March Fadness - Kansas Position Group Deep Dive [Offensive Line] (2024)

[Bundy]

Hello ladies and gents, it is March which means it's the CFB preseason and I'm blatantly stealing content ideas because the Big 12 Conference hasn't posted media since January. Get rekt @tsweezy ❤️

We start in the trenches, looking back on a grim 5-6 season (yes we only played 11 games, don't look into it, there was NO choke job at the end of the year with bowl eligibility on the line). It was the inaugural year of Kansas football, and some could say "Coach @Bundy is clueless out there." (They are still right.)

2021:

OT Gary Albers - Sr  ⭐⭐⭐⭐,  Fort Worth Christian    North Richland Hills    TX

OG Danny Syndergaard - Sr  ⭐⭐⭐⭐,  Monsignor Farrell    Staten Island    NY

C Logan Makita - FR  ⭐⭐⭐,  Peach County    Fort Valley    GA

OG Jose Moustakas - So  ⭐⭐⭐⭐,  Wakulla    Crawfordville    FL

OT Rashad Shaw - Jr  ⭐⭐⭐⭐,  Rosemount    Rosemount    MN

 

Save for Makita, this was a majorly talented OL that was WASTED due to Kansas trying to run a balanced offense. Run blockers the lot of them (except for the true FR C who was a Line Captain) and we passed the ball 457 times. Very obvious why we went 5-6*. Kansas has produced several OL in recent years who have hit the pros, with Gary Albers bouncing from Minnesota to Washington to now the Los Angeles Chargers, but Syndergaard was viewed as the wily leader of the unit, and he did NOT make the pros. Shaw eventually went UDFA but Moustakas just went to Dallas 57th overall during this years' draft, making him the highest acknowledged Kansas player to ever be drafted.

The ground game was relatively successful, with Bene' Humber rushing for 1,129 yards (now 2nd All-Time in Kansas single season history) but on 4.12 yards/carry (now 7th). So with the best "on paper" talent in KU OL history to date, he was actually somewhat mediocre, despite what early KU fans will tell you.

 

2022:

OT Zach Rogers - Jr⭐⭐⭐ Durango    Las Vegas    NV

OG Jose Moustakas - Jr ⭐⭐⭐⭐  Wakulla    Crawfordville    FL

C Pete Blythe - (Jr) ⭐⭐⭐ Appomattox County    Appomattox    VA

OG Ben Gohara - Sr ⭐⭐⭐Largo    Largo    FL

OT Rashad Shaw - Sr  ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rosemount    Rosemount    MN

 OT Drew Solano - So⭐⭐⭐ Sterling Heights Stevenson    Sterling Heights    MI

 

Swapping 2 4-stars for 2 3-stars and an older, 21 year old C led Kansas to their first ever bowl game and victory. Gohara had been the odd man out as a Jr (and why he wasn't redshirted during the initial year is beyond me, maybe the Kansas coaching staff was worried about depth/injuries? I don't remember) but came into his senior year to take Moustakas' vacated RG spot (as he switched to Syndergaard's vacant LG) where he'd end up as a 6th round pick by Cleveland. Shaw was a more than solid RT who went UDFA but didn't have that Gary Albers pro magic, which is sad because he had a much more storied college career, joining Moustakas as the then-record holder for OL starts in KU history with 25. 

Yes there are 6 OL listed, and that's because Drew Solano started the first 2 games at LT, before it was eventually decided he was too raw and Rogers came into the mix. 

And you'd think there would have been a clear step back in the ground game, but Kansas went nuts in the ground game, with true FB Marcell Maysonet rushing for 1,074 yards, initial RB2 who quickly took over RB1 duties Cody Casspi finishing with 1,070 yards, and Humber falling just 47 yards short at 953. I don't know that we've seen such a triple threat anywhere else in the college game. Makes a lot of sense why the guards got drafted.

 

2023:

OT Zach Rogers - Sr⭐⭐⭐ Durango    Las Vegas    NV

OG Jose Moustakas - Sr ⭐⭐⭐⭐  Wakulla    Crawfordville    FL

C Pete Blythe - (Sr) ⭐⭐⭐ Appomattox County    Appomattox    VA

OG David Hager - Fr ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Jefferson    Bloomington    MN

OT Drew Solano - Jr ⭐⭐⭐ Sterling Heights Stevenson    Sterling Heights    MI

 

For the first time ever we got to see three returning OL in the Kansas trenches. Mouuuuuuuuus would obliterate the "games started" record by adding another 13, and getting drafted, Rogers went UDFA but has actually (at least temporarily) signed with a team that isn't Minnesota. Blythe was kind of a let down despite having a year up on most of his competition, but the team managed to make and win another bowl game.

David Hager came to Kansas by way of the Bloomington Jeffs, where he went from a dominant All-State player in "afterthought" Minnesota to starting immediately for the Jayhawks as a true freshman. (Kansas would actually start multiple FR this year, with the other two playing on the defensive side of the ball.)

This OL was also interesting because for a Week 3 quirk against UCF, they flipped Hager/Solano to the left side of the line, and Rogers/Mouuuuuuuuuuus to the right (for this game only). Surely no one's 15th season high school varsity coach would do this to them in their sophomore year, deciding "hey let's run 'strong side/weak side' plays instead of 'left/right'" and that team wouldn't finish a terrible 0-8, right? Right??? (He then retired and we went 1-8 the next year, only beating a team that was on a like 29 game losing streak and it was by a lucky INT at the end after they successfully kicked an onside kick, but I digress.)

Kansas still had a solid ground game, with Cody Casspi setting the school records for rushing yards in both a season and a career, with a season in hand. (He currently sits at 2,292 yards on 5.76 yards/att.) 

 

2024 (Projected):

This is going to be a RAW OL for the next few seasons, having sent multiple OL to the pros.

 

LEFT TACKLE BATTLE:

OT Drew Solano - Sr ⭐⭐⭐ Sterling Heights Stevenson    Sterling Heights    MI

OT Austin Smith - (Jr) ⭐⭐⭐ Westfield    Westfield    IN

 

Solano probably edges out Smith because of his 15 games of experience, but there's no guarantees at this point. Kansas has recruited Indiana hard despite multiple prominent programs (and Notre Dame) residing in the state, and getting someone like Smith out there could be massive on the recruiting trail, especially for any 3-stars who might feel overlooked. 

 

LEFT GUARD:

OG David Hager - So ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Jefferson    Bloomington    MN

 

That's it, that's the player. Hager is a pass blocker by nature and lacking true deep options at other positions, Hager is THE guy to protect the inside on the left. 

 

CENTER BATTLE:

C Enrique Guerra - (Fr) ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Spencer    Spencer    IA

C Logan Makita - Sr  ⭐⭐⭐,  Peach County    Fort Valley    GA

 

This might be the most interesting battle in camp, with Makita having starting experience, but it was long ago and he never really grew much after that. Meanwhile, Kansas landed a Midwestern recruit in Guerra during the 2022 cycle, and building familiarity between he and line-mate Hager could pay massive dividends for the next 3 seasons. If the Portal had opened before now, Makita probably would have returned home to Georgia, where he might instantly be the best player on a Kennesaw State OL. 

 

RIGHT GUARD:

C Jesus Hernandes - (Fr) ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Shabazz    Newark    NJ

OG Steven Evans - Sr ⭐⭐ Port Arthur Memorial    Port Arthur    TX

 

Hernandes was hardly recruited until Kansas took interest during the 2022 cycle, and then other teams joined in. His only competition is Steven Evans, an OG Kansas roster guard who has yet to see the field but has come a long way. This could also be decided by who wins at C - if the team goes vets on the interior, its likely a Makita-Evans pairing. If the team goes youth, they can build an interior for 3 years. 

 

RIGHT TACKLE BATTLE:

OT Zac Griffin - (Sr) ⭐⭐ Mohawk    Sycamore    OH

OT Wallace Brooks - Fr ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Grapevine Faith Christian    Grapevine    TX

 

Zac Griffin is the presumptive starter at RT, coming into the year as a B+ overall 22 year old. Unfortunately for him, Kansas went swinging into the early recruiting period, missing on their top targets at RB, FB, and CB, but landing Wallace Brooks, who they want to get on the field FAST in order to keep up with the Texas schools. If Kansas can stretch their recruiting pipeline to states from Indiana to Texas, they could put together a Big 12 Championship run by 2026. 

 

 

It is impossible for us to predict anything beyond the year because we know the unhinged but Very Legal and Very Cool @Bundy doesn't recruit over his mid-tier depth at all and start FR all the time with no regard for human life. It is said he will land the best OL crooting class this year, #NoCollusion (hmu OL rich states @Florida/Ohio)

 

 

	Games Started	Player (Years)
1	38	OG Jose Moustakas (2021-23)
2	26	C Pete Blythe (2022-23)
3	25	OT Rashad Shaw (2021-22)
4	24	OT Zach Rogers (2022-23)
5	15	OT Drew Solano (2022)
6	13	OG Ben Gohara (2022)
7	13	OG David Hager (2023)
8	12	OT Gary Albers (2021)
9	12	OG Danny Syndergaard (2021)
10	12	C Logan Makita (2021)