ARLINGTON, TX – September 11, 2026 – The United Bowl was supposed to be the culmination of Jason Bean's wildest football journey yet. Instead, it became the beginning of his next one.
After fighting his way from Louisville to DC, taking over as the Defenders' quarterback late in the season and leading the team to the United Bowl, Bean's season ended abruptly in the third quarter with a shoulder injury.
He watched his teammates finish the biggest game of the year without him. DC ultimately fell short, and Bean was left with the disappointment of knowing how close he had come, and the unfamiliar reality of having to undergo surgery for the first major injury of his career.
“I was devastated by the situation… just because of the game that we made it to, what it took to get there, and just being upset for my team too, not being able to stay in the game and help them win.”
For Bean, the physical pain was accompanied by something just as difficult: watching the biggest game of his season unfold without him.
“Never really having a severe injury like that throughout my career… never really one that created that amount of pain for me to endure.”
It was the first major injury of Bean's career, and his first experience undergoing surgery. The recovery has brought good days, bad days and plenty of uncertainty. Eleven weeks later, though, Bean is approaching a return. And the disappointment hasn't changed his mindset.
“I think the biggest part of it is… knowing what I'm capable of. I know that I have the ability and the mental side of things to be a top quarterback, not only in the UFL, but I think I have the capability to be back in the NFL.”
That belief has become Bean's biggest source of motivation. The United Bowl remains a painful reminder of how close he came to a championship, but it has also become fuel for the next chapter. Bean isn't simply working to get healthy enough to play football again. He's working to prove that he can return to the highest level of the sport.
Long before Bean was fighting his way back from an injury in the UFL, he was helping rebuild a football program in Lawrence. Bean began his collegiate career at North Texas before transferring to Kansas, joining a Jayhawk program searching for an identity after years of struggles.
From 2008 to 2020, Kansas went 13-133, including two winless seasons. The season before Bean arrived, the Jayhawks went 0-9. Becoming a Jayhawk meant stepping into a program with a difficult recent history. Bean embraced the challenge.
“One of the major things that we wanted to, or we did focus on when we were there, was leaving it better than we found it.”
And Bean helped do exactly that. After Kansas went winless the previous season, Bean helped lead the Jayhawks to their first victory in two years in his first season in Lawrence. He passed for two touchdowns and led Kansas in rushing with 54 yards. Two years later, Bean put an exclamation point on his Kansas career.
In the 2023 Guaranteed Rate Bowl, Bean threw for 449 yards and six touchdowns, leading Kansas to its first bowl victory since 2008. The performance earned him offensive MVP honors, a trophy he still keeps at home.
“The last bowl game, the last game that I played there in Lawrence… just being able to lead that program, that team to the first bowl game win since 2008. It was really special.”
And that trophy still means something.
“Being able to have that offensive MVP trophy at home… I definitely look at that trophy and smile a lot.”
From helping Kansas find its footing to sending himself off with a historic bowl performance, Bean believes he accomplished exactly what he set out to do: leave the program better than he found it.
That connection to Kansas hasn't disappeared, either. Bean still keeps tabs on the program and plans to return to Lawrence for the Jayhawks' homecoming game against Baylor in October. But this week, his attention is on a rivalry he never actually got to experience on the field. Although Bean never played Missouri during his time at Kansas, he understands the significance of the Border War.
“I definitely think that the Missouri and KU rivalry is just as big as the K-State and KU rivalry.”
The Border War dates back to the 1850s and the violent conflict known as Bleeding Kansas. Kansas and Missouri eventually brought the rivalry to the football field, meeting for the first time on Halloween in 1891. The two programs have met more than 120 times and played 93 consecutive years from 1919 to 2011. After a 14-year hiatus, the rivalry returned last season.
Bean's Jayhawks were defeated by the Tigers 42-31 last season, and Kansas will look for revenge Friday night in Lawrence against the 23rd-ranked Tigers.
Bean won't be the only 2026 UFL player watching closely. The Border War also represents another connection between the two programs and professional football. Six players from Kansas and three players from Missouri competed in the UFL during the 2026 season, continuing the professional pipeline from both schools.
For Bean, seeing former Jayhawks continue their careers at the professional level is another reflection of what Kansas helped build.
“I think it's big for Kansas… seeing guys that have played in the KU program and went on to continue to play. I think it is a big thing for the program. It kind of says a lot to what the coaches do and how they coach and their preparation and how they can lead young men into bringing out the best versions of themselves.”
Kansas helped Bean become the quarterback he is today. Now, he's trying to prove he can become the quarterback he still believes he can be tomorrow. And for Bean, that means getting back to 100%, getting back on the field and chasing the opportunity he believes is still out there.
“I think I have the capability to be back in the NFL,” Bean said. “And that's what my main goal is right now.”