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Reesing benched, offensive line struggles

By Clark Goble, Jayson Jenks

Monday, November 2, 2009

Todd Reesing was benched in the fourth quarter after being unable to consistently move the offensive down the field.

Coach Mark Mangino said leaving Reesing in the game was not worth the risk of injury.

“I didn’t want him to take another hit,” Mangino said. “I didn’t want him to get sacked again from the blindside or scramble and take a hit when our offensive line play is not up to snuff.”

So although Todd Reesing was short-arming throws and veteran receivers were unable to hold on to the ball, Mangino said his biggest issue with the offense was the offensive line. Texas Tech recorded six sacks and the Jayhawks managed just 71 rushing yards in the 42-21 loss at Texas Tech.

“We can no longer play the way we are,” Mangino said. “We are not efficient in the run game, we aren’t physical, we don’t finish blocks, and our pass protection at times has become suspect as well.”

Reesing, already suffering from a sore groin from the Colorado game, took a few hard hits but said he was “no worse for the wear.”

“I did take some shots to the head that luckily didn’t ring my bell too bad,” Reesing said. “We’ll see how I feel tomorrow I guess.”

Perhaps the biggest hit Reesing took came late in the second quarter after freshman left tackle Tanner Hawkinson tried a cut block on Texas Tech defensive tackle Colby Whitlock.

The key word is “tried.”

Whitlock ran free for an excruciatingly long couple of seconds and hit Reesing from the blindside. The football dribbled behind Reesing on the turf and Texas Tech grabbed it and scrambled for the touchdown.

Despite complimenting the offensive line’s rapid progression in the first few weeks of the season, Mangino said the line had regressed in the last couple of weeks. Mangino said he was not afraid to make changes in the line, like any other position.

“I know that’s it’s a young group,” Mangino said. “But I think we have some players that are not getting repetitions on the offensive line that probably deserve them, and we’ll give them an opportunity here as we go.”

The starters on the offensive line were Hawkinson, junior Brad Thorson, sophomore Jeremiah Hatch, junior Sal Capra and sophomore Jeff Spikes. Junior Ian Wolfe replaced Spikes late in the game.

Junior wide receiver Dezmon Briscoe said the offense’s inability to move down the field was a responsibility shared between the offensive line, the receivers and the quarterback.

“You got to get it all together in order to be the offense we’re capable of being,” Briscoe said.

ONYEGBULE SCORES AGAIN

With his three-yard fumble return for a touchdown, senior defensive end Maxwell Onyegbule recorded his second score of the season. He returned an interception 48 yards for a touchdown against Duke earlier in the season.

MCDOUGALD MAKING MARK ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BALL

Freshman wide receiver-safety Brad McDougald became the first Kansas player to record a reception and an interception in the same game since Aqib Talib did it in the fifth game of the 2007 season against Kansas State. McDougald returned the interception 38 yards to the Texas Tech 47.

BRANSTETTER ONLY ABLE TO KICK DEEP

After back-to-back Texas Tech personal fouls late in the third quarter, kicker Jacob Branstetter teed up the kickoff at the Texas Tech 40-yard line.

It seemed like a perfect opportunity for an unorthodox kickoff for a couple of reasons.

Texas Tech would only gain ten yards on a failed onsides attempt compared with a relatively easy Branstetter touchback. If Branstetter guided the kick into a corner, Kansas’ kick cover teams could have tackled the kick returner well behind the 20 yard line.

But coach Mark Mangino said that Branstetter was unable to kick pooches or squib kicks.

“All he’s capable of is kicking the ball off the tee deep,” Branstetter said. “We figured, ‘Let’s make sure they get it on the 20 and not do anything stupid.’”

BRISCOE AND MEIER TIED FOR CAREER LEAD IN RECEPTIONS

With six more catches than senior receiver Kerry Meier Saturday, junior Dezmon Briscoe tied Meier for the most receptions in Kansas history with 189.

Briscoe caught nine passes for 110 yards and a touchdown, while Meier caught just three passes for 32 yards.

Meier hasn’t caught less than four balls since the Nebraska game last season.

Game balls:

Alonso Rojas. Rojas, who was called on early and often, averaged 48 yards on eight punts, including a long of 72 yards. On a day when Kansas’ offense severely struggled to move the ball, Rojas kept the field position battle even with a solid day of punting.

Jake Laptad. Laptad recorded six tackles, including two tackles for a loss. But his biggest play occurred in the final minutes of the first half. Laptad sacked — and stripped — Texas Tech quarterback Seth Doege and the result of the play set up a touchdown that tied the game at halftime.

Max Onyegbule. Onyegbule’s numbers are solid: He had two tackles, a sack and recovered a fumble for a touchdown. But Onyegbule also continuously pressured and knocked down Texas Tech’s quarterbacks. His performance goes beyond simply his stats.

Delay of games:

Jeff Spikes. It’s hard to fully and accurately characterize the play of an offensive lineman. But one thing is certain: Texas Tech created a lot of pressure and Spikes was pulled mid-series late in the fourth quarter. That’s never a good sign.

Kerry Meier. Meier finished with a season-low three catches for a season-low 32 yards. He also had a costly fumble deep in Kansas territory that Texas Tech recovered. The Red Raiders capitalized with a touchdown on their ensuing possession.

Todd Reesing. Not to pile on but Reesing has simply struggled in his last three games. He has seven turnovers in that stretch and many of those miscues resulted in points for Kansas’ opponents. He finished with just 181 yards and two fumbles against Texas Tech, and he was benched with seven minutes left in the game.

Play of the game…

In the final minutes of the first half, junior defensive end Jake Laptad stripped Texas Tech quarterback Seth Doege from behind, setting off an unusual scramble for the ball. Senior linebacker Arist Wright initially picked up the bouncing ball before it slipped out of his hands. Freshman safety Lubbock Smith then scooped and returned the ball to Tech’s two yard line.

The glass is half full…

Kansas’ defense has proven that the unit has fully turned the corner after a disappointing performance against Iowa State on Oct. 10. In their previous two games, the Jayhawks played well enough to grab a victory. Against Texas Tech, the defense kept Kansas in the game. The Jayhawks scored a defensive touchdown and limited the Red Raiders offense for three quarters before fatigue set in.

The glass is half empty…

Senior quarterback Todd Reesing is still stuck in the worst slump of his career. For the third consecutive game Reesing had costly turnovers and simply missed open receivers. It was bad enough on Saturday that coach Mark Mangino replaced Reesing with backup quarterback Kale Pick with seven minutes left in the game. At that point Kansas only trailed by two scores.

Quote of the game…

Coach Mark Mangino on replacing senior quarterback Todd Reesing with freshman Kale Pick in the fourth quarter. “I don’t think it was a big deal. On the last series he was in there he short-armed two passes and had a fumble. More than anything, I thought that Kale would give us a little bit of a jump. I just didn’t feel good about the offense as a whole. And to be honest with you, I was concerned about the protection. I didn’t want him to take another hit.”

D-line doing its job?

This looked more like the relentless defensive front that played so well during the nonconference season. The Jayhawks recorded five sacks and forced two fumbles. On one of the fumbles, senior defensive end Max Onyegbule scored a touchdown. On the other, the Jayhawks returned the ball to the Red Raiders’ two yard line.

Biggest answer…

The offensive line isn’t nearly as good as the unit played against Iowa State on Oct. 10 – a performance Mangino characterized as “one of the finest jobs of pass protection I think I’ve been associated with in a single game.” The offensive line has certainly regressed since that point.

Still questioning…

The cause of Reesing’s slump isn’t simply a couple of fluky performances. But other than that it’s hard to tell what exactly is going wrong. After the game Reesing couldn’t pinpoint the root of his struggles, and that could be part of the problem. Simply put: Something isn’t right with Kansas’ senior quarterback.

Looking ahead…

At the beginning of the season, this week’s game at Kansas State certainly didn’t seem to be a toss-up. Not anymore. K-State played Oklahoma close on the road, letting the game slip away late in the fourth quarter. Kansas, meanwhile, enters on a three-game losing streak.

Good, bad or just plain stupid?

Original prediction: Texas Tech 42, Kansas 27. Actual score: Texas Tech 42, Kansas 21. While the scores were relatively close, Kansas played – and deserved – much more than a 21-point loss. This one falls into the category of so-so.

Final thought…

This one certainly stung. There’s no shame in losing on the road to Texas Tech. But Kansas wasted a solid defensive effort and a chance to take a step forward in the Big 12 North race. Instead, the Jayhawks title hopes seem more like a distant memory than a realistic goal.

— Edited by Abbey Strusz

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