Todd Jennison will make the six hour trek from his home in west Kansas all the way near the eastern border on Saturday, where David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium lies in Lawrence.
Jennison is one of around 20 or 30 of sophomore linebacker Jaren Kanak’s family members who will be in attendance. It’ll provide Jennison, Kanak’s uncle, with a chance to connect with family as he’s done while attending multiple games in Norman since Kanak arrived at OU ahead of the 2022 season.
“It sort of is a chance to get back in touch or get a chance to interact with some of his other family sides,” Jennison said. “That's been fun, getting to stay in contact with the various members of his extended families. His games have sort of served as a way to stay connected with everybody.”
As for Kanak, he and the Sooners (7-0, 4-0 Big 12) keep discipline and limiting “eye crimes” at the forefront of their minds ahead of a matchup against Kansas (5-2, 2-2) at 11 a.m. Saturday in Lawrence on Fox.
The matchup will mark somewhat of a homecoming for Kanak, who’s hometown of Hays, Kansas is over 200 miles west of Lawrence. Additionally, he was chosen as one of OU’s five captains for the game.
“That's an honor at a place like this,” Kanak said. “To be able to go back home and wear that and be named as a leader of my teammates definitely means a lot to me.
“Obviously, my mom thought it was pretty cool too.”
Discipline will especially be a theme for Kanak extending further than his on-field vision. He failed to stay disciplined after the Sooners’ defense stopped the Knights from scoring on three consecutive tries from the one-yard line in their 31-29 win over UCF on Saturday.
His unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after the third down stop gave UCF a fresh set of downs and ultimately a touchdown on the next play.
“That was selfish on my part,” Kanak said. “I need to stay more poised in that moment. I was excited for my guys, got fired up and (need to) have more discipline. It’s bigger than me in that moment and I realize that now.
“That’s definitely something that's not a part of my character. I apologized to my guys for that and it's definitely something that won't happen anytime in the future.”
While head coach Brent Venables would like to see the celebration after the play honed in, the intensity Kanak plays with has led him to 40 tackles, second most on the Sooners behind junior linebacker Danny Stutsman, a pair of sacks and a forced fumble on the season.
Through the handful of games Jennison saw Kanak play during his time in high school, whether it was watching him blow by every defender on a 90-plus yard touchdown reception early in his high school career or frequently rush for long touchdowns as a wildcat quarterback during his senior year while simultaneously dominating as a top 10 ranked linebacker nationally, the competitiveness stood out.
“When Jaren was young, he had a competitive drive, he had some athletic ability and he was willing to work hard,” Jennison said. “You put a little bit of (each) together, a lot of times that's what you end up with — a really good athlete.”
Despite the competition he dominated in high school, Jennison was most impressed when he saw Kanak navigate through his childhood after his father, Jason, died in a car accident when he was four-years old.
“He handled it about as well as a kid in that situation could have,” Jennison said. “He had an excuse, and he never used it. He should be commended. He had every excuse to fall into some bad habits or lose motivation, but he didn't. I was very impressed with how he handled all of that when he was just a young kid.”
One year later, Kanak's mother married Scott McGrath, who "stepped right into the father role" throughout Kanak's childhood.
Venables, who's dad left him at a young age, grew up about an hour and a half east in Salina, Kansas, and now specializes in coaching OU's linebackers.
Kanak’s bond to Venables was so strong he committed to Clemson on July 30, 2021, while Venables was still the Tigers’ defensive coordinator. It was less than a month after Venables was hired by the Sooners that Kanak committed to follow him to Norman.
Along with Clemson and OU, Kansas and Kansas State also recruited the consensus No. 1 ranked player in the state. Where many of his family and friends chose between the two, including Jennison, an alma mater of Kansas State, Kanak stayed impartial throughout his childhood.
“I kind of just grew up a football fan,” Kanak said. “Obviously everywhere around me it's Kansas State or KU and then Hays, where I'm from, most of my friends from high school either go to Kansas State or KU. So it's gonna be cool to be able to play in front of those guys again at this level.”
While he was hoping the Sooners would make a trip to Manhattan, Kansas, this season, Jennison will still sit alongside many of Kanak’s relatives for his homecoming game.
“Just having a chance to be around him as he grew up, that was really, really special for me and a lot of his family,” Jennison said. “We knew (he) was special. Anytime we got to spend time with him, it was great.”
