Notes & Numbers: Kansas 48, Lindenwood 3

Kansas City, Kan. — Throughout each season, there are interesting notes and nuggets of information that come out of every game, win or lose.

Here’s a quick look at some of the more interesting and noteworthy facts and stats from KU's season-opening rout of Lindenwood at Children's Mercy Park in which the KU starters played just a half and then watched the next wave roll.

The win moved KU to 1-0 on the season. Next up, Kansas will play at Illinois next Saturday on FS1.

Series History: Kansas moves to 1-0 against Lindenwood and improves to 5-0 all-time against current members of the Big South / Ohio Valley Conference Kansas

Captains: Jalon Daniels, Luke Grimm, Devin Neal, Cornell Wheeler

Coin Toss: Lindenwood won the toss, chose to receive

Team Notes

• Kansas is now 607-679-58 all-time, including 18-21 in the Lance Leipold era.

• Kansas improved to 74-54-7 all-time in season openers, including 4-0 under Lance Leipold. KU is 57-26-2 in home season openers.

• Kansas has now scored 40-plus points in three straight games for the second time in the Lance Leipold era. KU scored 49 at Cincinnati and 49 versus UNLV to end the 2023 season and 48 tonight. KU scored 40-plus in the first three games of the 2022 season (56 vs. Tennessee Tech, 55 at West Virginia and 48 at Houston, all KU wins).

• Kansas amassed 530 yards total offense to mark the third straight game and 13th time in the Lance Leipold era the Jayhawks have 500-plus yards of total offense. KU posted 500-yard total offense games five times last season.

Offensive Notes

• Right tackle Logan Brown and center Bryce Foster made their first career starts at Kansas alongside an experienced offensive line. Left tackle Bryce Cabeldue made his 39th career start, while left guard Michael Ford Jr. started his 37th game at KU and right guard Kobe Baynes made his fifth start as a Jayhawk.

• Devin Neal tallied 112 yards and two touchdowns on just eight carries Thursday night. Neal has scored the first Kansas touchdown of the year in each of the past three seasons and has recorded at least one touchdown in each of his last seven games. Neal added another touchdown in the second quarter to pass James Sims (2010-13) for second in program history in rushing touchdowns with 35. Thursday marked his 13th game where he has rushed for 100 yards or more, which ties June Henley (1993-95) and Laverne Smith (1973-76) for the third-most in school history.

• Luke Grimm totaled six catches for 111 yards and a touchdown on Thursday night. Grimm passed Dexton Fields (2005-08) for eighth and moved into a tie with Brandon Rideau for seventh in program history with 131 career receptions. Grimm also passed Emmett Edwards (1972-74) for eighth in career receiving yards and moved past teammate Lawrence Arnold as he ended the game with 1,893 career yards. In the second quarter, Grimm moved into a tie with Kerry Meier (2006-09) for third all-time in touchdown receptions with 18 after hauling in a 58-yard touchdown reception from Jalon Daniels.

• Sevion Morrison scored on a one-yard touchdown on KU’s first drive of the third quarter. Morrison finished the game with 8 carries for 28 yards and a touchdown. This is the third straight season that Morrison has scored a rushing touchdown in the Jayhawks’ season opener.

• Jalon Daniels opened the season by completing 9-of-15 passes for 148 yards and a touchdown, the 32nd of his career which ranks No. 4 in Kansas Football history.

• Doug Emilien hauled in his second career touchdown reception with a four-yard score from Cole Ballard early in the fourth quarter.

• Cole Ballard stepped in at quarterback in the second half for Kansas and completed 5-of-6 for 51 yards and a touchdown in less than a half of action.

Defensive Notes

• Kansas limited Lindenwood’s offensive attack to 202 yards of total offense and three points on Thursday night. The 202 yards is the second-lowest by a KU opponent in the Lance Leipold era, while the 3 points is the fewest allowed by Kansas since Sept. 5, 2009 vs. Northern Colorado. Tennessee Tech’s 190 yards total offense against Kansas on Sept. 2, 2022 is the lowest allowed under Leipold. Lindenwood’s 202 yards marked the fifth time in the Leipold era the Jayhawks have held an opponent to 266 yards or less.

• Senior Mello Dotson recorded his eighth career interception and his third return for a touchdown in the second quarter. He also set a new KU record with three career interceptions returned for a touchdown (vs. Lindenwood, at Iowa State, vs. Oklahoma). Dotson breaks a tie with Cobee Bryant, Aqib Talib, Patrick Brown, and Roger Foote, who each have two.

• Defensive end Dean Miller, linebacker Cornell Wheeler and safety Jalen Dye made their first career starts at Kansas in the game. KU’s cornerback duo of Mello Dotson and Cobee Bryant are the most experienced defensive starters, with Dotson making his 29th consecutive start and 35th overall while Bryant made his 11th straight start and 31st of his career.

• Redshirt-junior Dean Miller recorded the first sack of his career on a Lindenwood fourth down in the first quarter.

• Dotson is now in a four-way tie for the most defensive touchdowns in FBS since the start of the 2023 season.