Kansas vs. Minnesota Tale of the Tape

and it made me think about a couple keys to the game for us. The Minnesota bloggers preview is in the fanshots and it’s worth a read. Here is my take:

Obviously, Thornton being out at CB could be a huge blow. It moves Patterson onto their number 1 receiver which could be a bad thing. It also moves Harper into the game and we haven’t heard much from him since he came back from injury. I am pretty nervous about them being able to establish a passing attack to compliment a ground game that they seem to be wanting to go to.

Our optimistic side: This could be the chance for Daymond Patterson to prove his position change is for real and that he can go into next year as a starter. Kendrick Harper, in his last game, will come back and show us the kind of play he did last season.

I’m not worried about our offense, though. Coming off of that Missouri game the way our offense moved the ball has to be still on the minds of Reesing, Meier, Briscoe, Sharp and that much improved offensive line. The only thing I get nervous of is not getting out to a quick start. If we come out and run some predictable plays (like not trying to establish a ground game of our own) and they get some quick stops, the momentum could really swing in their favor.

The final thing is what I mentioned above. I love our passing attack and think it’s very explosive. I think the Minnesota Gopher blogger hasn’t watched enough of KU when he said he just thought we had talented receivers, not great receivers. I think Dezmon Briscoe is very great and will be a first day draft pick. I also think that Kerry Meier could turn into a good slot receiver in the NFL. That being said, I really think Warinner needs to establish a good ground game, and that means giving Sharp enough carries. There were way too many times this year that he didn’t get enough carries and 18-20 tomorrow is a necessity in my mind. If he gets that amount, I guarantee he will bust a couple 20 yard runs and have the Gopher defense really on their heels when Reesing runs the QB read throws.

My prediction is right with the oddsmakers.

Jayhawks 36 – Gophers 26

Well, I would consider the Big 12 and particularly our schedule this year to be superior to the Big 1110. I do think we have an advantage, but I hope we don’t let that get to our heads.

OT: Denver, what do you think about Shannahan? Who’re we going to replace him with?