Wednesday Walkthrough: Oklahoma Week
Kansas Jayhawks football is finally back this week, but a potentially rude awakening awaits after the bye week in the form of the sixth-ranked Oklahoma Sooners, undefeated on the year and suddenly right in the thick of the College Football Playoff race.
KU got extra time to rest up and readjust during the week off, and it will need to be at its best this weekend against the best team in the Big 12. The Jayhawks do get this game at home, though, with all the fanfare of Fox’s Big Noon Saturday in tow as well.
There’s a lot riding on this game for both programs, and Kansas coach Lance Leipold had plenty to say about it when he met with the media this week.
LISTENING IN ON LANCE
"Still progressing. I remain very encouraged. I'll kind of leave it there. I think it's still in the ‘doubtful’ area, doubtful, questionable and those things, but I remain very optimistic."
Let’s start with the latest update on QB1, Jalon Daniels. The good news is that Leipold is, clearly, optimistic about his progress, adding later that he’s been able to do more in practice lately. The bad news is that he’s doubtful for this week. That doesn’t mean he can’t or won’t play, and maybe part of this answer is gamesmanship, but we shouldn’t expect the full Daniels experience this week. That’s understandably frustrating for everyone involved, but Jason Bean has played well in his stead and maybe, just maybe, this is a sign that his full-time return is close.
“I really like where we're at right now. I think we had a productive week last week, but we at the same time we were able to mentally, physically give some guys some down time, try to get a little healthier, refreshed."
The Jayhawks are, thankfully for them, in a good spot coming off the bye. While there may not be any major injury concerns beyond Daniels, at this stage of the year the nicks, bruises and general wear and tear starts to take its toll. Leipold added that he liked how the week of practice started, which is a positive because, again, Kansas must be at its best against a red-hot Oklahoma team.
"I think it's another great opportunity for us to show the progress of our program, to show what this group is all about, where we're heading … that's great on a national stage for the college football world to see the Kansas Jayhawks."
There are only five programs that have hosted both ESPN’s College GameDay and Fox’s Big Noon Kickoff in the last two years, with KU joining that group as its fifth member. Leipold has never shied away from an opportunity for this program to gain national exposure and to draw national eyeballs, and this weekend’s festivities are no different. Leipold also tied in that with this being Homecoming weekend, it’s a chance for alumni to re-engage with the team, especially if they haven’t been around much in recent years.
“Jeff Lebby's an excellent offensive coordinator, he's one of the best in the country at running the system, and they've got a quarterback that does an excellent job of running that. He's very accurate, he can extend plays, he can run and create things with his legs. They have weapons all over the place."
We’ll get to more on KU’s attempt to slow down OU’s offense later, but it’s no surprise that when breaking down the Sooners Leipold immediately pointed to quarterback Dillon Gabriel and the offense. They're first in the Big 12 and fourth in the country in scoring, and even in a narrow win a week ago Oklahoma put up 31 points. He also referenced what OU did that gave KU trouble last season, and said that you can see even more of that from the 2023 version of Oklahoma.
KNOW YOUR ENEMY
When: Saturday, Oct. 28 at 11:00 a.m. CT
Where: David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium, Lawrence, KS
Spread: Kansas +10
Oklahoma stumbled through its first season under Brent Venables, but the Sooners have hit the gas this year. Venables’ specialty is defense, but it’s the OU offense that has been their most electrifying unit this season. Bill Connelly’s SP+ metric at ESPN has the Oklahoma offense ranked fifth in the nation (KU, for what it’s worth, checks in 13th offensively). Gabriel is on pace for the best season of his career, currently completing 71.2% of his passes for 2,131 yards and 19 touchdowns with just three interceptions.
Defensively, they’ve been solid this year as well, checking in 23rd in SP+ there. Kansas offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki had an interesting take on the Sooners during his media availability Wednesday, comparing OU’s multiplicity on defense to KU’s multiplicity on offense. Something to be keenly aware of with the Oklahoma defense is how good they've been at stealing possessions. The Sooners are tied for ninth in the nation (and are second in the Big 12) in takeaways this year with 15.
After opening as a 10.5-point favorite, the line is down to 10 in favor of Oklahoma at most sportsbooks. According to Vegas Insider, 90% of money wagered on the spread as of press time has come in on Kansas.
JAYHAWK TO WATCH
According to Stats Perform’s TRACR metric, Oklahoma has the fourth-best passing offense in the country this season. The Sooners also have multiple dynamic weapons in the passing game, including four receivers who have racked up between 300-500 yards this season. Add all that in with OU’s general team speed and Kansas has to be excellent along the boundaries this weekend.
For that reason, we’re going to double down with this week’s player picks and choose the Jayhawks’ two starting outside cornerbacks, Cobee Bryant and Mello Dotson. Their coverage skills are why they’ve been put on the map over the last couple of seasons (with Bryant obviously garnering the majority of the headlines), but their increased physicality as tacklers and against the run has been a major asset for Brian Borland’s defense.
That duo will be counted on to not only seal off any potentially explosive plays on the perimeter, but they’ll also have to be sure tackles against the Oklahoma ground attack. Bryant and Dotson have major responsibilities this week, but everything we’ve seen from them this year indicates they should have what it takes to get the job done.
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