THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2011
PAGE 7
FOOTBALL GAMEDAY PRESENTED BY PREVIEW WAVE
STARTING LINEUP
MIKE VERNON
mvernon@kansan.com
ETHAN PADWAY
epadway@kansan.com
OFFENSE
The Jayhawks' offense absolutely torched the Northern Illinois and McNeese State defenses, bitaling 981 yards of offense in their first two games. The Jayhawks have effectively used four running backs who have averaged nearly five yards a carry. The offensive line has blocked well, and the receivers have been blocking downfield with aggression! If they continue their strong running ways, the passing game will open up as well, making the Jayhawks' offense extremely dynamic and tough to stop.
Pos. NAME No. Year
CB Jordan Webb 2 So.
HB James Sims 29 So.
fB Nick Sizemore 45 So.
WR Kale Pick 7 Jr.
NR D.J. Beshears 20 Jr.
TE Tim Biere 86 Sr.
RT Tanner Hawkinson 72 Jr.
RG Duane Zlatnik 67 Jr.
C Jeremiah Hatch 77 Sr.
IG Trevor Marrongelli 69
IT Jeff Spikes 74 Sr.
K Alex Mueller 10 Fr.
DEFENSE
The defense continued to struggle last week, giving up 42 points to Northern Illinois. The Huskies had 462 yards of offense, passing 315 of them. The secondary also struggled to defend the pass against McNeese State, creating concerns about the Jayhawks' pass defense. Fortunately for Kansas, Georgia Tech is a run-heavy offense. Their rush defense has not had the same struggles as the pass defense, as the linebacker position is a strength for Kansas. The defensive line has also played well, but has suffered injuries leaving them with little depth. It will be up to the Kansas rush defense to stop Georgia Tech.
Pos. NAME No. Year
IE Toben Opurum 35 Jr.
MT John Williams 71 Jr.
ET Kevin Young 90 So.
RT Keba Agostinho 96 So.
OLB Steven Johnson 52 Sr.
MIB Darius Willis 2 So.
OL3 Tunde Bakare 17 Jr.
CO Isiah Barfield 19 Sr.
CO Greg Brown 5 Jr.
FS Keeston Terry 9 RFr.
SI Bradley McDougald 24 Jr.
F Ron Doherty 13 So.
BY THE NUMBERS
PREDICTION 42-31, GEORGIA TECH
The Jayhawks' current road game losing streak
The number of rushing yards James Sims had against Georgia Tech last year. The game was his first career start.
9 101
ATA GLANCE
This week is the first true test for the Jayhawks, they pounded McNeese State with the rui, allowing them to also pick the Cowboys apart in the air. Northern Illinois wom 11 games last year and finished first in the Mid-Atlantic Conference. it will look good for Kansas if they can come away with a win over this well coached, successful program.
MOMENTUM
SPECIAL TEAMS
After propping doubters wrong in week two, the Jayhawks are flying high taking their 2-0 start to Atlanta. The offense has been nearly impossible for their opponents to stop, and after their last-second victory, the Jayhawks have at a lot of confidence. They should be feeling good heading to Atlanta.
Junior receiver D.J. Besshears earned Special Teams Player of the Week honors, after returning seven kicks for 197 yards, including
Beshears
setting up the Jayhawks for their gamewinning toouchdown. Freshman kicker Alex Mueller showed off his leg, having the distance, but missing on a 49-yard field goal attempt last week.
a 51-yard return
COACHING
Turner Gill made a questionable decision early last week, opting to kick a 49-yard field goal on fourth and 2. The labyawks ha
Gill
scored on the previous play, on fourth and 1, before having it called back by a holding penalty. Offensive coordinator Chuck Long helped redeem the staff, by masterfully calling the jayhawks' final drive to give them a 45-42 lead over Northern Illinois.
ern Illinois was anything but quiet. Webb completed 21 passes out of 31 attempts and threw for 281 yards and three touchdowns. Webb calmly marched the Jayhawks down the field for a game-winning touchdown. If Webb can repeat his second-game performance against Georgia Tech, the Jayhawks will excel.
Webb's first game against McNeese State was quiet, but efficient. His second game against North
Sophomore quarterback Jordan Webb:
PLAYER TO WATCH
Webb
QUESTION MARKS
defense stop the Georgia Tech spread option attack?
The only aspect of Kansas' defense thus far that has been remotely successful has been their run defense. The Jayhawks have given up 121 rushing yards per game, which is light compared to the 320 passing yards they have allowed per game. This week will truly be a test for the rush defense, as Georgia Tech is averaging 339.5 rushing yards per game. If the Kansas defense can contain the run against Georgia Tech like they did last year, they'll be in great shape to head back to Lawrence 3-0.
Max Mikulecky
BABY JAY WILL CHEER IF ..
The Jayhawks can slow down the Yellow Jackets' rushing attack. The offense should be able to score, but it won't matter if Kansas can't stop the effective triple-option offense Georgia Tech runs. If Kansas can force Georgia Tech to throw the football, they should get stops, and if they get stops, they'll win the game.
STARTING LINEUP
OFFENSE
GEORGIA TECH
BABY JAY WILL WEEP IF ...
Georgia Tech runs a triple-option offense that offers a great running game and an explosive passing game. In their first two games this season, the Yellow Jackets have scored on their first play from scrimmage. Their offense has produced five plays of 70 yards or more this season, more than any other football conference has this year. The Yellow Jackets can also sustain long drives, scoring touchdowns on drives of 16 and 17 plays this season.
2-0
Pos. NAME No. Year
QB Tevin Washington 13 Jr.
BB David Sims 7 So.
AB Orwin Smith 17 Jr.
AB Roddy Jones 20 Sr.
WR Tyler Melton 84 Sr.
WR Stephen Hill 5 Jr.
RT Tyler Kidney 69 So.
RG Omoregie Uzzi 77 Jr.
C Jay Finch 50 So.
LG Will Jackson 52 So.
LT RayBeno 64 So.
K Justin Moore 86 So.
Sophomore safety Isaiah Johnson leads Georgia Tech on defense. Johnson was named honorable mention Freshman All-American last season. The Yellow Jackets' defense allowed 21 points in each of their first two games, but that number is skewed higher, considering the Yellow Jackets have won each of their games handsily and have been able to give younger guys some playing time.
DEFENSE
The Yellow Jackets stop the Kansas offense. If the Jayhawks' offence can't keep rolling, they won't stand a chance trying to keep up with Georgia Tech and the game will be over before it starts.
Pos.
DE
DT
DE
OLB
ILB
ILB
ILB
LCB
RS
RS
RCB
P
Johnson
NAME No. Year
Jason Peters 92 Sr.
Logan Walls 96 Sr.
Izaan Cross 94 Jr.
Jeremiah Attaochu 45 So.
Julian Burnett 40 Jr.
Daniel Drummond 30 So.
Steven Sylvester 34 Sr.
Rod Sweeting 6 Jr.
Isiah Johnson 1 So.
Rashaad Reid 28 Sr.
Louis Young 8 So.
Sean Poole 82 So.
5
160
COACHING
Johnson
SPECIAL TEAMS
BY THE NUMBERS
eight consecutive bowl games, including the 2009 FedEx Orange Bowl. A win over Kansas would give Johnson his first 3-0 start in his time at Georgia Tech.
Paul Johnson is in his fourth season as the Georgia Tech head football coach. Johnson, a two-time ACC Coach of the Year (2008, 2009), has led his teams to
Consecutive seasons Georgia Tech has produced an All-ACC running back.
Moore
Consecutive games Georgia Tech has gone without returning a kick-off for a touchdown. (The last was Oct. 10, 1987 against Florida State)
Poole
Sophomore Justin Moore is in his first season handling the place kicking duties for the Yellow Jackets. Moore saw his only field goal attempt this season blocked and returned for a touchdown by Western Carolina. Sophomore Sean Poole handles the punting duties. The Yellow Jackets rank 13th nationally in net punting.
AT A GLANCE
PLAYER TO WATCH
MOMENTUM
The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are creating some buzz around the nation after putting up 112 points and 1,258 yards of total offense in their first two games. The Yellow Jackets' triple-option offense, which led the nation in rushing last season, has begun to put up similar numbers through the air. Georgia Tech is receiving votes in the rankings polls. A convincing victory over the Jayhawks could be enough to launch it back into the Top 25, a spot it hasn't been in since losing to Kansas last season.
Hill
The Yellow Jackets are coming off of wins where they have routed clearly inferior opponents. They will be looking for revenge against a Kansas team that knocked them out of the Top 25 a year ago and derailed their season.
Junior receiver Stephen Hill: He leads the ACC and is eighth in the nation averaging 153.5 yards per game. The 6-foot-5 receiver could cause
major match-up problems for the jayhawk secondary that's had a hard time controlling opponents' passing games this year.
QUESTION MARKS
ia Tech control D.J. Beshears on kick-off returns
The Jayhawks' return man brought two kick-offs into opposing team territory against Northern Illinois, including a 51-yard return on the Jayhawks' game-winning drive. Georgia such as struggled on kick return coverage, ranking 103rd in the nation. The Yellow Jackets also may not want to risk angle kicking after watching two kicks fly out of bounds last week.
y