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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2013
FOOTBALL GAMEDAY PREVIEW
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
CONNOR OBERKROM
coberkrom@kansan.com
STARTING LINEUP
OFFENSE
With Jake Heaps under center for his first game in about two years a lot of uncertainty has surfaced. Heaps, who transferred from BYU, undertook a year as the scout team QB along with wideout Justin McCay and now looks to come out firing. Heaps and his receivers have come a long way, but nothing is certain especially with so many unfamiliar faces. They can only learn from playing the games.
POSITION NAME NO. YEAR
X (WR) Justin McCay 19 Jr.
LT Aslam Sterling 77 Sr.
LG Ngalu Fusimalohi 63 Jr.
C Pat Lewandowski 61 Jr.
RG Mike Smithburg 65 Jr.
RT Zach Fondal 72 Jr.
TE Jimmay Mundine 41 Jr.
RB James Sims 29 Sr.
QB Jake Heaps 9 Jr.
F (WR/RB) Tony Pierson 3 Jr.
Z (WR) Christian Matthews 12 Sr.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Matt Wyman, a former walk-on kicker, came into camp competing with junior college transfer Michael Mesh and beat out the presumed favorite. The kickoff returning will be handled by two backup running backs, Taylor Cox and Brandon Bourbon, while junior Connor Embree will manage the punt returns.
COACHING
Charlie Weis has had a chance to open up the playbook more this year with a seemingly more competent quarterback and has been joyous over the fact
Sat Sept 7
MGMT
Black Bananas & Kuroma
Sat Sept 14
CROSSROADS MUSIC FEST
Hearts of Darkness & more..
Tues Sept 24
STARS
High Highs
Mon Sept 16
MICKEY HART BAND
Tea Leaf Trio
Fri Sept 27
MICHAEL FRANTI
& Spearhead
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that he gets to throw the ball more. Look for Weis to maybe take some chances downfield to see how this offense can be spread out.
DEFENSE
While the defense is filled with new players, it's also filled with potential. Ben Heeney and Keon Stowers; two of the team captains, look to anchor the team against the South Dakota offense, which features a sizable offensive line. This is the first year of the nickel-based package that has been implemented, which features two more than capable nickelbacks in Courtney Arnick and Victor Simmons who have impressed in camp.
POSITION NAME NO. YEAR
CB JaCorey Shepherd 24 Jr.
Nickel Victor Simmons 27 Jr.
LE/T Kevin Young 90 Sr.
N Keon Stowers 98 Jr.
RE/T Keba Agostinho 96 Sr.
BUCK (LB) Ben Goodman 93 So.
CB Dexter McDonald 12 Jr.
SS Isaiah Johnson 5 So.
MLB Ben Heeney 31 Jr.
WLB Samson Faifili 51 Jr.
FS Cassius Sendish 33 Jr.
PLAYER TO WATCH
All eyes are going to be on Jake Heaps. Each play, each snap will be magnified. How he controls the pace of the game is going to be crucial and how he is protected will be even more imperative. The season rides on him and how he performs on Saturday will spell out, in some sense, where the path for the rest of the season will lead.
AT A GLANCE
GEORGE MULLINIX/KANSAN
KANSAS PREDICTION 37-17
With the FCS mania that happened last weekend, Kansas will be on their heels. However, the underdog monster is still lurking. Charlie Weis looks to start out the season undefeated, while South Dakota, who is playing Kansas for the first time since 1900, is looking to surpass their single win total from last year.
BABY JAY WILL CHEER IF ...
Junior quarterback Jake Heaps practices in preparation for Saturday's game against South Dakota.
There's a victory, but also little things that are in between the cracks of all the "winning solves everything" speak. Like Heaps' performance, how the pass defense holds up and the ability to keep Heaps upright. A win is nice,but improvement in different facets of the game would even be more comforting to Kansas fans.
QUESTION MARKS
Can Heaps maybe muster some hope for Jayhawks fans? This Kansas team is more talented on paper, but can they put out a decent product on the field? There's an argument that this Kansas team is more uncertain than last year,but is certainly more talented.
BY THE NUMBERS
1,359 Yards need by James Sims to break June Henley's record
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Jayhawks record versus FCS teams the last two seasons
Passing touchdowns last year
Edited by Jessica Mitchell
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