What changed Saturday
Kansas entered the fourth quarter trailing Baylor 21-10 and left homecoming with a 25-24 victory. Isaiah Marshall scored on a 15-yard run with 1:13 left, but the winning sequence began earlier. The Jayhawks scored 15 points in the period and repeatedly disrupted Baylor’s placement unit before Blake Herold blocked the potential game-winning 45-yard field goal with 22 seconds remaining.
Herold’s block was Kansas’ third touch on a Baylor kick after two extra-point attempts were also blocked but carried through the uprights. That repetition made the final play less accidental. The Jayhawks found a weakness in the operation, continued attacking the same point and eventually converted penetration into the scoreboard margin the offense had created.
The decision underneath it
Marshall’s touchdown completed a six-play, 71-yard drive, the kind of late possession that requires urgency without losing structure. Kansas did not need a single desperate heave. It moved into scoring range, kept the quarterback’s legs available and used the defense’s attention to open the 15-yard path that decided the lead.
The Jayhawks improved to 3-4 and earned their first Big 12 win after consecutive difficult conference results. The record still demands improvement, but Saturday identifies a usable identity: keep the game close enough for one phase to hand opportunity to another. Special teams did not win in isolation; it finished the advantage the offense and defense had preserved.
What carries forward
Kansas also ended Baylor’s 14-game winning streak in the series and recorded its first victory over the Bears since 2007. Those milestones explain the celebration, not the next task. The Jayhawks must carry forward the operational details—rush lane, fourth-quarter tempo and quarterback read—without assuming another opponent will repeat Baylor’s vulnerability.
A comeback becomes sustainable when it is built from repeatable assignments. Kansas blocked at the same point, drove with a clear clock plan and gave Herold one final chance to affect the ball. The 25th point provided the lead; the third blocked kick protected it. That complete sequence is the strongest evidence that the Jayhawks can close another close game.
Sources & reporting
- Kansas Athletics: Jayhawks rally past Baylor ↗
- Baylor Athletics: Kansas blocks game-winning field goal ↗
This article adds independent analysis to publicly available reporting. We did not conduct the interviews or report the game firsthand. Report a factual error.