THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2006
SPORTS
3B
BIG 12 FOOTBALL
Opponent coming off loss for second week in a row
BY SHAWN SHROYER
Kansas is coming off a heart-breaking loss for the second-straight week and, once again, so is its upcoming opponent. This time it's Oklahoma State.
Texas A&M fell at the last minute to Texas Tech two weeks ago before beating Kansas in the final minute of last week's game. Oklahoma State comes to Lawrence after a disappointing 31-27 loss at Kansas State.
Despite the tough loss, coach Mike Gundy said he was encouraged because his team was improving on the road.
"We went on the road and played in a packed house and we had a 10-point lead with four minutes left," Gundy said. "We lost the game, but we were in position to win."
Not only is the story line the same this week, but Kansas can also count on seeing an Oklahoma State offense similar to Texas A&M's. Luckily for Kansas, Oklahoma State's defense isn't nearly as stingy as the one the Jayhawks faced last week.
The Cowboys are averaging more than 200 rushing yards and just less than 200 passing yards per game this season behind sophomore quarterback Bobby Reid.
Reid is a threat to run, but is also slowly becoming an effective passer. He has completed 57.9 percent of his passes for 937 yards and 12 touchdowns to four interceptions and is second in the Big 12 in passing efficiency. He is also averaging 35.6 rushing yards per game. Reid struggled last week though, posting only 169 total yards of offense, far short of his 223 total yards per game average.
"The whole ball of wax with him is, OK Bobby, we've asked you to run the football," Gundy said. "You need to run the option and be successful. Put that threat on the defense."
Sophomore running back Mike Hamilton is averaging 6.3 yards per carry and already has three touchdowns this season. He had only one touchdown in 11 games last season. Freshman running back Keith Toston is sharing carries with Hamilton and
averaging 57 rushing vards per game.
Reid's clear favorite receiving target is junior wide out Adarius Bowman. He leads the team with 20 catches – twice as much as the next player on the list – for 443 yards and is tied for the team lead with three touchdown receptions.
Freshman Chris Collins and junior Rodrick Johnson roam the middle from their linebacker spots and have combined for 49 tackles, 28 of which were solo, 6.5 for losses and they have a sack and a fumble recovery a piece
Senior Victor DeGrate and junioris Nathan Peterson and Marque Fountain rotate at defensive end for the Cowboys and all three can wreak havoc on quarterbacks. DeGrate is fourth in the conference with five sacks, Peterson has 3.5 sacks, and Fountain is tied for first in the conference with two forced fumbles.
Despite some Cowboys' individual statistics, they have failed to keep opponents from scoring the last two games. In addition to the 31 points allowed last week, Oklahoma State gave up 34 points to Houston in its previous game and lost. In the Cowboys' first three games, they allowed only 8.3 points per game, and they won all three games.
Oklahoma State is in the bottom half of the Big 12 in every major defensive category, but it does feature five playmakers the Kansas offense will have to beware of.
If the Oklahoma State defense can't return to form to slow down Kansas's offense, the Jayhawks might avoid a nali-biter for the first time since their season opener - which would be a welcome sight to Kansas fans.
Junior free safety Donovan Woods and freshman strong safety Andre Sexton anchor Oklahoma State's secondary. Woods also has two forced fumbles and Sexton leads the team with 25 tackles, 16 of which were solo, and two for losses.
Kansan sportswriter Shawn Shroyer can be contacted at sshroyer@ kansan.com.
Edited by Mindy Ricketts
Jayhawks can still finish strong
SOCCER
Kansas soccer can still end season with good record if team wins last five games
Lacey Novak, Kansas senior midfielder/forward moves past a defender. The Jayhawks have a chance to finish this season with a strong record if they win the rest of their games this season.
BY MARK DENT
KANSAN FILE PHOTO
Mark Francis didn't make any guarantees about how his team would finish this season, but he doesn't expect them to lose.
"If we win our last five games, which we have the ability to do, we'll finish 7-3," the Kansas soccer coach said. "We have everything left to play for."
Kansas (7-6, 2-3) will start its stretch run this weekend when it plays at Iowa State and at Missouri.
Francis' optimism about the rest of the year stems from the Jayhawks' 1-0 overtime loss to the Texas A&M Aggies on Sunday. Kansas outplayed A&M for most of the game, and held the highest-scoring offense in the Big 12 scoreless until the game-winner 94 minutes into the game.
"I think we definitely dominated this game," junior defender Afton Sauer said. "If that's the best team and we can hold up with them, it's a positive for us."
"Julie (Hanley) and the defense are doing a good job," Francis said. "We just gotta take care of the other end of the field."
A real positive for Kansas would be finishing in the top three in the Big 12. Francis said if his team did win out, they would have a better conference record than last season's Jayhawks, who finished second. Parity in the Big 12 could also help Kansas, Texas A&M (6-0) and Oklahoma State (6-1) stand atop the conference, but the six teams below them, including the Jayhawks, are within two games of each other.
Seeing the opportunity of finishing strongly is easy, but actually winning five games in a row, that could be difficult. Kansas has not
The Cyclones (6-9, 2-3) could provide the cure for the Jayhawks'
allowed more than one goal in the last seven games, but its record in those games is only 3-4. The Jayhawks haven't won back-to-back games since a three-game winning streak from Sept. 3 to Sept. 10. Offensive woes are the main reason for the maddening inconsistency. Kansas hasn't scored more than one goal since Sept. 17 and is last in the Big 12 in goals scored.
offensive woes when the two teams kickoff Friday at 7 p.m. Iowa State gave up nine goals earlier this year to Notre Dame and has allowed the third most goals of any team in the Big 12. The four goals Oklahoma scored against Iowa State last weekend also make the Cyclones an appealing opponent for the Jayhawks.
Missouri (8-6, 0-5) is reeling after starting out non-conference play with seven straight victories. Like the Cyclones, the Tigers don't defend well. They allow more goals than any team in the conference except the Sooners. Last year,
Kansas defeated Missouri 3-2 in double overtime on Senior Day at the Jayhawk Soccer Complex.
Francis said the two weekend games were must wins, but sophomore midfielder Kristin Graves wasn't worried about any added pressure.
"It doesn't matter what game it is or who's playing," Graves said. "Every game is a must win."
Kansan sportswriter Mark Dent can be contacted at mdent@kansan.com.
-Edited by Brett Bolton