4B
KU 39 - KSU 20
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAS
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2006
Amanda Sellers/KANSAN
Senior running back Jon Cornish rushes in his seventh 100-yard game this season. Cornish recorded a career-high 201 yards in the victory against Kansas State.
Webb's big play demonstrates improvement
BY MICHAEL PHILLIPS
Just like after every game this year, freshman cornerback Anthony Webb got a talking to from sophomore cornerback Aqib Talib. This one was different, though.
Instead of getting on him for allowing a big play, he had something to say about Webb's touchdown celebration, which resulted in a 15-vard "taunting" penalty.
"He could have done a better dive if he was going to get the flag." Talib joked. "We're going to work with him."
The lighthearted atmosphere was a change from the mood earlier in the season, when the Jayhawks were feeling down after routinely being burned on long pass plays.
Webb's performance in Saturday's 39-20 victory showed just how far he and the rest of the defense have come this season.
Unlike most college cornerbacks, Webb didn't sit out his first year of college, instead he jumped right into the starting lineup because of a lack of depth. It wasn't a coaching gamble as much as it was a necessity: The Jayhawks had nobody else who could fill the position.
It wasn't just as simple as just
"It was hard, especially for me," he said. "I was giving up big things, but the coaches and players told me it was going to be all right. Everybody stuck by you."
getting the young players experience, though. Defensive coordinator Bill Young has tried to find the winning combination of players and plays all season. On Saturday he had success moving a receiver, senior Dominic Roux, to the defensive side.
Combined with a game plan that had a healthy mix of blitzing, not blitzing and semi-blitzing, everything came together for the jayhawks.
"Coach Young had everybody in the right place at the right time." Talib said. "For every formation they came out in, we had a good plan."
Unlike last year's group, which was mostly seniors, the Jayhawks can look forward to beginning next season with few worries about who will step up on defense. The only pass defender who graduates is safety Jerome Kemp.
As for Talib, the cornerback will likely hear from NFL scouts urging him to follow the path blazed last year by Charles Gordon. After the game, Talib extinguished that fire before it ever had an opportunity to ignite.
"We've got to play for the Big 12 Championship," he said. "I'm going to be a part of that next year."
Kansan sports editor Michael Phillips can be reached at mphillips@kansan.com.
Edited by Janiece Gatson
Senior wide receiver Brian Murph throws a block for sophomore wide receiver Dexton Fields. Fields h
Senior running back Jon Cornish moves into third on the Kansas single-season rushing list with 1,331 yards. He is 18 yards short of second and 112 yards from first.
FOOTBALL (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
all but assure a second-straight bowl game.
But bowl eligibility, or a seasonhigh three game winning streak, wasn't the biggest story from Saturday's game. Cornish was.
Coming into the game, Mangino had a two-fold game plan. The first part of that involved using Cornish — a lot.
He touched the ball 25 times for an average of eight yards a carry. It didn't matter whether it was up the middle or to the outside; Cornish had no problem shredding the Wildcats defense.
"Obviously too much Cornish," Kansas State coach Ron Prince said. "He's a terrific runner, we knew that coming in. We knew we were going to control the ball and do some things so that they couldn't work us over with him."
Going into the teeth of the Wildcats defensive line is where Cornish did most of his damage. His first touchdown run on the afternoon came straight up the middle.
But the Jayhawks did exactly that.
Once he got past the Wildcata first line of defenders near the 10-yard line, he was gone. Cornish ran basically untouched into the end zone for the touchdown.
One of the big reasons for Cornish's success against K-State was the play of his offensive line.
"I haven't seen them play a better game," Cornish said. "They were on all their blocks the whole night. Taking credit for my performance tonight would be completely wrong."
But thanks to his offensive line, Cornish moved one step closer to his goal — Kansas' single-season rushing record.
With his performance Saturday, Cornish now needs just 112 yards next week against Missouri.
And for that other part of the game plan, it involved stopping the Wildcat's rushing attack and forcing quarterback Josh Freeman to make plays.
Freeman turned the ball over six times — three interceptions and three fumbles. Those turnovers led to 31 Kansas points.
He couldn't and Kansas turned his mistakes into easy points.
"I only need 100 yards." Cornish said with a laugh. "I can walk to it."
But what forced Freeman into those mistakes was a lack of running game. Despite getting 102 yards from running back Leon Patton, which broke Kansas's streak of 23 straight games without allowing a 100-yard rusher, the Wildcats
"We had a real good game plan on what they tried to do," sophomore cornerback Aqib Talib said. "They try to keep things simple in regards to the plays they run. We seemed to have a plan for every formation they threw at us."
Coming into the game on a bye week, Kansas didn't seem like it would have the momentum, especially with K-State's upset of No. 4 Texas a week ago.
were unable to run the ball at key times. Without a running game, it put K-State in numerous third-and-long situations.
That forced Freeman to make plays himself, which more often than not, meant a Wildcat turnover.
But with bragging rights and a bowl game on the line, it was definitely a must win.
"I had no intention of letting K-State win this game," Cornish said. "If we had lost this game, it would be the ultimate disappointment."
They didn't. And now Cornish has a few new friends because of it.
Kansan senior sportswriter Ryan Schneider can be contacted at rachneider@kansan.com.
Edited by Kristen Jarkos
Senior wide receiver Jonathan Lamb tries to outrun the Kansas State defense during Saturdays
from the press box...
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IT WAS OVER WHEN
IT WAS OVER WHEN... Freshman cornerback Anthony Webb returned an Interception 42 yards for a touchdown. That touchdown put Kansas up by 17 points midway through the fourth quarter. Webb's dive into the end zone was flagged for excessive celebration.
GAME BALL GOES TO..
GAME BALL GOES TO... Jon Cornish had his best performance as a Jayhawk in his final game at Memorial Stadium. Cornish finished the night with a career-high 201 yards on 25 carries, with two touchdowns. With his big night, Cornish is 112 yards shy of the school's single-season rush record.
GAME TO FORGET...
Junior punter Kyle Tucker continues to struggle this season, after being named to award lists before the season. Tucker averaged just 35 yards on his two punts. Tucker, though, did land a roughing call that kept a drive alive.
GAME TO FORGET...
STAT OF THE GAME...
K-State quarterback Josh Freeman had six turnovers. Those turnovers eliminated any opportunity for a Wildcat victory because they led to 31 Jaiyahawk points. After being named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week In the last two weeks, Freeman certainly looked more like a freshman Saturday.
Ryan Schneider
Junior blicker Scott Webb kicks off after a Kansas score Saturday. Webb recorded a 49-yard field go
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