PAGE 8
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2014
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
+
THE DAILY DEBATE
Which unit will perform better for Kansas football: offense or defense?
"OFFENSE"
The Kansas football team took a hard hit when both its
running backs, Brandon Bourbon and Taylor Cox, suffered season-ending injuries within 24 hours of each other. However, that won't stop the Jayhawk offense from being the strength of this year's team.
Keep in mind that the Jayhawks are led by one of the more creative offensive thinkers of late. Before taking the helm at Kansas, Charlie Weis made a name for himself as the offensive guru behind the New England Patriots' success in the early 2000s. Weis is a creative coach with a dynamic playbook. There is little doubt that he will use creative play-calling to mitigate the effect of the early season injuries.
Weis named sophomore Montell Cozart the starting
quarterback this past spring, giving him all offseason to master the playbook and to develop chemistry with the skill position players; something that did not occur in previous years. Kansas was led by three different starting quarterbacks the past three seasons, making it difficult to find consistency in the offense.
Weis said this heavily influenced his decision to name the starter earlier this season. Cozart, the Spring Game MVP, is just a sophomore and is hoping to establish himself as the starter for the next three seasons. Cozart is an adequate passer, but his strength lies in his mobility, which may be relied upon now that the Jayhawks' two top running backs are out for the season.
Cozart will be aided by senior Nick Harwell, a transfer from Miami (Ohio). Harwell recorded 229 receptions for 3,166 yards during his three seasons at Miami, averaging 13.7 yards per catch. Harwell, along with senior Tony Pierson, gives Kansas a solid pair of experienced receiving weapons. The make-or-break factor will be whether or not Cozart can deliver the ball
to them in the open field. If he can, the Kansas offense has the potential to be a dominant force. If not, the Kansas offense will have to find ways to move the ball on the ground, using Cozart's legs and a stable of young running backs.
The offense had a lot to adjust to during this offseason. The Jayhawks lost several key players at the end of last season due to graduation and transfers. But a fresh new lineup may be just what this team needs to finally regain some swagger. If Weis can work his offensive genius and get the most from his players, this could be the start of something good for the Jayhawks.
Edited by Jacob Clemen
"DEFENSE"
returning 17 total starters eight on offense and nine on defense — a veteran Kansas football team takes the field Saturday, fresh off a 3-9 (1-8) 2013 season.
Fortunately for Jayhawk fans, the win-loss record is not completely indicative of the state of the program.
It goes without saying that strides have been made on the defensive side, considering former coach Turner Gill captained one of the worst defenses in the history of college football in 2011. The team allowed 5.8 yards per play last fall as opposed to 7.2 in 2011.
DAILY DEBATE RESULTS: SEPT. 2, 2014 Will the Kansas City Royals make the playoffs this season?
It gets better. Last season, Kansas issued its best defensive output since 2009, allowing 31.8 points and 433 total yards per game, including the program's first positive turnover margin (+1) since 2008. They should be even saltier this year.
Consider the strength of Kansas' defense: its secondary. It starts from outside in, fortified by senior cornerbacks JaCorey Shepherd, who was second in the Big 12 in pass break ups (13) last season, and Dexter McDonald, who was sixth in that same category (10). Junior safety Isaiah Johnson was named the Big 12 Defensive Newcomer of the Year with five interceptions. Senior Cassius Sendish also contributed as the unit's vocal leader.
Senior linebacker Ben Heeney is the bearded face of the program, and rightly so, as a first-team Big 12 player. With a young but athletic defensive line that returns senior Keon Stowers in the middle and senior Michael Reynolds off the edge, the Kansas defense will keep the Jayhawks in games.
Yet, as nice as the upgrade has been on defense, unfortunately, those same kind words cannot be said for the offense. Last year's group was the Jayhawks' worst in recent memory.
The season included a 16-yard passing performance against Oklahoma, seven first downs against Texas Christian and six turnovers against Kansas State. These are just a few examples.
The Kansas running game takes a hit this year as top rusher James Sims was lost to graduation, and seniors Brandon Bourbon and Taylor Cox are out with season-ending injuries.
the passing game should improve on its 41 dropped passes with senior Nick Harwell and junior Nigel King added to the mix, but by how much? It all starts with the quarterback and Kansas returns one that completed just 37 percent of his passes last year.
+
More touches for playmakers senior Tony Pierson, freshman Corey Avery and junior De'Andre Mann should help, but make no mistake: the defense is the best thing Kansas has going for itself.
— Edited by Jacob Clemen
Kansas Crew looks to increase interest in rowing
GJ MELIA
@gimelia
Kansas Crew, the club rowing team, opened its doors to the public Thursday for an open boathouse and showed students what the organization is all about. Kansas Crew began in 1977 and is the University's oldest club sports organization. Crew features both men's and women's teams, and is a no-cut sport.
The boathouse, a multimillion dollar facility, houses both the men's and women's club teams, in addition to the NCAA-sanctioned women's team. The building itself was finished in January 2009 and sits just off the shore of the Kansas River in Burcham Park on Second and Indiana streets.
Coach Jeremy Struemph, entering his 10th season at the helm, emphasized that it doesn't matter what your background is, being a member of Kansas Crew requires the will to compete each day and have a strong commitment to the team.
Many students interested in joining Crew have no prior rowing experience. At the open boathouse, athletes ranged from cross country and track to soccer and football.
"What I ask from my guys is, I don't care if you're athletically gifted," Struemph said. "All I care about is good attitudes, and guys that like to work really hard."
Haley Fletcher, the captain and former recruitment chair of the women's team said even though it is a large time commitment, if you are interested in rowing, there are
always steps to learn how to manage time.
"If I didn't do crew, I could fill my time very easily," Fletcher said. "But I also have learned how to balance my time really well. It's a responsibility, but it's what the real world is going to be."
One of the main goals Kansas Crew echoed was the intention of growing the sport of rowing. In Kansas, many students aren't exposed to the sport of rowing.
"We have people all the time that didn't even know we had rowing at Kansas," Struemph said. "It's good that they can find [Kansas Crew] because a lot of people would never try [rowning] if they didn't know about it."
In the fall, the regattas are a 5K (3.11 miles) race, and the courses consist of tight turns and are designed for the rowers to adjust their boat. In the spring, the races are a 2,000-meter sprint. Kansas Crew is scheduled to compete in six events during the spring season, the first on Feb. 22 in Topeka.
The team will be competing in four different competitions, or regattas, this fall. The opening event is the Head of the Oklahoma on Oct. 2-5, an event Kansas placed first in in 2013. It will take place in Oklahoma City where it will see teams such as Stanford, Michigan and a majority of the Big 12 schools.
It will also be hosting two regattas, the first being the Jayhawk Jamboree on Oct. 18. Then they will travel to Chattanooga, Tenn., on Nov. 1-2 before closing out the season with the Sunflower Showdown in Lawrence on Nov. 8.
The overall goal of each regatta is to improve and develop the team for the ACRA National Championships in May in Gainesville, Ga.
"We do other regattas in preparation for May," Struemph said. "Even though we race in a little over four weeks [Head of the Oklahoma], our workouts right now are long, steady rowing, just getting these guys' rust knocked off from the summer."
GI MELIA/KANSAN
For more information visit kansascrew.com.
Kansas Crew's boathouse, a multimillion dollar facility, is located on the Kansas River shore at Burcham Park on Second and Indiana streets. It houses both the men's and women's club teams and the NCAA-sanctioned women's team.
- Edited by Jacob Clemen