There hasn’t been a more important football game in Lawrence in more than a decade.
Saturday, the Kansas Jayhawks host the Duke Blue Devils in a matchup so good most would assume it’s already basketball season.
Duke (3-0) at Kansas (3-0), Saturday, 11 a.m. CT (FS1)
Line: Kansas by 7 1/2, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
Series record: Duke leads 2-1. The Blue Devils are going for their first 4-0 start since 2018,
when New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones was under center and they last went to a bowl game.
The Jayhawks are shooting for a perfect start for the first time since 2009,
the year after their last winning season. It is one of four games involving unbeaten FBS teams this weekend.
Duke coach Mike Elko against Kansas coach Lance Leipold. Elko took over the Blue Devils this season after several high-profile
stops as a defensive coordinator, and that side of the ball will be tested by QB Jalon Daniels and a prolific Jayhawks offense.
stops as a defensive coordinator, and that side of the ball will be tested by QB Jalon Daniels and a prolific Jayhawks offense.
Duke: DT DeWayne Carter is a two-time team captain, the first since Jones in 2017-18 to achieve that honor.
He leads a defensive front that will try to slow down a Kansas rushing offense averaging 259.0 yards per game.
Kansas: RBs Devin Neal and Daniel Hishaw are a formidable 1-2 punch for the nation’s seventh-best rushing offense.
Both have reached the end zone four times already this season.
There hasn’t been a more important football game in Lawrence in more than a decade.
Kansas beat Duke 44-16 in 2009 in the only meeting between the schools in Lawrence.
Elko is the first Duke coach to start 3-0 since Fred Goldsmith in 1994. He began 7-0 and led the Blue Devils to the Hall of Fame Bowl.
A formidable Kansas offense has put up remarkable numbers behind quarterback Jalon Daniels.
The Jayhawks are best in the country in red zone offense, and rank second in points per drive,