Andy Kotelnicki Has Some Serious Questions to Answer Going Into Kansas’ Bye

There were serious questions about the Kansas football team's defense heading into the season, but D.K. McDonald's unit has actually exceeded expectations. The real problem with this Jayhawks squad through the first three games of the campaign has been the offense.

Behind new starting quarterback Isaiah Marshall, KU has not had much success. The lack of offensive production is largely responsible for the Jayhawks' last two defeats against Missouri and Arizona State.

In a press conference earlier this week, associate head coach and offensive play-caller Andy Kotelnicki took full responsibility for Marshall's shortcomings. However, it doesn't seem like he trusts him to throw the ball very much. His play calls were overly passive early in the Union Jack Classic, as the Jayhawks unsuccessfully and inexplicably ran the ball on third-and-long twice in the first half to force a punt.

The Jayhawks would have had a real shot to come out victorious yesterday had the offense not gone flat through the first three quarters. It wasn't until the final 15 minutes that KU scored an offensive point, and it started the afternoon by failing to convert on its first five third-down opportunities. Even when the ball started to move downfield, Kotelnicki never seemed to have the right call to put the Jayhawks in the red zone and in position to put points on the board.

Kansas ranks in the bottom half of the conference in offensive yards, passing yards, and rushing yards. Quite frankly, nothing has been going right for Kotelnicki's group.

Some things are ultimately out of his hands, like the Jayhawks' two tailbacks losing a fumble yesterday and inaccurate throws from his signal-caller. Regardless, he made it abundantly clear that the team's offensive struggles should be pinned on him. In that case, he deserves a large portion of the blame.

It's important to note that during Kotelnicki's first stint with the university, its offense developed elite yards-per-play efficiency and transformed into one of the top units in the Big 12. Whether it is a personnel or play-calling problem, that has not simply been the case in his first three games back.

Kotelnicki is a well-respected assistant across the sport, but the offense is going to need tangible results eventually. If people around the program truly view him as Lance Leipold's successor at the helm, he first needs to be able to guide the offense since that is his specialty.

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