Week Ten Jayhawk Spotlight: Lawrence Arnold and Quentin Skinner
Every week at this time, we highlight a Jayhawk who performed admirably in the last game and since I couldn’t decide which wide receiver to choose, we’ll regress to week one and two form and pick two players to highlight.
The Kansas running game couldn’t quite get going at full steam against Iowa State, so it was up to Jason Bean and his assortment of receiving options to pick up the slack. To say that they performed adequately is an understatement. Bean spread it out to seven receivers on the day with Lawrence Arnold and Quentin Skinner leading the way.
On the second offensive play of the game, on a second and nine from the KU 14 yard line, Jason Bean connected with Quentin Skinner for a 31 yard gain to get the Jayhawks rolling. It was the longest reception of the evening for the junior from Claremore, Oklahoma, but it was an important one that established the Kansas passing game early in the contest against the Cyclones. Skinner finished the night with three receptions for 84 yards.
Lawrence Arnold had the biggest impact on the night, catching three passes for 112 yards and a touchdown. It seems as if the junior from DeSoto, Texas is Bean’s go-to man when a big play is needed. And Lawrence didn’t disappoint in this game. On that opening drive, the Jayhawks faced a fourth and ten at the Iowa State 34 yard line, too close to punt, too far away for a legitimate field goal try. It’s the spot where every (smart) college team will go for it, and situations like these often bend in the direction of Lawrence Arnold.
Jason Bean found Arnold for a gain of 21 yards and after a roughing the passer penalty, the Jayhawks were at the seven yard line. After trading penalties with the Cyclones, Devin Neal eventually ran it in for the touchdown, the first score of the game made possible by a crucial fourth down reception by Arnold.
After the pick six from Mello Dotson and an Iowa State field goal, it was on the the second half and Bean again targeted Arnold, and again it was on a big play to keep a scoring drive alive. With KU driving but facing a third and six from the ISU 41, Bean found Arnold for eleven yards and a first down. On that same drive, Bean found Skinner for 23 yards that got Kansas down to the Cyclone four yard line. Devin Neal again punched in the TD for Kansas who took a 21-3 lead.
Later in the second half, we saw more from Skinner and Arnold, catches that will certainly make each of their career highlight reels.
First, Quentin Skinner’s absurd catch late in the third quarter that has to rank up there with the most acrobatic catches a Kansas player has made in years. When watching it live, it looked as if Skinner had no chance to make the play, but he contorted his body, doing almost a complete 360 between two Iowa State defenders, somehow hauling in the catch on the sideline, his body clearly landing in bounds as he collided with the second Cyclone defender. Amazing. And worthy of making many a highlight show’s top plays of the day.
After a string of penalties, Kansas was forced to punt and Iowa State scored on the very next possession, cutting the KU lead to a perilous three, 21-18. Enter Lawrence Arnold.
After the kickoff, Kansas only needed one play. Jason Bean found Arnold streaking down the center of the field, only one man to beat. He shed that defender, and was off to the races for the 80-yard score. Actually, he was so alone, it was more like a medium paced trot or as Robert Griffin III said during the telecast, “My man went for a stroll!”
He sure did.
(BWR's Brendan Dzwierzynski has a much more detailed look at this impressive play call in his Film Room Favorites article).
That huge play was enough to seal the win for KU, but for Lawrence Arnold and Quentin Skinner, big plays are becoming the norm. If Kansas is going to keep the momentum rolling and keep racking up the wins, the offense will have to be balanced and with receivers like Arnold and Skinner, the Jayhawks know they always have a shot at a big play often when they need one the most.
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