Taking a job so late in the coaching cycle, combined with his loyalty to his assistants both added up to the coaching world expecting a number of his Buffalo assistants with him to Kansas.
While Leipold is meeting with the current Kansas staff, and preached at his presser earlier today about the importance of consistency, Pete Thamel tweets that a total of seven assistant Bulls coaches will be joining him in Lawrence.
Rob Ianello, the current interim head coach at Buffalo who is also being considered a candidate for the permanent head coaching role, is one of those. At Buffalo, Ianello served as the associate head coach / tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator, and has prior experience in Lawrence as the wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator on Charlie Weis' staff in 2012-13. He joined Leipold at Buffalo heading into the 2015 season and previously served as the head coach at Akron.
The other assistants expected to join, and their roles at Buffalo, include: Brian Borland (DC / safeties), Andy Kotelnicki (OC / WRs), Chris Simpson (LBs / Co-DC), Jim Zebrowski (QBs / Co-OC), Scott Fuchs (OL) and Taiwo Onatolu (DEs / STC).
Thamel points out that specific roles at Kansas are yet to be determined.
Speaking of loyalty, of those guys mentioned, Zebrowski, Kotelnicki, Simpson, and Borland were all previously on staff with Leipold back in their Division III UW-Whitewater days.
Emmett Jones has led the Jayhawks in the interim since the dismissal of Les Miles, and the rest of the staff includes offensive coordinator Mike DeBord (who recently signed a two-year deal back in early February before Miles' departure), as well as DJ Eliot (DC / LBs), Jacob Schoonover (OLBs / ST), Kwahn Drake (Defensive run game coordinator / DL), Joshua Eargle (TEs / RC), Jonathan Wallace (RBs), Chevis Jackson (DBs), Lee Grimes (OL), Jordan Peterson (safeties) and Travis Partridge (offensive QC).
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest, as we learn and update more about the new Kansas staff.
https://twitter.com/petethamel/status/1389327323586088960?s=21