Kansas football: Not everyone critical of Big 12 schedule

Kansas football is expected to take another step forward this season. Five home conference games could be an advantage.

The round-robin Big 12 football schedule is tough. It is perfect for the ten-team league but makes David Beaty’s job that much more difficult. After last season’s upset of Texas, Kansas football fans are optimistic about the season ahead. As a matter of fact, some fans are more than optimistic. They believe Beaty, in his third season, can take the team to a bowl game.

That may be unrealistic considering the difficult round-robin conference schedule. I fondly remember the ‘good old days’ when Kansas football played Oklahoma or Nebraska every other year. The days of an easy schedule are long gone.

Teams in the other Power-5 conferences get a break against some of the more difficult teams. Their established divisions create an occasional break in a team’s schedule. Some of these divisions are very good. On the other hand, some are poorly organized and need to be changed. Colin Becht in Sports Illustrated wrote how to fix the divisions. He thought the Big 12 was in good shape. It was nice to see someone provide some praise for Big 12 football.

All things considered, there is not much the Big 12 can do except the nine-game conference schedule. I didn’t care for the north and south divisions but it did help the Jayhawks. This season, Kansas football is fortunate that the first two conference games are in Lawrence. The team will play five Big 12 games at Memorial Stadium. Beaty will take the team’s first conference road trip to Ames in mid-October.

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Following some non-conference success behind them, the Jayhawks should be ready for Iowa State. This is a game the Jayhawks must win. The final six games, three on the road, will be very difficult.

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