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After a three-month stint with the Kansas Jayhawks, the senior tight end re-entered the transfer portal and is back to where he started his collegiate career, in Tucson playing for the Arizona Wildcats.

“It’s been a pretty hectic process, the last few months,� Burnett said. “Looking at the whole thing, it was a great experience overall. I think Kansas was great and I have nothing bad to say about the University of Kansas. I met a lot of cool and different people that I’ll have relationships with moving forward. But for me, I have one more shot and one more year at this thing.�

While Burnett was practicing in Lawrence, Kansas, he “maintained contact with a lot of my teammates,� including longtime teammate and quarterback Noah Fifita and tight end Tyler Powell.

“I just felt like the best opportunity for me was in Tucson,� Burnett said.

Burnett signed with Arizona as a four-star prospect in 2022 out of Servite High School in Anaheim, California, and became the highest-rated tight end to sign with the UA since Rob Gronkowski in 2007.

The 6-6, 248-pound Burnett was one of four Servite players to sign with Arizona in ‘22, along with wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, Fifita and linebacker Jacob Manu. Burnett was also connected to the Arizona football program through his father, Chester Burnett, a former Arizona linebacker and “Desert Swarm� member, who was a Second-Team All-Pac-10 selection in 1996.

The younger Burnett played his first two seasons behind Tanner McLachlan, who was Arizona’s most productive tight end since Gronkowski. After McLachlan went on to play in the NFL, Burnett had a productive spring and fall training camp and appeared due for a breakout junior season, but injuries hindered Burnett throughout the season. Plus, it was a different offense under play-callers Dino Babers and former tight ends coach Matt Adkins, who was replaced by Josh Miller. The Wildcats replaced Babers with an up-and-coming play-caller in Seth Doege.

Burnett’s Arizona career “wasn’t always pretty for me,� and the former highly-touted recruit had to “wait my turn,� he said.

“There was a lot of growth and a lot of learning stages I had to go through; I had to take my lumps,� said the Arizona tight end. “I stayed down, didn’t doubt myself and continued to put the work in. I’m just trying to be the best player I can be.�

In eight games last season, Burnett had a career-high 18 catches for 217 yards and a touchdown. Burnett has 24 career catches for 261 yards and a touchdown.

Burnett’s only touchdown as a Wildcat was the 35-yard dagger score in Arizona’s upset win over 10th-ranked Utah in Salt Lake City. Burnett’s game-sealing touchdown was a “scramble drill� with Fifita rolling out of the pocket to his right.

“I remember running my original route, the play broke down and I found space in the secondary,� Burnett said. “I turned and I saw that Noah put it up there. It was a great ball and I was able to make the play, thankfully. That was a really fun time.�

After Arizona’s 4-8 season, Burnett was one of nearly 30 Wildcats to enter the transfer portal. In December, he signed with Kansas, which plays against ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV on Nov. 8 in Tucson.

“After last year, there was a lot going on and there was a lot of uncertainty,� Burnett said. “It was a tough season for all of us. I had some injuries that I was going through. We obviously had an offensive coordinator change and for me, I had one year left and I wanted to explore other possibilities. Turns out, the reasons I left — and I’m not going to get into details — don’t really exist anymore. I feel like I needed to be in Tucson. I couldn’t be more excited.�

Burnett called his spring in Lawrence “a unique experience and I realize that I can play with anybody in the country,� he said.

“Going out there to the Midwest, it was a complete shift for me,� Burnett said. “The people are different and the football is just different out there. It was good. Like I said, I think I can play with anyone in the country. I built great relationships with a lot of people out there.�

At the conclusion of spring practices in Tucson, Doege said Powell is “probably the most improved player on the entire offensive unit� and noted returner Sam Olson and Mercyhurst transfer Cameron Barmore as ascending tight ends in Arizona’s offense. Even after adding freshman tight end Kellan Ford, a 6-5, 230-pounder from Northern California, Doege said tight end was a position of need in the transfer portal, especially since the Wildcats are expected to occasionally deploy 13 personnel (three-tight end sets).

“You get nervous only having three guys you feel really good about at the tight end position, because they get banged up so much,� Doege said after Arizona’s spring showcase in April.

Burnett and Doege “go way back,� said the Arizona tight end. Doege, a former tight ends coach at USC, recruited Burnett, who committed to the Trojans before flipping to the Wildcats to join his Servite teammates. Burnett said Doege’s “uptempo� and “explosive� scheme is “the offense that any player would want to play in.�

“He’s definitely a players’ coach,� Burnett said of Doege. “He played at (Texas) Tech, is a younger guy, real personable and has a lot of experience. He played quarterback and knows the Xs and Os. He’s got high-energy character. It’s everything you want to play for. I’m excited.�

Burnett said his official visit to Arizona after entering the transfer portal this spring “was definitely interesting.�

“The comfort level and being in the building with a staff that I know and see familiar faces, it’s always nice,� he said. “I enjoyed it.�

During Burnett’s official visit, he met Miller, who has coaching history with Doege at Purdue and, most recently, Marshall.

“Hearing his philosophies and what he had to say, it was like we were talking the same language and clicked,� Burnett said of Miller.

Despite losing McMillan, the highest-drafted offensive player from Arizona, to the NFL, “we have a bunch of ball players (in the UA offense),� Burnett said.

“It was great to hear guys like Tyler Powell stepping up in the spring and Sam Olson, too,� said Burnett. “We’re going to be complementary to each other with Noah at the wheel. I think we’re going to be dangerous. We have a shot to win a championship this year; that’s the goal. ... (Wide receiver) Chris Hunter is someone that has developed into a monster. In the spring, that was pretty evident.�

Burnett’s final hurrah at Arizona “is going to be an intentional year,� he said. Burnett has aspirations to follow McMillan to the NFL and is focused on “being more physical on the field and being more aggressive on the point of attack and carrying through blocks,� he said.

“Just trying to make all of my weaknesses my strengths,� added Burnett.

Even though Burnett has some catching up to do to learn Doege’s offense, “it wasn’t like I was on vacation,� said Burnett.

“I had a hell of a spring,� he added. “Kansas is a great program, the way they push their players. But it was a shift for me.

“I’m coming back and I feel like a different player. I’m ready to go.�