Kansas got better in David Beaty’s second year — a bit better

Kansas was a better football team in 2016 than it was in 2015.

David Beaty has the Jayhawks, who lost 34-19 to Kansas State on Saturday, going in the right direction.

There are still detours. There are still winding roads. There are still guys in orange vests waving warning flags for the danger ahead.

But KU and Beaty can put 2016 to rest with a more relaxed bedtime story than the one they told last year.

“One of the things we’ve done,” Beaty said after a lengthy chat with his seniors after Saturday’s game, “is to develop the guys we have in our program. There are two ways you get better — you recruit and you develop the ones you have because they’re not going to give you more. You develop and then you go get 25.”

It’s not easy to get worse after 0-12, which is what Kansas’ record was in 2015. So the Jayhawks are better, but let’s not get carried away. They’re not close to contending in the Big 12 or getting to a bowl game. They’re still a ways away, in fact, from being good. Or decent, even.

But if there’s a mountain to be scaled, at least KU can look down a few feet.

The Jayhawks weren’t going to beat K-State and for more than a half it didn’t look like they would be competitive.

But even the harshest KU critic has to admit Beaty has instilled some fight in his guys. Not a lot of discipline yet, but there’s some fight.

Down 34-9, KU scored the game’s final two touchdowns and could have gotten even closer. Freshman quarterback Carter Stanley passed for 302 yards and that included a 95-yard touchdown strike to LaQuvionte Gonzalez.

Kansas was in the total yardage ballgame with K-State, losing 441-403.

Turnovers, though, were once again costly. The team that turns it over more than any other team in college football gave it back to the Wildcats three times, including an ugly pick-six interception that K-State’s Donnie Stark returned 39 yards for a second-quarter touchdown, making the score 20-3.

The numbers outside of those ugly turnover digits, though, confirm what everyone who follows Kansas football thinks they’re seeing.

Improvement.

Kansas averaged 15.3 points last season and moved that to 20.3 in 2016.

Rushing yardage? From 112.9 to 119.1. Passing increased from 218.6 to 240.4.

KU’s defense was better, too.

Last season, opponents averaged 46.1 points against the Jayhawks; this season it was 37.3.

In 2015, teams rushed for 267.2 yards as opposed to 236.4 this season.

And the passing yardage allowed dropped from 293.7 to 219.8.

Kansas’ 12 losses last season were by an average of 30.8 points. The Jayhawks lost 10 games this season by an average of 25.7.

These are subtle, yet undeniable, improvements that in no way, shape or form mean Kansas is on the cusp of becoming a football powerhouse. This is still a house, really, that can be blown over with a small puff of wind.

But you have to start somewhere. And Beaty has been asked to start from a place where roaches crawl.

Which is the same place, really, K-State coach Bill Snyder started from in 1988, when he was hired to replace Stan Parrish after 0-10-1 and 0-11 seasons.

Snyder started slowly; the Wildcats were 1-10 in his first season, 1989. Then they improved to 5-6 and 7-4 before regressing to 5-6 in 1992. It wasn’t until Snyder’s fifth season that K-State started to scream.

“I told (Snyder) before the game that he was one of my coaching heroes,” Beaty said. “We study all the greats and I said earlier in the week that I’m the biggest thief in the world. If you do something good, I’m going to steal it. I’m not very smart but I know who does it well and we’re going to watch it, emulate it.”

At least try.

I’m not sure Snyder’s magic, though, is emulatable or whatever the right word is.

“He has a very disciplined program,” Beaty said of the K-State coach, who reached the 200-win mark Saturday. “From the very beginning, he’s stressed discipline and not beating himself. And you’re going to have to beat K-State when you play them because they don’t beat themselves.”

Kansas hasn’t gotten to that state in development yet. The Jayhawks, frankly, aren’t close. They make too many mistakes and don’t have the talent necessary to win more than a game or two.

“We’ve got 57-58 new players and they’re all young,” Beaty said. “They’re getting experience. Sometimes it comes with growing pains, especially when you’ve got a bunch of them out there at once.”

Beaty knows the score. He’s as optimistic as any coach I’ve come across, but his feet are on the ground.

There are miles and miles to get to where he wants Kansas to be.

This season, the Jayhawks beat Rhode Island and Texas, probably costing Charlie Strong his job. They have to do better next season. There are no shortcuts, no magical way improve.

Snyder used all the magic.

This story was originally published November 26, 2016 at 5:17 PM with the headline "Kansas got better in David Beaty’s second year — a bit better."