Kansas

Kansas quarterback Cole Ballard’s continued growth gets praise from coach Lance Leipold

Published

2 years ago

July 16, 2024

Kansas quarterback Cole Ballard’s continued growth gets praise from coach Lance Leipold

LAWRENCE — As quarterback Cole Ballard approaches his redshirt freshman season with Kansas football, there are areas in which his head coach thinks he can improve.

Speaking last week at Big 12 Conference media days in Las Vegas, Lance Leipold indicated Ballard needs to continue to develop an understanding on when and when not to take chances. Leipold pointed back to the Kansas State game last year, when injuries forced Ballard into a starting role. Although Ballard nearly helped KU to a win, Leipold mentioned there were times Ballard tried to make plays that weren’t there.

But while Ballard still has that room for growth, his emergence after arriving as a walk-on continues to draw praise from Leipold. It’s about more than just how Ballard, who was later put on scholarship, has studied the offense and devoted himself to the Jayhawks’ strength and conditioning program. It’s about how Ballard is viewed by his teammates.

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“Cole Ballard was accepted by the locker room as quick as any quarterback I’d ever been a part of as a freshman,” Leipold said, “the way that he had instant respect from some of the guys.”

With Jason Bean starting a professional career, Ballard is in line to be the backup to redshirt junior Jalon Daniels. Daniels is aiming to get through the 2024 season healthy, but in both 2022 and 2023 he missed time. Bean’s ability to step up helped ensure Kansas made back-to-back bowl games for the first time in more than a decade.

Ballard appeared in four games last season, throwing for 286 total yards and a touchdown while completing 55.6% of his passes. He did throw three interceptions, two of those in that 31-27 loss vs. Kansas State. But in that game, he also threw for 162 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 55 yards.

However much Ballard ends up playing this year, he can also help guide freshman quarterback Isaiah Marshall through his first year at KU. It helps that Marshall enrolled early, but Ballard brings game experience to the table, and that’s something Marshall – a 247Sports Composite three-star prospect – doesn’t have yet.

Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

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Kansas

Former Kansas high school wrestling coach charged with producing child pornography

Published

23 hours ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

Former Kansas high school wrestling coach charged with producing child pornography

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) – A former Kansas wrestling coach was charged with creating child sexual abuse materials by secretly recording minors showering during an athletic competition.

According to court documents, 37-year-old Ryan Brungardt of Salina is charged with two counts of production of child pornography and one count of attempted production of child pornography.

Brungardt is a former employee at Lakewood Middle School and former wrestling coach for Salina Central High School.

Brungardt is accused of using a cellphone to record three minors while they showered in a locker room during the Tournament of Champions, a wrestling tournament was held at Newton High in January 2024.

Brungardt made his initial court appearance for the criminal complaint on Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Brooks G. Severson.

A detention hearing is scheduled for Monday

Investigators are in the process of reviewing additional seized cellphone videos in this case that are suspected to have been recorded at wrestling meets in Newton, Hays, Garden City and Salina during the 2023-2024 wrestling season.

Anyone who believes they witnessed crimes or any suspicious activity at these events is asked to contact the Kansas Bureau of Investigation at (785) 600-8790 or report at www.kbi.ks.gov/sar.

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