Sports > Kansas Jayhawks

Posted on Sat, Oct. 31, 2009

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Kansas falls apart late in 42-21 loss to Texas Tech

BY J. BRADY MCCOLLOUGH

The Wichita Eagle

LUBBOCK, Texas — When Kansas wide receiver Kerry Meier joined the huddle with seven minutes left and the Jayhawks trailing by two touchdowns, he looked to his quarterback and immediately felt “confused.”

“We came out for the series and saw Kale (Pick) in the huddle,” Meier said, “and I kind of didn’t know what was going on.”

Two years ago, Meier lost the starting quarterback job to Todd Reesing. Things had gone pretty well since then, leading to a senior season overflowing with expectations for what would surely be one of the top offenses in the country. So to see the redshirt freshman Pick leading the huddle and Reesing on the sideline with his hands on his hips was alarming. Meier assumed Reesing had gotten hurt, only that wasn’t the case at all.

In the midst of a third straight stinker, a spirit-crushing 42-21 loss to Texas Tech, KU coach Mark Mangino had pulled Reesing for performance reasons.

“I don’t think it was a big deal,” Mangino said.

For perspective on whether Mangino benching Reesing qualifies as a big deal, here’s this: Three weeks ago, Mangino promoted Reesing for the Heisman Trophy. The kid from Austin, Texas, owned every meaningful KU passing record, but the statistics did not tell enough of the story. All of those voters out there just had to see him play.

On Saturday, after a Reesing fumble led to a 31-yard touchdown return by Tech’s LaRon Moore and a 35-21 deficit, Mangino made sure none of the viewers still tuned into ABC’s regional broadcast could see Reesing.

“The last series he was in there, he short-armed two passes and had a fumble,” Mangino said. “More than anything, I thought maybe Kale would give us a little bit of a jump or something.”

Mangino said he was also concerned about Reesing taking another vicious hit from Texas Tech, which took advantage of KU’s dismal offensive line and sacked him six times. Reesing admitted after the game that he has been playing with an injured groin since the Colorado game, but that didn’t stop him from suiting up and receiving another beating for three-and-a-half quarters.

Reesing wanted to finish this one.

“I was (surprised),” Reesing said. “I’m not going to lie. At that point, we were two possessions down, but by no means was the game over.”

Reesing’s last three weeks have certainly been bad enough to test a coach’s loyalty. He has turned the ball over seven times (four interceptions and three fumbles), leading directly to 42 points for opponents.

Against the Red Raiders, the KU offense, ranked No. 2 nationally after five games, was the worst unit on the field. The Jayhawks squandered a solid defensive performance, finishing with just 258 yards, and Reesing was only part of the problem. His offensive linemen whiffed on blocks, his receivers dropped passes and the running game was nonexistent.

“I’m at a loss for words to understand what’s happened the last two weeks,” Reesing said. “You take away the second half at Colorado, that’s 10 bad quarters right there. You wish you could say you had all the answers.

“My preparation hasn’t changed. The things I do every week haven’t changed. Nothing is different. If anything, I’m more focused. We were so ready to get into this season with this senior class. To underperform the last few weeks has been hard to deal with.”

The season is slipping away. The Jayhawks (5-3, 1-3 Big 12) missed an opportunity to steal one in Lubbock against a struggling Tech offense. KU will need to win against North opponents Kansas State, Nebraska and Missouri to have a chance at the division crown.

Odds are, Reesing will be the quarterback when the Jayhawks face the Wildcats next week. But Mangino said he will have to earn it in practice.

“He has always had to earn it,” Mangino said. “Despite what is thought from the outside, Todd is critiqued and coached hard just like all the other players. Our players know very well that I’m not hesitant to put anybody on the bench who is not up to our standards.”

Of course, it was Reesing who created the high standard for quarterback play at Kansas.

“It’s gut-check time,” Reesing said. “Either accept it and play with some heart the next few weeks and get to a bowl game or quit. We’re not guys who are ever going to quit.”

Reach J. Brady McCollough at jmccollough@wichitaeagle.com.