KANSAN.COM / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2010 / SPORTS
5B
UTHERN MISS 31
BALL REWIND
Senior wide receiver Johnathan Wilson holds on to a catch for a first down. Kansas lost to Southern Miss 31-16
Mike Gunnoe/KANSAN
Mike Gunnoe/KANSAN
Southern Miss quarterback Austin Davis breaks free for a first down. The Jayhawks lost falling to 1-2 overall for the season
Mike Gunnoe/KANSAN
Junior linebacker Steven Johnson misses a tackle in the first quarter against Southern Miss Friday.
Quote of the Game
"Some of it was probably us, and some of it was a little Jordan. We were making our calls from the sideline and from upstairs and sometimes we were waiting too long to get the plays in. So some of that was we as coaches fault as far as when the clock was running down."
— Coach Ternor Gill, on miscommunication between the coaching staff and freshman quarterback Jordan Webb
Game Balls
3. Freshman running back Deshaun Sands: Sands rebounded nicely after missing last week with a leg injury. The son of former Jayhawk great Tony Sands ran the ball eight times for 34 yards and scored the only meaningful Kansas touchdown on an eight yard carry in the third quarter.
2. Senior strong safety Philip Strozier: Sure, it came on a hanging pass from a Southern Miss wide receiver, but Strozier's interception in the first quarter was impressive nevertheless. The one-armed grab would not have been possible if Strozier did not run full speed to the wide-open target.
1. Junior tight end Tim Biere:Biere showed off the amazing hands his teammates have said he has when he snagged a wild 25 yard pass from freshman quarterback Jordan Webb over a defender on an important third-and-nine play.
Delay of Games
3. Senior running back Angus Quigley:Quigley rushed one time for five yards and whiffed on a key block that allowed Webb to be steam-rolled by a Southern Miss defender. He seems to be the odd man out in the backfield.
2. Freshman quarterback Jordan Webb: Awareness was an issue all night for Webb, who seemed complacent when the play clock neared zero. The coaching staff took multiple timeouts to avoid delay of game penalties. Webb ran hard all night, but his inability to evade the sack and unawareness when it comes to the play clock burned the lahwacks
1. Kansas special teams: While the blocked punt near the end of the first half was not entirely senior punter Alonso Rojas' fault, it was the second blocked punt in three games for the Kansas special teams unit. They also botched a snap on an extra point attempt that would have brought the Jayhawks within 14 points.
Play of the Game
With the score still a respectable 14-3 late in the first half, the Kansas offense stalled deep in their own territory. Then, disaster struck for the second time in three weeks. The punting squelld another blocked punt to freshman cornerback Deron Wilson who returned it for a touchdown to make the score an embarrassing 21-3. The play was one of many embarrassing gaffes on national television.
Game Notes
THE GLASS IS HALF FULL ...
Webb and freshman running back James Sims protected the ball well, and the Jayhawks did not commit a turnover on offense.
THE GLASS IS HALF EMPTY ...
The Jayhawks did not commit any turnovers because they never took any risks. Their constant line of scrimmage screen passes were an infuriating sign that the team does not trust Webb, the supposedly cannon-armed quarterback. When the team finally did take a shot downfield they scored immediately on a 41 yard pass to senior wide receiver Johnathan Wilson. The coaching staff is too conservative to score in this league.
BIGGEST ANSWER
Senior cornerback Chris Wilson played well, covering his assignments and notching his second sack of the season early in the third quarter. When Wilson blitzes, good things seem to happen.
STILL QUESTIONING
The defense once again produced mixed returns. Against the Southern Miss spread offense, they only allowed 34 yards to stud junior receiver DeAndre Brown. The run defense took a major step back one week after tying up Georgia Tech's triple option offense last week – the Golden Eagles' junior quarterback Austin Davis rushed nine times for 61 yards and a touchdown.
LOOKING AHEAD
GOOD, BAD OR JUST PLAIN STUPID
Original prediction: Kansas 27, Southern Miss 21. Actual score: Southern Miss 31, Kansas 16. Another week, another incorrect prediction. By definition, this team has to be called unpredictable, but that is starting to become a bad thing. Southern Miss ran the ball much more than expected and the Kansas defensive line was not ready. It's hard to predict games with special teams play as inconsistent as the Jayhawks.
New Mexico State is next on tap for the Jayhawks at Memorial Stadium this Saturday. The Aggies (0-2) have allowed at least 40 points in each of their first two contests and rank 102nd in the FCS in overall rushing yards. Nothing is a guarantee for this Jayhawks team, but they should be able to win against the uninspiring Aqie offense.
FINAL THOUGHT ...
Whether it was the fault of the coaches or the quarterback, Kansas looked disjointed all evening against the Golden Eagles and their mostly docile audience. Southern Miss could not even sell out a nationally televised game but the offense still looked flustered. Performing so poorly against a spread offense is a bad omen for a team readying for Big 12 play.
Matt Galloway
Schedule
Date Opponent Result/Time
9/4 vs. North Dakota State L, 6-3
9/11 vs. Georgia Tech W, 28-6
09/17 at Southern Miss 7 p.m.
09/25 vs. New Mexico State 6 p.m.
10/02 at Baylor TBA
10/14 vs. Kansas State 6:30 p.m.
10/23 vs. Texas A&M (Homecoming) TBA
10/30 at Iowa State TBA
11/06 vs. Colorado TBA
11/13 at Nebraska TBA
11/20 vs. Oklahoma State TBA
11/27 vs. Missouri TBA