Nick Krug11 a.m. Memorial Stadium, Lawrence, Kansas — Game-time forecast: 52 degrees, partly cloudy, 0 percent chance for rain, SE winds 9 mph — TV: FOX Sports 1
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1 . Linebackers have to show up
With the loss of defensive tackle Jacky Dezir to injury, the Jayhawks are down to three interior defensive linemen who have played significant snaps. That’s tough against any opponent but particularly difficult against one of the nation’s fastest-moving, most high-powered offenses. The Red Raiders average 80 plays per game and will snap the ball quickly. That gives KU very little time to rest, which will make life difficult for Corey King, Daniel Wise and Kapil Fletcher inside. Because of that, linebackers Schyler Miles, Joe Dineen, Marcquis Roberts, Courtney Arnick and Osaze Ogbebor, along with KU’s cornerbacks and safeties, are going to have to be ready to support the run and get to the quarterback. Because, without a deep rotation, those D-tackles are bound to get worn down quickly. What’s more, if the guys in the middle of the KU defense aren’t sound against the scrambling ability of TTU QB Patrick Mahomes, he could make a run at some yardage records.
2 . Trust their reads
Kansas offensive coordinator Rob Likens said the Texas Tech defense likes to move around to disguise coverages and blitzes and confuse offenses. Unlike a week ago against Baylor, which pretty much lined up in the same defense and basically said, ‘Here we are, come and get us,’ the Red Raiders’ look will be more complicated, which could be especially difficult for freshman quarterback Ryan Willis and his young offense to recognize and adjust to. Because of that, the coaching staff will have to simplify as much as possible, giving the KU offense one or two keys to focus on and then asking them to trust what they’re seeing and execute to the best of their ability. Likens said he wished the NCAA would adopt a rule that says defenses cannot move around after a certain point in the play clock, but since that’s not happening anytime soon, it’ll be up to KU’s youngsters to play the most mature football of their careers today.
3 . Be better on first downs
The Jayhawks are averaging just over 3 yards per play on first down, and Likens believes that number has to improve drastically in order to help KU finish more drives. In addition to its troubles on first down, Kansas has struggled on third-and-short as well, another area that makes finishing drives difficult. Likens said he was generally pleased with his team’s play on third-and-long and on second down. But the Jayhawks have not scored more than 14 points in the past three weeks. If they hope to climb above that number today, against a Texas Tech defense that surrenders 40 points per game to opponents, they’re going to have to find ways to jumpstart drives and convert short third and fourth downs.
Texas Tech WR Jakeem Grant vs. The World
Grant, a 5-foot-7, 168-pound senior from Mesquite, Texas, is the definition of a multi-use weapon. Through six games this season, the Red Raiders wideout has scored a touchdown in four ways. He enters today’s game with 648 receiving yards and four touchdown grabs on 44 receptions and 1,049 all-purpose yards, which ranks sixth in the country. In addition to his four TDs through the air, Grant also has thrown for a touchdown, run for a touchdown and scored a TD on a kickoff return, where he averages 26.3 yards per return and ranks fifth in the nation. No matter where he is on the field, when Grant touches the ball, the Red Raiders average 16.9 yards per play, so it’ll be up to the Kansas defense and special teams, at all levels, to use a gang mentality to try to bottle up Tech’s dynamic play-maker.
Photo Courtesy of NASA1 . Coach Beaty had no problem saying that Texas Tech head coach Kliff Kingsbury is a “good-looking dude.” What do you think of Kingsbury’s Hollywood image?
I’ve got no say on it. I met him at Big 12 media days. He’s a great guy and a great coach, and I’ve heard a lot of good things about him in the world of football, and I’ve got the utmost respect for him.
2 . Speaking of Hollywood, what’s the best football movie of all-time?
Oh, “Friday Night Lights,” no question about it. No question. It’s Texas high school football, baby! You can’t beat it.
3 . What does the KU offense need to do to start finishing more drives and scoring more points?
Nick KrugEstablish the run game. You know, the run game sets up everything. We’ve taken it upon ourselves as an offensive line that we need to do better in that regard, and we’ve really challenged each other to get back to doing what we do best. We want nothing more than our running backs to have 100-yard games.
4 . With true freshman Ryan Willis starting the first game of his career last week — and making start No. 2 today — did the O-line put more of an emphasis on protecting him?
All of the time as an offensive line, you want the guy behind you to be safe. For me, as well as a bunch of other linemen on this team, every time that guy gets hit, it hits you hard, and you think, “That’s my dude. I can’t let that happen. That’s on me.” You immediately re-evaluate what you did. No matter what age or who it is back there, you want to protect him and make sure he doesn’t take any unnecessary hits.
5 . As an offensive lineman, what’s the worst thing that can happen out there? A hold, a false start, giving up a sack, something along those lines?
For me, personally, as the left tackle, it’s your quarterback getting hurt. That’s by far the worst. You have nightmares about it, and you don’t ever want that to happen no matter what level you’re talking about.
Another week brings another high-powered Big 12 offense to face the winless Jayhawks, but you would never know that these guys are struggling this season from watching them at practice. Credit KU coach David Beaty and his staff for keeping their spirits up and emphasizing that it’s not about the result on the scoreboard this season, rather the improvement they make from rep to rep, day to day and week to week. Finding an argument for a KU victory the rest of the way is tough to do, but it becomes even tougher when considering the number of significant injuries that have plagued this team already. Some of the injured players have returned, but are playing at far less than 100 percent. Such a reality only makes life tougher for Beaty and company, which enters today as a 30-plus-point underdog for the second week in a row.
KU run game vs. Texas Tech run D — edge: Texas Tech
KU pass game vs. Texas Tech pass D — edge: Texas Tech
Texas Tech run game vs. KU run D — edge: Texas Tech
Texas Tech pass game vs. KU pass D — edge: Texas Tech
Special teams — edge: Texas Tech
Ryan WaggonerKansas Jayhawks (2-4 overall, 0-3 Big 12) at Texas Tech Red Raiders (2-4, 0-3)
2:30 p.m. Jones AT&T Stadium – Game-time forecast: 66 degrees, 0 percent chance of rain, winds 10 mph from the east – TV: FOX Sports Net
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Keys for Kansas
Rushing attack must re-emerge
Ryan WaggonerThe Kansas rushing game has hit a rough patch lately, with the Jayhawks averaging just 78 rushing yards per game over their last two outings. Luckily for KU, this weekend looks like a good time to get right. The Red Raiders have given up an average of 260 yards per game to opponents on the ground this season and also been carved up for 19 rushing touchdowns. Add to that KU’s extra emphasis this week on finishing blocks and not just getting to them, and this could be a good day for Corey Avery, De’Andre Mann, Tony Pierson and the rest of the KU ball-carriers.
Better first half crucial
The Kansas defense has been lights-out in the second half of its past two games, keeping the West Virginia and Oklahoma State offenses scoreless in back-to-back weeks. That’s great, but both teams were staked to big halftime leads. A lot of the onus falls on the offense for at least doing enough in the first and second quarters to keep Kansas close, but senior Michael Reynolds said the KU defense also has plans to elevate its game. Instead of making adjustments at halftime and finishing strong, Reynolds said the defense hopes to lock in a little earlier and make those same adjustments between the first and second quarter to keep the opponents off the scoreboard with a little more regularity in the first half.
Pick your blitzes
The KU defense certainly has shown a desire to be aggressive this season, but interim head coach and defensive coordinator Clint Bowen said earlier this week that the Jayhawks will have to be more fundamentally sound and less wild if they hope to slow down a Red Raiders offense averaging 30 points per game. “They run an offensive system that can put you in some stressful positions,” Bowen said. “They have good athletes at wide receiver. They have a good athlete at running back. They run the ball as much as they throw it. I think it’s the space that they create, the way that they force you to defend the entire field. The quarterback makes a really good decisions. They don’t take sacks. They have a great system in recognizing pressures and blitzes, and the kid gets it out of his hands. It’s hard to hit the quarterback.”
Nick KrugMega Matchup
Kansas wide receivers vs. Texas Tech cornerbacks
If ever there was a game where senior receiver Nick Harwell could make a big-time impact, this might be it. Harwell, now in his fifth season of college football, figures to be covered by Texas Tech cornerbacks who have no more than one full year of college football experience. In fact, six of the eight defensive backs on Tech’s two-deep depth chart are sophomores or younger, including two field corners who, at this point last year, were playing high school football. While Harwell might be most ready to take advantage of that, veterans Nigel King, Tony Pierson and Justin McCay also could become bigger factors. Despite their youth in the secondary, the Red Raiders are giving up just 228 passing yards and less than two passing TDs per game, which drives home the point that KU’s offensive line and quarterback will have to be sharp in order to put the receivers in position to use their wisdom advantage.
5 Questions with Senior Buck Michael Reynolds
1 What’s the hardest part about playing your position?
John Young“For me, it’s really a pretty simple position compared to what Ben (Heeney) and Jake (Love) have to go through at Will and Mike linebacker. I guess it would be understanding passing concepts and stuff like that, things that happen when I’m not just rushing the passer.”
2 Have you guys talked about your 29-game road losing streak much this week?
“No. We haven’t brought it up at all.”
3 You had two sacks, a forced fumble and a quarterback hurry last week vs. Oklahoma State. What got into you?
“I just really knew I could beat the guy across from me, and I just really kept going after it.”
4 What’s been the big key to this defense pitching second-half shutouts in the past two games?
“We just really come together and realize that the second half is the most important because we have to finish the football game. We just come out really fired up and enthused and juiced up, and we make those adjustments from what hurt us in the first half and try to capitalize off of that.”
5 What’s your sack dance/celebration, where did it come from, and does it have a name?
“I don’t know. I usually don’t get one off because my teammates will come near me and push me over real quick or something like that. But I was watching past videos of myself playing, and I just put a couple of things together. There’s no name for it.”
Jayhawk Pulse
For the second week in a row, the Jayhawks took another step forward by battling the 16th-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys to the wire in a 27-20 loss under interim coach Clint Bowen. Since taking over, Bowen has had a clear plan not only for how to move forward the rest of this season but also for the future of Kansas football, whether he’s the guy who leads it or not. Hard work, physicality and smart football are three facets of what Bowen wants Kansas football to be known for, and this team has shown elements of all three throughout the past two games. That fact, along with their general competitiveness and Bowen’s leadership, have the fan base reenergized, and now the challenge is for the Jayhawks to play with those traits from start to finish, which, Bowen said, starts with even more urgency during practices. The Red Raiders have lost four straight and many believe this could be one of just a couple of real chances left on the schedule for Kansas to emerge victorious.
Tale of the Tape
KU run game vs. TTU run D – advantage: Kansas
KU pass game vs. TTU pass D – advantage: Texas Tech
TTU run game vs. KU run D – advantage: Kansas
TTU pass game vs. KU pass D – advantage: Texas Tech
Special teams – Push
