# List of Kansas Jayhawks head football coaches

The Kansas Jayhawks football program is a college football team that represents the University of Kansas in the Big 12 Conference in the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The Jayhawks head coach is Lance Leipold. The team has had 40 head coaches since it started playing organized football in 1890 with the nickname Jayhawks. The team played its first season without an official head coach, however, Will Coleman, starting center on the inaugural team, served as the team's head coach. Edwin Mortimer Hopkins was the Jayhawks first official head coach. He served as the head coach only for the 1891 team finishing the season 7–0–1. Kansas joined the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 1907. After several changes, the conference eventually became the Big Eight Conference. The Jayhawks became a charter member of the Big 12 in 1996 when the Big Eight disbanded. Seven coaches have led Kansas to postseason bowl games: George Sauer, Jack Mitchell, Pepper Rodgers, Don Fambrough, Bud Moore, Glen Mason and Mark Mangino. Four coaches have won conference championships with the Jayhawks: A. R. Kennedy, Bill Hargiss, Sauer and Rodgers.
Mason is the all-time leader in games coached (102), and is tied with Mitchell for most years coached with nine. Kennedy is the all-time leader in total wins with 52. Fielding H. Yost has the highest winning percentage of any Jayhawk coach with a 10–0 record (1.000) his only year. Of coaches who served more than one season, Wylie G. Woodruff leads with a .833 winning percentage, barely edging out Kennedy's winning percentage of .831. David Beaty is, in terms of winning percentage, the worst coach the Jayhawks have had (.125). Of the 39 Kansas coaches, Yost is the only one that has been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach. Mangino won several coach of the year accolades after the 2007 season, the only Jayhawks coach to do so.

## Key

Key to symbols in coaches list :
| General | General | Overall | Overall | Conference | Conference | Postseason | Postseason |
| No. | Order of coaches | GC | Games coached | CW | Conference wins | PW | Postseason wins |
| DC | Division championships | OW | Overall wins | CL | Conference losses | PL | Postseason losses |
| CC | Conference championships | OL | Overall losses | CT | Conference ties | PT | Postseason ties |
| NC | National championships | OT | Overall ties | C% | Conference winning percentage | | |
| † | Elected to the College Football Hall of Fame | O% | Overall winning percentage | | | | |

## Coaches

List of head football coaches showing season(s) coached, overall records, conference records, postseason records, championships and selected awards :
| # | Name | Term | GC | W | L | T | % | CW | CL | CT | C% | BW | BL | CC | Awards and other notes |
| 1 | Edwin Mortimer Hopkins | 1891 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | .938 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2 | A. W. Shepard | 1892–1893 | 15 | 9 | 6 | 0 | .600 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 3 | Hector Cowan$^†$ | 1894–1896 | 23 | 15 | 7 | 1 | .674 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 4 | Wylie G. Woodruff | 1897–1898 | 18 | 15 | 3 | 0 | .833 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 5 | Fielding H. Yost$^†$ | 1899 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 6 | Larry Boynton | 1900 | 9 | 2 | 5 | 2 | .333 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 7 | John H. Outland$^†$ | 1901 | 10 | 3 | 5 | 2 | .400 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 8 | Arthur Hale Curtis | 1902 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | .600 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 9 | Harrison Weeks | 1903 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | .667 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Fired for having a sexual relationship with a KU freshman girl. He was 24 at the time. |
| 10 | A. R. Kennedy | 1904–1910 | 65 | 52 | 9 | 4 | .831 | 9 | 3 | 1 | .731 | — | — | 1 | Forced out by conference rule change requiring coaches to be full-time faculty members. |
| 11 | Ralph W. Sherwin | 1911 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | .625 | 1 | 1 | 1 | .500 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 12 | Arthur Mosse | 1912–1913 | 16 | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 4 | 4 | 0 | .500 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 13 | H. M. Wheaton | 1914 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | .688 | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 14 | Herman Olcott | 1915–1917 | 24 | 16 | 7 | 1 | .688 | 7 | 4 | 1 | .625 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 15 | Jay Bond | 1918 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 16 | Leon McCarty | 1919 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | .563 | 1 | 1 | 1 | .500 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 17 | Phog Allen | 1920 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | .688 | 3 | 2 | 0 | .600 | — | — | 0 | Best known for his tenure as men's basketball coach, member of Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a coach |
| 18 | Potsy Clark | 1921–1925 | 39 | 16 | 17 | 6 | .487 | 11 | 15 | 6 | .438 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 19 | Frank Cappon | 1926–1927 | 16 | 5 | 10 | 1 | .344 | 4 | 8 | 1 | .346 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 20 | Bill Hargiss | 1928–1932 | 42 | 22 | 18 | 2 | .548 | 8 | 11 | 1 | .425 | — | — | 1 | — |
| 21 | Adrian Lindsey | 1932–1938 | 61 | 23 | 30 | 8 | .443 | 11 | 18 | 5 | .397 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 22 | Gwinn Henry | 1939–1942 | 36 | 9 | 27 | 0 | .250 | 4 | 16 | 0 | .200 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 23 | Henry Shenk | 1943–1945 | 30 | 11 | 16 | 3 | .417 | 4 | 10 | 1 | .300 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 24 | George Sauer | 1946–1947 | 21 | 15 | 3 | 3 | .786 | 8 | 1 | 1 | .850 | 0 | 1 | 2 | Accepted Navy job |
| 25 | Jules V. Sikes | 1948–1953 | 60 | 35 | 25 | 0 | .583 | 18 | 18 | 0 | .500 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 26 | Chuck Mather | 1954–1957 | 40 | 11 | 26 | 3 | .313 | 7 | 16 | 1 | .313 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 27 | Jack Mitchell | 1958–1966 | 91 | 42 | 44 | 5 | .489 | 29 | 28 | 4 | .508 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 28 | Pepper Rodgers | 1967–1970 | 42 | 20 | 22 | 0 | .476 | 13 | 15 | 0 | .464 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Accepted UCLA job |
| 29 | Don Fambrough | 1971–1974, 1979–1982 | 90 | 37 | 48 | 5 | .439 | 20 | 33 | 3 | .384 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 30 | Bud Moore | 1975–1978 | 45 | 17 | 21 | 1 | .449 | 8 | 19 | 1 | .304 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 31 | Mike Gottfried | 1983–1985 | 34 | 15 | 18 | 1 | .456 | 8 | 13 | 0 | .381 | — | — | 0 | Accepted Pittsburgh job |
| 32 | Bob Valesente | 1986–1987 | 22 | 4 | 17 | 1 | .205 | 0 | 13 | 1 | .036 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 33 | Glen Mason | 1988–1996 | 102 | 47 | 54 | 1 | .466 | 25 | 38 | 1 | .398 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Accepted Minnesota job |
| 34 | Terry Allen | 1997–2001 | 53 | 20 | 33 | 0 | .377 | 10 | 30 | 0 | .250 | — | — | 0 | Fired after eight games of 2001 season. |
| Int | Tom Hayes | 2001 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | .333 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .000 | — | — | 0 | — |
| 35 | Mark Mangino | 2002–2009 | 98 | 50 | 48 | 0 | .510 | 23 | 41 | 0 | .359 | 3 | 1 | 0 | Big 12 Coach of the Year (2007) Walter Camp Coach of the Year (2007) AP National Coach of the Year (2007) Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year (2007) The Home Depot Coach of the Year Award (2007) Sporting News College Football Coach of the Year (2007) Woody Hayes Trophy (2007) George Munger Award (2007) AFCA Coach of the Year (2007) Paul "Bear" Bryant Award (2007) Resigned following the launch of an investigation of his coaching practices. |
| 36 | Turner Gill | 2010–2011 | 24 | 5 | 19 | 0 | .208 | 1 | 16 | 0 | .059 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 37 | Charlie Weis | 2012–2014 | 27 | 5 | 22 | 0 | .185 | 1 | 18 | 0 | .053 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Fired four games into the 2014 season |
| Int | Clint Bowen | 2014 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 0 | .125 | 1 | 7 | 0 | .125 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Interim Head Coach after Charlie Weis was fired |
| 38 | David Beaty | 2015–2018 | 48 | 6 | 42 | 0 | .125 | 2 | 34 | 0 | .056 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Fired after the end of the 2018 season |
| 39 | Les Miles | 2019–2020 | 21 | 3 | 18 | 0 | .150 | 1 | 16 | 0 | .063 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Mutually agreed to part with Kansas after allegations of inappropriate conduct with female students while at LSU. |
| 40 | Lance Leipold | 2021–present | 50 | 22 | 28 | 0 | .440 | 13 | 23 | 0 | .361 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |

### Gallery of coaches

* Edwin Mortimer Hopkins
* A.W. Shepard
* Hector Cowan
* Wylie G. Woodruff
* Fielding Yost
* Larry Boynton
* Boss Weeks
* A.R. Kennedy
* Ralph W. Sherwin
* Arthur Mosse
* H.M. Wheaton
* Herman Olcott
* George "Potsy" Clark
* Franklin Cappon
* Bill Hargiss
* Gwinn Henry
* George Sauer
* Glen Mason
* Mark Mangino
* Turner Gill
* Charlie Weis
* David Beaty
* Les Miles