CAN 17
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2012
PAGE 11
TEXAS 21
KANSAN texas
REWIND
TILER RUST/KEANSAN Quarterback Michael Cummings takes the snap in the first quarter. The Jayhawks were defeated in the final seconds of the homecoming game against the Texas Longhorns on Saturday.
TYLER ROSTE/KANSAN
Kansas offense improves with running game
FARZIN VOUSOUGHIAN
fvousoughian@kansan.com
Kansas coach Charlie Weis knew his offense would be effective if his team could run the ball. The Jayhawks' running game was dynamic on Saturday with a season-high of 56 carries for 234 yards.
James Sims led all running backs with a career-high of 176 yards, including a 64-yard run early in the second quarter. Sims saw a big hole in the Longhorns defense and busted through for a big gain, which translated into a layhawks touchdown three plays later.
"They are fast, and we knew that from the beginning," Sims said. "I just try to take what I can, so I took what they gave me."
Sims credited his offensive line and said he felt more confident than ever. He is living up to the expectations of his coaches, and
Weis feels the same way about Sims as he did in the spring.
"I don't know if there is a better back in this league." Weis said. "If they exist, I have not seen them yet."
Sims was complemented by running backs Tony Pierson, Taylor Cox and Christian Matthews. The three combined for 21 carries, 94 yards and two touchdowns on Saturday. Weis made adjustments at halftime to run the ball more in the second half since it worked well in the first half.
Kansas ran the ball 10 times and didn't attempt a pass in the third quarter. Quarterback Michael Cummings completed three of his nine pass attempts on the day. The Jayhawks continued to move the ball on the Longhorns rush defense, which is ranked last in the Big 12.
"We came out and just tried to grind the football and make it
a smash-mouth football game," Cummings said. "We enjoy playing physical football. We have good backs in the backfield, and we like watching them run."
But the Jayhawks' run-heavy offense only rendered 17 points. Players were excited on the sidelines until Texas took the lead with 12 seconds to go in the game.
Even though, statistically, Sims had the best game of his career, it was hard for him to be enthusiastic with the way the game ended.
"I wasn't really worried about it at the time," Sims said. "I was hoping we'd get this win. We worked so hard. I know the wins will come up soon."
Although Weis does not accept moral victories, players and coaches will still look at positives and try to build on them moving forward. Sims likes the backfield he is a part of and hopes the group can help lead the team to
victories before the season ends.
"We all can do different things," Sims said. "We have a good combination of backs that we all fit in and work together."
Despite the strong effort from the running game, Kansas lost its 17th straight conference game. The Jayhawks will get back to practice this week and get ready for back-to-back road games, beginning with Baylor next Saturday.
"Hopefully I'll come in tomorrow morning, get through this, and then bring them in here and go over the game, and get out there and practice." Weis said. "Hopefully we can put it behind us and start getting ready for next week."
Edited by Andrew Ruszczyk
Quarterback Michael Cummings runs out of the pocket. The Jayhawks were defeated in the final seconds of the homecoming game against Texas on Saturday.
TYLER ROSTE/KANSAN
TYLER BIERWIRTH/KANSAN
Senior safety Lubbock Smith gets ready to tackle his opponent as he catches the ball during Saturday's game against Texas at Memorial Stadium, where the Jayhawks lost 21-17.
OFFENSE
It was no secret that Kansas was planning to attack Texas on the ground, and the Longhorns still couldn't stop it. The Jayhawks collected 234 of their total 273 yards through the run game, and James Sims gained 176 yards alone. Michael Cummings didn't have a great passing game (3-9), but he connected at all the right moments — including an 18-yard pass to Jimmy Mundine on a crucial third-and-eight in the fourth quarter.
Grade: B-
DEFENSE
You can't ask for a better performance out of Dave Campo's corps. Texas came into Lawrence averaging 44 points per game, and it scored only 21 on the Jayhawks. Linebackers Ben Heeney and Hulden Tharp had monster games, leading Kansas with 13 and 11 tackles, respectively, including a few goal-line stops. Two interceptions by cornerback Greg Brown and safety Lubbock Smith kept the momentum scoring the Jayhawks.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Grade: A+
Solid kickoff coverage, an average of 33.2 yards per punt and a clutch field goal to take the lead — what more could you ask for out of Clint Bowen's group this week? Coach Charlie Weis allowed Bowen to use any player he wanted on special teams, and this decision paid off. The field goal unit, after being catastrophic in previous games with Nick Prolago, put it together to notch a 29-yarder to take a 17-14 lead in the fourth quarter.
Grade: B+
COACHING
Both Dave Campo and Charlie Weis were on their game this week. Weis' running game ran 25 straight plays at one point, and the Longhorns still couldn't stop them. The defensive team had arguably its best game of the season coming off of its absolute worst. Campo continues to be the Jayhawks' biggest asset.
Grade: A
SCHEDULE
*All games in bold are at home
DATE OPPONENT RESULT/TIME
SEPT. 1 SOUTH DAKOTA STATE W, 31-17
SEPT. 8 RICE L, 25-24
SEPT. 15 TCU L, 20-6
SEPT. 22 NORTHERN ILLINOIS L, 30-23
OCT. 6 KANSAS STATE L, 56-16
OCT. 13 OKLAHOMA STATE L, 20-14
OCT. 20 OKLAHOMA L, 52-7
OCT. 27 TEXAS L, 21-14
NOV. 3 BAYLOR TBA
NOV. 10 TEXAS TECH TBA
NOV. 17 IOWA STATE TBA
DEC. 1 WEST VIRGINIA TBA
QUOTE OF THE GAME
"There's definitely a toughness factor to our defense. We're not a bunch of high profile recruits or anything like that, but we bought into coach Campo's system, and we're executing a lot better than we have in the past."
Junior linebacker Huldon Tharp on the defense's mentality
TYLER ROSTE/KANSAN
Quarterback Michael Cummings gets tackled while running down field. The Jayhawks were defeated in the final seconds of the homecoming game against Texas on Saturday.