Highest-rated Class of 2026 football recruits from Kansas
The recruiting race for the Class of 2026 is already heating up — not just on the field, but in the increasingly complex ecosystem of modern college football, where NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) deals are reshaping how programs and players navigate early recruitment. For elite underclassmen, talent alone is no longer the only factor drawing attention; marketability, social media presence, and brand potential are now playing pivotal roles in how offers are extended and decisions are made. The top recruits in the 2026 cycle are not only physically advanced and highly skilled — they're entering high school with endorsement potential and media savviness.
Stacker compiled a list of the highest rated Class of 2026 football recruits from Kansas using data from 247Sports. Players are ranked by the 247Sports Composite ranking. Here's the players from Kansas set to dominate Saturdays (and potentially Sundays) for years to come.
#18. Trace Rudd (K)
- Position rank: #7
- College: Oklahoma
- Offers: Oklahoma, Texas Tech
- High school: Blue Valley Northwest (Overland Park, KS)
#17. Syre Padilla (RB)
- Position rank: #153
- College: Pittsburg State
- Offers: Pittsburg State
- High school: Gardner Edgerton (Gardner, KS)
#16. Brody Litton (DL)
- Position rank: #208
- College: New Mexico
- Offers: New Mexico, South Dakota
- High school: Beloit (Beloit, KS)
#15. Jaylen Mason (QB)
- Position rank: #69
- College: Kansas
- Offers: Kansas, Iowa State, Liberty
- High school: Northwest (Wichita, KS)
#14. Drake DeBaun (TE)
- Position rank: #70
- College: Iowa State
- Offers: Iowa State, Wake Forest, Army, Illinois State, Lindenwood
- High school: Shawnee Mission South (Overland Park, KS)
#12 (tie). Lawson McGraw (ATH)
- Position rank: #89
- College: Kansas State
- Offers: Kansas State, Rice, Arkansas State, Cornell, Illinois State
- High school: Blue Valley West (Stilwell, KS)
#12 (tie). Lamarcus Barber (IOL)
- Position rank: #92
- College: Kansas State
- Offers: Kansas State, Arkansas State, Iowa State
- High school: Mill Valley (Shawnee, KS)
#11. Tyren Parker (WR)
- Position rank: #144
- College: Kansas
- Offers: Kansas, Iowa State, Kansas State, Oklahoma State
- High school: Shawnee Heights (Tecumseh, KS)
#9 (tie). Arley Morrell (TE)
- Position rank: #48
- College: Colorado State
- Offers: Colorado State, Oregon State, Arizona, Marshall, New Mexico
- High school: Pratt (Pratt, KS)
#9 (tie). Nate Sims (WR)
- Position rank: #116
- College: Kansas
- Offers: Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State
- High school: Ottawa (Ottawa, KS)
#8. Josh Galbreath (ATH)
- Position rank: #63
- College: Kansas
- Offers: Kansas, Illinois, Iowa State, Kansas State, Michigan
- High school: Lawrence (Lawrence, KS)
#7. Johnmichael Fountain (LB)
- Position rank: #61
- College: not committed
- Offers: Arkansas, Arkansas State, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State
- High school: Northwest (Wichita, KS)
#6. Braden Wilmes (OT)
- Position rank: #59
- College: Clemson
- Offers: Clemson, Arkansas, Duke, Florida State, Iowa
- High school: Lawrence Free State (Lawrence, KS)
#5. Hunter Higgins (Edge)
- Position rank: #57
- College: Kansas
- Offers: Kansas, Arkansas, Iowa State, Kansas State, Marshall
- High school: Maize South (Wichita, KS)
#4. Maxwell Robinson (IOL)
- Position rank: #30
- College: not committed
- Offers: Arkansas, Auburn, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State
- High school: Derby (Derby, KS)
#3. Kaden Snyder (OT)
- Position rank: #29
- College: Kansas
- Offers: Kansas, Arkansas, Duke, Kansas State, Wisconsin
- High school: Salina Central (Salina, KS)
#2. JJ Dunnigan (CB)
- Position rank: #18
- College: not committed
- Offers: Miami, Colorado, Kansas, Arizona State, Florida
- High school: Manhattan (Manhattan, KS)
#1. Ian Premer (TE)
- Position rank: #3
- College: Notre Dame
- Offers: Notre Dame, Kansas State, Iowa State, Kansas, Arkansas
- High school: Great Bend (Great Bend, KS)