A few minutes before kickoff of the 2025 season last Saturday at the brand-new Booth, veteran defensive lineman D.J. Withers joined KU’s seasonal captains, Jalon Daniels, Bryce Foster and Justice Finkley, for the walk to midfield and the captains’ meeting and coin toss.
The moment no doubt meant a lot to Withers, a 6-foot-4, 300-pound defensive tackle from Little Rock, Arkansas.
But his own appreciation for the honor may have paled in comparison to what it meant to his teammates and coaches.
“You can just hear how inspired he is about the game; you can kind of even feel how (he’s) put blood, sweat and tears into the game.”
— KU safety Lyrik Rawls on Game 1 captain D.J. Withers
“I was so proud,” KU defensive coordinator D.K. McDonald said of hearing that Withers was picked as the fourth captain for the team’s season opener. “D.J.’s really worked hard. What he did in camp was unbelievable. And then he had a great week of practice and it was good to see him get rewarded with the captainship. I’m just really excited and really proud of him.”
Daniels, a multi-year veteran of being in that very position, said on Monday that it was a blast to make that walk with Withers and that his appreciation for the big fella earning the honor hit well before game day, when Withers heard he had been the Week 0 pick for that fourth and final captain spot, which will be given out on a rotating basis throughout the season.
“You could tell it was a little bit of a surprise to him,” Daniels told R1S1 Sports on Monday. “He was like, ‘All right, well, I’m a captain.’ Everybody started cheering it up for him. It was cool. And he was our Guy of the Week this week, too, and that’s something that we continue to keep harping on in our program.”
The two honors go hand in hand. The Guy of the Week award typically goes to the player who brought it in every way that week, be it on the field, in the weight room, in film study or even with nutrition and academics.
While Withers tackled both honors last week, KU coach Lance Leipold said his production and consistency surfaced long before game week.
When asked what went into selecting Withers as that fourth captain for the Jayhawks’ first game, Leipold said simply, “really, what D.J. has done for a long time for this program.”
“There wasn’t really any debate on the (pick) because of the work ethic,” Leipold said Monday. “What D.J. Withers brings to this program each and every day on that practice field is really special. He works extremely hard. (It was the) same reason why we took him to (Big 12) media day (in early July), for what he’s done for this program and who he is and how he goes about it in a position that doesn’t get a lot of notoriety.”
Making his status on the team even more impressive — especially in the eyes of Leipold — was the fact that Withers delivered a stellar camp on the heels of getting his tonsils removed just before things got started in late-July.
“Keeping weight on in camp is a struggle,” Leipold noted, referencing the restrictions on what one can eat after having a tonsillectomy. “And he put on 12 pounds. Through the heat and through the work and all those things, you’ve gotta work at it. And he did. He’s a great example in many regards for this program.”
Originally recruited to KU by former coach Les Miles and his staff, Withers was one of the many guys that Leipold enticed to stick around when he first told the team what was possible in the years to come.
He didn’t play much as a true freshman during Leipold’s first season in 2021. But, since then, the physical D-tackle has appeared in 37 of a possible 38 games, including a 1-for-1 clip in 2025 — as a captain, no less.
“I’ve gotten the chance to be able to see D.J. grow from the beginning,” Daniels said. “And it’s been great to see. He knows that he’s the old guy in the room now, and he takes that with him every single day and continues to try to help everybody grow.”
Added first-year safety Lyrik Rawls, who is playing with Withers for the first time: “You can just hear how inspired he is about the game; you can kind of even feel how (he’s) put blood, sweat and tears into the game.”
It’s that kind of effort that led to him being named a captain for the opener, but it’s certainly nothing new to those who have been around him for the past few years.
Soft-spoken by nature at times, Withers is a classic player who lets his effort, intensity and passion for playing the game he loves do the talking for him.
“He’s a great leader for us,” McDonald said Monday. “And I wish we had more guys that kind of work the way that D.J. does.”
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