From CFFI: 2010 Spring Wrap – Kansas
The Skinny
Kansas ended the 2009 season with a 5-7 overall record (1-7 conference) after beginning the season 5-0. Seven straight losses and a coaching brouhaha led to big off-season changes for the Jayhawks.
KU says adieu to some big-time players, namely quarterback Todd Reesing, running back Jake Sharp, wide recievers Kerry Meier and Dezmon Briscoe, safety Darrell Stuckey and of course the head coach. No more calling the team from Lawrence the Fighting Manginos.
Welcome back to the Big 12, Mr. Gill
Turner Gill, prolific University of Nebraska quarterback in the 80′s, lost just two games as a three-year starter for head coach Tom Osborne. After deciding to pick up the whistle and try his hand at coaching, Gill returned to the Huskers as an assistant on three national championship teams before grabbing the head coach title at the University of Buffalo.
Gill has already shown a vastly different personality and style than his predecessor, dismissing players for behavioral issues and leading the spring game crowd in a drug-free pledge during halftime. Quite a change from the leadership that Mark Mangino is said to have provided.
Battle to be the big gun
One of the primary storylines heading into the summer and fall months is the fact there is no clear #1 quarterback to replace Reesing. On the post-spring depth chart, Gill has redshirt freshman Kale Pick followed by OR and then redshirt sophomore Jordan Webb. In the spring game itself, Pick ended the day with 214 yards and two touchdown strikes on 14-of-22 passing. Webb was just 8-of-14 for 46 yards and one score, but Gill has been very clear that this quarterback battle will not be settled until the fall.
At running back, Angus Quigley a sixth-year senior, has the first team nod even though Toben Opurum netted 554 yards and nine touchdowns last season, the team’s returning statistical leader. Opurum has been transparent in saying his health was not 100 percent this spring, and it is expected that his name will return to the top of the list come fall, but Quigley is poised to make a battle out of it.
At wide receiver, there is also some questions on who will step up to fill the void left by Meier and Briscoe, with senior Johnathan Wilson, junior Daymond Patterson and sophomore Bradley McDougald listed as primary targets.
The changes at all three offensive skilled positions as well as the coaching staff leaves many questions about just how effective the Jayhawk offense will be in 2010, and if the dismal defense can hold opponents to less than the 35 points they averaged in 2009.
The schedule
Non-conference matchups with Georgia Tech and Southern Miss could give a glimpse at just how rocky the first season under Gill might get. Their South opponents for 2010 are at Baylor and hosting Texas A&M and Oklahoma State, a welcome break from Oklahoma and Texas for the team striving to succeed in the Big 12 North.
Colorado – as the 10th place finisher in 2009, you’re on the clock.
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