UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN - SPECIAL SECTION Thursday, December 7, 1995
3C
THE OPPONENT Kansas football coach Glen Mason says he knows little about foe
Bruins bring balanced rush, pass offense
By Robert Sinclair Kansan sportswriter
Perhaps it was Kansas football coach Glen Mason who best summed up the feelings of the nation when it came to the UCLA football team.
"I know they beat Southern Cal, and Southern Cal is about as talented a football team as there is," he said of Kansas' Jeep-Eagle Aloha Bowl opponent. "I know they had some injuries some place during the year. Other than that, I don't know that much about them."
Although the Bruins are 7-4, including a 4-4 record in the Pacific 10 Conference, they didn't receive much national recognition until a 24-20 victory against USC, the Pac-10 champions, on Nov. 18.
Nevertheless, UCLA did finish with a winning record and does possess the conference's leading rusher. Ironically though, he is actually better known for his name than
for his abilities
"I know that they have a notable tail-back," said Kansas senior outside linebacker Keith Rodgers. "He's not the actual Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, though."
Not to be confused with the basketball player of a similar name, junior running back Karim Abdul-Jabbar finished the season with 1,419 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns.
He also averaged 141.9 yards a game during his 10-game season, even though the running back was one of the injuries Mason referred to, spraining his right ankle on UCLA's first offensive play in a 38-14 loss against Washington on Nov. 11.
UCLA freshman quarterback Cade McNown is someone else who played a key role in the Bruins' success. He not only passed for 1,577 yards and four touchdowns but also rushed for 302 yards and five touchdowns.
Only the second freshman Bruin quarterback to start against USC, McNown led UCLA to touchdowns on their first three possessions in the Pac-10 showdown. McNown also had one of the plays of the game on a third and 13 from the UCLA 29-yard line. He scrambled for 21 yards and sealed the victory.
Matt Flickner / KANSAN
Kansas senior quarterback Mark Williams led the Jayhawk offensive attack this season and will continue into the Aloha Bowl on Dec. 25. It will be his last game as a Jayhawk.
However, McNown isn't the leading passer on the team. He even ranks behind sophomore wide receiver Jim McEliroy who completed all of his pass attempts — all one of them, which happened to be for a 35-vard touchdown.
When he isn't tossing passes, McElroy is hauling them in. He had 403 yards and two touchdowns for the year. The team's leading receiver, though, is senior flanker Kevin Jordan who had 539 yards passing and two touchdowns.
Looking at the numbers — for example: 25 rushing touchdowns vs. eight passing — it is easy to see that UCLA relies on its running game. The defense also fared better against the run than it did against the pass.
However, the team was only ranked sixth and eighth, respectively, in the Pac-10.
Led by junior strong safety Abdul McCullough's 70 tackles, the Bruins still gave up 389.3 yards and 22 points a game.
In fact, the only other person besides Abdul-Jabbar who had a notable year was UCLA football coach Terry Donahue.
"They're going to be a very formidable opponent," he said.
Donahue, a former Kansas assistant coach, set a new Pac-10 record for victories with his 98th win coming against USC. His 8-3-1 bowl record also ranks No. 2 in NCAA history among coaches with at least 11 bowl appearances.
Even with this in mind, Donahue knows that his team needs to play well on Christmas Day to be successful against the Jayhawks.
Who's the best?
Rating the Aloha Bowl opponents
$ \surd $ = that team's advantage
L. T. Levine and June Henley are a powerful combination.
As a senior, Mark Williams has needed experience. The young line has played surprisingly well this season
OFFENSE
Isaac Byrd and Ashaunal Smith averaged 105 yds/g.
Linebackers had to pick up slack where line dropped off.
Running backs Quarterback Offensive line Receivers
Keith Rodgers leads a talented linebacking corps.
Dorian Brow is All-Big Eight with 4 INTs and a touchdown.
Darrin Simmons was the nation's sixth-best punter.
New offensive philosophy has opened up the Kansas attack and translated into more points scored and yards gained.
Coordinator Mike Hankwitz and secondary coach David Gibba have turned the Kansas defense around.
DEFENSE
Karim Abdul-Jabbar is the leading rusher in the Pac-10.
Cade McNown is a freshman but scrambles well.
Left tackle Jonathan Ogden is a Lombardi and Outland finalist.
Kevin Jordan broke J.J. Stokes' career reckonment.
Defensive line Linebackers Secondary Special teams
*George Kase* had 15 tackles for a loss, fifth in the Pac-10.
*Abdul McCullough* is eighth in Pac-10 with 8.7 tackles/g.
Pass defense was eighth in the Pac-10 with only 8 INTs.
*Paul Guildry* had two long punt returns for 70 and 75 yards.
COACHING
Defense
Offense
Kansas could take advantage of UCLA's weak pass defense, but the Bruins stop the run well.
Defeating rival USC without leading rusher abul-Jabbar was a great accomplishment for coordinator Bob Toledo.
KANSAS> This season's success was expected by team's experienced members
Jayhawks surprise detractors but not team's senior players
By Spencer Duncan
Kansan sportswriter
When fall practice began for the Kansas football team, most predictions were dismal — unless you were one of a select 15 players.
Kansas football coach Glen Mason said these 15 players had more heart then he has seen in a long time and even called them his saviors. Whatever you call them, one thing is certain — the 15 seniors helped launch the Kansas football program into the national spotlight.
"It's always hard to have a good season unless your seniors are playing well, and I can't complain," Mason said. "They've really been playing some good football."
But in the end, with a three-way second-place tie in the Big Eight, a 9-2 record and an invitation to the Aloha Bowl, Kansas football players got the last laugh.
Early predictions for the team's season were mostly 5-6 or 5-5. Many considered the Jayhawks lucky if they could finish fifth in the Big Eight Conference.
And the Jayhawk seniors laughed loudest.
"We wanted the fans' respect." Kansas
SENIOR SURPRISE: A special tribute to the Jayhaws' starting pages *Page 4-8C*.
senior defensive back Dorian Brew said. "And for the critics, we wanted to shut them up."
The Jayhawks earned respect by finishing with nine wins, the most since the Orange Bowl team of 1968. With a win in the Aloha Bowl, the team could record Kansas' first 10-win season since 1905.
"We have a chance to make history, and I want to be a part of that," Kansas senior outside linebacker Keith Rodgers said. "There are something like 108 teams in Division I, and only a few of those get to go to a bowl game. It's a great honor."
Many of this year's seniors also have a chance to return to Hawaii for the second time in their collegiate careers. In 1992, these players were freshmen on a team that finished the season 8-4 with a 23-20 win against Brigham Young University in the Aloha Bowl.
"It's nice to go back," Rodgers said. "We deserve to go to a bowl game, and it was fun in 1992."
While the seniors are experienced in traveling to a bowl game, none of the other players on the team are. That means the seniors have an extra job of keeping the rest of the team focused.
"I try to set an example," said Brew, who was also an All-Big Eight Conference selection this year. "You just have to be a leader."
Rodgers said, "A lot of guys haven't even traveled this far before. For people who went in '92, it's up to us to help the younger players with the added pressures and staying focused."
In the end, however, this senior class has a deep desire to be remembered for leading one of the better teams in school history. Also, there are some seniors who hope that a win on Dec. 25 in Hawaii can start a long winning tradition at Kansas.
“It’s something that’s happened only one other time, so not too many people can say they have done that,” Kansas senior inside linebacker Dick Holt said of a 10-win season. “Especially at Kansas, we don't have a long line of bowl teams. Hopefully, well get that started this year, and there will be some guys next year who can say they went to three.”
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