75 Days Until Kansas Football: Previewing the Quarterbacks

The Kansas Jayhawks football program has had the hardest time getting out of deep water. Head coach David Beaty finds himself in a do-or-die type of season and that will all start with the Quarterback position. Here’s a look at what coach Beaty will have at his disposal in the 2018 campaign.

SR. Peyton Bender

(6-foot-1, 205 pounds)

Bender heads into the new year as the expected starting signal-caller. The former JUCO transfer played in 10 games last season and started eight of those games. In the history of the program, no QB has accumulated 1,000 passing yards in a season as quick as Bender did last year.

Bender’s 2017 season with the Jayhawks overall was a mix of flashes and disappointment. While Bender threw 10 interceptions, it is important to keep in mind what he was working with. In his senior year, you have to hope those same flashes which include the 300-plus yard game show up more frequently.

As far as Bender goes from a scouting aspect, there is something to really build off of in college. For starters, Bender has sneaky athleticism, a quick release, and decent velocity. He has an understanding of defenses and different coverages and displays adequate arm strength.

What you really want to see from Bender is established consistency. He has the talent to succeed in college but he’s going to have to be more consistent. Bear in mind he doesn’t have a ton of help around him so he really needs to be on his “A” game at all times, otherwise he really stands out in a poor way.

Overall, this is the year for Peyton Bender. You are looking at a top 5 Big 12 QB season if it all comes together this year.

JR. Carter Stanley

(6-foot-2, 198 pounds)

Stanley heads into this coming season right on Bender’s toes. The two were platooned last year, with Stanley throwing for a career-high 418 yards against Kansas State. The junior is looking to steal back his job he presumably won at the end of the 2016 season.

As far as experience and familiarity goes, Stanley has everyone beat as he has started in two seasons for the Jayhawks whereas Bender only started last year. Stanley is another player like Bender that has shown flashes but hasn’t been able to show consistency.

When watching Stanley the thing that jumps out is his mobility. As mentioned earlier, Bender is sneaky athletic but Stanley can actually take off and run when he wants to. When Stanley is on, he can be hard to stop as he is a rhythm passer that really needs to build up his confidence early on to thrive during a game.

Overall, Stanley has an argument but the starting job should at least be Bender’s to lose.

SO. Miles Kendrick

(5-foot-10, 200 pounds)

The rising fan favorite JUCO transfer is a dual-threat QB that brings a completely different style of play to the table. He might not be the coaches favorite at this point but he’s a wildcard, and a wildcard on a team that won one game last year has more of a chance than you might initially believe.

Even though Kendrick is coming from junior college, you still have to like what he brings to the table. He’s a QB that shows the ability to throw with timing and accuracy as well as make multiple defenders miss and shred a defense. Kendrick is going to be a problem for other teams if his abilities translate to the Division 1 game. He lacks the velocity to throw into tight windows but this is someone that could play sooner than later due to his ability to create opportunities with his legs.

The only real concern for Kendrick is his ability to live to play another down. Often times when playing in junior college he would sacrifice a lot of field position and yardage to try and create the big play. While he showed his ability to slip out of numerous sacks, he will have to watch out and be careful about doing that against Big 12 competition.

R-FR. Miles Fallin

(6-foot-5, 220 pounds)

Fallin has excellent size for the QB position but will likely find himself on the bench this entire year unless he is able to wow coaches before the season. More of a stereotypical big and tall pocket passer, he is going to have to really develop if he wants to try and beat out Kendrick for the starting job down the line.