Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels would’ve felt about as good as a QB can feel about his own play after Friday’s 46-7 win over Wagner at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium if it wasn’t for that one pesky throw.
If you watched the game, you know the one.
More from Friday's win...
Late-second quarter. KU driving and already deep into the red zone, looking to tack on points to an already commanding lead.
But Wagner cornerback Jayden Brown had other ideas.
On first-and-goal from the Wagner 9-yard line, Brown left Levi Wentz — the man he was covering — and leapt high into the air to undercut Cam Pickett and make a one-handed interception in the end zone to secure a touchback for his team.
“First of all, hats off to him for making the play,” Daniels said after the win, noting that he went and found Brown after the game to tell him how he felt about the play. “I thought it was gonna be a great pass, he came off of his (man) that had a hitch and he made a one-handed interception, so hats off to him. That’s definitely a mistake that I can’t afford to make down the line.”
The interception — his first of the year — was the only major flaw on an otherwise strong night for Daniels, who followed up last week’s 18-for-20, 3-touchdown game against Fresno State by throwing for 4 touchdowns and 280 yards while completing 72% of his passes one week after going 18-of-20 for 176 yards and 3 TDs in the opener.
But it was clear that the interception still stung long after the 39-point victory, which came with Kansas leading 29-7. Not because it created a problem for Friday’s game, which the Jayhawks (2-0) controlled from start to finish. But because he knows he won’t be able to get away with that most weeks, starting with next week’s showdown with Missouri.
“That interception hurts, bruh. It really does,” Daniels continued after the game. “Those are things that you can’t have down the line, especially when we’re talking about those close-game situations. Those are situations I do not want to put my team in. Those are game-changing moments and that’s exactly how I look at it.”
Daniels gave way to the backups for most of the second half, but not before delivering one more time on his final drive of the night.
That drive, which opened the second half, also gave him the chance to atone for the interception with what he called a “big boy post” throw to speedy wideout Emmanuel Henderson Jr., who scored on a 62-yard bomb two plays into the third quarter.
“That was a bounce-back throw for me,” Daniels said, acknowledging that he threw a “rope” to Carson Bruhn on an over route for 13 yards on the play right before it.
“Coach (Jim Zebrowski) called the play and I was like, ‘OK. So, now you want me to bounce back,” Daniels said, smiling. “He definitely got on me a little bit for the interception but I told him, ‘Coach, I got you. Call the next play and I’m gonna go out there and prove to you exactly why I’m gonna continue to bounce back.”
Daniels called the moment a “focus-refocus” opportunity and said Zebrowski excels in helping teach his quarterbacks how to do that.
“I got the chance to be able to bounce back from (the interception),” Daniels said. “But you’re not always going to get the chance to be able to bounce back from a mistake.”
“Everybody knows I’m always gonna be hardest on myself,” he added. “We were winning the game at the time, but, at the end of the day, the scoreboard doesn’t matter to me. I care about every single play and being in every single drive. And that was a drive killer.”
“I’m always gonna be my worst critic. I could’ve had seven touchdowns and one interception and I’m gonna think about the one interception more than the seven touchdowns. I think that’s just the competitor in me.”
Except for one play so far this season, that competitor who wears No. 6 for the Jayhawks has been awfully good and gotten his team off to a 2-0 start entering what will be one of the biggest regular season weeks in the KU program’s recent history.
Kansas. Missouri. The Border War is back – next weekend in Columbia.
Daniels knows that, of course. But, on Friday night, he was willing to allow himself to capitalize on the 24-hour rule
“You hear a lot of things about games down the line,” he said. “But I like to stay where my feet are. I continue to take it every single take in every single moment. And, right now, I'm focused on the fact that we were able to get a win. So, I'm gonna go ahead and take in that win worry about the next team when it's time to be able to start watching film and break it down.”
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