12A
GAMEDAY
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAS
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2006
KU
KICKOFF
ATAGLANCE
Kansas enters Saturday's game on a three-game losing streak. In the past three games, Kansas has continued its traditional struggle in close games and has blown large leads in its last two. Baylor has knocked off Kansas State and Colorado, along with a loss last week to Texas, en route to a 2-1 start to conference play.
5 QUICK FACTS
20 — games since Kansas' defense last allowed a 100-yard rusher.
1,394 yards given up by Kansas defense in the past three weeks.
5. 1 — yards per carry averaged by running back Jon Cornish
0 — Kansas' all-time victories in Waco.
6 —consecutive road losses for Kansas.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Aaib Talib. After coming for a
Talib
two-game suspension earlier in the season, the sophomore cornerback is having the best season of anyone in Kansas' secondary. Talib has two interce
tions, to go along with 21 tackles. If Kansas is going to have a chance on Saturday, Talib must be able to shut down the receivers on his side of the field.
QUESTION MARKS
Will the secondary perform well? Kansas' secondary has been torched for most of the season and that was no exception against Oklahoma State. Talib said the defense had made bridges this week towards fixing their problems. He better be right or else Baylor's offense could have a field day against Kansas' struggling defense.
TRAVELING TROUBLES Kansas looking for a road victory
KANSAS VS. BAYLOR 2 p.m., Saturday, Waco, Texas, No television, 105.9 FM
Kansas
Offense
The return of Kerry Meier to the starting lineup also marked a better performance by Kansas' offense. With Meier back, the offense seemed to more in synch. With a healthy Cornish as well, this weekend's game might be the most complete the offense has been since the opening game. The key for Kansas this week is continuing to keep the pressure on Baylor while holding a lead. In the past few weeks, Kansas has gotten conservative on offense and that has hurt them down the stretch. Kansas must keep its foot on the gas if it wants to snap its four-game losing streak.
Defense
Kansas' defense has been beaten and bruised through the air in the past few weeks. The passing problems aren't exclusively with the secondary, but also relate to a lack of a consistent pass rush. In the offense that Baylor runs, which uses the quick passes, getting to the quarterback quickly will be key. If Baylor quarterback Shawn Bell is allowed to stand in the pocket and find an open receiver, he'll make Kansas pay. The good news for the defense is that they still haven't allowed a 100-yard rusher this season.
Momentum
After starting the season 3-1, Kansas now mired in its usual mid-season free fall. The Jayhawks have dropped their last two games in similar fashion — build a lead, then watch it crumble. In their final five games, the team must go at least 3-2 to qualify for a second straight bowl appearance. If this team has any postseason aspirations, they must figure out a way to get a win on Saturday.
Offense
If Oklahoma State can rack up 400-plus passing yards against Kansas, Baylor could threaten 600 yards through the air. The Cowboys' 411 passing yards were double their season average. The Bears are averaging 285.6 passing yards per game, good for second best in the Big 12 and 10th best in the nation. Most impressive about this is that defenses know the pass is coming from Baylor. The Bears are averaging only 18 carries per game for 39.1 yards a contest. An average quarterback throughout his career, senior Shawn Bell is excelling in Baylor's new spread offense. He has completed 63 percent of his passes for 1,928 yards and 13 touchdowns. However, he is prone to turning
Coach Mark Mangino
nique Zeigler and Trent Shelton are a formidable duo at wide receiver. Both are averaging more than five catches per game and Shelton is third in the conference, averaging 85.7 yards per game. He leads Bavlor with five receiving touchdowns.
the ball over,with eight interceptions.Seniors Domi-
Ryan Schneider
BBB
Defense
Defense As good as Baylor's offense has been, the defense hasn't been able to finish strong. In six of seven games this season, the Bears led at halftime, but they managed to lose half of those games. Baylor's defense ranks eighth in the conference in passing defense
rushing defense, total defense, and scoring defense. Of course, a 63-31 loss to Texas last week, in which Baylor surrendered 437 total yards of offense, has a way of skewing the rankings. On paper, the Kansas rushing attack versus the Baylor rushing defense clearly favors Kansas. So, if the Bears can stop the run, they might find the score in their favor at the end of the game.
Momentum
Being Baylor's Homecoming weekend, Floyd Casey Stadium could be louder than it's been all season. However, history isn't exactly in the Bears' favor when it comes to Homecomings. Baylor is 33-36-4 all-time on Homecoming. Like Kansas, Baylor has been in position to win most of the games it has lost. As long as the Bears have gotten over the 32-point shellacking against the Longhorns last week, they should enter this game with all the confidence that they will win. Although the offense may not be forced to punt this week, if it is, Baylor will be able to unleash its not-so-secret weapon in senior punter Daniel Sepulveda. He is averaging 45.2 yards per punt, which is seventh best in the nation.
BU KICKOFF
ATA GLANCE
5 QUICK FACTS
This will be the eighth meeting all-time between Baylor and Kansas and the Bears lead the series 4-3 and are undefeated at home against the Jayhawks. Baylor received its first conference loss last week, a 63-31 pounding at the hands of Texas. The Bears gave the Longhorns an early scare, though,jumping out to a 10-0 lead after the first quarter. In fact, Colorado was the only opponent Baylor trailed after the first quarter and Texas was the only opponent that Baylor trailed going into halftime. But, like the Jayhawks, the Bears have struggled to preserve leads.
0 — games senior punter Daniel Sepulveda missed after tearing his ACL last April.
3 — victories Baylor has against Kansas at home in three games.
8 — consecutive losses Baylor has in Homecoming games.
72. 4 — penalty yards against Baylor per game; Baylor's opponents are also averaging 72.4 yards per game in penalties.
118 — Division 1A schools, out of 119; ahead of Baylor in rushing yards per game.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Shown Shroyer
Senior cornerback C.J. Wilson.
Wilson
Wilson is not only one of the best quotes in the Big 12, he's one of the top cornerbacks the conference has to offer. His
biggest competition for both honors will be on the opposite sideline in Kansas sophomore cornerback Aqib Talib. Wilson leads Baylor and is tied for the conference lead with four interceptions. However, of the two players he's tied with, Wilson is the only one who has returned one for a touchdown.
QUESTION MARKS
Will Trent Shelton get tired? The senior wide receiver enters Saturday's game with nearly identical per-game stats to those Adarius Bowman had before he played Kansas last week. Baylor is a better passing team than Oklahoma State, so it could be a busy day for Shelton.
NATIONAL GAMES OF INTEREST
No. 5 Texas (6-1) at No. 17 Nebraska (6-1), Saturday 11 a.m. on ABC
BY SHAWN SHROYER
if the season ended today, these two teams would meet in the Big 12 Championship. Instead, Nebraska and Texas meet to keep their conference championship aspirations afloat.
Coming off back-to-back road victories in which Nebraska outscored its opponents by a combined 49-17, Nebraska looks to avenge a 27-24 loss to Texas the last time the two teams played in Lincoln. While quarterback Zac Taylor has 14 touchdowns to two interceptions, the Cornhuskers are led by running back Marlon Lucky, Brandon Jackson, Cody Glein, and Kenny Wilson. All four have more than 300 rushing yards and have combined for 18 rushing touchdowns this season.
Since the formation of the Big 12, Texas is 4-0 against Nebraska and the Longhorns lead the all-time series 6-4. Texas hasn't lost to Nebraska since the 1974 Cotton Bowl.
Colorado (1-6) at No. 20 Oklahoma (4-2),
Saturday 6 p.m.
The post-Adrian Peterson era begins Saturday for Oklahoma, while Colorado looks to win consecutive games for the first time since it beat Kansas, Kansas State and Missouri in a three-week span from Oct. 22 to Nov. 5 last season.
Colorado was impressive last week against Texas Tech, earning its first victory of the season. Entering last week, Colorado was the only Big 12 with less than 100 points for the season while Texas Tech was nearing 200. The Buffaloales responded by putting up 30 points and holding the Red Raiders to six.
It's no secret that Oklahoma lost star running back Adrian Peterson for the season last weekend. Quarterback Paul Thompson has played better than expected this season, completing 60.5 percent of his passes for 1,334 yards. With Peterson gone, he will have to be even better.
No. 23 Texas A&M (6-1) at Oklahoma State (4-2), Saturday 6:05 p.m.
The two latest teams to beat Kansas in comeback fashion meet in a Big 12 South battle. Both teams are coming off big wins last week, but won by different means.
Texas A&M played a ranked Missouri team that was averaging 34 points per game and won 25-19. The Aggie defense forced three turnovers in the game, and the offense ran over the Tigers to the tune of 180 rushing yards. Texas A&M is led by juggernaut running back Jorvorskier Lane. Lane is tied for first in the nation with 14 rushing touchdowns on the season.
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Against Kansas, Oklahoma State overcame a 17-0 deficit in the third quarter to win 42-32 by utilizing its passing game. Quarterback Bobby Reid broke the school record for total offense, set by his coach Mike Gundy, with 457 total yards. His main receiving target was wide out Adarius Bowman, who set school and Big 12 records with 300 receiving yards.
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