THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2004
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
3B
Big 12 Conference kicks off, pressure on
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In week of byes eyes on 'Hawks
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By MIRANDA LENNING
mlenning@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTSWATER
The Kansas football team will be a focus of the Big 12 this weekend — win or lose.
Eight of the Big 12 teams have byes this week.
The layhawks open their Big 12 Conference schedule against a Texas Tech football team that put up 70 points in 36 minutes last weekend, and the Big 12 match-up is the only conference game this Saturday.
Texas will host Rice and North Texas will travel to Waco, Texas, to face Baylor. That puts the Jayhawk's game against Texas Tech on the watch list and gives the team the opportunity to prove itself to the Big 12 North.
"We want to show that we can be Big 12 contenders," junior safety Tony Stubbs said. "We want to show that we do want to win."
The Jayhawks will have that opportunity.
The game, which starts at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, will be televised on Fox Sports Net.
The Jayhawks didn't finish out their nonconference schedule the way coach Mark Mangino had planned. Mangino told the media this week that he was not satisfied.
"Of course not." Mangino said. "We didn't win them all."
Three victories against three tough nonconference opponents would have given the Jayhawks a share of the lead in the Big 12 North and some breathing room
going into conference play, where Kansas has no room for error. The Jayhawks have to travel to Nebraska, Oklahoma and Missouri.
They also have to face powerhouses Texas and Kansas State at home, along with Colorado, who leads the Big 12 North after three games.
That makes this game even more important for the Jayhawks, who need four more victories to meet the NCAA's requirement for bowl eligibility. The players said that last week was a learning experience.
"We are really focused a lot more now, and the Big 12 is starting and it is a lot more serious with all the guys," senior linebacker Gabe Toomey said. "It's time to get after it."
One thing going the Jayhawks way: Perennial frontrunners in the Big 12 North have accumulated losses.
K-State, Missouri and Nebraska all suffered week two losses, making the Big 12 North wide open.
Mangino said it was important for his team to focus on one game at a time and not to think that far ahead. He also said it was too early to evaluate the Big 12 North.
"After we get three or four games in conference play you will be able to tell if it is wide open or if someone is going to be the front-runner." Mangino said.
Stubbs and Toomey both said the challenge starts this weekend and the Jayhawks would be ready.
"It will be a battle." Toomey said. "We will not back down."
Edited Stephenson
Marissa
Football faces tough defensive test
BY BYAN COLAIANNI
colaianni@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTSWINTER
KANSAN SPORTSWRITER
In the five years that Mike Leach has been the coach of Texas Tech, the Red Raiders have become an offensive powerhouse of college football.
Leach's system is a pass-happy one, where he gives his quarterback free reign to take to the air. It is not unusual for his quarterback to have 60 passes in a game.
In fact, last season the Texas Tech quarterbacks combined to throw 78 passes in a single game and complete 52 of them.
During Leach's tenure as the coach, Tech's total offense has jumped from 324.8 yards per game to 582.8. The most noticeable difference is in the passing game, where last season the offense averaged 475.4 yards per game.
"They throw the ball a lot in different formations and they have some unusual line splits,"
Kansas coach Mark Mangino said. "When you throw the ball as many times as they do, you get pretty good at it."
In all of Leach's four seasons as
LEACH
coach, the quarterbacks have thrown for at least 3,500 yards. Last season the Red Raiders had nearly 6,200 yards passing.
But the most impressive part of this story may be the fact that Leach is often doing this with first-year starters at quarterback.
"They do a good job of developing players in their system," Mangino said. "These other guys have been in the system, have practiced in it and learned it."
Take Sonny Cumbie, for example. Prior to this season he saw action in just five games games and had thrown only 61
passes at the collegiate level. This season the senior is leading the Big 12 in passing yards with over 450 per game.
"Sonny Cumbie has been doing the same thing for four years in practice, and it wasn't a hard transition for him as a starter." Leach said.
Cumbie came to Texas Tech as a walk-on and eventually earned a scholarship. He has been successful thus far this season in replacing BJ. Simmons, who passed for more than 5,800 yards last year.
It's clear that Leach's system works and that his offensive scheme will pose a difficult test for the Kansas defense this weekend at Memorial Stadium.
Kansas cornerback Theo Baines said the team was excited about the challenge.
"This gives the secondary a chance to make a statement and we can show what type of defense we are," Baines said. "I think we can gain some respect from this game."
The whole of Texas Tech's talent does not rest in the quarterback position. Cumbie has many skilled wide receivers to throw to.
Last week, wide receiver Jarrett Hicks caught eight catches for 211 yards. The 6-foot-4 Hicks is certainly a big target, but Baines is not intimidated.
"I like receivers that have size," Baines said. "I don't know how fast he his, but normally receivers that are over 200 pounds, they are not as fast as a lot of receivers."
Joining Hicks at wide receiver is Nehemiah Glover, who had nearly 1,100 yards receiving last season.
"It is going to be tough because they have real long arms and they're tall, so we just have to try and contain them," Kansas safety Tony Stubbs said. "We will really have to play their hands and try to bat the ball down."
— Edited by Jon Ralston
KICKED: Webb to kick all field goals
CONTINUED FROM 1B
Mangino said that he was unable to put a true number on what Webb's range was.
"He doesn't have the kind of range Johnny has. That's an issue, but we'll live with that." Mangino said. "He's not a weakling, but he's a guy that if you get past the 40-yard line, his accuracy and just the length of his kicks are somewhat of an issue."
Mangino and special teams coach Clint Bowen indicated that Webb's range was probably in the vicinity of 45 yards.
Webb attended high school at Union High School in Tulsa,
Okla. There, he was listed as the No. 19 kicker in the country by Rivals.com.
In high school, he went 74-76 on extra points, and 11 field goals and played in two 6A State Championships.
"Scott was one of five or six of the top kickers in the country." Mangino said.
Since being named to the starting kicker role, Webb has had an extra burden in practice. Mangino said the team spent more than average time on the kicking game and special teams. In fact, it is the first thing the team does after stretching. The kicking game is also worked on in situation-specific drills, as
well as in special teams practice.
Barmann said that he thought Webb was looking good.
"In warm-ups, I think he hit every field goal I saw him take, he must have hit 10 in a row," Barmann said.
As far as distance, all Barmann had to say was that it was a lot farther than he could kick.
Football Notes
A "minor tweaking." That's how coach Mark Mangino described what he would be doing to his offensive line. He also said guard Tony Coker had not improved much from last week, and as of yesterday would
probably not start on Saturday.
kansan.com
The game time for Kansas-Nebraska has been set for 6:10 p.m. and will not be televised in the Lawrence area. It will be available on a pay-per-view basis in select areas.
The homecoming game against Kansas State Oct. 9 will probably be an evening game, whether it will be broadcast on television or not. The two most likely timeslots for its broadcast are the 6:00 TBS broadcast or the 9:00 Fox Sports Net broadcast. If it is not televised, it will still likely kickoff late due to the Busch Series' Mr. Goodcents 300 at the Kansas Speedway.
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