NSAN
Volume 125 Issue 15
kansan.com
Thursday, September 13, 2012
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COMMENTARY
Ground getting it done
Two weeks into the season, as Kansas fans were supposed to be singing the praises of starting quarterback Dayne Crist after two particularly easy non-conference home games, it's been the running game that has carried the offense and kept the jayhawks from staring down an 0-2 record as Big 12 play begins Saturday afternoon against TCU.
Crist hasn't been awful.
But he hasn't been great, either, throwing for 313 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions against South Dakota State and Rice. The running game, on the other hand, has been one of the better units in the country, currently 27th in the nation with 493 total yards. Newcomer Taylor Cox and sophomore Tony Pierson have led the way for Kansas with four combined touchdowns.
"There wasn't too much negative you could say about them," Coach Charlie Weis said of Cox and Pierson after two games.
The efficient running game is a must, but it can't be the only consistent force for the Kansas offense, not with the two easiest games on the schedule out of the way and one of the best defensive coaches in the country — TCU's Gary Patterson — coming to town on Saturday.
Crist admitted he tried too hard in his first two games in a Kansas uniform. Weis said Crist doesn't have to try and "save the world" out there. And while a glance at the schedule would be enough of an excuse to try and do exactly that, it does no good for this Kansas team. Running the ball effectively, eating up time of possession and playing the passing game off that is the best recipe for whatever success Kansas can find this season.
"Any great, winning offense is going to have a solid running game, and it's awesome we've got that," Crist said Tuesday. "Now we've got to build on the passing game."
Weis said there's no need for Crist to feel he needs to do more than he's capable of.
"The passing game has a lot of room for improvement, and it better come along in a hurry because the better your opponents are each week, you're going to need to score more than 24 points," Weis said Tuesday. "You can get it into the 20's when you run the ball like we are, but you need more production out of the passing game."
"I'm going to feed the ball to the running backs a whole bunch of times anyway," Weis said. "And even if they stop them I'm still going to feed the ball to the running backs. We just need to be much more efficient when we do throw the ball."
With a defense as suspect as Kansas' final scores in the 20s won't cut it in this year's Big 12 against teams like TCU, Kansas State, West Virginia and Oklahoma. And while the running game has been good, expecting more than 30 points on the ground each week is a losing bet.
Weis is right.
Edited by Sarah McCabe
Volleyball hits the road
TCU VS. KANSAS
PAGE 2B
O-LINE RIGHTING THE SHIP
The offensive line looks for answers after lackluster performances in first two games of the year
ASHLFIGH LFF/KANSAN
Junior linebacker Huldon Tharpe takes down his opponent from South Dakota State University during Sept. 1 game at Memorial Stadium where the Jayhawks won 31-17. Tharo had six tackles during the game.
BLAKE SCHUSTER
bschuster@kansan.com
For the Kansas offensive line, it comes down to simple math: Six is greater than two.
Yet when trying to piece together a core group of linean, having men on the left with a combined six years of starting experience and men on the right with two, it creates a tricker problem than basic arithmetic can solve.
It's a situation no Kansas coach can cheat their way around.
"It is what it is, and we've got what we got," said Kansas offensive line coach Tim Grunhard. "We're going to go with the people we have and make them the best they can possibly be."
Even with three seniors on the offensive line, the inexperience on the right side of the line has caused coach Charlie Weis to alter his game plans while right tackle Gavin Howard and right guard Aslam Sterling continue to develop.
In the season opener against South Dakota State, Weis called the majority of his run plays to the left side of the field — specifically citing the experience on that side of the line as the cause.
While running back Taylor Cox scored a 47-yard touchdown on a called run to the right, the limitations of the linemen effectively cut the field in half for the Jayhawks run game.
Grunhard said the only way to make up for the lack of experience that Sterling and Howard have is to play them and coach on the fly. But those guys on the left, seniors Tanner Hawkinson and Duane Zlatikn, aren't leaving the younger lineman out to dry — and that's
not including the "Traffic Cop," senior center Treyron Marrongelli.
serving as both strategic and mental coaches for the younger guvs.
"He's the director," Grunhard said of Marrongelli. "He tells where the guards are going and where the tackles are going. He tries to keep the guys going the right way."
When Marrongelli isn't directing traffic, it's Hawkinson and Zlatnik who help Howard and Sterling navigate through games,
At the same time, Weis is judging the offensive line as a whole group and not giving any slack to
"You always want to make the play, but sometimes you're going to get beat," Hawkinson said. "When you're a younger player you can dwell on that too much. You just have to realize that play is over and move on."
the guys on the right. Howard and Sterling are held to the same standards as the seniors. Grunhard said it's causing Howard and Sterling to take larger strides in their development.
Hawkinson and Grunhard agree that it's almost harder to coach linemen in practice than it is in games given the difference in atmosphere. However, there are techniques that can smooth
out linemen without wasting a Saturday — and Howard and Sterling have been taking advantage of them all.
"It's hard to simulate what happens out there on the game field," Hawkinson said. "You just have to get into watching film, going over plays and taking every rep in practice like it's a game."
Edited by Stéphane Roque
SOCCER
Jayhawks look to extend win streak
NICOLE EVANS
nevans@kansan.com
Coming off one of their best games of the season, the Jayhawks hope to improve on their impressive six-game unbeaten streak before moving into conference play after facing the Denver Pioneers this Friday.
Kansas took down the Missouri State Bears last Friday evening. The match ended in a score of 4-1 despite Kansas not playing the best they have all year. The game proved to be an offense-driven game for Kansas, however, finding three different players to score for them.
Senior forward Whitney Berry shoots during the first half of the game against Eastern Illinois. Berry scored three goals during the match and Kansas defeated Eastern Illinois 9-0.
TRAVIS YOUNG/KANSAN
Junior forward/midfielder Caroline Kastor snagged two goals, flying past the Bear's defensive units to find the back of the net. Sophomore forward Jamie Fletcher found the net early on in the game, scoring off a pass from Kastor in the 7th minute. Freshman forward Ashley Williams continued to be scoring presence for the Jayhawks after she capitalized on a penalty kick in the 64th minute.
Senior forward/midfielder Whitney Berry scored first, starting the hard-fought match off to what eventually would finalize as a 3-2 victory in favor of the lajhawks. The game proved to be one of the best-played games of the season for the team. That win improved the lajhawks to a 6-1-1 record for the season and increased their unbeaten streak to six games. They plan to use the momentum against a strong Denver team this Friday.
Kastor's offensive prowess pushed Kansas to victory Sunday against the Wolfpack of NC State, scoring twice in the match, including the game-clenching goal in the 59th minute.
However, credit must be given
to Kansas' defensive stamina as well, as that helped the team hold on to the one point lead until the match was over.
"I think we did a good job of dictating the game, so we need to keep doing that," head coach Mark Francis said. "I challenged them to perform at a little bit of a higher level. I think we've been pretty consistent, but can we take it up to the next notch, take it up a gear? That's what I want them to do."
The Denver Pioneers are on a win streak of their own, coming out victorious in their past four games, bringing their record to 5-1-1. The team just hosted the DU Invitational, at which they moved past Colorado and UC Irvine to win. This year Kansas also hosted a tournament, the Kansas Invitational, at which they won by beating out UNLV and Georgia
["NC State] came in with a five-game winning streak, but I think we had a good performance, and now we just have to keep playing at that level and not drop out," Francis said.
While the Pioneers are coming off a good tournament victory, Kansas has started a habit of ending opponents' winning streaks, and the Jayhawks don't plan to stop their own win-steak with Denver.
The Pioneers are quite talented offensively, scoring four goals in each of the two games before playing against Kansas. With a strong midfield that likes to create chances off of corners, Kansas will
have to work defensively to ensure that the midfield is shut down. Kansas has a strong midfield of their own, however, and plenty of players to use against such a like-minded team.
"Denver's off to a great start this year, and we're familiar with them, so I think it's going to be a great game," Francis said. "They try to play the same style of soccer that we do, and I think the midfield is going to be the battle; whoever controls the midfield will control the game."
Kansas may be coming off their best game of the season, but Denver may prove to be one of
The Jayhawks will host a promising match against the Pioneers this Friday at 5 p.m., at the Jayhawk Soccer Complex.
"Our goal isn't only to win, but to keep getting better each game," Kastor said.
the most equal opponents in style and level of play so far this year. The team has worked hard during practice this week, focusing all of its energies for the only game this weekend before jumping into conference play.
- Edited by Sarah McCabe