The NCAA changed a key rule in June, one that made even the typically measured Kansas coach Lance Leipold say recently, “I can’t tell you how excited I am.”
“Moving forward, any staff member may provide technical and tactical instruction to student-athletes during practice and competition,” according to an NCAA press release, meaning that KU’s 11 analysts and quality control coaches can now have a more tangible impact on day-to-day preparation.
That effectively doubles the size of KU’s coaching staff in any given practice or game, since like the rest of Division I, the Jayhawks were previously limited to 11 “countable coaches”: Leipold, offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes, defensive coordinator Brian Borland, co-offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Jim Zebrowski, co-defensive coordinator/cornerbacks coach D.K. McDonald, running backs coach Jonathan Wallace, wide receivers coach Terrence Samuel, offensive line coach Daryl Agpalsa, defensive ends/special teams coach Taiwo Onatolu, defensive tackles coach Jim Panagos and linebackers coach Chris Simpson.
Leipold said on Monday that when he arrived, KU’s analysts were even more limited than at most power-conference programs due to issues in the program prior to his arrival — they couldn’t go in position rooms and had to stay well off the field.
“That’s been frustrating,” he said, “and to finally see where they’ve come to the understanding that everybody can help, I’m excited about it.”
The rule changes coincide conveniently with an offseason that saw KU restock its staff with many analysts who previously served as position coaches at well-regarded programs and will now take a more active role in the Jayhawks’ development than they could have in years past. (Note, though, that they still cannot go out on the recruiting trail.)
“Our players get to be coached more,” Grimes said. “They have twice the resources now, twice the information at their disposal. The way college football is, as volatile as it is, teams like us often have guys with a lot of experience on our staff who are in the position of analyst but have just as much knowledge as a lot of other guys, and in a lot of cases, sometimes maybe even more knowledge than a guy who’s the full-time position coach, so to speak.”
Here’s a little more on each analyst and quality control coach.
Iowa wide receivers coach Kelton Copeland, center, leads his players to the field before an NCAA college football game against Middle Tennessee, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019, in Iowa City, Iowa.
Kelton Copeland, a recent addition who came aboard in July, spent seven seasons as the wide receivers coach at Iowa. He has past Kansas connections as a former coach at Emporia State and Coffeyville Community College. Copeland recently visited Kansas City Chiefs camp and had also come by KU in the spring.
“It was a very consistent response by him when I asked him for some feedback,” Leipold said, “and he talked about our kids, and he talked about how he felt it was different than maybe other places, and I’ve heard it from Jeff Grimes when he first got here, and it was: ‘Your guys seem to embrace the process of what practice is all about, and equally important, they seem to really like being around one another.'”
Angus McClure will have a unique set of responsibilities, as he’ll work primarily with the younger offensive linemen under Agpalsa, but also can provide insight on West Coast recruiting, Leipold said, after spending much of his career at schools like Cal, UCLA and Nevada. He joined the staff in June.
Kansas receiver A.J. Steward (11) pushes away linebacker Steven Johnson after pulling in a catch during the second half of the Spring Game Saturday, April 24, 2010 at Memorial Stadium.
AJ Steward is a familiar name for KU fans, but found his way back to Lawrence on this occasion by following Jeff Grimes from Baylor (having also worked for him at BYU). The former KU tight end has served primarily as a running backs coach at those schools and in places like Oregon State, Arizona and Rice.
Eric Terrazas is working with Zebrowski, Leipold said. The April addition brings Big 12 experience after a year working with the offense at Iowa State; like Leipold and his ISU coach Matt Campbell, Terrazas made the leap from a lower level of football after spending six seasons as a successful offensive coordinator at NAIA Indiana Wesleyan.
New York Giants’ Mike Dawson watches against the Detroit Lions during an NFL football game in Detroit, Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019.
Mike Dawson, the only coach with the title of “senior analyst,” has the resume to fit that sort of title. He came to KU in the winter from Ohio State and was once an outside linebackers coach for the New York Giants. Dawson has coached all over the field, including tutoring both the defensive line and linebackers during his tenure with Nebraska; he was also a defensive coordinator at the FCS level early in his career, when he was at New Hampshire, and later a special teams coordinator at Boston College. Leipold said that “he’s going to help us in the front seven.”
Brandon Shelby is another new hire and a Kansas City, Missouri, native who spent 13 years at Indiana across two coaching staffs, making him one of the longest-tenured assistants in the Big Ten.
“He was interested in the corners (coach) job,” Leipold said, “and I really respect his professionalism because even when D.K. was hired, he still wanted to come here and be part of our staff, and that means a lot.”
Kyle Deween recently joined KU as a special teams analyst and has one of the most direct connections to Leipold of any staff member as a former punter for him at Buffalo for two seasons.
Aaron Miller, one of the longest-tenured analysts after joining KU in 2022 from Rutgers, pairs with Deween on the special teams staff, assisting Onatolu.
McNeese State quarterback Tyler Bolfing (8) throws in the first half of an NCAA college football game against Nebraska in Lincoln, Neb., Saturday, Sept. 6, 2014.
Tyler Bolfing comes to KU as an offensive analyst; like Steward, he followed Grimes from Baylor. He has experience coaching Grimes’ primary position, tight ends, at Louisiana-Monroe and his alma mater McNeese, and also worked with quarterbacks at ULM for one year.
He may be particularly valuable because Grimes has to oversee the entire offense beyond just the tight end room.
“Bolf’s a great key piece to our offense,” tight end Trevor Kardell said. “With Grimes, he’s not just always with the tight ends … so having Bolf around whenever Grimes is on the move a little bit is huge, just because he knows the offense just as well as Grimes does, so any question we would ask Grimes, we could also ask to Bolf.”
Pat Cerroni retired from Wisconsin-Oshkosh in 2021 after a venerable career as head coach of the Titans, often doing battle with Leipold’s title-winning Wisconsin-Whitewater teams. Leipold, who holds a 7-1 edge in head-to-head matchups, called him an “underrated football coach.” After a brief stint at the high school level, Cerroni returned to college coaching under his former rival.
“Lance Leipold is the only man that would have given me a job at this point in my career,” Cerroni told Wisconsin news station WLUK in July. “You think you know a lot? Go Division I and you are going to find out ‘Oh my lord.’ It’s a journey right now and I am hopefully going to make him right, work hard and get it done.”
Brian Stoldt started as a graduate assistant when Leipold arrived at KU and has since been promoted to defensive quality control coach. He previously worked for Leipold at Buffalo and has been a position coach at Division III Alfred University.
AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall
Nick Krug
AP Photo/Paul Sancya
AP Photo/Nati Harnik