[2024] Bittersweet Sunflower Sunset to a career for Kansas RB Cody Casspi

[Bundy]

It wasn't the regular season sendoff the Jayhawks wanted when the clock hit 0, but it was still a Sunflower Showdown that will live on forever when it comes to talking KU Greatness. 

Way back in 2021, Kansas "lived and died" on the legs of Bene' Humber, the star running back who finished the inaugural Jayhawks' season with 1129 yards. Humber, of course, was supported by a 3,098 yard passing season from Ian Morgan, but still, the talk was that the team ran through Humber. 

Since then, Kansas has graduated not only Humber to the NFL (UDFA '23, currently a Minnesota Viking), but also the OL that paved the way for him, including offseason stints in the league for tackles Rashad Shaw and Zach Rogers, as well as the drafting of guards Ben Gohara and Jose Moustakas. 

In a "growing pains" year of 2024, there wasn't much expected of the Jayhawks. They did receive some Top 25 interest in the preseason, climbed from 23rd to 11th to 9th at one point, and then plummeted out of relevancy after a series of b2b2b2b losses. But for the most part, this was seen as a year to earn experience. 

However, the season still had meaning, and the Jayhawks battled out of their conference play slump to earn their way to a 3rd consecutive bowl season. And, this time, they did live and die on the legs of their RB, Cody Casspi.

Casspi redshirted that initial 2021 year, academically a sophomore but resigned to earn reps while the more senior Humber plowed through the unknown of what modern CFB would be. Casspi dethroned Humber as the lead RB midway through 2022, and never looked back. In 2023, he passed Humber for all Jayhawks career rushing marks. And in 2024, he did the "unthinkable."

We've already talked about the race for Casspi hitting the 2,000 yards in a season mark, which he surpassed against Iowa a little more than 2 weeks ago. But against Kansas State, in an unfortunate loss to his rival, he put up outlandish video game numbers. 49 carries, 376 yards, and 3 TDs. Yes, you read that correctly, 376 rushing yards in one game. While many revere the OL of old that paved the way during the Humber era, this year's Kansas OL starters were:

OT Drew Solano ⭐⭐⭐ SR Pass Blocking - 5 starts

OG Enrique Guerra ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (FR) Run Blocking - 12 starts

C Jesus Hernandes ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (FR) Balanced - 12 starts

OG David Hager ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (FR)  Pass Blocking - 12 starts

OT Zac Griffin ⭐⭐ (SR) Run Blocking - 11 starts

OT Austin Smith  ⭐⭐⭐ (JR)  Balanced - 7 starts

OT Drew Nunnally   ⭐⭐⭐ JR Run Blocking - 1 start

 

With one final game to go, an unknown bowl selection, Casspi has all but erased the previous Kansas rushing records. In 2024 alone, he set the #1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10th most rushing yards in a game, owning #4 and #7 from his previous years of play. Before this weekends stats become finalized, Casspi sat at #5 in the country in rushing yards, and while he won't catch Marshall's Tremaine Craig (2,416), legendary @Ricky Campbell coached Stanford Vontae Knebel (2,405 + 41 at Cal this weekend), or UNLV's Mickey Brogdon (damn you @cultur3) (2,277 + 109) in the regular season, and despite a 221 yard performance by New Mexico RB Ken Flagel, Casspi should finish the regular season ~4th in rushing on the year. 

"At the end of the day, we want to put Ws on the board," said a solemn @Bundy during postgame late Saturday night. "But what Cody did today - what he's done all season, and every day he's been in our program - was something special. And we're excited to see what those big guys can do up front now that they know what big time college football, big time Big 12 football, is all about."