Jayhawks streak past Huskers
digg it!
Facebook
del.icio.us
Seed Newsvine
Fark It
Reddit
BY STEVEN M. SIPPLE / Lincoln Journal Star
LAWRENCE, Kan. – In the final seconds Saturday, the only suspense at Memorial Stadium was whether celebratory Kansas football fans would heed the public address announcer’s pleas and not rush the field.
They did rush it. The streak was over.
Beaten in every phase of the game, Nebraska players and coaches trudged slowly to the visiting locker room, left to contemplate a 40-15 Big 12 Conference defeat that will reverberate in Husker Nation in coming days, as fans wonder how Kansas could’ve won this game by such a wide margin.
Although the Jayhawks entered the day ranked 106th nationally in total offense, they gashed the Huskers for 428 total yards, 135 over their average. KU was ranked 100th in scoring offense, but more than doubled their usual point production against an NU defense that was ranked 25th nationally and had been the strength of the team for much of the season.
As thousands of Nebraska fans on hand shook their heads in amazement, thousands of people in blue danced and basked in Kansas’ first win against the Huskers since 1968, a span of 36 games.
Kansas was coming off a 13-3 win against arch-rival Missouri, yet this triumph felt better, said Jayhawks junior running back Jon Cornish.
“People have never been this happy,” he said. “Missouri was a huge win, but we have done that three years in a row . . . We had a team that had beaten us for so long that nobody thought we would ever beat them, and we changed that.”
Cornish rushed 10 times for 101 yards, including a 72-yard touchdown sprint in the third quarter that answered a Nebraska touchdown that had pulled the Huskers to 17-15. Clark Green, Kansas’ starting tailback, pounded out 100 yards on 22 carries.
The Jayhawks entered the day ranked 90th nationally in rushing offense. Their overall output Saturday frustrated Nebraska coach Bill Callahan, whose team surrendered a touchdown on an opening drive for the fifth straight game.
The Huskers (5-4, 2-4 Big 12) lost their third straight game and fourth in the last five.
“The overall intensity of our defense wasn’t to our standard,” said Callahan, now 1-6 in Big 12 road games as Nebraska’s coach. “In fact, it wasn’t even close to our standard of performance. I just didn’t see our guys compete with the passion you need to bring to play at a championship caliber or just at a high level on the road.”
Of Nebraska’s struggles away from home, Callahan said, “It’s god-awful, in my opinion. It’s disturbing to me. It bothers me. I just have to go back to work and do a better job.”
With two games remaining, Nebraska now finds itself in a precarious situation as it continues its bid to return to a bowl game after missing out last year for the first time since 1968. Needing one more win to become bowl-eligible, the Huskers play Kansas State this week in Lincoln before ending the regular season Nov. 25 at Colorado.
Nebraska must regroup quickly after Saturday’s debilitating defeat.
“It’s a down locker room,” Callahan said. “We’re really down. We’re not discouraged; just really down.”
“Regrouping shouldn’t be a problem,” said Husker senior free safety Blake Tiedtke. “For the seniors, Kansas State will be our last home game. The way I look at it, we don’t have a choice.”
Although Nebraska’s defense will absorb most of the blame for the loss, the offense didn’t help much. This wasn’t a surprise, considering Kansas was ranked 10th nationally in total defense and second against the run, while NU was ranked 106th in total offense and 90th in rushing offense.
The Huskers managed only 138 total yards, including 21 on the ground. In the last three games, NU has eked out 35 rushing yards.
For the second straight game, Nebraska failed to pick up a first down until early in the second quarter. The Huskers finished with seven on the day.
“Everybody’s sick,” said NU offensive coordinator Jay Norvell. “This is embarrassing – absolutely embarrassing.”
The thing is, a Nebraska win was within reach with 6:20 left in the third quarter when I-back Cory Ross’ 1-yard touchdown dive pulled the Huskers to 17-15 behind. On the two-point conversion attempt, Zac Taylor’s pass was intercepted.
Nebraska strongside linebacker Adam Ickes set up the touchdown when he forced a fumble by wideout Mark Simmons that the Huskers recovered at Kansas’ 16-yard line.
Suddenly, momentum shifted toward Nebraska – but only for a few minutes.
On a second-and-2 play at Kansas' 28, Kansas apparently caught the Huskers in the blitz as Cornish broke through the middle and into the secondary, rambling 72 yards for the touchdown. The Jayhawks (5-4, 2-4 Big 12) poured it on from there while improving to 5-0 at home this season.
Kansas pierced Nebraska’s defense with traps, counters and sprint draws.
“I’m extremely proud of our kids,” said Jayhawks coach Mark Mangino. “We won the game in nearly every area. We didn’t play perfectly, but we did enough in all three areas of the game.”
Most Commented news