Junior WR takes top spot in ratings after memorable all-around effort in season-opening victory

By Matt Tait     Aug 31, 2019

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Kansas wide receiver Andrew Parchment reaches out for a reception against Indiana State Saturday afternoon at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium on Aug. 31, 2019.

**1 – Andrew Parchment -** The only thing this guy didn’t do on Saturday was score a touchdown. Eight catches. 121 yards. A two-point conversion pass. Two key grabs for first downs on KU’s game-winning drive. There’s a reason the junior from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., was talked about all offseason. And he showed up big time in his first game as a Jayhawk.

**2 – Daylon Charlot -** Speaking of showing up big time, how about the debut for the senior wideout who famously started his career at Alabama? Six catches. 79 yards. The winning touchdown and a couple of big time catches on the drive that delivered it. The talk all offseason has been about Charlot finding his confidence again. That showed on Saturday and it served the Jayhawks well in every way imaginable.

**3 – Dru Prox -** Anytime you make eight solo tackles and earn special mention from the head coach, you’re going to look back and think you had a pretty good game. Not only did Prox check both of those boxes, but his sack of Indiana State quarterback midway through the fourth quarter that went for a 12-yard loss and ended the Sycamores’ drive was among the three or four biggest defensive plays of Saturday’s win.

**4 – Hasan Defense -** Like McCullough, Defense delivered one solo tackle and one interception in this one. His just happened to put six points on the board and will forever go down as the answer to the trivia question “Who scored the first points for Kansas under Les Miles.” With the KU offense getting off to a slow start, Defense’s INT was a huge play that helped Kansas establish control of the game early.

**5 – Jeremiah McCullough -** Although his interception did not put points on the board like fellow DB Hasan Defense’s first-quarter pick-6, it did keep points off the board for Indiana State and helped Kansas maintain control for most of the grind-it-out type of game.

**6 – Carter Stanley -** The fifth-year senior QB got away with a couple of bad throws when his receivers bailed him out and made outstanding catches. And he also put the ball on the ground more than any coach would like. But his 69% completion percentage was good, his command of the offense and the huddle was great and his play on KU’s gotta-have-it, do-or-die drive late in the game was terrific. Beyond that, he avoided adding an interception to his stat line and showed the leadership skills that have drawn teammates to him throughout his time in crimson and blue. Plenty of room for improvement here, but Stanley wasn’t bad and the Jayhawks won.

**7 – Khalil Herbert -** Opened the game with a 33-yard run that, for a brief moment, looked like it might go for six. His other 16 carries, however, netted just 55 yards, 3.4 per carry. I would’ve thought both Herbert and Dom Williams (9-34) would have had much better days on the ground. But you have to figure that the Sycamores scouted KU and knew their strength was on the ground. Getting Pooka Williams back next week should only help Herbert’s effectiveness.

**8 – Mike Lee -** Mike Lee did what Mike Lee does – flew around all game, put a couple of serious licks on ISU players and did it all with the swagger of a senior who has made a lot of plays and played a lot of good football during his time at Kansas. Finished with four tackles (3 solo) and one pass break-up. Great start to his final season.

**9 – Darrius Moragne -** Seven solo tackles and a sack is going to get you on this list any day of the week. Moragne was strong up front all afternoon and KU is going to need a lot more like that from him the rest of the way.

**10 – Azur Kamara -** By far the biggest thing that stood out to me on Saturday about Kamara was his ability to play in space. He got off the edge well and showed some power at times, too. But he looked comfortable in space and made a real nice open-field tackle in the first half to force an Indiana State punt.

2019 Season Standings:
—————

1 – Andrew Parchment – 10

2 – Daylon Charlot – 9

3 – Dru Prox – 8

4 – Hasan Defense – 7

5 – Jeremiah McCullough – 6

6 – Carter Stanley – 5

7 – Khalil Herbert – 4

8 – Mike Lee – 3

9 – Darrius Moragne – 2

10 – Azur Kamara – 1

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.