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29 DAYS TO 2019 KICKOFF: Jax Dineen

In which BracketCat counts down the 29th day until the 2019 kickoff with a profile of Kansas State fullback Jax Dineen.

By BracketCat

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#48 Glenn Gronkowski
The prominent K-State fullback of recent note was Glenn Gronkowski, shown here scoring a touchdown against Kansas. His legacy now will fall on our newest fullback, Jax Dineen, a Jayhawk legacy converted to the light side. (Ironically, the player attempting and failing to tackle Gronkowski here is Joe Dineen, Jax’s older brother. History truly is circular, is it not?)
Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images

#29 Jax Dineen

True Freshman | 5-10 | 242 lbs. | Lawrence, Kansas
Jax Dineen
Jax Dineen
Courtesy Kansas State Athletics
  • Position: Fullback
  • Previous College: None
  • Projection: Redshirt
  • Status: On Scholarship

Jax Dean Dineen (b. July 1, 2001) is a University of Kansas legacy who defected to the good guys to play for Chris Kleiman. He likely will redshirt in 2019 to develop as a fullback.

Just to give you an idea of how embarrassing a recruiting whiff this was for Les Miles:

  • Dineen’s mother, Jodi, was a volleyball letter-winner at Kansas from 1986 to 1989.
  • His brother, Joe Dineen Jr., was a linebacker for the Jayhawks from 2014 to 2018.
  • His other brother, Jay Dineen, is a linebacker for Kansas and will be a sophomore in 2019.
  • Their grandfather, Ron Oelschlager, played running back at KU from 1962 to 1964.
  • Their great-grandfather played basketball at Kansas for the legendary Phog Allen.

That this kid didn’t end up wearing crimson and blue is frankly just pathetic KU recruiting.

Anyhow, Dineen was a three-year letter-winner under head coach Bob Lisher at Free State High School in Lawrence, helping the Firebirds to earn a 29-4 record during his career.

A high school teammate of fellow Wildcat Keenan Garber, he was rated the top fullback nationally in the Class of 2019 by Rivals and ESPN, while he was ranked No. 3 by 247Sports.

Voted a first team all-state linebacker in both 2017 and 2018 by The Wichita Eagle, Dineen also was a first-team selection in 2018 and an honorable mention pick in 2017 by The Topeka Capital-Journal.

He also was named to the 2017 and 2018 USA TODAY Sports/American Family Insurance All-USA Kansas teams, and was a three-time first team all-league player at running back.

Dineen set a school record with 3,592 rushing yards and 48 touchdowns, including 1,000-yard seasons as both a junior and senior.

He was a finalist for the 2018 Simone Award as the top prep player in the Kansas City area, also named to the 2017 Kansas City Star All-Metro team and played basketball for two years.

Dineen picked K-State over offers from Abilene Christian, Air Force, Army, Chattanooga, Illinois State, Kansas, North Dakota State, South Dakota, Southern Miss, Tulane and Western Illinois, as well as interest from Arkansas, Colorado State, Iowa State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Vanderbilt and Wisconsin.

“I bought some stuff, and was like, ‘You know what? I’m proud,’” Dineen told The Lawrence Journal-World. “I’ve never went against K-State. I cheered for KU over them, but I love the way they do things. I think their program fit me the best, and I’m happy.”

“We have wanted that package deal since we were babies,” he said of he and Garber. “That was a huge factor. If we were together and happy at a place, we were going to make it.”