The Kansas football program has lost three members from the coaching staff during the offseason, but Lance Leipold found a replacement for all of them relatively quickly. Now, the Jayhawks have found the successor to Scott Fuchs, KU's former offensive line coach who departed for the NFL.
According to Pete Thamel of ESPN, Leipold is hiring Daryl Agpalsa as the team's next offensive line coach. He spent five years with Northern Illinois and coached alongside Leipold at UW-Whitewater and Buffalo from 2012-2018.
Agpalsa is a highly regarded college football coach, especially by Leipold. He coordinated the run game for NIU and should receive a similar opportunity at his new job. Newly appointed offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes will also play a large role in directing the run game.
The Hawaii native coached some of the best offenses in the FBS at NIU. In 2021, the Huskies finished fourth in college football for rushing yards per game, and the team won the MAC.
Even before he joined Coach Leipold's staff in 2012, he had connections to a future Kansas football coach. Co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Jim Zebrowski and Agpalsa spent three years at Minnesota together before they would meet again at Buffalo.
Agpalsa will take over an offensive line unit that lost starters Dominick Puni to the NFL, Mike Novitsky to graduation, and Ar'maj Reed-Adams to the transfer portal. With four soon-to-be freshmen and two transfers on the O-line, Agpalsa has his work cut out for him while he looks to develop the Jayhawks newcomers.
Kansas has now replaced its offensive coordinator, defensive backs coach, and offensive line coach in a matter of a few months. While there are new names for KU fans to know, the scheme should remain familiar as Leipold is hiring coaches to fit the spread offense that has made the Jayhawks so successful since he arrived in Lawrence.
Sources: Kansas is expected to hire Northern Illinois assistant Daryl Agpalsa as the school’s new offensive line coach. He coached the offensive line for Kansas coach Lance Leipold at both UW-Whitewater (2012-13) and Buffalo (2014-18) before going to Northern Illinois in 2019.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) February 20, 2024