DES MOINES, Iowa—Kansas and Baylor spent over two hours waiting to play Saturday. Once the whistle blew, the Jayhawks showed why they’re the lone unbeaten team left in the Big 12.
Kansas (6-0, 2-0) blasted the Bears, 58-10, in a game that ended five hours and 33 minutes after it was supposed to start because of lighting and rain delays.
The win moved the Jayhawks up to a tie for 15th, with Missouri, in the Top 25 poll. They are now 6-0 for the first time under coach Mark Mangino.
Though Kansas hasn’t played the toughest of schedules, the numbers it has put up at the season’s midway point are tough to ignore. The Jayhawks are now second in the nation in both points allowed per game, at 9.5, and points scored, at 50.3. Kansas and No. 1 Ohio State are the only teams allowing less than 10 points per game.
Thunderstorms delayed the start of the Kansas-Baylor game by 1 hour, 45 minutes. Soon after Marcus Hereford’s 88-yard kickoff return for a touchdown put Kansas ahead 10-3, weather forced the teams off the field for another 31 minutes.
The weather did little to dampen Kansas’s offense. The Jayhawks scored the most points in a conference game in school history, despite concerns that the stoppages would disrupt the offense’s routine.
“It was an unusual day to say the least,” Mangino said. “Our kids were able to stay focused and do a good job under the circumstances.”
The Kansas coaching staff did their best to downplay the delays, telling the players to take their pads off and either take a nap or listen to music. Breakfast bars and fruit were brought in for the second delay.
For Baylor, lightning was the least of its concerns. The Bears gained just 202 yards of total offense, and quarterback Blake Szymanski threw three interceptions before getting pulled.
“We continue to play very well on defense,” Mangino said.
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SAVAGE IS A BEAST: Oklahoma State senior running back Dantrelle Savage earned Big 12 offensive player of the week honors after rushing for a career-high 212 yards in the Cowboys’ 45-14 win over Nebraska. Coach Mike Gundy credits Savage with giving Oklahoma State’s offense a lift since returning from an injury four weeks ago.
Savage leads the Cowboys with 622 yards rushing, despite missing two games, and he has gained over 100 yards in each of the last four outings. Oklahoma State is 3-1 since Savage returned.
“He’s a leader for our team because of the way he approaches the game,” Gundy said. “He’s a competitor, and I think your team rallies around players like that.”
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SHOWDOWN IN COLUMBIA: Two of the nation’s most prolific passers square off Saturday when quarterback Graham Harrell and Texas Tech travel to face Chase Daniel and the Missouri Tigers.
Harrell leads the nation with 450.1 yards passing a game and has thrown for 31 touchdowns while helping the Red Raiders get off to a 6-1 start. Daniel ranks fifth nationally at 345.5 yards per game.
The comparisons between Harrell and Daniel are natural, given the gaudy numbers they’ve put up running the spread offense.
“What they both do well beyond their numbers is lead their unit,” Texas Tech coach Mike Leach said. “Chase relies on mobility a little more…Graham’s a little more in the pocket.”
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RE-BUFFED: Colorado’s three-game winning streak—which included a win over No. 4 Oklahoma—came to an end last week when Kansas State trounced the Buffaloes, 47-20. The loss dropped Colorado into a tie for second place in the Big 12 North with the Wildcats.
Colorado was 1-of-12 on third downs against Kansas State and committed four turnovers en route to its worst loss of the season. Still, the Buffaloes have doubled their win total from last year with five games to play.
Colorado will host Kansas this week in a game that could have major ramifications for the North title race.
“When you look at the evolution of a program and the evolution of a team, you have go through some issues, and there’s no way to explain that. Sometimes experience has to happen for them,” coach Dan Hawkins said.
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EXTRA POINTS:
Oklahoma’s Curtis Lofton was named the Big 12’s defensive player of the week after picking up a career-best 18 tackles and a fumble return for a touchdown that helped seal the Sooners’ win over Missouri. Kansas State’s Brooks Rossman was named the league’s special teams player of the week. He hit four field goals, including a career-long of 52 yards, becoming the first Kansas State kicker to hit four field goals since 2004…Iowa State will face four teams ranked in this week’s Top 25 over the final five weeks of the season. The Cyclones, a woeful 1-6, still have No. 4 Oklahoma, No. 15 Missouri, No. 15 Kansas and No. 25 Kansas State on the schedule…There are 10 teams averaging at least 40 points a game, and four of them play in the Big 12. Kansas is second, Texas Tech is third at 50 points, the Sooners rank fourth at 48.4 and Missouri is 10th at 40 points a game.
