LAWRENCE — So much of Jalon Daniels’ time at Big 12 Conference media days in mid-July, in Las Vegas, was spent on his return from injury.

Daniels, the Kansas football quarterback whose 2023 season got cut short, opened up about how the most difficult part was overcoming the reality that physically he couldn’t play. Daniels, now a redshirt junior, acknowledged that affected him mentally. As he watched what he described as speculation about his injury swirl, not to mention potential plans to transfer, he volunteered teammates came to him and questioned his injury and intentions to remain at KU.

Devin Neal, now a senior running back for the Jayhawks, felt as all that unfolded he understood more than most what was going on. He felt upset by what was being said. He’d viewed Daniels as someone who spent as much time around the team as possible.

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But fast forward to late July in Lawrence, after Kansas’ first practice of fall camp, and the overall focus of the conversation appeared to have shifted. Daniels, who felt it was right to keep so much private last fall because there were more worthy stories to tell during the Jayhawks’ 2023 season, had just done what head coach Lance Leipold described as the most 11-on-11 work Daniels had done in some time. It’s not that Daniels’ injury was never brought up, it’s that he was playing at the level he was that carried more weight.

“I mean, I was out there playing ball again,” said Daniels, set to begin the year again as KU’s starter. “It feels like my child self back out there again, honestly, just being able to play ball again. Happy to be back with the guys. Happy to be able to make some plays. Happy to go see some young guys out there making plays as well.”

While at Big 12 media days, Leipold said he hadn’t heard anything from the training staff that would concern him — when it came to a possible need for load management. That didn’t mean they wouldn’t monitor Daniels’ reps, or the amount Daniels was throwing. But Leipold made clear Daniels is taking care of his own body better than he has before, and embracing things such as core development.

Leipold said in Las Vegas he was trying not to ask Daniels more than once a week how Daniels was doing, because he didn’t want to overwhelm Daniels. But Leipold added if they didn’t think Daniels would be ready for the season, Daniels wouldn’t have made the trip to media days. Leipold’s become a fan of Daniels, because of the way Daniels has persevered through adversity, and pointed to how he feels Kansas is a much better team when Daniels is on the field.

If there’s a plan to limit how much Daniels showcases his mobility in 2024, Leipold didn’t indicate anything close — besides stating the obvious that they want Daniels to remain healthy. Leipold pointed to new assistant head coach/offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes, and Grimes’ knowledge of what’s allowed the Jayhawks’ offense to be successful in recent years. Leipold still wants to make sure the quarterback is a threat as a runner, and Daniels said so himself he has no plans of playing scared.

Daniels explained after the first practice of fall camp it’s more important now, than ever before, to have fun. Capable of being one of the best players at his position in the Big 12, he feels blessed to be in the position he is. He doesn’t intend to take anything for granted.

“When you’re away from the game, and it’s something that you’ve done your whole entire life, when you get the chance to be able to get back you cherish every single moment,” Daniels said. “Because, at the end of the day, you never know when’s your last play. You never know when the last time you’ll be able to play the game again.”

While Daniels has missed significant time the last two seasons due to injury, he has still played a role in Kansas reaching back-to-back bowl games for the first time in more than a decade. Although he didn’t play in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl in 2023, he had his place with a team that won the program’s first bowl game in more than a decade and finished 9-4 — the first winning record in more than a decade. And in 2024, he wants to help the Jayhawks surpass what they accomplished the year before.

Throughout the process of trying to accomplish that, Grimes said during fall camp he wants to see Daniels be the same guy he’s seen every day in practice. Grimes described Daniels as someone who’s comfortable with who he is, as someone who brings the team energy and excitement. That’s both through Daniels’ play and personality, which could help Kansas contend for a Big 12 title and reach the College Football Playoff.

“I’d love to see him, like everybody, have the opportunity to be healthy and play every down and lead our team to a championship,” Grimes said. “And I have no reason to think that that wouldn’t be the case based on what I’ve seen so far.”

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.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Jalon Daniels, happy and practicing, is poised to take Kansas football