The KU secondary was its own worst enemy Saturday in the 42-32 loss against Oklahoma State. However you slice it, there’s no getting away from the truth – the secondary played poorly.
The Cowboys scored all 42 points in the second half. Kansas actually led, 14-0, at halftime.
So what happened?
Answer: Oklahoma State quarterback Bobby Reid and wide receiver Adarius Bowman could not be stopped. With sophomore cornerback Aqib Talib doing an effective job guarding OSU receiver D’Juan Woods most of the game, Reid picked apart the rest of the KU secondary to the tune of 411 yards and six total touchdowns.
What might be even more eye-opening was Bowman’s dominance. The receiver finished the game with 13 receptions for 300 yards and four touchdowns. No, this was not a video game. This was actually reality.
“We hardly contested him, I’ll be honest with you,” Mangino said of Bowman. “I think he ended up with what, 300 yards today? He gets my vote for the Heisman.”
Mangino said the secondary needed more players to step up aside from Talib.
“We played very very poorly in pass defense,” Mangino said. “I was trying to find a better term to sugarcoat it, but I can’t. Aqib Talib made plays, but he’s one-eleventh of the unit. We’re going to need a little more than that in the pass defense.”
Oklahoma State had 603 yards of total offense on Saturday.
Senior running back Jon Cornish came out of the game in the fourth quarter. Although it wasn’t evident that Cornish was injured, Mangino said he would be ready for next week’s game against Baylor. Freshman running back Jake Sharp filled in for Cornish. Sharp responded, with a 27-yard carry and a 15-yard pass reception.
“I made the most of it while I was in there,” Sharp said. “But it’s a team thing. I would rather definitely not be in there and have a victory today.”
Freshman quarterback Kerry Meier returned for the first time in three games on Saturday. He completed 15-of-27 passes for 187 yards and three touchdowns. Roughly 60 of those passing yards came on the last possession, with the game well in hand. Meier also rushed for 70 yards.
“Kerry played well enough for us to win the game, if we had taken care of the rest of our business,” Mangino said.
Meier said despite the defense’s performance, he and the team had to bounce back as a team.
“It was just mistakes throughout the game that hurt us,” Meier said. “Anytime you make mistakes throughout the game, it’s going be trouble to win that ballgame. There’s a lot of season ahead of us. We just have to stay positive.”
End of regulation
Oklahoma State ran the ball for the rest of the game to run out the clock.
Freshman quarterback Kerry Meier found wide receiver Dexton Fields for an 8-yard touchdown with 1:22 left in the final quarter. Kansas still trailed Oklahoma State at this point, 42-32. The drive took five plays, went 62 yards, and lasted 56 seconds
Bobby Reid found D’Juan Woods for another OSU touchdown. Oklahoma State led Kansas, 42-25 with 2:27 left in the game. Reid was 23-of-35 for 411 yards and five touchdowns.
Oklahoma State quarterback Bobby Reid was 22-of-33 for 386 yards and four touchdown passes. Reid also ran for a separate score.
Oklahoma State might have sealed the game on the following possession. Linebacker Patrick Lavine picked off a Kerry Meier pass at the Oklahoma State 40-yard line. There was 5:50 left in the fourth quarter.
Oklahoma State made no secret to who its go-to receiver was on offense. Adarius Bowman was simply having a field day against the KU secondary. After McAnderson’s score, Reid found Bowman for a 64-yard touchdown pass down the right sideline. Bowman added to his record-setting day against the KU secondary. He had 13 catches for 300 yards and four touchdowns with 6:56 left in the fourth quarter. Kansas trailed Oklahoma State, 35-25.
Freshman quarterback Kerry Meier found Derek Fine in the endzone for the two-point conversion. Kansas trailed by a field goal, 28-25, with 7:43 left in the fourth quarter.
“After that momentum, anytime you score to get that two-point conversion to get it back to a reasonable ballgame, you’ve got to think the momentum is with us,” Meier said. “I felt like it was. We were moving the ball and doing the things we wanted. But we stalled out, and that was it.”
Junior fullback Brandon McAnderson scored on an 11-yard touchdown run. He ran over an OSU defender at the end of the run, dove, and extended the football into the endzone. Kanas lined up like it was going for a two-point conversion, but then called timeout. Kansas trailed, 28-23.
Freshman running back Jake Sharp made his first appearance in the game on the drive. Sharp made immediate impact, notching a 27-yard run, and catching a 15-yard pass.
Marcus Herford took the next kickoff inside the OSU-30 yard line. However, Kansas couldn’t generate points on the drive. Junior kicker Scott Webb had his field goal attempt blocked.
Adarius Bowman struck again for this third touchdown of the half. OSU quarterback Bobby Reid found Bowman wide open in the middle of the field for a 55-yard touchdown. It wasn’t really a long pass. Bowman ran about 40 yards for the score against a seemingly vacant KU defense. At this point in the game, Bowman had 12 receptions for 236 yards and three touchdowns. Bowman set the record for the most individual receiving yards against the KU defense. Reid amassed the 300-yard plateau and had four total touchdowns.
Fourth Quarter
Kansas failed to capitalize on its next possession as well. Webb missed short and to the left on a 49-yard field goal attempt.
The KU defense could not seem to stop the OSU tandem of Bobby Reid and Bowman on Saturday. Reid connected with Bowman for his second touchdown of the day on a 25-yard strike near the left corner of the end zone. Bowman has torched Kansas for 11 receptions, 181 yards and two touchdowns.
Kansas appeared to be out of sync on offense after Oklahoma State recovered the onside kick. The Jayhawks went three-and-out on their next possession. Junior Kyle Tucker’s punt went out of bounds on the Oklahoma State 44-yard line.
Oklahoma State quarterback Bobby Reid cut the lead to 17-14 when he ran for a 29-yard touchdown run with 7:17 left in the third quarter. Reid tiptoed down the right sideline and cut it back toward the middle of the field near the 5-yard line. He then pushed KU defenders for five more yards and the touchdown. Reid had 44 yards rushing at this point in the game.
After the touchdown, Oklahoma State continued to gain momentum when kicker Bruce Redden recovered his own onside kick. Oklahoma State took over on its own 47-yard line.
“I think it caught everybody off guard,” Meier said of the onside kick. “If it didn’t catch us off guard, we would have grabbed it. Their offense played very well today. They’re one of the more powerful offenses in the Big 12.”
The Cowboys finally capitalized and put up points from a long drive. Reid found receiver Adarius Bowman for a 54-yard touchdown with 8:19 left in the third quarter. Reid fit the pass in between two KU defenders. Bowman outran the KU secondary down the left sideline for the score. Bowman has had a huge game to this point, accounting for nine receptions, 146 yards and a touchdown.
After the fumble, Kansas ran six plays and drove 34 yards. Webb split the uprights on a 43-yard field goal with 10:46 left in the third quarter. The field goal was Webb’s longest on the season. Kansas led, 17-0.
Oklahoma State had lost only three fumbles all season. The Cowboys have lost three today. Oklahoma State lost its third fumble of the game when quarterback Bobby Reid attempted a quarterback sneak on a third-and-1. Freshman defensive back Justin Thornton recovered the ball for Kansas.
Halftime
Despite the Jayhawks having the lead, the Cowboys have considerably outgained them on offense. Oklahoma State has 211 yards of total offense to KU’s 135. OSU receiver Adarius Bowman has seven receptions for 81 yards at halftime. The two OSU fumbles in its own territory was the primary reason for the defecit.
Sophomore cornerback Aqib Talib made his second interception of the year on the next Oklahoma State drive. Reid went deep, looking for D’Juan Woods. Talib leaped up and intercepted the ball in the endzone. It marked the end of the first half.
Oklahoma State went for the touchdown on 4th-and-goal from the KU 2-yard line. Reid rolled out of the pocket and had an open receiver. However, he underthrew the ball, and it hit the turf in front of the receiver. KU took over on downs from its own 2-yard line.
On Oklahoma State’s next possession, it responded by six consecutive plays that gained positive yardage. The most notable included a 21-yard pass from quarterback Bobby Reid to wide receiver Adarius Bowman, a 15-yard pass to Bowman, and a 19-yard pass to tight end Brandon Pettigrew.
Senior defensive lineman Wayne Wilder sacked Reid at the Cowboys 1-yard line. Oklahoma State punted to senior wide receiver Jonathan Lamb, who returned the ball to the OSU 47-yard line. That was the third consecutive time KU has started a drive in OSU territory.
Freshman quarterback Kerry Meier found junior tight end Derek Fine on a 4-yard touchdown pass. Fine ran a simple route from his position, coming off the line of scrimmage and rolling out to the right. Meier found him in perfect stride and KU led 14-0 with 14:09 remaining in the first quarter. Meier had two touchdown passes on the day.
Second quarter
On a 4th-and-3 from its own 31-yard line, Kansas went for the first down. Meier found senior wide receiver Brian Murph on a 13-yard slant route for the first down. Meier then had two runs from the shotgun formation. The end of the first quarter saw Kansas with a first-and-goal opportunity from the OSU 7-yard line.
Oklahoma State running back Keith Toston fumbled on the second consecutive OSU possession. Senior defensive end Paul Como forced the fumble, and freshman linebacker Arist Wright recovered on the OSU 38-yard line. Kansas would start its second consecutive drive in OSU territory.
It only took Kansas two plays to score the first points of the game after the forced fumble. Meier threw a strike to an open Marcus Herford, who beat his man down the middle of the field. The 33-yard touchdown was Meier’s seventh passing touchdown of the season. Kansas led Oklahoma State, 7-0, with 4:19 remaining in the first quarter.
Senior defensive end James McClinton forced Oklahoma State running back Keith Toston to fumble during a run through the tackles. Freshman Anthony Webb recovered on the OSU 30-yard line.
Oklahoma State started to move down the field when Reid ran for 12 yards and a first down. Reid also found Adarius Bowman for an 11-yard completion. Kansas held Oklahoma State to a punt, though. The Jayhawks went three-and-out on the next possession. Meier tried to improvise on a running play, but ran too far horizontally and lost 10 yards. Oklahoma State received the punt on its own 22-yard line. There was 5:48 left in the first quarter.
When faced with a 4th-and-1 from its own 46-yard line, Kansas lined up like it was going for it. However, it was trying to entice Oklahoma State to jump offsides. A delay of game penalty on the Jayhawks pushed them back five yards. Junior punter Kyle Tucker pinned the Cowboys on their own 10-yard line with a 43-yard punt.
Senior running back Jon Cornish took his first carry 35 yards around the left end. Kansas currently has the ball on its own 46-yard line.
Kansas held Oklahoma State to a three-and-out on its first possession. Senior wide receiver Brian Murph mistakenly let the OSU punt drop on the following play. It resulted in a 71-yard punt.
Preview
The Jayhawks will look to snap a two-game losing streak today when they take on the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
Freshman quarterback Kerry Meier will get the nod at quarterback. Senior Adam Barmann started under center for the previous three weeks, and proved to be effective at times. He threw for 405 yards and two touchdowns on the road against Nebraska. Kansas coach Mark Mangino mantained that Meier would still be his starter.
Meier’s inexperience has shown (seven interceptions in three games), but he has also shown flashes of being a dual threat (six touchdown passes, four touchdown runs). KU’s offense has also focused on the power running game of senior running back Jon Cornish, who has rushed for at least 100 yards in five of six games this season.
Oklahoma State will play its third consecutive road game today. It lost its previous two to Houston and Kansas State. The Cowboys have only won on the road against the Arkansas State Indians. Oklahoma State has not won a Big 12 game this year. On special teams, Kansas will want to keep an eye on Perrish Cox, who is ranked ninth in the nation on average punt returns (17.2). He also averages 41.6 yards per kick return.
