Friday, April 13, 2007
All the hype surrounding the Kerry Meier/Todd Reesing quarterback situation is overshadowing the bigger question: who will step up at running back and fill Jon Cornish’s shoes?
Right now, Angus Quigley, Jake Sharp and Gary Green seem to be in the mix for the starting spot. Quigley missed last season because of an injured thigh, but he appears to be the front-runner for the job.
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There is also a lot of talk about the Jayhawks becoming more of a passing team — which is about as bad an idea as moving the Missouri game to Arrowhead Stadium.
He has the best size, at 6-foot-2, 210 pounds, and was slated to split carries with Cornish before last season.
If Kansas wants to make it back to a bowl game, Quigley will have to become the horse that carries the offense — or, possibly Jake Sharp. Last season, whenever Sharp got the ball, he was a tough runner. He averaged just over six yards a carry on 21 carries.
Between Quigley and Sharp, I expect one to become the starting running back, getting 15 to 20 carries a game, with the other getting about 10 carries a game.
While it’s too early to determine just how good he’ll be, the talk surrounding incoming freshman Carmon Boyd-Anderson is promising. I would not be surprised if he comes in as a dark horse and gets some carries right away.
There is also a lot of talk about the Jayhawks becoming more of a passing team — which is about as bad an idea as moving the Missouri game to Arrowhead Stadium.
There is no way Kansas will make it to a bowl game if it doesn’t run the ball 30-plus times a game. It hired Ed Warinner as offensive coordinator and, on paper, it appears he is best suited for a running offense. Despite Illinois being the laughingstock of the Big Ten at 2-10 last season, Warinner’s offensive line opened up running lanes as the Illini became the top rushing attack in the conference. So, why would Kansas switch to a passing offense? It just doesn’t make sense.
Basically, losing the guy that ignited the Jayhawk offense last season, Cornish, will be a lot tougher to replace than the quarterback competition between Meier and Reesing. I’m confident either one will be able to run the offense effectively — as long as they have a dependable guy in the backfield.
Come Sunday, during the annual spring scrimmage, how the running backs look will have a lot more influence this season than how the quarterbacks look.
Davison is a senior in journalism from Overland Park.
— Edited by Kelly Lanigan
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Comments
Davison: Running back battle the one to watch
Gary Green is, and has been, at corner since last spring. Maybe you meant Donte Bean?
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