Greg McElroy identifies Kansas’ MVP entering 2023 season

ESPN analyst Greg McElroy didn’t hesitate in naming quarterback Jalon Daniels the MVP for Kansas heading into the 2023 season. If you tuned in to watch the Jayhawks face Arkansas in the Liberty Bowl in December, it’s not hard to see why.

Daniels broke the KU football record with 544 yards passing and five touchdowns while completing 37 of his 55 attempts. He also added a touchdown on the ground to set a Liberty Bowl record with six total scores. That has many fans excited to see whether he can carry that over into 2023, McElroy included.

“What he did in the bowl game is just a jumping off point for where they might go this year,” the ESPN analyst said. “Is he gonna average 544 passing yards per game? Probably not. But when you do that and become the first player ever to throw for 500 yards, five touchdowns and run for a touchdown in one of the best performances we’ve seen in a bowl game in recent history, that tells you all you need to know.”

It wasn’t just the bowl game that Daniels impressed in, however. He also started off the year on a hot streak to throw for 11 touchdowns and one interceptions across the first four weeks. Kansas started off 5-0 for the first time since 2007 when it made the Orange Bowl under Mark Mangino and was ranked as high as No. 19 in the AP poll.

Unfortunately, Daniels suffered a shoulder injury in Week 6 against TCU and would go on to miss the next four games. KU fell apart without him and still couldn’t regain that momentum even after he returned as they went 1-7 in their final eight games.

Still, the fact that the Jayhawks even made a bowl game last season is a massive achievement. It marked the first time it had done so since 2008 and its three conferences wins were also the most since that year. With Jalon Daniels back in 2023, there is now more hype surrounding the Kansas program than there has been in more than a decade.

“You think about the rhythm that we was in the first five games of the year,” McElroy said. “Got banged up in the TCU game and missed a lot of time. If he can stay healthy throughout the course of the season, I don’t think Kansas is necessarily a Big 12 title game participant. I don’t even know if they’re gonna finish in the top half of the league. But I know they’ll be a problem for everyone they play.

“If Jalon Daniels is on the field, they’re a problem. You better have that guy circled. That’s who Jalon Daniels is right now. He makes them very dangerous every single week.”

Daniels ended this past season with 2,014 yards passing, 18 touchdowns and just four interceptions across nine games. He also had 425 yards rushing and seven touchdowns and the highest passing efficiency rating (162.0) of any Big 12 quarterback.

He’ll aim to build on those numbers beginning when Kansas kicks off the season on Sept. 1 against Missouri State.

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