THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014
PAGE 7
THE DAILY DEBATE
Who should be the leading candidate for Kansas football head coach?
By Derek Skillett
@Derek Skillett
"JIM HARBAUGH"
On Sunday, Charlie Weis was fired from his position as head coach of the Kansas football team. Defensive coordinator Clint Bowen has taken his place as interim head coach for the rest of the season, but the search has begun for Weis' successor.
This may seem like a bit of a long shot, but Sheahon Zenger, the athletic director at the University, should make Jim Harbaugh the primary target for the next head coach.
Harbaugh is currently the coach for the San Francisco 49ers, but he is the best man for the job.
The Jayhawks are in a clear win-now mode. Harbaugh has shown that he can immediately win at both the college and professional level. As the head coach at Stanford University, he took the Cardinal to back-to-back bowl appearances, with a victory against Virginia Tech in the 2010 Orange Bowl. He has enjoyed even more success in the NFL.
Prior to Harbaugh becoming the coach in 2011, the San Francisco 49ers had languished in years of mediocrity. Once Harbaugh
took over as head coach, the 49ers put together a 13-3 season and nearly made an appearance in the Super Bowl, but lost to the New York Giants in the NFC Championship Game. In 2012, Harbaugh took San Francisco to the Super Bowl, losing to the Baltimore Ravens 34-31. In 2013, the 49ers went 12-4 and made a third-straight appearance in the NFC Championship game. Harbaugh was the first coach in NFL history to accomplish this feat.
If he becomes the next coach of the Jayhawks, Harbaugh could work wonders with sophomore quarterback Montell Cozart. Harbaugh has become known as something of a quarterback whisperer, turning Andrew Luck into a superstar at Stanford, reviving Alex Smith's seemingly dead career at San Francisco and turning Colin Kaepernick into
a top-15 NFL quarterback.
a top-15 NFL quarterback. It's not entirely unfeasible for Harbaugh to make his way to Kansas. Reports have surfaced from San Francisco that Harbaugh may be losing the faith of the 49ers locker room. There is a chance he could leave San Francisco at the conclusion of the 2014 season. Harbaugh was very close to becoming Mark Mangino's successor at Kansas in 2009 before returning to Stanford.
Harbaugh also has ties to the area. His wife currently works in Kansas City, as do most of his in-laws. In fact, Harbaugh was in Lawrence earlier this year to watch the Texas Tech vs. Kansas basketball game in Allen Fieldhouse.
These reasons provide a small semblance of hope that Harbaugh could bring his football coaching talents to Lawrence.
Edited by Jacob Clemen
By Austin Wagoner
@awagonex23
As the Kansas football team looks for a coach to replace Charlie Weis in the next several months, there are several important factors to consider.
First, Kansas football needs someone who can get the most out of the quarterback position. Since Todd Reesing, the Jayhawks haven't had someone under center who commands the kind of respect needed in the Big 12. The new coach needs to have proven success getting a field general to perform at a high level.
Second, the offense needs to be more explosive. Since Mark Mangino was at Kansas, the offensive units
have been fairly stagnant. Granted, there have been some talented running backs as of late, but the unit as a whole has been underwhelming.
Third, and probably the most important, the new coach has strong recruiting ties to the state of Texas. I understand there are talented players all over the country, and the JUCO transfer model is something to be cherished, but everything in Big 12 football starts in Texas.
With all of those factors in mind, there is one coach at the top of my list. When athletic director Sheahon Zenger begins going through his search, a certain coach will be on his radar.
DAILY DEBATE RESULTS: SEPT. 29, 2014
That coach is Phil Montgomery, the current offensive coordinator of the Baylor Bears. The Bears have ranked in the top 10 offensively since 2008 when he arrived with Art Briles. In the past three seasons, they have ranked first, second and second.
Will the Royals win the World Series this year?
who won the Heisman Trophy in 2011; Nick Florence, who was an Honorable Mention All-American in his only season as a starting quarterback; and first-year starter Bryce Petty, who Montgomery coached to Big 12 Player of the Year last year.
Montgomery has coached for about 19 years, and every single one of those years has been in the state of Texas. He began at his alma mater Tarleton State University, coached at Stephenville High School, then he followed Briles to Houston and eventually Baylor. In other words, the guy has some experience with Texas recruiting. He knows the area and is familiar with the pipelines within the state.
12 PEOPLE POLLED
NO: 75%
As a quarterback coach Montgomery has been one of the best in the country during that stretch. In three straight seasons he has coached a different quarterback to national prestige. Those names include Robert Griffin III,
YES: 25%
VOTE FOR THE WRITER WITH THE MOST CONVINCING ARGUMENT AT KANSAN.COM
Florence, in an ESPN article, touted Montgomery as a player's coach, a guy who knows exactly what to say to get the most out of his guys without yelling in their face. He is known as a reserved guy and someone who likes to be behind the scenes.
It may be hard to pull him out of a great situation in Baylor but if the University wants a coach to change the tide of jayhawk football, Montgomery just might be the perfect coach to do it.
Edited by Jacob Clemen
Chiefs offense hums in 41-14 rout of Patriots
ASSOCIATED PRESS
KANSAS CITY. Mo. — Perhaps the Kansas City Chiefs gave their neighbors across the parking lot a little bit of inspiration with their impassioned performance against New England.
Jamaal Charles returned from an ankle injury to score three touchdowns, Alex Smith threw for 248 yards and three scores, and the Chiefs routed the Patriots 41-14 Monday night, getting the sports week off to a smashing start in Kansas City with the Royals preparing to open the baseball playoffs on Tuesday.
"To have back-to-back events like this, Monday night football and a home playoff game, yeah, it's special," Smith said. "Right next door to each other."
Arrowhead Stadium, which was packed to the brim in red-clad Chiefs fans, is just a short walk from Kauffman Stadium, which will surely be packed with blue when the Royals end a 29-year playoff drought against the Oakland Athletics in the AL wild-card game.
Several members of the Royals even showed up for the Chiefs-Patriots game, including starting pitcher James Shields, drawing huge roars when they were shown on the big screens. And some of the Chiefs said they were thinking about returning the favor, including wide receiver Dwayne Bowe.
Regardless, the Chiefs will be able to spend Tuesday in a celebratory mood.
They held the Patriots' Tom Brady to 159 yards passing and a touchdown, picking him off twice and returning one for a touchdown. Brady was also strip-sacked by Tamba Hali to set up a Chiefs field goal,
capping off a miserable night for the two-time NFL MVP.
"It was just a bad performance by everybody," Brady said. "We need to make sure we never have this feeling again. We've got to figure out what we have to do better."
The Chiefs forced the Patriots to air it out by stuffing Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley. And when Brady dropped back, their front seven ran roughshod over New England's suspect offensive line.
It hardly helped the Patriots offense that it was trying to operate on the same night Chiefs fans were trying to reclaim the record for loudest outdoor sports venue. The record was set in the first half, when Guinness World Records noted a noise level of 142.2 decibels — breaking the mark of 137.6 that Seattle Seahawks fans set last season.
"My ears are still ringing," Chiefs coach Andy Reid said with a smile.
Kansas City had 303 yards of offense by halftime, the most against any Belichick-coached team in the first half of a game. That includes his years coaching in Cleveland.
"We just never got anything going. Nothing," Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilford said. "They just executed. They executed perfectly. We were always out of the game, it seemed."
Charles looked just fine on his sprained right ankle, running for 92 yards. He was spelled by Knile Davis, who added 107 yards on 16 carries. "We, kept each other fresh," Davis said. "When he went in, he did his thing. When I went
Here are a few of the reasons why the Patriots were thumped so soundly:
RUN. RUN. RUN:
in, I did my thing."
TENSE MOMENT:
Charles briefly went to the locker room after stumbling into the end zone on his third touchdown of the game. He appeared to grab his hamstring, and Reid said he received an IV, indicating that he might have been cramping. "I feel sore," Charles admitted afterward.
BRADY'S STRUGGLES:
Brady is completing just 59 percent of his passes through his first four games, his worst rate since becoming the Patriots' starter in 2001. He is also averaging less than 200 yards passing per game. "I wouldn't say we've had a very productive four games to start, but hopefully we can learn from it and understand the things that we're doing wrong," he said. "There's nobody going to dig us out of the hole. We've made of created it for ourselves and we're going to have to look each other in the eye and see what kind of commitment we're willing to make."
KELCE STARS:
Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, who is quickly becoming one of Smith's favorite targets, had eight catches for 93 yards and a touchdown. "We know what we can do on our offense and our defense," Kelce said. "Our defense got a lot of turnovers today, and that was awesome to see."
GAROPPOLO PLAYS:
Rookie quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo got into the game in the fourth quarter for New England, when the outcome was already decided. He was 6 of 7 for 70 yards with a touchdown. "I am a relief pitcher, pretty much," he said, "so that is my job."
ASSOCIATED PRESS
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Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles, front right, falls into the end zone after catching a 5-yard pass for a touchdown during the second quarter against the New England Patriots on Monday in Kansas City, Mo.
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