Jalon Daniels completed 18 of 20 passes for 176 yards and three touchdowns to lead Kansas to a 31-7 win over visiting Fresno State on Saturday evening in Lawrence, Kan., in the season opener for both teams.
Daniels, a sixth-year senior, also ran eight times for 47 yards and did not commit a turnover.
Fresno State quarterback E.J. Warner, the son of NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner, completed 18 of 29 passes for 179 yards and two interceptions.
Kansas scored on the opening drive of the game, marching 86 yards in nine plays and taking a 7-0 lead after Daniels flicked a pass to Ball State transfer receiver Cam Pickett out of the backfield and he ran down the sideline for a 21-yard touchdown.
Daniels had runs of 11 and 23 yards on the scoring drive.
Fresno State quickly answered with a seven-play, 75-yard drive and tied it 7-7 on a 3-yard run by Elijah Gilliam.
During the drive, Warner shoveled a pass to Bryson Donelson just before he was hit and Donelson turned it into a 39-yard gain to the Kansas 32.
The Bulldogs couldn’t stop the Jayhawks on their second drive either, as Kansas went 75 yards in 11 plays and took a 14-7 lead on a 19-yard touchdown run by Leshon Williams with 2:16 left in the first quarter.
Fresno State forced Kansas to punt on its third possession, but the Jayhawks strung together another long drive the fourth time they had the ball, extending their lead to 21-7 with a 13-yard touchdown pass from Daniels to Pickett with 7:31 left in the first half.
Pickett caught six passes for 77 yards and two scores.
The Jayhawks forced the first turnover of the game when Devin Dye intercepted a Warner pass, leading to a 47-yard field goal by Laith Marjan with 1:00 remaining in the half that made it 24-7.
Warner lost a fumble during a sack on the first possession of the second half and Kansas took advantage of the giveaway when Daniels hit Keaton Kubecka over the middle for a 12-yard touchdown pass, making it 31-7 with 7:51 left in the third quarter.
–Field Level Media
