Kansas Football First Half Report Card: Special Teams and Coaching

This is the first report card for the first half of Kansas’s football season. We will cover offense and defense in future posts. This installment grades special teams and coaching.

Special Teams

The 2015 Kansas football season was one of the lowest points in the program’s history. In order to give the 2016 special teams a grade, I’m going to compare the 2016 performance to the 2015 performance. Keep in mind that we are comparing a full season of 12 games against half a season of 6 games. So when we look at totals, I’m doubling the numbers in my head as a way to compare against the 2015 totals. Ideally we want to see improvement in every area since 2015 was so poor.

Kickoffs

One way to limit kickoff returns is to kick the ball out of the end zone. This prevents the kick from being returned for a long gain, yet it does place the ball at the 25 yard line. Having a return average of more than 25 yards means guaranteed starting position better than a touchback.

KU Kickoff Returns
2015 Average: 20.3 (54 total)
2016 Average: 21.1 (22 total)

Opponent Kickoff Returns
2015 Average: 20.2 (19 total)
2016 Average: 17.1 (8 total)

The Jayhawks have added an average of one yard on their own returns and have dropped an average of 3 yards from their opponents returns. This is definitely an improvement and credit has to go to coach Joe DeForest for giving the kickoff coverage and return teams some extra attention.

Punt Returns
2015 Average: 2.0 (13 total)
2016 Average: .5 (4 total)

Opponent Punt Returns
2015 Average: 7.9 (31 total)
2016 Average: 7.3 (15 total)

Unfortunately the sample size for punt returns is very small (4) and it doesn’t represent the punts fumbled in the second game against Ohio. Coverage of punts does show a slight improvement though opponents are clearly getting better returns than the Jayhawks.

Punting
2015 Average: 37.7 (87)
2016 Average: 38.9 (38)

Opponent Punting
2015 Average: 41.3 (43)
2016 Average: 37.0 (34)

I was a little surprised to only see a single yard of improvement in punts after Cole Moos had two huge punts against Baylor. While it is hard for Kansas to minimize the length of opponents punts, it has gone down nearly four yards and the number of punts forced is trending much higher than last season.

Field Goals
2015: 6-11
2016: 4-8

PAT
2015: 21-23
2016: 16-16

When the team has so much difficulty scoring, the problem is magnified when the kicker misses makeable field goals. With three misses against TCU, missed field goals cost the team a much-needed conference win. High on the list for future recruiting is getting a kicker that can convert at a much higher percentage. 2017 commit Liam Jones could fit the bill.

There is an improvement, however slight, in almost all aspects of special teams. Unfortunately it is an improvement on a historically poor season. So I will give them a passing grade, but more improvement is needed for a good grade.

Grade: D+

Coaching

A number of factors go into coaching. Players first need to be recruited. Then they are molded into better players. Lastly, they have to be properly directed on the field to get the desired results on the scoreboard. While there are numerous coaches on the staff, I’m going to render my grade mostly on the Offensive Coordinator, Defensive Coordinator and Head Coach.

Six years and counting of poor performance make recruiting difficult. The coaching staff should be credited with fighting for improvements to facilities and making inroads with more talented recruits. Building the strength of the walk-on program is a huge plus.  The only way recruiting can take a big step upwards is for the on-field performance to improve and that is very unlikely to happen in 2016.

Improvements were made in strength and conditioning, though very little of the improvement has shown on the field during games. There was also a big staff turnover in the last offseason. It is hard to grade the staff changes as improvements without positive results to show for it. Probably the biggest turnover was Head Coach David Beaty taking over the offensive play calling and quarterback coaching. Rob Likens is listed as both Offensive Coordinator and Quarterback Coach though it is a title in name only. Regardless of who is in charge, both areas seem to have regressed from 2015.

Defensive Coodinator Clint Bowen was not pleased with the defense in 2015 and reached out to fellow coaches around the country in the offseason for ways to improve. Even losing several starters on defense for numerous games, the defense has shown great improvement over 2015. The number of turnovers forced is up slightly and there have been far more tackles for loss. This defensive turnaround is the only area where the coaching staff deserves a good grade.

Turnovers gained
2015: 9 fumbles, 9 interceptions
2016: 5 fumbles, 6 interceptions

Coach Beaty has stressed that for Kansas to win, they have to make fewer mistakes than their opponents. They have shown a ten yard per game improvement in penalty yardage, but turnovers are on pace to be nearly double the 2015 season. As Beaty is in charge of all things on offense, the turnovers fall completely on his shoulders. He also needs to be blamed for the rotating quarterbacks debacle and predictable offensive play calling.

Penalties
2015: 56.2 yards per game
2016: 46.5 yards per game

Turnovers lost:
2015: 11 fumbles, 14 interceptions
2016: 10 fumbles, 12 interceptions

Judging only Coach Beaty would lead to a failing grade. Thanks to work done on the recruiting trail and on the defensive side of the ball are the other thing preventing the coaching from an F.

Grade: D-