JayhawkSlant.com - Kansas drops conference opener

September 15, 2012

Bryan Cisler

As TCU prepared to kneel the ball down and end the game with less than a minute remaining, Charlie Weis took his last timeout. From a competitive standpoint, it was a pointless timeout. TCU was ahead 20-6 and the game was essentially over.

At best the timeout would make TCU kneel the ball down once more. Weis' intention was not to prolong the game, but used it to make one final point to his team.

"I told them that everybody came in today thinking you were going to get the crap kicked out of you and it didn't turn out that way," Weis said. "No one is happy when you lose and I am as fierce as a competitor as they come. I did admire the fact that the guys were slugging it out and doing everything they could do to put us in a position to still have a chance to win"

For a unit that didn't score a touchdown, the offense actually looked more in sync than it did the previous two games. Kansas was effective in some of the new plays they installed. They moved running back Tony Pierson around in the backfield and even had him line up in the slot at wide receiver.

One of TCU's primary goals going into the game was to take away KU's back screens, but KU still found away complete screens to Pierson. He would finish the day with 99 yards receiving. The inside zone was once again effective as Taylor Cox busted open big inside runs in the first half.

At halftime, TCU adjusted and moved their safety closer to the line of scrimmage and started slanting more with their defensive line. While it took away KU's run game, it allowed KU to open up their passing game. Still, Kansas struggled at finishing drives and never got into the endzone.

"They had many passes just off their fingertips," TCU coach Gary Patterson said of the KU receivers. "We feel very fortunate to get out of here with a victory. We came in feeling like KU had pretty good wide receivers. I warned out guys you've got to play every week, especially when you go on the road."

Quarterback Dayne Crist played better than he had the first two games. He had pressure in his face most of the day but still ended up with over 300 yards passing.

"He stood in there and he took the hits," Weis said. "When we got down two scores we had to start slinging it. There were a lot of big plays. We missed a few, but we definitely made progress."

The defense also threw in some new looks against TCU's multiple offense. Defensive end Toben Opurum was effective in getting pressure on the new blitzes that defensive coordinator Dave Campo put in for this game.

Overall Kansas forced four fumbles which gave them 12 turnovers on the season. It's an impressive stat considering that they had just 18 all of last season. In today's game, 3 of the forced fumbles occurred inside KU's 20 as TCU was threatening to score.

"You've got to come away with points," Patterson said. "We knew we did not play well today, but you have to give KU a lot of credit. You can't just move the football and take for granted that you are gonna score."

Linebacker Huldon Tharp got dinged up which gave Anthony McDonald an opportunity to get extended playing time in his first game back from injury. While McDonald was sometimes a step behind in pass coverage, he was an integral part of the run defense that improved throughout the game. Overall though, TCU had a good balance between their zone read plays and their power run game.

"They mixed it up pretty consistently," Toben Opurum said. "A lot of people stick to their zone read or downhill running game. The fact that they are able to do both so much is what makes their offense good."

Kansas NEWS

[More]

Latest Headlines:

Resources:

Font Size:

FEATURED PRODUCT