Hawk Talk...The Morning After Edition(WK4)

A look at news and notes about Jayhawks and upcoming opponents...

• Football notebook talks about the various changes in the lineup.
• Todd Reesing talk a little about the scramble and long TD pass to Briscoe.
• For those that didn't catch it, I have not link but Todd's scramble and pass to Briscoe was #1 on ESPN's Top 10 by the end of the night.
• KU Sports game recap.
• Postgame Podcast.
• Keegan column on KU receiver and nations leader Kerry Meier.
• Daily Kansan takes another look at the shakeups in the lineup.
• KC Star Game Recap.
• ESPN Box Score.
• Link to some postgame quotes and here are some highlights:

Kansas Head Coach Mark Mangino:

On offensive blocking:

"I thought the perimeter was better in the run game.  I think the offensive line still needs work, and we're not just talking about the freshman guys here.  We're talking about veteran guys, and I told some of those guys that they need to get it moving, or we're going to have to find some younger kids that will get in there and create some creases in the run game.  We ran the ball decent in the beginning, and then we didn't run as well as I'd like to. The running backs did an adequate job tonight, but in the offensive line we've got to get better at creating some creases and finishing blocks in the run game.  That's an urgent need for us."

Junior Quarterback Todd Reesing:

On Kerry Meier’s play at wide receiver:

"It's really unbelievable what he does on the field, because of the amount of time he spends working with the wideouts is not much at all.  He still has to be ready as a quarterback if he has to play in certain situations.  His work at wideout is limited, so for him to go out there and make the plays he does game after game is unbelievable.  You can't coach that and you can't teach that.  It's just his ability to make plays as a receiver."

On the 57-yard TD Pass to Dezmon Briscoe:

"I guess I just pulled a rabbit out of the hat there.  I just kept running around, and I picked up some good blocks from my offensive line who stayed with the play.  They know when I'm back there, they never know what will happen.  They get a little upset about it sometimes, but they stayed with the play and Briscoe found a way to get open.  We made a big play there."

Junior Safety Darrell Stuckey:

On the Sam Houston State offense:

"Their offense played hard and they have a lot of heart.  Rhett (Bomar) is a great quarterback.  He played very well and put balls where they needed to be.  He did a lot of great things, scrambling-wise and reading coverages.  He did a lot of good things and kept us on our toes all night.  I respect him a lot."

My Thoughts...Well I slept on it and it wasn't great but we did win and I don't want to dwell on the negatives, but I do have to mention them.  I can't say it enough and now as witnessed by the Mangino quote time is running out and the offensive line is still a concern.  Defensively the line is not getting pressure and physically getting beat and it's hurting every level of our defense.  I think the lack of confidence with the front four is creating most of the problems and lack of aggressiveness with our linebackers and defensive backs so I will reserve judgment on them until we figure out how we are going to address it. 

A few things to keep in mind with regards to the performance are, Rhett Bomar is a good quarterback in fact he was one of the top recruits at his position in the country out of high school.  Also Mangino was clearly out to send a message to the normal starters.  I expected your token few series or at most a full quarter with the shake-ups in place, but Mangino stuck by his decision through the majority of the game and hopefully the message was received loud and clear.  Lastly my hope is this was also a result of a team that was sent a message all week and perhaps a little broken down and now with the bye week we get things back on track build things up and come into conference play with a chip on our shoulder.

The positives, well Todd Reesing continues to show the ability to carry this offense and Kerry Meier is developing into a star at receiver.  As a team we did make a concentrated effort on the run and ended up with 160 on the ground.  3 Picks by the defensive backfield 1 of which was probably not a result of good play but you've got to be in position for all three of those to occur.  Another couple stats that I find as positives are 29 first downs; in the second half we sustained some drives.  Also 11-17 on third down isn't too bad and we held them to 3-11 which is always a good way to keep the momentum on your side in a game. 

Glad we've got a bye week, I'm still sticking by my original 8-4 but we need to come out an look good in Ames.

Rock Chalk Jayhawk