LAWRENCE – Every reaction from a Kansas football player upon entering the new-look Anderson Family Football Complex in late July conveyed joy and appreciation.
There was redshirt junior quarterback Jalon Daniels, pointing out how the facilities look very different as soon as you walk in the door. From the players’ lounge to the glass and more, everything looked futuristic.
There was senior running back Devin Neal, highlighted by the sauna and cryotherapy chamber. He mentioned how much it meant for the team’s older players, like himself, to be able to see tangible improvements that their on-field efforts over the past few years have helped make possible.
There was senior cornerback Cobee Bryant, alluding to wanting to be able to experience it all for longer than just his senior year. In addition to thanking everyone who made the upgrades possible, he talked about how much time he will spend in the game room and training room and how he doesn’t plan to leave.
Coach Lance Leipold anticipated how eager these players and others would be to see the progress being made. He had seen the reaction the team had in the past to the new locker room and the new weight room. And considering how well everyone handled the inconveniences of working around renovations that have been in the works for months, he couldn’t say enough about how much he appreciates them, too.
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“It’s great to be able to see their faces,” Leipold said July 30 after the first practice of fall camp. “It’s like a Christmas Day thing. You can see they are excited in some areas, and it was important for us to address the areas they will be in first as we continue to finish things off in this building here over the next few weeks.”
As Leipold noted, the renovations are not yet complete and there is more to do as the overall, multi-phase Gateway District project unfolds. But being able to enter the building as it is now is a significant step. It’s another boost for a program looking to compete for the Big 12 Conference title and, at this point, a spot in the College Football Playoff in 2024.
Perhaps Leipold could have opted for a reform plan that sought something different, that took much longer. He said he recently told team leadership that could have happened, including a different look and feel of the weight room. But then there would be players on this team who would never have been able to see that, and that’s not something Leipold wanted to happen.
The team’s players, from Leipold’s perspective, are setting examples for younger and upcoming players on how to conduct themselves on and off the field. One of those seniors, senior defensive end Jereme Robinson, said he can’t even imagine what the facilities were like. He’s also excited to see what David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium will look like in the end.
“It’s important that they are rewarded for what they have done for this program, the athletic department and, again, the campus and community,” Leipold said. “And seeing them do these things and spread out and grow is, I think, unfortunately, something that we don’t talk about enough anymore when you’re in that role. This is also very rewarding.”
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas athletics for The Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association Sportswriter of the Year for the state of Kansas in 2022. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.
This article originally appeared in the Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas football players praise Anderson Family Football Complex
