THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN-
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014
PAGE 9B
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THE DAILY DEBATE
Will Kansas football score more than 30 points in a game this season?
By Griffin Hughes
@GriffinJHughes
"NO"
The promotion of Clint Bowen from defensive coordinator to head coach isn't bad for the powerful Jayhawk defense. It will be playing under the same system it has played in since the beginning of the season.
For the struggling Kansas offense, however, it's a different story.
Bowen has had little time to work one-on-one with Montell Cozart, and he has almost no experience with a backfield that features two top-class halfbacks. Bowen has never had an offensive coaching job at any level.
Cozart leads an offense ranked No.124 in the country in points per game, and with Weis, the team had all spring and summer to practice under his preferred pro-style system. Given he has no offensive coaching experience, Bowen will probably play more or less the same system, which is an even bigger problem.
The Jayhawks are set to take on the likes of Baylor, Oklahoma and Kansas State
I would say no because this is an offense that ranks last in the Big 12 in almost every conceivable category, and ranks outside of the top 100 in the country in those same categories.
So when it falls on me to predict whether the Jayhawk offense will pull it together and put up 30+ on the scoresheet this year — a feat which, by the way, it has only accomplished four times against conference opponents since 2010 — I would say no.
all on the road, not to mention TCU, who ranks second in the country in opposing points per game. None of those schools give up more than 23 points per game on average, and Baylor and TCU both rank in the top 10 in the country in that category.
I would say no because Bowen has no experience with anything except the defense. Ever. So he'll either have to create his own system or borrow
good ol' Charlie's.
I would say no because just two of Kansas' remaining eight opponents give up more than 30 points per game on average, while the layhawks score just over 15 each game.
Now, I'm a Kansas student, and I would love nothing more than for the guys to rally around Captain Ben Heeney and JaCorey Shepherd's locker room message about brotherhood and pull out a huge offensive display and pull it all back on track.
But with an interim coach who's never coached an offense in his life taking over one of the worst offenses in the country, Kansas isn't likely to put on an offensive showcase.
Edited by Alyssa Scott
By Paige Stingle
@PaigeStingle
After being thumped by Texas this weekend, and with the release of coach Charlie Weis, the remainder of the Jayhawks' football season may look grim in the eyes of fans. But these events could be exactly what Kansas needs to finally turn this struggling program around. This change of pace may give fans just what they've been looking for.
"YES"
The Jayhawks face a tough schedule in the coming weeks, playing at West Virginia, at home against Oklahoma State, and then on the road consecutive
weekends at Texas Tech and Baylor. But despite what has proven to be a less than satisfactory season so far, Kansas has already seen improvements from years past. Last year the Jayhawks put up a total of 184 points the entire season. This year the offense has already posted 61 points in the first four games even after being blown out by both Duke and Texas.
This goes to show that the team has the talent and potential to be successful in their conference. Now all they need is the momentum. Star players such as Nick Harwell, DeAndre Mann and Corey Avery have proven that the Jayhawks have the ability to be a competitive offense, but it is their inability to keep the momentum on their side
initially hired in 2011, fans were hopeful that his offensive genius would help the program, but they were disappointed. Kansas has yet to go a consecutive year with the same quarterback since Weis was brought on, and have lost several top recruits who transferred to other schools. Much of the talent has been stifled, but the Jayhawks now have the opportunity to experiment with the playbook and reach their full potential.
This transition will be a make-or-break point for the rest of the Jayhawks season. They have enough talent on the bench to be a real competitor in the Big 12. All they need now is the right coaching. If the team plays to their full potential, Kansas fans can expect to see this season turn around.
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that has been a fatal flaw for Kansas.The offense has let too many big plays go to waste simply because they can't keep the momentum going afterwards. When Weis was
Finally, and most importantly, this Jayhawk team has heart. The football team has shared in the frustrations of the fans for the past several years and wants to turn the program around just as much as we do. And they can. They have the talent, and they have the will.
Edited by Sarah Kramer
Commentary: Bowen right person for the job
DANIEL HARMSEN
@UDK_Dan
After its high-water mark season in 2007 when Kansas won 12 games and a BCS Bowl, the program endured a precipitous decline. Twelve wins became eight. Eight became five, five became three, three became two and two became one. Todd Reesing became Dayne Crist. Mark Mangino, 2007 AP Coach of the Year, became Turner Gill. Memorial Stadium became a ghost-town.
Since the conclusion of the Mangino era, Kansas football has puttered around to an 11-41 record. Following the 23-0 loss to Texas, Kansas Athletic Director Sheahon Zenger had seen enough, and fired his second head coach and first Kansas hire, Charlie Weis. Soon after, defensive coordinator Clint Bowen assumed interim head coaching duties.
Who is next? It's all speculation and hearsay at this point.
vividlv.
But before we call interim coach Bowen merely the "duct tape quick-fix" for the rusty, leaking pipe that is Kansas football, I suggest we let the 19-year Jayhawk vet play the rest of this season out. It's the least he deserves.
Bowen's devotion to Kansas football emanated from his podium on Monday and Tuesday. Not only has he coached an Orange Bowl Champion, but he played in bowl games for the Jayhawks as well. For a program that is entrenched in five years of losing and losing badly, memories of better times have become fuzzy, but Bowen remembers them
He's also seen the other side of things: bigger schools snatching up verbal commitments right before signing day, Kansas dropping seven straight games in 2009 after starting the year 5-0 and ranked in the Top 15, and now an self-inflicting offense. The 44-year-old has been a part of both winning and losing Jayhawk cultures. He knows what works and what doesn't. Don't put anything past him.
Earlier this week, Bowen addressed the media with a cool but unassuming look of confidence. The implied message Bowen has made is Kansas football is a duck on the water's surface—calm above the water, but paddling like hell underneath.
Interim head football coach Clint Bowen addresses the media Tuesday and shares his plan for Kansas football.
It won't come easily. Bowen knows as well as anyone what's in store over the next few weeks. The Jayhawks, 2-2, stare down the barrel of the Big 12 schedule that has a combined 22-9 record.
With the mid-season firing, it's not all fixed in Lawrence. In fact, it might be even more of an uphill climb. Bowen will have to withstand hits on the recruiting trails. He'll likely lose play-makers to decommitments. He may even lose some players currently on the roster, literally or figuratively. But in the long run, Kansas football will be better for it.
JAMES HOYT/KANSAN
Moving forward with someone who is fully invested in the football program is in the best interest of Kansas. Bowen fits that description. Will it manifest itself in victories? Maybe, maybe not. But there is no question that he will give
Kansas football his very best. Twenty years ago, on an ice cream date with his now-wife, Kristie, Bowen was asked what he was going to be in life. Bowen looked the woman of his dreams in the eye and smiled. "Well, I'm going to be the head football coach at Kansas."
Kansas football his very best.
Edited by Jennifer Salva
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