Kansas football: Why Jayhawks fans should be confident in Jason Bean

1. Bean is still one of the best backup quarterbacks in the nation

Kansas fans are spoiled to watch Jalon Daniels play football. The Preseason Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year is capable of some magic on the field. So naturally, when we see Bean experience mishaps, our initial reaction is to want our starter back.

However, we do not realize how good of a backup Bean is. He could start for several schools in the conference and probably one-third of FBS-level teams. Any team would welcome a fifth-year senior who is one of the fastest quarterbacks you’ll ever watch, especially if he could be used in a reserve role.

Most players in his situation would have transferred out, especially with how sour his 2022 season ended. However, he stuck it out and was willing to stay a Jayhawk for his final year of eligibility. We haven’t seen many improvements in his game yet, but he’s been put in some precarious scenarios.

UCF might be rolling out their backup signal caller Timmy McClain due to John Rhys Plumlee’s leg injury. There’s a good chance we see a pair of second-strings under center on Saturday. But between Bean and McClain, the former wins that race by a far margin.