LAWRENCE — Kansas Football’s 2023 regular season schedule has been finalized now that the Jayhawks’ Big 12 Conference roster was released Tuesday.
Fans already knew Kansas would face Missouri State (Aug. 31, home), Illinois (September 9, home), and Nevada (September 16, away) during the non-conference portion of the schedule. That will take the Jayhawks through mid-September. But now they also know which Big 12 teams will play Kansas and where.
The Jayhawks will play five conference games at home and four on the road. Of the four new Big 12 teams — UCF, BYU, Cincinnati and Houston — Kansas will face three.
Here’s a look at the Jayhawks’ 2023 Big 12 football schedule.
September 23 — BYU (Home)
This will be only the second time these two teams have played. Kansas won the last meeting between the two teams 23-20 in the 1992 Aloha Bowl.
September 30 — Texas (away)
Kansas is 1-1 against Texas during Lance Leipold’s tenure as head coach of the Jayhawks. Kansas suffered a close loss at home to the Longhorns in 2022 after winning in overtime on the road in 2021.
October 7 — UCF (home)
This will be the first time the two teams have met. Luckily for Kansas, he gets this series started in front of his home crowd.
October 14 — Oklahoma State (away)
Leipold and the Jayhawks earned bowl eligibility against the Cowboys in 2022, beating Oklahoma State at home. Kansas will now try to do something it didn’t come close to doing in 2021 and beat OSU in Stillwater.
October 21 – HELLO
Kansas will play seven games before its bye week arrives. During the 2022 season, the Jayhawks’ bye week came after eight games.
October 28 — Oklahoma (home)
Kansas had its chance to beat Oklahoma twice during Leipold’s tenure in Lawrence and will have another chance against the Sooners at home this season. Last season, Kansas lost 52-42 on the road.
November 4 — Iowa State (away)
Beating Iowa State at home in 2022 allowed Kansas to start their season 5-0 and gain national attention. Leipold can go 2-1 against the Cyclones in his tenure with the Jayhawks with a win on the road here, though this was another game in 2021 that Kansas lost by a large margin.
November 11 – Texas Tech (home)
Kansas has yet to beat Texas Tech in Leipold’s short time in Lawrence. Neither endgame was particularly close, so a win here would certainly demonstrate the progress the Jayhawks are making.
November 18 – Kansas State (Home)
Kansas has a long losing streak against its rival. The Jayhawks will have one more shot at home to end that streak this season.
November 25 — Cincinnati (away)
Kansas closes out the regular season with a matchup against one of the new Big 12 programs. Cincinnati has thrived in the Group of Five ranks in recent years and is sure to challenge at the Power Five level as well.
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas athletics at the Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association Sportswriter of the Year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at [email protected] or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.
