Kansas defensive back Mello Dotson snatches interception vs. Illinois in third quarter

The Kansas Jayhawks continue to pour it on Friday night against the Illinois Fighting Illini. They were leading 31-7 in the third quarter, and they snagged a highlight-reel worthy interception. Kansas defensive back Mello Dotson got an unsportsmanlike penalty earlier in the game. He quickly redeemed himself with his impressive interception.

Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer tried to connect with his receiver, Pat Bryant, who bobbled it, allowing Dotson to come in and snatch the ball out of the air for the highlight-reel grab.

Check it out below.

Yeah we'll be taking that 👐

Mello comes away with the pick pic.twitter.com/xN4MLjFncm

— Kansas Football (@KU_Football) September 9, 2023

The Jayhawks currently lead Illinois 34-15 with 14:18 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Kansas got a big boost on Friday when Jalon Daniels got the all-clear to start at quarterback. He added a new life to the Jayhawks offense, and that was apparent during a strong showing in the first half against Illinois.

Daniels completed 14 of 19 passes for 189 yards and two touchdowns to help the Jayhawks take a commanding 28-7 lead over the Fighting Illini into halftime. He also added 32 rushing yards and made some highlight-reel plays while extending plays.

Lance Leipold knows how much it means to have Daniels back, even if the offense didn’t change all that much in the meantime.

“You can see, we didn’t change too much when Jason [Bean] was there,” Leipold told ESPN2’s Paul Carcaterra. “But you can see how he keeps plays alive and what he’s doing and the accuracy he’s throwing the ball [with]. It’s great to have him out there again.”

The Illinois defensive front presents a big challenge because of its physicality. But Kansas didn’t appear to have many problems against the Illini, totaling 295 yards of offense through two quarters.

Leipold said the game plan was to mix things up a bit, and the Jayhawks did a good job of that as they kept the defense on its toes. Of course, Daniels’ ability to extend plays helps.

“I think a lot of different looks,” Leipold said. “We’re trying to get the ball outside quick. I think our offense doing a heck of a job of just mixing it up quite a bit. You’re seeing the ability of Jalon Daniels making some plays when things are kind of broken down. A real good half of football for us, holistically.”

Inside the numbers: Kansas’ impressive first half vs. Illinois

Devin Neal led the running game with 49 yards and a touchdown on the ground to help the Jayhawks jump out to the big lead. Luke Grimm emerged as Daniels’ top target, totaling 69 yards in the first half and was closely followed by Lawrence Arnold with 57 yards.

It was quite the way to start Week 2 for Kansas, who’s coming off a 48-17 victory over Missouri State last week. Daniels didn’t play in that game as he came back from injury, but it became clear as the week went on he’d be good to go against Illinois.

But the Kansas defense also stepped up, holding the Fighting Illini to just 122 yards of offense — including just 39 rushing yards. Everything seemed to be working for the Jayhawks in front of a packed house at Memorial Stadium.

On3’s Nick Schultz also contributed to this article.