Kansas football defensive standout reaffirms loyalty to Jayhawks and Lance Leipold

Amid rumors of star defensive back Cobee Bryant contemplating the transfer portal, some Kansas football fans have become worried that the Jayhawks will lose one of the top players on the defense. While the senior CB has yet to shut down the portal buzz surrounding his name, one of his teammates did.

Mello Dotson expressed his loyalty to Kansas and head coach Lance Leipold in a post on X (formerly Twitter), which is not a coincidence given the timing of the post. He made sure KU supporters knew he will continue to be a Jayhawk through and through.

Mello Dotson confirms his dedication to the Kansas football program

"I ain’t the easiest person to understand and neither was coach Leipold. For him to be patient with me and take time to understand me as a person showed me a lot. I never cared for the media for the simple fact it’s biased and full of false information. My highschool coach Scott Wilson taught me to never jump ship when things get tough and that’s why I’m still at KU with no plans of leaving."

- Mello Dotson

Dotson, a 6-foot-1 corner from Florida, is entering his final year of eligibility at Kansas. He has been a full-time starter opposite Bryant for multiple years and had a breakout season in 2023, recording a career-high 11 passes defended and four interceptions, two of which he returned for a touchdown.

He announced he would return to Kansas in December after being selected to the College Football Network (CFN) All-American Third Team. However, there were also rumors that Dotson could be heading elsewhere in the unforgiving transfer portal. His recent comments suggest that opportunity was never even on the table.

Across 40 career games in Lawrence, Dotson has recorded 128 total tackles, four tackles for loss, one sack, seven interceptions, and a forced fumble. He and Bryant have grown to form a lockdown tandem on the outside for DC Brian Borland.

It never feels good for a player of Bryant's caliber to be included in portal speculation. But until he officially kills the Colorado and Coach Prime rumors, Jayhawk fans will be happy to know Dotson is fully bought into the program.