**5:58 p.m.**: Mark Mangino and players kept things brief during postgame press sessions, noting that the team had been at the stadium since 7:30 a.m.It was funny, though, because there were some interesting insights given to what went on during the delays.**-Mangino pointed out that this was the first time** he had ever been through a delay-ridden game like this. Instead of over-strategizing, he basically told his players to just chill. Some slept, some listened to iPods, some read. Seemed pretty ‘Tuesday night at the library’ in the locker room.**-During the second delay, a 30-minute break due to lightning,** Mangino had some breakfast bars and fruit brought in to replenish his guys, who otherwise would not have had a chance to eat until almost 6 p.m. after eating a team breakfast at roughly 8 a.m.**-Seemingly lost in the mix** is the fact that KU is now bowl eligible for the fourth time in five years. What once seemed like a momentous occasion for the KU football program this year was almost forgot about. That should tell you something about how improved the squad is from just a year ago.**-Don’t expect Kerry Meier** to take over as the full-time punter. Mangino basically pin-pointed Kyle Tucker’s struggles as ‘a slump.’**-At the same time, don’t expect Todd Reesing** to be a full-time gunner on punt coverage, which he did a couple of times today when Meier punted. It was mere trickery, but the position is something Reesing took great pride in, and he even broke down his success in his attempts as a gunner afterwards.**-Mangino’s best quip in the postgame was** comparing the game’s length to that of a hockey game, with a pair of intermissions. At the same time, it was something the sixth-year head coach said he was not in a hurry to go through again.Had fun today, hope you did too. Talk to you Monday morning.**4:54 p.m.**: I can’t say I see the point in KU going for it on fourth-and-five inside the Baylor 20 with under four minutes to play. There’s no need for it. But, then again, it’s not my decision to make.The play worked, with Kerry Meier rolling left and picking up seven yards. He scored a few plays later. Another ho-hum 50-yard KU performance. It certainly wasn’t picture perfect, but KU did again what it did in the season’s first four weeks – soundly put away and inferior opponent.I’ll be back after postgame interviews with some nuggets from outside the locker room. See you in a few.**4:42 p.m.**: The only remaining headscratcher is why KU’s first team defense is still in the game. Mangino lifted KU’s starting offense on its last possession, but the defense is still in, even though Baylor is on its third quarterback of the day.The only offensive starters remaining for KU with under seven-and-a-half minutes to go are a couple of offensive linemen.Of note, Angus Quigley made his KU debut on this Jayhawk possession. He took his first couple of carries for 13 yards. He has apparently jumped Carmon Boyd-Anderson on the depth chart, though CB-A did dress out today.**4:17 p.m.**: I was hoping just once today that we could see the track speed of David Gettis on display for Baylor. It came in the third quarter in the form of a 97-yard touchdown on a kick return.He made Raymond Brown, one of the Jayhawks’ fastest athletes, actually look slow for a moment, burning by him on the sidelines.Didn’t matter much, though, as KU is running away, up 31 points after three quarters.-Also worth mentioning was Marcus Henry’s 54-yard touchdown.In the press box, we were discussing how his three drops so far in the game to that point could have been a mental thing that was just snowballing. He then was able to shake some press coverage on a quick slant and go 54 yards for a TD.That play could turn out to be big for Henry, who had 355 receiving yards in the season’s first three games, but has disappeared since. He hasn’t caught a ball other than that one, but it might work as a springboard.**3:49 p.m.**: Of course there’s no such thing as throwing in the towel officially in college football, but Baylor just yanked Blake Szymanski in favor of junior transfer Ryan Roberts, who hasn’t played in a live college game in over a year.The first possession for Roberts wasn’t all that great, but he did do something Szymanski had had trouble with the rest of the afternoon – he didn’t throw a pick.Either way, the prospects of Baylor registering any more points today are looking slimmer by the moment.**3:29 p.m.**: Something key today for KU is that the Jayhawks have proven they can pull away from an opponent even when Todd Reesing is not at his best.The sophomore QB is 8-of-18 for 86 yards and one score. True, he really hasn’t had to do a ton because of the great field position KU was given late in the game, but the defense and running game are what really has gotten the team in position for its sixth win through one half.**3:05 p.m.**: The key so far has been the fact that Baylor got inside the KU 10-yard line three times in the first half, and it netted just three points.KU’s defense came to play, and a late pick by Chris Harris in the first half set them up with yet _another_ chance for points before the break.No one really expected Baylor to hang with KU from start to finish, but the Jayhawks have done an excellent job of going for the jugular with every opportunity.And if you weren’t paying attention, Brandon McAnderson just went 15 yards for his seventh touchdown of the season on a play that looked to be a halfback pass. Instead, McAnderson semi-highstepped into the end zone. 31-3 with :43 left in the half, this one is done.**2:58 p.m.**: Kerry Meier’s second punt was a coffin-cornered 38-yarder which set Baylor up at its own six-yard line.The special teams changes continued, as Anthony Webb fielded Baylor’s second punt of the day.**2:48 p.m.**: KU has finally woken up offensively, thanks to an infusion of life from Jake Sharp and Dezmon Briscoe.One area of concern was exposed again, though, on special teams.After Kyle Tucker had five rough punts a week ago and two more short attempts today, Kerry Meier came in to attempt KU’s third punt of the game.His debut was a flop, though, as his punt from his own 10-yard line squibbed out of bounds at the KU 25. Yep, a 15-yard netter. I wouldn’t sell him short _just_ yet. He was an all-state punter in high school, has a proven strong leg and is an all-around solid athlete. Might have been the nerves.**1:51 p.m.**: If there’s one guy who deserved a little bit of revenge against Baylor, it’s Marcus Herford, who dropped a key pass a year ago against the Bears in a 36-35 loss, and then nearly got Brian Murph killed on an overthrown pass on a trick play.He showed off his electrifying speed with his 88-yard kick return for a touchdown, making it 10-3 KU.In a bit of unintentional comedy, right after Scott Webb’s extra point sailed through, a loud crash of lightning filled the air. The fans seemed to think it may have been orchestrated as a canon boom or something, as it drew a loud applause. Though moments later, after a lightning strike nearby, the game was brought into a weather delay.Yes, another weather delay.See you in 30 minutes or so, I guess.**1:41 p.m.**: We were worrying about Todd Reesing’s ability to grip a wet ball during the pregame chatter. Who would have thought that early on, the problem would be the receivers not being able to _catch_ the wet ball. Marcus Henry has two drops early on, and Dexton Fields – KU’s most reliable possession guy – had a tough grab fall from his fingers as well. Henry’s second drop led KU to have to attempt a 27-yard field goal, which was good, instead of a first-and-goal from the Baylor five-yard line.Henry has had a couple of invisible showings over the past two weeks. We talked this week about him needing a breakout game. So far, it’s not happening. But there’s plenty of football to go.**12:08 p.m.**: The players finally took the field for warmups a few minutes after noon.One pregame note of, well, note, is Raimond Pendleton not catching punts during warmups. The sophomore receiver instead is playing catch with the receivers and d-backs at the 20-yard line.Pendleton, as many saw, had a rough go at it for three quarters fielding punts against K-State a week ago in Manhattan. He muffed a pair of fair catch attempts and looked uncomfortable deep the rest of the day.Catching punts in warmups are Dezmon Briscoe, who replaced Pendleton late in the K-State win, and sophomore corner Anthony Webb, who did not dress out the last two games.**11:41 a.m.**: Kickoff time now set for 1:15 p.m.**11:13 a.m.**: Setting the scene for you here at Memorial Stadium…**-The conditions certainly favor KU.** The Jayhawks have two running backs with legitimate shots at 1,000-yard seasons, and boast the fourth-best rushing attack, numbers-wise, in the Big 12. Baylor ranks 11th.**-It’ll be interesting to see how the conditions affect Todd Reesing.** After last week’s interception on the first play of the game, which Reesing said slipped from his grip, we talked a bit about the size of his hands maybe affecting his throwing. While it certainly didn’t deter him in the season’s first four games, it’ll be intriguing to see how the rain affects his grip.**-Ryan Wood is doing a good job of distracting me,** as he’s playing RBI Baseball on his computer. Check out www.nintendo8.com to do so for yourself. Greatest web site ever.**-At the request earlier of Beau White,** who works in sports information for KU, lets play a little celebrity look-alike. First is [Brad Witherspoon][1], who White lovingly compared to pro skater [Rob Dyrdek][2], most recently of MTV fame from his hit show [Rob & Big][3].My favorite KU look-alike would be kicker [Scott Webb][4], who I’ve said for years bears a striking resemblance to [Abram][5], from MTV’s Road Rules.Yeah, rain delays spark creativity.**-The theme in the press box so far today has been** to rename the lake that has formed beyond the southeast corner of Memorial Stadium where the new practice fields are being laid down. Right now, it’s two football fields worth of dirt. On the closest corner, there is a cement wall as a boundary, and the rain has filled it up so much that it’s about to spill over, creating what looks like a lake. Among the names was Tom Keegan’s ‘Sparky Pond’, named after KU quarterback Todd Reesing.Yes, this game cannot start soon enough.**11:11 a.m.**: Gametime has now been pushed back to at least 1 p.m.**10:33 a.m.**: Well, we’re sitting here at Memorial Lake, and the start time of the Baylor-KU game has been bumped back to noon, at the earliest.For the first time since the Northwestern game to open up the 2003 season, there is standing water on the turf at the stadium.I’ll be back with some rain delay content in a few minutes. [1]: http://kuathletics.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/mtt/witherspoon_brad00.html [2]: http://www.mtv.com/onair/rob_and_big/assets/images/flipbooks/rob/thumbnails/281×211.jpg [3]: http://www.robandbig.com/ [4]: http://kuathletics.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/webb_scott00.html [5]: http://www.mtv.com/onair/roadrules/season14/images/episodes/02/main_281x211.jpg
