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MONDAY, APRIL 30, 2012
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
FOOTBALL
Spring game shows defensive improvement
CHRIS NEAL/KANSAN
Sophomore running back Tony Pierson sprints down the sideline after breaking a tackle in the third quarter of Saturday afternoon's Spring Game at Memorial Stadium.
ETHAN PADWAY epadway@kansan.com
In one of the Kansas football team's practices last week, sophomore linebacker Michael Reynolds had three different coaches talk to him about running the play full speed.
At the end of practice, coach Charlie Weis called him out for it, trying to explain to him that they are going after him because he is one of the few players on the team who can make that play.
"My whole coaching point to him is that he is one of the guys that can really help us and hopefully today is another step in him turning that corner," Weis said.
Reynolds burst onto the scene at the Jayhawks spring game, making five tackles and recording three sacks on his way to being named defensive MVP. In 2011 he appeared in 10 games as a true freshman, but did not have the same impact.
His performance helped lead the blue squad to a 45-0 victory over the white squad. The shutout victory by no means thrusts the Jayhawk defense into the upper echelon of collegiate defenses, but it is a welcomed sign for a team that allowed the most
points per game in the NCAA Division I last season.
Reynolds, along with fellow linebacker senior Toben Opurum, played a hybrid linebacker/defensive end position normally seen more in a 3-4 defensive scheme than in the Jayhawks' 4-3.
"I'm very comfortable with it because it gives me the chance to stand up and rush the passer and also play in coverage," Reynolds said.
Weis likes playing more versatile players at both positions because it allows him to keep his best players on the field no matter how the opposing offense lines up.
Sophomore running back Marquis Jackson also showed improvement after converting from receiver earlier this spring. He ran strong and hard as he piled up 76 yards and three touchdowns on 10 carries.
"I'm looking at this big, physical kid, saying. 'He looks like a running back, he doesn't look like a wide receiver,' Weis said. "So I sat down and talked to him and said 'You play running back?' and he said 'Yeah, I was a running back', so I said 'Good, you're a running back again.'"
While Weis was impressed with Jackson, he is still trying to figure out
what his role will be in the fall. Because of Jackson's bigger build, he has the ability to play in the traditional halfback position as well as a bulkier fullback.
"He could very easily be at 230 with a couple of cheeseburgers," Weis said. "That's what were going to have to decide, what weight we want him at, but you can see he has some natural running instincts."
The zero on the board beneath the white squad's name is an impressive feat, but it must be noted that the teams were not matched equally. The blue squad clearly had more of the first team guys while the white squad, which struggled to move the ball all day, had more players that are expected to be second and third string on the depth chart this fall.
COMMENTARY
"I think that offensively, we're ahead of our defense," Weis said. "But I truly believe we're going to be much improved on defense. Not only philosophically do I believe in what they're doing, but I do believe that with some of the guys that we have coming in, interjected with the people we have here, I do think that come September, we'll be much improved."
Weis' influence evident by impressive pre-season preview
- Edited by Christine Curtin
On a day when the University honored one of its football program's most significant figures, former coach Don Fambrough, it embarked on a new era.
An estimated 15,000 Jayhawk fans caught a glimpse of the new Kansas football team under the leadership of new coach Charlie Weis during the spring game Saturday.
New quarterbacks Dayne Crist and Jake Heaps showed off their extraordinary passing ability that Kansas fans haven't seen since Todd
Reeing, and relatively unknown linebacker Michael Reynolds displayed his defensive prowess on the field by recording four tackles for a loss and three sacks. Running back Tony Pierson ran for 141 yards and scored an 88-yard touchdown that would have made NFL scouts drool over his incendiary speed.
But the game was what it was; a spring game. Let's remember that last season this team didn't even win a conference game, and it has lost 26 of the last 31 games for numerous reasons. Realism must set in. This team has a long way to
go to being at par with the Big 12's contending teams.
New, experienced quarterbacks can go a long way in improving a team, but they can't solve all of the team's problems, especially on
the defensive side of the ball. Last season, Kansas was ranked dead last in total defense, yielding 516.42 yards-per-game.
Weis said the offense is ahead of defense in terms of progress, but he believed the defense would improve by September because of the new players inserted into the lineup as well as the new defensive philosophy.
All the success and relevance
"We've taken a bunch of steps, but we have a bunch of steps to go." Weis said of his team. "For us to be competitive on a weekly basis, we have a lot of work to do."
that Mark Mangino brought to the football team through his mentality and football philosophy quickly evaporated when he was dismissed and Turner Gill succeeded him. As abysmal or disappointing as the Kansas football team has been for most its history, the Turner Gill era might have been one of the lowest, if not the lowest point because of its excellence in futility. The players' effort and execution were questioned during the Gill era, and Gill, along with his assistant coaches, were criticized for not preparing his team.
We live in an instant gratification-oriented society. When teams aren't winning games, we at least expect a coaching change.
Give Weis and his team time. As Weis said in his introductory press conference in December, he doesn't have a magic wand.
The spring football game was a sneak peak. I wouldn't say it doesn't tell us anything, but I would say it doesn't tell us much. It's a practice session essentially. We can only know if the team has improved or not when it plays games that count against actual opponents.
Edited by Tanvi Nimkar
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