KU grades: Jayhawks’ football offense sputters, defense forces first turnovers at WVU
Kansas’ football defense, which had failed to force a turnover through the Jayhawks’ first three games of the 2020 season, finally recorded two takeaways in Game Four — Saturday’s 38-17 loss to West Virginia in Morgantown.
The first WVU miscue came on the Mountaineers’ first drive. KU’s Denzel Feaster, who later would be ejected for targeting, drilled receiver T.J. Simmons, who lost the ball after a 12-yard reception. Duece Mayberry had the recovery.
KU’s first and only interception of the campaign came early in the third quarter when defensive end Malcolm Lee dropped back in coverage, alertly stole a short pass and returned the football 11 yards. That interception came with West Virginia up, 17-10, and the Mountaineers driving deep into KU territory.
“I saw the tackle and guard leave so I knew it was a screen,” said Lee, a 6-foot-5, 285-pound junior from Omaha, Nebraska. “I started to backpedal a little bit, tried to read the quarterback’s eyes. He kind of lobbed it up to me. I happened to be in the right place at the right time.”
The Jayhawks’ defenders are obviously hoping to build on the effort and force more turnovers.
“Those takeaways are huge,” Lee said. “Usually games come down to who has more turnovers at the end of the day. We have to keep working, keep getting after that ball, trying to rip it out and try to get interceptions.”
KU didn’t lose a fumble but suffered two Miles Kendrick pass interceptions versus the Mountaineers.
Acting coach Josh Eargle said the Jayhawks “were due a little bit,” to force some turnovers.
“We talked about it in pre-game,. We’ve been close, had some in our hands. When you fly around on defense, good things are going to happen,” Eargle said. “There’s batted balls, tipped balls, guys ripping at the ball. I thought our defensive staff really emphasized turnovers the past two weeks (at practice). What you emphasize, you get. We did a great job of trying to force turnovers and get the ball back on offense. They played their tails off, played with their heart and soul,” Eargle added.
Here are some grades assessed to KU’s defense and other areas of the team after the Jayhawks fell to 0-4 overall and 0-3 in the Big 12; WVU is now 3-1, 2-1.
DEFENSE
Grade: C. West Virginia outgained KU 544 yards to 157. However, 87 yards came on one play — a touchdown run by Leddie Brown on a third and one call that gave WVU a 24-10 lead in the third quarter. Brown finished with 194 yards on 18 carries. Quarterback Jarrett Doege threw for 318 yards and three touchdowns.
KU defenders accounted for 11 tackles for loss. Defensive back Davon Ferguson had nine tackles, while linebacker Dru Prox secured eight tackles — three for loss. Defensive backs Kenny Logan and Ricky Thomas had eight and seven tackles respectively while freshman defensive lineman Marcus Harris had six tackles, three for loss. KU’s defensive line accounted for 12 tackles, three for loss, as well as Lee’s interception.
Kansas collected 10 pass breakups, most in a game by the Jayhawks since they had 14 against Iowa State in 2014. The 10 pass breakups tied Boston College for the most in a game this season.
OFFENSE
Grade: D. KU’s offensive line continues to struggle. Junior running back Pooka Williams was held in check for a fourth straight game. He gained 21 yards on 11 carries. His longest run went nine yards. Velton Gardner gained 43 yards on 11 carries, including a scamper of 26 yards.
Kendrick completed 14 of 23 passes for 95 yards, one TD and two interceptions. He was sacked five times. Receiver Andrew Parchment had six catches for 65 yards (including a 43-yarder) and one touchdown.
The Jayhawks, who scored 10 points the first quarter, didn’t score again until Williams returned a kickoff 92 yards for a score with KU down 28 points at the time.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Grade: B. Williams’ 92-yard kick return marked KU’s first kick return for a touchdown since 2016. That’s when LaQuvionte Gonzalez had a 99-yard kick return against Ohio. Also, Jamahl Horne returned four kickoffs for 78 yards with a long return of 27 yards
Kyle Thompson punted 10 times for a 42.5 average. He had a long punt of 62 yards. Jacob Borcila drilled a 41-yard field goal to cap KU’s opening possession and give the Jayhawks a 3-0 lead. He has made 3 of 4 field goals.
COACHING
Grade: B. Les Miles missed the game after testing positive for COVID-19 on Oct. 8. Josh Eargle, who was KU’s active head coach, didn’t make any mistakes in terms of time management. Coordinators Brent Dearmon and D.J. Eliot ran the offense and defense respectively. Miles is expected to be back at practice this week.
Next game
Next up, it’s Sunflower Showdown time. It’s at 11 a.m. Saturday at Kansas State. The game will be shown on FS1.
This story was originally published October 18, 2020 at 10:16 AM with the headline "KU grades: Jayhawks’ football offense sputters, defense forces first turnovers at WVU."
