Bryce Foster focused on Utah, will end track career for NFL dreams
Kansas center Bryce Foster has played a lot of football across two programs, beginning at Texas A&M and finishing with the Jayhawks. But as he prepares for Utah, will be his final regular-season game, he admits this week comes with a different kind of feeling.
The emotions, he said, have been building. With more than 3,300 career snaps and several starting assignments behind him, Foster is trying to balance the moment and finish strong with goals still ahead.
“Yeah, it’s kind of taking a day at a time,” Foster said. “I mean, I’ve kind of been in this thing for five years now. I think this would be game 52 that I would be starting. So, it’s kind of wild. Looking back on it, I’m at, like, 3,300 snaps in my career in college… it’s kind of crazy, kind of surreal.”
What makes this week even more significant is the urgency surrounding the season. The Jayhawks are one win shy of bowl eligibility, and Foster knows there’s no next year to look ahead.
“I’m trying to enjoy it a little bit more this last week because I don’t get a, ‘Oh, it’s okay, I can get them back next year,’” he said. “You know, this is it.”
Importance of playing in a bowl
Foster has been on both sides of the postseason bowl games. His first year at Texas A&M was set back by Covid, and his second was cut short by an ACL injury. Last year at Kansas, the team ended up 5–7, leaving him with only one bowl appearance so far in his career.
“Yeah, a lot,” he said when asked what bowl eligibility would mean. “I’ve only gone to one bowl game throughout my career. I went to the Texas Bowl in ’23… and then last year, you know, being 5-7. And then my second year (at A&M) is when I unfortunately had my ACL injury, but we were 5-7 that year.”
Those repeated near misses have only made him more determined to help Kansas reach six wins.
“I feel like I’m cursed a little bit,” Foster joked. “But no, that’s something I’m trying to do. I love it. The one time I got to go, it was a bunch of fun with the guys.”
Foster said he expects the emotions of Senior Day, combined with the final chance to go bowling, to create a lot of extra energy.
“Yeah, for sure,” he said. “But, you know, at the end of the day, it’s just another game. I’m not really sure it’ll get me any more juiced. I’m pretty juiced before games. I’m always excited to play, but it’s like, don’t be upset or sad that it’s over. Be more happy that you got to experience everything.”
For Foster, that perspective comes from realizing how rare it is to play major college football.
“A lot of people have these dreams and aspirations to do, and I got to be one of the few who got to do it,” he said.
Foster ending track to focus on NFL
In addition to football, Foster excelled in track and field at Kansas, including an 11th-place finish at the 2025 outdoor national championships. But with his college eligibility nearly complete on the gridiron, he said he will move away from track to devote himself fully to preparing for the NFL.
He could move right into track and compete in indoor but has decided to focus on football.
“Yeah, I won’t be doing track,” he said. “I ran out of eligibility for outdoor. After this season is over, I’m fully focused on the NFL, trying to achieve my childhood dream of playing in the NFL.”
