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| National | Conf | Actual | Category | Actual | Conf | National | |
| Advantage | Rank | Rank | Rank | Rank | |||
| Kansas |
53 |
9 |
178.33 |
Rushing Offense | 177.67 |
5 |
54 |
| Kansas | 92 |
9 |
205.33 |
Passing Offense | 203.33 |
9 | 94 |
| Kansas | 74 |
10 |
383.67 |
Total Offense | 381 |
7 |
76 |
|
NIU |
102 |
10 |
20.33 |
Scoring Offense | 31 |
5 |
56 |
| Kansas | 78 |
10 |
174.33 |
Rushing Defense | 229.33 |
10 |
112 |
| NIU | 60 |
9 |
124.04 |
Pass Efficiency Defense | 107.61 |
1 |
31 |
| NIU | 91 |
9 |
433.67 | Total Defense | 369.33 |
4 |
58 |
| Kansas | 44 |
7 |
20.67 |
Scoring Defense | 21.67 |
2 |
49 |
| Kansas | 11 |
2 |
41.64 |
Net Punting | 37.70 | 4 |
56 |
| Kansas | 49 |
7 |
10.33 |
Punt Returns | 5.33 |
10 |
88 |
| NIU | 117 |
10 |
13 |
Kickoff Returns | 19.44 |
8 |
79 |
| Kansas |
11 |
3 |
1.67 |
Turnover Margin | -1 |
8 |
94 |
| NIU | 87 |
8 |
259.33 |
Pass Defense | 140 |
1 |
7 |
| NIU | 116 |
10 |
99.38 |
Passing Efficiency | 154.68 | 2 | 31 |
| NIU | 55 |
6 |
2 |
Sacks | 3 |
2 |
15 |
| NIU | 74 |
8 |
5.33 |
Tackles For Loss | 7.67 |
2 |
23 |
| PUSH | 52 |
9 |
1.67 |
Sacks Allowed | 1.67 |
5 |
52 |
Again, very hard to really get a good gauge on NIU based on a statistical overview especially defensively. The Army game did a lot for their pass defense and it destroyed the run defense, but that's Army.
The bad news is that Kansas took a bit of a slide in most of the offensive categories last week which is very similar to what we saw a year ago during league play. The worse news is that we weren't starting from nearly as high of a peak as we did during the non-con schedule a year ago.
The good news is that visually there are obvious positives and improvements in this Jayhawk team. Defensively they managed very well against a legitimate opponent a week ago. This week is a huge opportunity for that same defensive unit to build some confidence because and try to carry that into league play.
Offensively these two teams are very similar statistically, NIU just appears to have an advantage on the defensive side of the ball but that again goes back to the Army game. I think both offenses will be able to move the ball better than their season averages, it's just a matter of who finishes. I'd like to say that the Kansas offense controls it's own destiny while the Kansas defense could dictate things for NIU, but that's probably looking through the crimson and blue glasses.
Fact is NIU is a 10 point favorite for a reason and until Kansas can show the ability to turn the corner at home, it's hard to go crazy with optimism on the road. That doesn't mean I don't want to though.