WVU not overlooking Kansas
Following the loss to Oklahoma State, some may be looking at West Virginia’s matchup against Kansas this weekend as an easy rebound win for the Mountaineers to get back on the winning track.
But today's game will be far from an easy win and West Virginia head coach Dana Holgorsen knows the importance of not overlooking the Jayhawks.
“You got to play your best every week to win,” Holgorsen said. “It’s a tough league. There’s only a few teams in college football over the course of a year where if you don’t play your best, you still have an opportunity to win and that’s not us.”
The Jayhawks carry a record of just 1-7 going into Saturday’s game in Morgantown and have not beaten an FBS team since the 2014 season. Kansas hasn’t posted a winning season since the 2008 season and are just 26-72 since winning the Orange Bowl in 2007.
Kansas head coach David Beaty is in his second year with the program and has only compiled a record of 1-19 through his first 20 games with the Jayhawks but don’t let the record fool you. This is a young Kansas team that has shown some positive signs of improvement despite the inconsistency shown on both sides of the ball.
Offensively, the Jayhawks have managed to rack up more than 400 yards of total offense in a single game three times this season, two of them coming against Big 12 opponents in TCU and Oklahoma State. The offense though has struggled with consistency and turnovers throughout this season. The Jayhawks have turned the ball over 27 times, which currently leads the nation.
“We can’t rely on them to turn the ball over,” Holgorsen said. “We got to force them. That’s what happened to us last week.”
Defensively, the Jayhawks have registered 21 sacks which ranks fourth in the Big 12. Sophomore defensive end Dorance Armstrong Jr. leads the Big 12 in tackles for loss and his eight sacks this season ties for the most in the Big 12. Kansas’s pass defense also ranks third in the Big 12 but the defense overall has allowed at least 40 points or more to their opponents in five out of its eight games this season.
Despite Kansas’s inconsistent play on both sides of the ball, they are a team that is capable of giving anyone a scare, just ask TCU. The Jayhawks were a missed in a game that Kansas dominated, out gaining the Horned Frogs 470-366 in total yards, forcing four TCU turnovers and holding the ball for 35:07 to TCU’s 24:53.
Some keys for the Mountaineers in this matchup are to get off to fast a start, be aggressive early and often and use their primetime stadium atmosphere to their advantage. On the road this season, Kansas has only been averaging nine points per game and have allowed an average of 50.8 points per game to their opponents.
The Mountaineers have seen what a slow start can do to them. After a sluggish start against Youngstown State earlier this season, West Virginia found themselves in a 14-14 deadlock at halftime against the Penguins before pulling away in the second half.
West Virginia has taken three out of four games against Kansas since joining the Big 12 conference in 2012. After suffering their first of the season last week in Stillwater, expect the Mountaineers to come out and make a statement right away but you can expect the Jayhawks to come out aggressive too. For a team who is no longer bowl eligible this season, the only thing the Jayhawks have to play for is a spoiler to one’s season.
“We’ll get out there and come up with the best game plan that we can, try and get our guys in the right frame of mind for Saturday, put our best foot forward so we’ll have a chance to win,” Holgorsen said. “That’s what this is about and that’s what we’re going to do.”