Kory Amachree drawing praise from Kansas coaches

Kory Amachree’s first spring at Kansas has delivered exactly what he expected, and maybe a little more. For the early enrollee, the transition from high school to college football has been fast-paced but he has settled into the transition.

Amachree arrived on campus after graduating early, giving him a head start learning the system and adjusting to the speed of the college game. That early learning is already showing up during spring practice.

“Yeah, it’s been exciting, man,” Amachree said. “It’s been crazy. Everything I ever could have dreamed of. Ever since I was a kid, you know, working to get to college ball. So now that I’m here, you know, it’s all about putting in the work.”

Kansas stood out early in his recruitment due to several factors. The culture within the program and the way players interact helped him choose KU. It took some work to get him out of the state after growing up close to Michigan State’s campus where his father Opuene played.

“You know, like I said, man, great team, great culture,” Amachree said. “Definitely just fired up about how everybody interacts here. It’s exciting, you know, to play for Kansas, you know, something special.”

The culture has helped smooth the transition, but Amachree’s began preparing before he stepped on campus. Coaches have pointed to his physical ability as a factor in his early progress.

“I’ve always been more of a stronger kid because, you know, physically inclined, because growing up with my brother, he’s two years older than me,” he said. “He plays at Bowling Green, and I’ve always just done the same thing that he did.”

Kansas running back Jonathan Wallace has been impressed with the true freshman and head coach Lance Leipold hinted it is likely he will play this season.

“He’s coming along, and he’s super impressive for a freshman,” Wallace said. “I mean, obviously the body type, the body makeup and he’s ready physically, and now the mental piece is coming along and attaching to that as well. He’s playing fast, he’s playing confident, and that’s what you want to see in every guy that you have in the room.

“And I’m super excited just to see how he continues to develop, just different little fundamental pieces that we’re continuing to work on right now. But super impressed with how he’s picking it up.”

That early exposure to structured training gave him a head start to adjust to the college level quickly. By the time he reached high school, Amachree was already thinking ahead, anticipating the demands of college football.

He also credited his success to learning and playing with his brother Nakai, who plays at Bowling Green. Nakai is two years older than he is.

“So, when he started working out, you know, for football, like back in eighth grade, I was doing it in sixth grade,” he said. “So, you know, I tell people, you know, I started early, so that’s one big thing I would say for that.”

Coming in prepared for Kansas spring football

His preparation for Kansas started when his senior season knowing he would enroll in January. Amachree wanted to arrive at KU prepared for his first spring.

“But in terms of preparing for college, back in high school, I knew I was gonna early enroll,” Amachree said. “So, I made it a point, you know, take every rep like it was in college, you know, studying the playbook.”

Spring practice has shown him the reality of the opportunity in front of him, and with it, a sense of urgency. He has looked good in practice and spent a lot of time in Wallace’s office learning as much as he can.

“Ever since I got here, you know, football is my life, man,” Amachree said. “I’m dedicating everything to this. You know, you only get one shot, so making the most of it.”

Amachree talked his past relationship with Kansas wide receivers coach Terry Samuel and much more you can watch in his interview.