South Florida 37, Kansas 34

By Case Keefer

Originally published September 12, 2008 at 6:40 p.m., updated September 12, 2008 at 10:09 p.m.

***Below is the Kansan's running updates from the game. Scroll down for full coverage.*****

Photo Gallery

Kansas vs. South Florida

Photo gallery of Friday night's game against South Florida in Tampa.

TAMPA, FLA. — Todd Reesing willed Kansas back into the game at Raymond James Stadium, but made one critical mistake that set up the South Florida victory.

USF freshman kicker Maikon Bonani booted a 43-yard field goal as time expired to beat Kansas 37-34.

The Bulls were able to get in field goal range because of an interception by Reesing with 30 seconds left. Reesing looked deep for senior receiver Raymond Brown and heaved the ball into double coverage.

USF junior safety Nate Allen came down with it and returned it into Kansas territory. The Bulls ran one play before they attempted the game-winning field goal.

Check back to Kansan.com for full coverage.

TAMPA, FLA. — It looked like South Florida had Kansas stopped.

It looked like USF All-American George Selvie’s sack pinned the Jayhawks too far back. Selvie wreaked havoc in the Kansas backfield by tripping up Todd Reesing and making it third-and-21 from the Kansas 40.

But Reeesing didn’t panic. He saw an open Kerry Meier running a seam route and heaved a prayer. Meier caught it for 23 yards. First down.

Angus Quigley took a shovel pass on the next for a 14-yard touchdown. Kansas tied the game 34-34.

Reesing has gone 32-for-47 on passing attempts with 373 yards and three touchdowns.

TAMPA, FLA. — It might have taken a 14-point deficit to awaken it, but the Kansas offense is finally showing some signs of life in Raymond James Stadium.

Reesing led the Jayhawks on a 78-yard touchdown drive. South Florida still leads 34-27.

The offensive line still struggled pass blocking on the drive but Reesing was able to scramble around and complete passes. The best example came on the touchdown pass.

The Jayhawks faced a third-and-seven from the 18-yard line. Reesing ran backwards and eluded two Bull defenders before finding Johnathan Wilson in the middle of the endzone.

Reesing has passed for 313 yards and two touchdowns. Both the touchdowns went to Johnathan Wilson, who has a total of nine catches for 162 yards.

TAMPA, FLA. — Some thought this could be a statement game for Kansas. The Jayhawks were supposed to prove they could beat high-profile non-conference opponents by traveling to Florida and beating a ranked team.

Turns out it was a statement game for South Florida. The Bulls are on a 31-0 run since the middle of the second half and lead the Jayhawks 34-20 with 14 minutes remaining in the game.

The latest touchdown came on a 38-yard pass from Matt Grothe to A.J. Love. Kansas sophomore cornerback Isiah Barfield watched as Love ran right by him.

The Kansas secondary has been overmatched in the second half. Junior Justin Thornton gave up the previous touchdown when he allowed USF senior receiver Taurus Johnson to get behind him.

TAMPA, FLA. — The jersey numbers are the same, but these Jayhawks look nothing like the ones who took the field in the first half.

USF junior Jamar Taylor rushed for a 13-yard touchdown to give the Bulls the lead for the first time at 27-20. Meanwhile, Kansas hasn't even been able to move the ball. It has punted on four straight possessions and not gained a first down.

TAMPA, FLA. — No word on if South Florida coach Jim Leavitt uses the football cliché, “it’s a game of inches.”

But if he didn’t before, he will now. South Florida’s second possession, where it went on a drive to tie Kansas 20-20, of the third quarter proved it.

Sophomore running back Jamar Taylor rushed for what appeared to be a 54-yard touchdown. But he stepped out of bounds at the 34-yard line. No touchdown.

A few plays later, senior receiver Taurus Johnson bobbled a touchdown pass from Matt Grothe in the endzone. No touchdown. At least, not at first. The booth reviewed the play and overturned the call.

The crowd at Raymond James Stadium started to rumble as the Bulls had tied the game. USF All-American defensive end George Selvie further energized the crowd on Kansas’ next drive.

He flew by freshman tackle Jeff Spikes twice in a row to knock down Todd Reesing and force a punt. Kansas hasn’t gained a first down that wasn’t from a penalty since midway through the second half.

TAMPA, FLA. — South Florida has a running game after all.

USF junior running back Mo Plancher struggled in the first half and averaged just more than two yards per carry. Enter sophomore Jamar Taylor.

Taylor led South Florida on a drive that resulted in a field goal on its first possession of the second half. South Florida now only trails Kansas 20-13.

Taylor rushed three times for 35 yards on the drive, including a 19-yard run into the red zone where he broke numerous Kansas tackles. But the Kansas defense held South Florida once it got within its 10-yard line.

They stuffed Plancher on two consecutive carries and then Grothe misfired on a third-down pass into the endzone. Maikon Bonani hit a 23-yard field goal to put the Bulls within a touchdown after that.

The Kansas running game has been ineffective too. Juniors Jake Sharp and Jocques Crawford have combined for only 26 yards on nine carries. The Jayhawks have gone three-and-out on two straight drives to start the second half.

TAMPA, FLA. — Offensive coordinator Ed Warriner isn’t trying to get fancy with the Kansas offense.

It’s worked so far for the Jayhawks as they lead 20-10 with a minute remaining until halftime.

After back-to-back screen passes to Dezmon Briscoe and Jocques Crawford led the Jayhawks to the USF 10-yard line, Warriner stuck with the repetitious theme.

Reesing faked a hand off, sprinted to his left and gained five yards. The Jayhawks lined back up, called the same play but got new results.

Reesing rushed for a four-yard touchdown to put the Jayhawks ahead 20-3 with more than four minutes remaining in the first half.

South Florida isn’t letting Kansas run away with a victory, though. The Bulls responded a minute later when quarterback Matt Grothe rushed for a 28-yard touchdown to cut into the Jayhawks’ lead.

The defense had limited Grothe’s rushing yards before the touchdown. The drive before, Grothe tried to pick up a first-down on the ground when sophomore cornerback Chris Harris met him only two yards ahead of the line of scrimmage.

TAMPA, FLA. — Fifteen minutes into the game and the Bulls have their first points off of a Maikon Bonani field goal. They have the Jayhawks to thank for the opportunity.

Kansas aided South Florida’s nine-play, 56-yard scoring drive, which made the score 10-3, with a couple miscues.

Junior defensive end Jeff Wheeler received a personal foul call that cost the Jayhawks 15 yards when he hit South Florida quarterback Matt Grothe late. Later in the drive, Grothe threw a ball right into the hands of Kansas senior linebacker Joe Mortensen.

But Mortensen dropped the ball and the Bulls were able to kick their 34-yard field goal. Kansas endured its first three-and-out the last time it had the ball. The offense is sprinting back onto the field at the 12-yard line after a short kick return from senior Marcus Herford.

TAMPA, FLA. — South Florida came prepared to stop freshman receiver Daymond Patterson, but has struggled with the rest of the Jayhawks.

Bulls have swarmed to Patterson both times he’s caught short passes. The other receivers, however, have marched Kansas down the field.

Sophomore receiver Johnathan Wilson caught a 36-yard touchdown pass and another key pass on a third down to lead Kansas out to a 10-0 lead. Junior receiver Kerry Meier also made an impressive tiptoe catch by the sideline near the endzone.

Sophomore receiver Dezmon Briscoe added an 11-yard gain on a third down slant route. USF All-American defensive end George Selvie hasn’t been much of a factor so far as Kansas is doubling him in passing situations with a running back.

Kansas has demoralized the South Florida defense by converting on five of six third-down attempts. The Bulls first stop came at the 12-yard line. The Jayhawks settled for a 12-yard field goal from sophomore Jacob Branstetter.

TAMPA, FLA. — People often confuse sophomore receiver Johnathan Wilson for teammate and fellow sophomore receiver Dezmon Briscoe.

They might have an even tougher time differentiating between the two after Kansas’ first touchdown at Raymond James Stadium. Wilson caught a short strike from Todd Reesing, broke a couple of shoestring tackles and never looked back - in typical Briscoe-style.

The Jayhawks lead 7-0. Kansas converted on two third-downs to continue its scoring drive. Reesing scrambled for 13 yards and barely made it past the marker on the first conversion. On the second, he found freshman tight end Tim Biere for 10 yards.

Kansas will have some bruises from its first possession, though. Freshman receiver Daymond Patterson received a monstrous hit as a greeting from USF’s Tyller Roberts. USF’s Bruce Mompremier did similar damage to junior running back Jake Sharp near the other sideline.

TAMPA, FLA. — Former Jayhawk Aqib Talib hasn’t done much to endear himself to fans in the Tampa Bay area.

Talib, who now plays for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, first got kicked out of the NFL rookie symposium for fighting with teammate Cory Boyd. He gave up a long touchdown in one of his first plays as a Buccaneer Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.

And tonight, he just led the Jayhawks onto the field against the Bulls. He’s having no apprehensions about drawing attention to himself as he is standing with Mark Mangino and conversed with the referees before the game.

Talib will stand on the Kansas sideline for tonight’s game. The kickoff teams have taken the field. Stay tuned to Kansan.com.

TAMPA, FLA. — Fans are beginning to fill the seats, the sun is descending and South Florida is back on the field at Raymond James Stadium.

Kansas and South Florida are going through pre-game warm-ups in preparation for their game on ESPN2, set to kick off in just more than 30 minutes. The Bulls left the field for about 10 minutes as a storm hovered overhead and rain pelted the stadium. The Jayhawks stayed.

As with most Florida rainstorms, it lasted less than 15 minutes. The skies are clear now and the festivities are underway.

Kansas, wearing white jerseys instead of the red it opted for the last time in Florida, is running through drills with the first team offense. Junior Jake Sharp is the running back taking the repetitions with the starters, perhaps indicating he is set to start over juniors Angus Quingley and Jocques Crawford.

Continue to check Kansan.com for live updates during the game.

Comments

POWER (anonymous) says...

Well that settles it. I guess what the rest of country has been saying all along was right; last year really was a fluke. I can't wait to go into the office Monday & see all the KSU, MU, NU, CU & OU fans with their "hate to say we told you so" grins on their faces. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

September 13, 2008 at 3:05 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

POWER (anonymous) says...

I almost forgot, special thanks to Todd Reesing for throwing the interception that cost us the game. Try not to get beat too bad by the rest of the conference the remainder of the season. I can't believe I bought season tickets this year. I am so embarrassed to be a KU football fan.

September 13, 2008 at 3:12 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

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