LAWRENCE — Daryl Agpalsa has seen Lance Leipold’s ability to build a college football program firsthand.

Agpalsa was an assistant on Leipold’s coaching staff a little more than a decade ago at Division III Wisconsin-Whitewater. Agpalsa later made the jump with Leipold to Division I Buffalo. Even though Agpalsa eventually left Buffalo after a handful of seasons for another Mid-American Conference school, Northern Illinois, those experiences they shared together don’t evaporate.

Agpalsa sees Leipold as a head coach who does a phenomenal job surrounding himself with the right people. Agpalsa recalled how Leipold used to say all the time there are coaches and people he hires who he trusts with his own family. It’s about having teachers and recruiters who can help foster their culture.

So, when Agpalsa said Leipold reached out about interest in becoming Kansas’ offensive line coach, the opportunity meant that much more to Agpalsa. While so much today can feel transactional, Agpalsa doesn’t feel that way about Leipold. Now, a few years after Leipold started a rebuild with the Jayhawks, Agpalsa will do his part to ensure it continues on an upward trajectory in the Big 12 Conference.

RELATED: Expectations for Kansas football creating home environments away from Lawrence remain high

RELATED: Kansas football coach Lance Leipold highlights importance of NIL in player retention

“Me and (Leipold) joke around all the time but, he’s seen all three of my kids born,” said Agpalsa, who doesn’t think Leipold has changed one bit. “That’s how far back we go, from Whitewater to Buffalo, and I think our relationship goes far past just professional. It goes to friendships and family, and that’s what’s helped us, and we’ve stayed the course ever since. Even when I left, we kept in touch. We communicated. And it’s been awesome in that respect.”

There was a bit of a different situation to navigate this time around, because Leipold has a new offensive coordinator in Jeff Grimes — also the assistant head coach. Andy Kotelnicki is now at Penn State, and Leipold wanted Grimes to be comfortable with the direction they headed. But as they evaluated who to bring in, Leipold said Agpalsa became the unanimous choice.

For Agpalsa, the process from when Leipold reached out to when the offer came moved quickly. During it, Agpalsa spent time with a staff he still had a lot of familiarity with. For him and his family, it’s great to get back to another family he already knows so well.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that Agpalsa doesn’t have to adapt to a new staff. It doesn’t mean that there won’t be a period of adaptation for everyone, because he and Scott Fuchs — the coach Agpalsa is replacing — are two different people. But like his predecessor Agpalsa is in favor of cross-training offensive linemen on multiple positions so those linemen are versatile, and even though the offense has evolved over the years there are still things Agpalsa remembers from how it was run when he coached with Leipold in 2013.

“Any time a new coach comes into a program, as an individual not necessarily as a staff, learning all the languages and the communications is usually difficult,” said Agpalsa, who seemed intrigued by how many more resources are available at KU. “But, for me, it’s been very seamless and that’s the easy part. Honestly the easiest transition I’ve been through, so I’m excited in that respect.”

Agpalsa, who will recruit in the Midwest for now, didn’t get too specific when talking about the offensive linemen he’ll be coaching this season. When he spoke spring ball hadn’t started yet, and he hadn’t actually been in Lawrence for that long. He simply described the group as eager to learn, fantastic to interact with and confident in what they’ve accomplished across the past couple of seasons.

As Agpalsa works with them more, he’ll look to develop an offensive line that’s tough, physical and smart. He explained it’s not about being perfect, but playing with effort as they try to execute a play. In his first spring ball meeting, he said he wants them to understand they can trust him.

“The most important thing I want to do as a teacher and a coach in this, with this, unit, is to build an ultimate level of trust and build relationships with them,” said Agpalsa, who strives to be demanding but not demeaning. “Because if you build a great relationship with these young men you have the ability to push them, knowing that you care about them at the end of the day. And that’s always been something we’ve prided ourselves on.”

RELATED: KJ Adams Jr. says he felt ‘sharp pain’ in Kansas basketball loss, ‘but it’s all good now’

RELATED: Kansas basketball’s Parker Braun says ankle injury is ‘getting better day-by-day’

RELATED: Kansas basketball’s Big 12 tournament run ends with quick exit, loss against Cincinnati

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: Inside Daryl Agpalsa's decision to become an assistant for KU football