle of the second quarter on. KU (4-2, 2-1 Big 12) improved to 2-6 in one-score games since the start of the 2024 season.
The ending was chaotic. Clinging to a 27-20 lead, KU’s defense held firm with three straight goal-line stops that forced a turnover on downs. With 1:47 left, KU’s offense took over. The offense only burned 10 seconds after UCF used its timeouts.
UCF got one more chance — and reached the 22-yard line. But the Jayhawks’ defense held from there, setting off a celebration from the visiting sideline.
“We found a way,” Kansas coach Lance Leipold said. “It wasn’t the cleanest and things like that early, but I’m really proud of their perseverance in the second half. Being down 14-0 and being able to come back and outscore them 27-6 I think says a lot about the resiliency of this team.”
How Kansas vs. UCF unfolded
This game was back and forth from the start.
The Knights raced to a 14-0 lead. When things looked bleak, KU’s offense found its footing. The Jayhawks engineered a nine-play, 75-yard scoring drive that ended on a 1-yard rushing touchdown by Leshon Williams.
UCF scored on all four of its drives in the first half but went into halftime leading only 20-14.
Kansas scored 13 points unanswered in the second half. The Jayhawks finally took the lead, 27-20, late in the third quarter when a fumble gave KU the ball 2 yards away from the end zone. They scored one play later.
Daniels finished 18-of-26 passing for 235 yards. Cam Pickett was his top receiver, with five catches for 64 yards.
Running back Leshon Williams finished with 58 rushing yards and three rushing scores. Daniels added 25 yards on the ground and also connected with tight end Boden Groen, a surprise of the season thus far, for a couple of long catches.
“We found a way to make some stops,” Leipold reflected postgame. “... We found a way to win a close game.”
Up next
KU travels to Lubbock, Texas, to play Texas Tech on Oct. 11.
Until then, here are three takeaways from Saturday’s game… Jalon Daniels showed off his poise
Heading into the game, Daniels was tied for second in the nation in passing touchdowns (16) and only had two interceptions to his name.
His special season continued vs. UCF, but it came in a different fashion: He made big throws without having to be the one to get the ball into the end zone.
One big talking point all season has been Daniels’ poise. When KU fell behind by two touchdowns, Daniels didn’t make erratic throws or play hero ball.
Instead, he calmly led Kansas on a scoring drive and took his team out of the danger zone. On the very next drive, he did the same thing to pull the Jayhawks within one score at the half.
It was precisely the type of play needed from the sixthyear QB. Daniels entered halftime 11-for-15 passing for 144 yards.
