Defensive strength highlights spring game
The Blue team, composed of starters, defeated second-string White team 17-3
Kansas' spring football game was marked by a lackluster offense and a strong defense.
By Asher Fusco (Contact)
Tuesday, April 15th, 2008
The Kansas spring game brought a bit of sanity back to the Memorial Stadium scoreboard Monday night.
After the Jayhawks scored 56 points per game at home in 2007, Kansas mustered only 20 points – between two teams – in the 17-3 blue team victory. The white team, made up of second-string players, gained just 92 total yards and the blue team, which included most of the team’s starters, gained 302 yards on 71 plays.
It wasn’t beautiful football, but the defenses stood out by forcing two turnovers each.
“Defensively, we looked sharp,” Kansas coach Mark Mangino said. “I believe we have a chance to have a pretty doggone good defense again.”
The blue team’s offensive struggles started in the second quarter when junior quarterback Todd Reesing threw the ball into the open arms of senior safety Patrick Resby. Resby caught the ball alone in the open field and returned the ball 31 yards.
The white team couldn’t take advantage of the turnover, as senior wide receiver Gary Green fumbled along the right sideline. The blue team’s Chris Harris, sophomore cornerback, recovered the fumble, but the Blue offense gave up possession several plays later when sophomore wide receiver Dezmon Briscoe dropped the ball and sophomore linebacker Drew Dudley snared an interception.
“On offense I didn’t think it was very pretty,” Reesing said. “We struggled with a lot of execution things, myself included. We had too many mistakes on the offensive line and with dropped passes.”
With freshman quarterback A.J. Steward the white team stalled at the 10-yard line on its ensuing possession. Freshman kicker Jacob Branstetter converted a 27-yard field goal to tie the game at 3-3 with 10:02 to play in the second quarter.
The blue team found its way into the end zone in the first half, but its experienced defense was the unit responsible for the points. Senior cornerback Kendrick Harper scored on a 23-yard fumble return to vault the blue team to a 10-3 advantage heading into halftime. Harper and Harris, the team’s projected starting cornerbacks, combined for nine tackles and two fumble recoveries.
“We came out ready to go,” Harris said. “We knew from the beginning that we were all used to each other and everybody’s back, so we just came out and made plays.”
The Blue offense finally fell into a groove in the second half after a personnel adjustment on the offensive line. Freshman Jeff Spikes moved to left tackle and senior Matt Darton slid to right tackle, a move that gave Reesing more time to work in the pocket. With the white team’s defensive linemen at bay, Reesing threw a perfect strike to senior wide receiver Dexton Fields for the first offensive touchdown of the game – with 9:58 to play in the fourth quarter. The eight-yard score gave the blue team a 17-3 lead.
Reesing finished the game 23-for-43 with 227 passing yards, and Kerry Meier completed 13 of 18, playing quarterback for the White team. Junior running back Angus Quigley compiled 63 rushing yards on 13 carries, splitting his carries between squads. Briscoe led both teams with 92 receiving yards on eight catches.
—Edited by Sasha Roe
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