Stock up, Stock Down: Post Duke

The Jayhawks brought the hammer again this week and sent the Blue Devils home with a loss. Now 4-0 on the season, KU is still looking for the respect they deserve from pollsters. Each time KU wins it is “wait until next week, we will really learn something from their next game”. Somehow the voters never see fit to give them credit for beating the team they just plated, the pollsters always need another question answered before giving upstart Kansas credit for their accomplishments. Compare schedules and records with ranked teams and you will find KU rates with many of those teams. What holds the Jayhawks back is their preseason reputation. Well, next week is Iowa State. A win against the Cyclones (err Hawkeyes?) should give KU their due and put them in the top 25 instead of being left on the outside looking in. But before we get caught up in what is to come, let’s bask in what was this past weekend, the good, the bad, and the meh.

Stock up:

Daniel Hishaw

Of the running backs, this week it was all about Hishaw. He had 134 total yards. I love watching this run after a catch that set social media on fire, and this sideline angle is fun.

KU Football Social Media

The social media group was having such a good day it even gained notice from ESPN. Below is a sampling.

Fan Attendance

Cannot let this week go without giving the fans their due. The game was not only sold out, but the fans brought enthusiasm.

Jalon Daniels

Did you think I would leave him off the list? It is good to be Jalon right now. Manning Star of the Week for the third week in a row, and on the Davey O’Brien Great 8 List for the third week in a row.

And at least one bettor believes in the Heisman hype

Caught in the crossfire

You may suspect this, but know for sure OU fans are still not over USC hiring away Lincoln Riley, and what they believe to be the ultimate betrail of OU by Riley. Suffice it to say, Lincoln Riley lives rent-free in the collective brain cell of OU fans. This past week KU got caught in the crossfire of an OU fan’s poor aim when trying to take down USC and Lincoln Riley a few pegs. It started on Friday morning when RJ Young of Fox Sports and noted OU supporter, sent out what I am sure he thought was a clever shot at USC.

What he said is a fact. Others though noted the flaw in RJ’s jab. Most notable, known Maryland fan and USC reporter for USCFootball.com Chris Trevino replied.

The icing on the cake came early Sunday morning when Chris followed up his replay with additional facts.

For KU to be playing well enough and gaining enough national attention to be used as cannon fodder in OU’s peasant uprising against USC is terrific. And to be honest I love to revel in any moment in which OU fans so clearly expose their inferiority complex.

Stock down:

FBS Coaching Carousel

With the addition of another team to the coaching carousel, another round of speculation on potential future coaching hires began. This time OC Andy Kotelnicki made it into the speculation when Dennis Dodd mentioned him.

KU Basketball Interest

Isn’t it nice to be able to think about Jayhawk football during football season? Basketball season will be fun when it gets here, but it is nice to not turn our eyes to basketball while it is still September. Basketball practice has started, Bill Self has a broken leg, and the full schedule has been released and none of that news has made a ripple in the KU sports news because we have a quality football team to cheer for.

Stock Neutral

Defense

Last week I had the defense in the stock-up section because their performance seemed to be on the rise. This week through three quarters I was ready to put them in stock up again. On Saturday after three quarters, they had only given up 13 points to a team that put 52 on them last season, but the last quarter has me pumping the breaks.

The bad: They gave up 14 points in the last quarter and looked like they were going to give up another touchdown when Duke’s last drive began. I do not want to put the entire scary ending on the defense though. Before that last drive, the offense was held to a three and out and burned no more than 30 seconds off the clock. Just one first down by the offense would have made the defense’s job a lot easier.

The good: Despite giving up two fourth-quarter touchdowns the defense “only” gave up 27 points this week, which most weeks should be good enough for the Jayhawks to win. Last season the defense gave up almost twice as many points, 52, to this same team, when the offense scored almost the same number of points (32 last season, 25 this season). Additionally, the defense continues to make incremental progress in the SP+ rankings. They moved from 99 last week to 89 after week 4. Ranking 89 in defensive SP+ does not put you in great company, but they are slowly pulling themselves up and out of the dregs of the rankings.

As a result, I am feeling ‘meh’ about their performance.