+
PAGE 8B
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
+
THE DAILY DEBATE
Will Charlie Weis be on the hot seat after this season?
“YES”
To put it simply, Coach Charlie Weis is already on the hot
seat. Weis, entering his third season with the layhawks, has a 4-20 record over the last two years. If this year doesn't have a significant change in wins, Weis could be fired. Despite Weis having a contract that runs through 2016, Kansas has recently been known for terminating contracts early if coaches don't keep up with demands.
Take Turner Gill for example. He coached two seasons at Kansas before Weis, and his record was 5-19. He had one more win than Weis and was canned, even though his contract was for five years.
Kansas hasn't won a road game under the direction of Weis. The last road game Kansas won was back in 2009 against the University of Texas at El Paso. Not only has Kansas lost on the road, but the losses have come with
substantial point differences. Since the UTEP game, Kansas has been outscored 347 to 1046 on the road. If Weis wants to get off the hot seat, Kansas needs to win in enemy territory.
Winning on the road in 2014 is going to be tough. This season Kansas plays Duke, West Virginia, Texas Tech, Baylor, Oklahoma and Kansas State on the road. In the first week of the season, Duke beat Elon 52-13. West Virginia kept it close with Alabama, the No. 2 ranked team in the nation. Texas Tech beat Central Arkansas 42-35. Baylor embarrassed Southern Methodist 45-0. Oklahoma topped Louisiana Tech 48-16. Kansas State beat Stephen F. Austin 55-16. In the second week of the AP Top 25 poll, Oklahoma, Baylor and Kansas State are all ranked, with Duke, West Virginia and Texas Tech all receiving votes.
Since Weis has been at the helm, Kansas has only won one conference game. If Kansas wants to be considered as a contender and be respected in the world of Division 1 football, that has to change. However, winning a conference game will be difficult. The road games
Kansas plays are going to be tough. All but one (Duke) are conference opponents. Kansas plays Texas, Oklahoma State, Iowa State and TCU at home this season. In week one, Texas beat North Texas 38-7. Oklahoma State held their own against the defending national champion, Florida State, losing by just a touchdown. Iowa State had a FCS whooping from North Dakota State 34-14. TCU easily handled Samford 48-14.
If Weis doesn't come up with wins this season, he's going to be on the hot seat even more than he is already. By the looks of this season's opponents, winning isn't going to be easy.
Edited by Lyndsey Havens
"NO"
When Charlie Weis stepped into a coaching position
at Kansas, he made it very clear: it's a five-year process to get back to success. The Jay-hawks seemed to support that idea with a five-year contract worth $12.5 million for Weis.
2014 will be year three for Weis at Kansas. In Weis' first season, after the two-year Turner Gill debacle, he picked up only one win, and further affirmed Kansas' role as the Big 12's football doormat.
In 2013, prospects started looking up with three wins. Although the team picked up a win in the Big 12, it has, by no means, been satisfying for Jayhawks fans.
DAILY DEBATE RESULTS: SEPT. 4, 2014 Which unit will perform better for KU football? Offense or defense?
Already, Weis has taken steps toward improving again in 2014. Weis eliminated all questions and drama about the most important position on the team when he named sophomore Montell Cozart the starter in the spring, a smart coaching decision.
Though there seems to be certainty at the quarterback position, there are plenty of questions elsewhere for Weis especially after his top two running backs - seniors Brandon Bourbon and Taylor Cox - both suffered season-ending injuries just weeks before the season. However, Weis recruited a heap of junior college talent during the offseason, and, overall, beat in-state rival Kansas State in recruitment.
and two more at tight end. On the defensive side of the ball, captains Cassius Sendish and Ben Heeney will headline, both as seniors.
Not only is there an influx of new talent, but this is also Weis' most experienced team, despite the inexperience at quarterback. On the offensive end, the team will start seniors Tony Pierson and transfer Nick Harwell at wideout, while three seniors will lead the way for the offensive line,
The only underclassman who will come into the Sept. 6 game against Southeast Missouri State as a starter is Cozart, whom Weis felt enough confidence in to name a starter months ago.
This Jayhawks team, despite some recent misfortune with the injury bug, should, without a doubt, take a few more steps forward this season. Weis is expected to pick up two wins in non-conference play before taking on the Big 12, where fans will likely want three or more wins from Weis in a multitude of winnable games, or they will want his job.
Weis' job this season is to get the Jayhawks back to the middle of the pack in the Big 12. The question is simply this: Will the steps Weis and his team take be enough for Weis to keep his job?
Remember, the Jayhawks gave Weis five years for a reason, and the plan to rebuild the Jayhawk football program is only halfway complete. If the team stops now, the whole thing will crumble, again.
Kansas State has more than Lockett at wide receiver
— Edited by Alyssa Scott
ASSOCIATED PRESS
MANHATTAN Tyler Lockett is the third member of his family to play wide receiver for Bill Snyder at Kansas State, so the 74-year-old coach knows what the family lineage can bring to an offense.
He also knows the perils of building solely around the All-American wide receiver. Not only has Lockett been prone to injury, it also handcuffs what the Wildcats can do offensively
"I've always said that we want to do what our players are capable of doing." Snyder explained. "We don't have anything set aside saying. 'This is Tyler Lockett, and we can't do this without Tyler Lockett,' or whoever else it may be. If you do that, then you're bouncing around all year and I don't really want to do that."
That's why it doesn't matter whether a wide receiver is running with the first team or the scout team, everybody who lines up for the No.20 Wildcats carries the same expectations.
"I want to acclimate guys to be able to run our offense, run our defense, execute our special teams," Snyder said. "If you're a backup guy, then you
have to step up and do those things."
Besides, Lockett has been prone to hamstring injuries throughout his career, and he sat out all but the first quarter of last weekend's blowout win over Stephen F. Austin as a precaution. Snyder said he expects Lockett to play more on Saturday at Iowa State.
"I've said this before as it relates to Tyler," Snyder said, "he just has to fit into our offense and not put ourselves in a position, whether its him or whoever it happens to be, that all of a sudden our structure becomes very limited in what we're capable of doing. We have to work on all of it with everybody."
Jake Waters doesn't shy away from his desire to have No. 16 on the field. But if the dynamic wide receiver is out for any reason, Waters is also prepared to look in other directions.
Kody Cook hauled in an impressive touchdown catch against the Lumberjacks. Deante Burton flashed a big body and soft hands. Curry Sexton has proven over the last couple of years to be the kind of dependable veteran pass catcher that always seems to flourish at Kansas State.
"A lot of those guys with their
first game experience did awesome," Waters said. "I have all the confidence in the world knowing if they're out there and open, I'm going to try to get the ball to them because I know they're going to make a play."
Most of those wide receivers were passed over by more high-profile schools, as is the case with the majority of players who get on the field at Kansas State. But it may be just that chip on their shoulder that so often allows them to succeed.
Cook is perhaps the perfect example. He was a prep quarterback in Louisburg, Kansas, and then alternated before quarterback and wide receiver at Hutchinson Community College. He redshirted last season at Kansas State, and then stood out in his first true game action last Saturday, out jumping a defender on a 22-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter.
The Wildcats had nine different players catch passes against Stephen F. Austin, including unheralded sophomore Steven West, who also hauled in a touchdown pass.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Stephen F. Austin defensive back Hipolito Coporan, right, breaks up a pass intended for Kansas State wide receiver Judah Jones, left, during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday in Manhattan.
The University of Kansas School of Business
presents
ANDERSON CHANDLER LECTURE SERIES
COMEBACK
JAY TIMMONS President and Chief Executive Officer, National Association of Manufacturers
7 a.m. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2014
LIED CENTER OF KANSAS
FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
KU SCHOOL OF BUSINESS The University of Kansas
KU COUNSELING AND PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES
individual and group therapy ADHD and GRE assessment testing services