Tag: Lance Leipold

Sep 10, 2022; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; Kansas Jayhawks head coach Lance Leipold talks to running back Devin Neal (4) during the second quarter against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports

Kansas coach Lance Leipold: Focus on team, not job rumors

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Less than four weeks into this college football season, two coaches from Power 5 conferences have already been fired. Scott Frost is out at Nebraska and Herm Edwards was recently dismissed from Arizona State.

As college football moves into the coaching carousel season, people around the sport talk and make lists of which coaches would be good fits for open jobs.

Lance Leipold’s name has come up quite a bit, and for good reason. The 58-year-old has Kansas (3-0) off to its best start since 2009 and the Jayhawks have the third-best scoring offense in FBS, averaging 51.5 points per game.

Ahead of the Jayhawks’ home clash with Duke this Saturday, Leipold addressed those coaching rumors on Tuesday.

“I think you have to stay in the moment, be where your feet are at,” Leipold said. “My wife Kelly and I, we came to Lawrence, Kansas, not to move. At this stage of our career, it’s flattering… It’s early in the season, but our focus is trying to build the Kansas Jayhawks into a winner — and a consistent winner — for the long haul.”

Before coming to Kansas, Leipold was a head coach at Division III Wisconsin-Whitewater and then Buffalo. He amassed a 109-6 record at Wisconsin-Whitewater and won six national championships. As the head coach of the Bulls, he went to three bowl games in six seasons and led Buffalo to its first-ever AP Top 25 ranking, reaching No. 23 in 2020.

As an assistant coach, Leipold had stops at Wisconsin (1991-93) and Nebraska (2001-03), among other jobs in the Division II and III ranks.

The Jayhawks went 2-10 last season in Leipold’s first campaign at the helm, but had something of a signature 57-56 win over Texas in Austin.

Should Kansas reach six wins this year, the Jayhawks will go to a bowl game for the first time since 2008.

–Field Level Media

Dec 25, 2020; Montgomery, AL, USA; Buffalo Bulls hoist the trophy after winning the Camellia Bowl against Marshall Thundering Herd during the second half at Cramton Bowl Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

Buffalo names Maurice Linguist its new football coach

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Buffalo hired veteran assistant Maurice Linguist to succeed Lance Leipold as its football coach.

Leipold, who led the Bulls to three straight bowl berths, accepted the top coaching job at Kansas on April 30.

Buffalo announced Linguist’s addition Friday night on social media.

It’s the first head coaching job for Linguist, 37, and also a homecoming. He coached defensive backs and was the defensive passing game coordinator for the Bulls in 2012-13, working with a group that included future NFL All-Pro Khalil Mack.

A native of Dallas, Linguist played strong safety at Baylor from 2003-06. He entered coaching in 2007 and has put together a resume that includes stops at Valdosta State, James Madison, Iowa State, Mississippi State, Minnesota and Texas A&M.

He spent the 2020 season as cornerbacks coach of the Dallas Cowboys before accepting the job as defensive backs coach and co-defensive coordinator at Michigan – a position he’s leaving after four months.

Linguist is known as a strong recruiter who had a big hand in Texas A&M landing top-six recruiting classes in 2019 and ’20, as ranked by the 247Sports composite.

The Bulls, who play in the Mid-American Conference, were 6-1 in the shortened season in 2020, which ended with a 17-10 win over Marshall in the Camellia Bowl on Christmas Day.

–Field Level Media

Sep 7, 2019; University Park, PA, USA; Buffalo Bulls head coach Lance Leipold looks on during a warm up prior to the game against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Beaver Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O'Haren-USA TODAY Sports

Kansas names Lance Leipold to replace Les Miles

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Kansas named Buffalo coach Lance Leipold to lead its beleaguered football program on Friday.

Leipold received a six-year contract. Financial terms were not announced.

“It is an exciting and humbling opportunity, and this is a day I will never forget,” Leipold, 56, said in a school news release. “We are going to build this program through developing players, discipline and determination. The philosophies engrained in our programs along the way will be key as we turn this around.”

He replaces Les Miles, who was ousted in March after an investigation showed inappropriate behavior with female students when he coached at LSU.

The task ahead of Leipold is a big one. The Jayhawks haven’t played in a bowl game since 2008. And since the departure of coach Mark Mangino after the 2009 season, Kansas is 20-108 under Miles, David Beaty, Charlie Weis, Clint Bowen and Turner Gill.

Leipold spent the past six seasons with the Bulls, compiling a 37-33 record. But in the past three seasons, the Bulls were 24-10 and received three bowl bids.

“He is a man of integrity, a developer of young men, a program builder and a winner,” athletic director Travis Goff said. “His track record of sustained excellence is exactly what we were looking for in our next leader, and is what the University of Kansas and our fans deserve. His commitment to maximizing our (players’) abilities and experience on the field, in the classroom, in the community, and in life after KU is inspiring. Those qualities will attract individuals and develop them into exceptional Jayhawks.”

Prior to moving to Buffalo, he coached Division III Wisconsin-Whitewater to six national championships.

Leipold, 56, has a career record of 147-39.

–Field Level Media