KU receivers hope to spark passing attack against Central Michigan

LAWRENCE – He follows a similar routine before each game, watching a few of his old highlights for good karma. It’s part visualization exercise, part confidence boost. It usually puts Nick Harwell in a good mood.

During three seasons at Miami of Ohio, Harwell filled up those highlight videos and dominated the stat sheet. He recorded 97 catches in 2011. Racked up 17 touchdown receptions in two seasons. On one particularly memorable day against Central Michigan, Harwell finished with 11 catches for 215 yards.

“I kind of blacked out a little bit,” says Harwell, now a senior at Kansas.

So you might assume that last week’s loss at Duke was one frustrating afternoon. Harwell finished with two catches for nine yards. And it wasn’t just the Duke defense, either. When Harwell did break open, KU sophomore quarterback Montell Cozart often just missed him.

“Montell shut down Harwell,” KU coach Charlie Weis said on Tuesday. “Duke didn’t shut down Harwell.”

But one day later, Harwell made it clear. It’s up to Kansas’ veteran receiving corps to give some help to their young quarterback.

“We all got to play better,” Harwell said. “He might have missed some things, but we don’t fault him. And maybe I wasn’t as open as I thought.”

Cozart completed 11 of 27 pass attempts for 89 yards at Duke. Weis called it a “bad day at the office.” And perhaps that’s what it was — a young quarterback going through growing pains on the road. That happens.

But for a Kansas program that has fielded some of the worst passing offenses in the country over the last two years, the performance signaled the continuation of a horrific trend. In the offseason, Weis hired Rice offensive coordinator John Reagan to install a spread offense, hoping to ignite a miserable passing attack. So far, the progress has been limited to a 24-point outburst against Southeast Missouri State in the season opener.

Now Harwell and the receivers will hope to get back on track against Central Michigan at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Stadium.

“It’s only Week 3,” said senior playmaker Tony Pierson, who was limited to two touches against Duke. “We still got plenty of weeks to show what we’ve been doing in the spring and summertime.”

It’s still early, of course, but Saturday’s matchup is also Kansas’ last opportunity to build some momentum before beginning the Big 12 season with a home game against Texas next week. Gaze ahead at the schedule, and it’s difficult to find many possible victories. The context makes this perhaps the most crucial Saturday of Weis’ KU tenure. And in Year 3 under Weis, the story has remained the same. If the Jayhawks can’t move the ball in the air, they will struggle to win.

“We feel like the offense plays best when it’s up-tempo,” Harwell said this week. “I felt like we could do more. We haven’t caught as many balls as we expected the last two games, but I feel like we can definitely produce more.”

This story was originally published September 19, 2014 at 3:50 PM with the headline "KU receivers hope to spark passing attack against Central Michigan."