KU Jayhawks vs. Baylor Bears: Five things to know entering Saturday’s football game
Kansas’ football defense, which was without two of its best players — Lonnie Phelps and Cobee Bryant — for much of Saturday’s game, surrendered 701 yards in the Jayhawks’ 52-42 loss to Oklahoma in Norman, Okla.
No doubt the defense had its problems containing OU quarterback Dillon Gabriel, receiver Marvin Mims and running back Eric Gray.
Yet the defensive group did have one spectacular moment. The Jayhawks, down 35-21 right before halftime, stopped OU three straight plays from the KU 1-yard line. The Sooners had to settle for a 14-point lead instead of a three-TD margin with KU to get the ball to begin the third quarter.
First, Gabriel spiked the ball on first and goal from the 1. Next, KU defensive lineman Jereme Robinson tackled running back Jovantae Barnes for no gain. And on the final play of the half, instead of kicking a field goal, OU handed the ball to Barnes again. He was corralled by KU defensive back Kenny Logan who stormed in from the side to make a tackle for no gain. Logan was assisted by linebacker Lorenzo McCaskill on the crucial stop.
“It was huge,” KU coach Lance Leipold said of the defensive stand. “Again it shows the tenacity of this football team. I’m extremely proud of our effort all the way down to the very end. We battled.
“It was big. It shows at those times we can be physical and make stops. I’m proud of them in that way especially after Cobee got hurt,” Leipold added.
Cobee Bryant, suffered an ankle injury late in the second quarter at the tail end of a 15-yard completion from Gabriel to Mims down to the 1. No update has yet been provided on Bryant’s status for this week.
“We continue to fight hard for four quarters,” Logan, who had 14 tackles and one interception, said of the defense.
Of the injuries to players on the defensive side as well as injuries to QB Jalon Daniels and running back Daniel Hishaw, Logan said: “I mean we were built on the ‘next man up’ mentality. That’s what it is. Coach (Leipold) told us to keep our heads up and get ready for next week (Saturday at Baylor).
THE DETAILS
Kickoff: 11 a.m., Saturday
Where: McLane Stadium, Waco, Texas
TV: ESPN2
Radio: WHB (810) in Kansas City; KFH (1240 AM, 97.5 FM) in Wichita
Early betting line:: Baylor favored by nine points
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
1. Baylor (3-3, 1-2 Big 12) was picked to finish first, ahead of runner-up Oklahoma, in the 10-team Big 12 preseason media poll. West Virginia defeated Baylor 43-40 Thursday in Morgantown, WVa. BU lost to Oklahoma State 36-25 on Oct. 1 in Waco and defeated Iowa State 31-24 on Sept. 24 in Ames, Iowa. In the nonconference season Baylor defeated Texas State 42-7 and Albany 65-10 and lost at BYU 26-20 in two overtimes.
2. Baylor is 17-12 under third-year head coach Dave Aranda. Aranda, 46, previously worked as the defensive coordinator at LSU, Wisconsin, Utah State, Hawaii, Delta State, and Cal Lutheran. At Baylor, he replaced Matt Rhule, who left to become the head coach of the NFL’s Carolina Panthers. Rhule recently was fired by Carolina. Aranda went 2-7 in 2020 at BU, followed by last year’s 12-2 mark. Baylor won its 2021 Sugar Bowl matchup against Mississippi, 21-7.
3. BU had a key injury at quarterback vs. West Virginia. Sophomore quarterback Blake Shapen, who threw for 326 yards and two touchdowns (no interceptions), left the WVU game with what was called a head injury with 6:30 remaining in the third quarter. Shapen took a shot from Andrew Wilson-Lamp. Wilson-Lamp was ejected from the game for targeting. Redshirt freshman Kyron Drones was 7 of 14 for 95 yards and a touchdown. Shapen will be evaluated this week with his status unknown for the KU game.
4. KU’s offense continues to roll. KU, which put up 42 points at Oklahoma, has scored 28 touchdowns, marking the most touchdowns scored in a season since 2009 (45). Kansas’ 18 rushing touchdowns through seven games are the most in a full season since 2012 (19). Kansas has now scored 40 or more points in four games, which is the most games with 40+ points in a season since 2008. It’s also the most 40+ point games through the first seven games of a season since 2007.
5. Senior safety Kenny Logan is having an All-America type season. Logan, a senior from St. Augustine, Florida, had 14 tackles and an interception at OU. It was the first time in his career that he recorded 10 or more tackles and also had an interception in the same game. Logan has three 10+ tackle games this season and eight in his career. Logan has had double-digit tackes in back-to-back games for the third time in his career. For the year he is second on the team in tackles with 53. Rich Miller has 56.
