Kansas football: Unmitigated second half issues hurt Jayhawks vs. Baylor

When Kansas football’s defense collapsed in the second half, the Jayhawks were unable to recover, falling 47-14 to Baylor in Waco.

What looked like an impressive start from the Jayhawks turned into a defense and special teams nightmare for Kansas football head coach Les Miles. The Jayhawks opened the game with the first score of the evening but surrendered themselves to a mess of defensive and special teams mishaps.

The Jayhawks pulled a bold move Saturday night, starting true freshman quarterback Jalon Daniels. The Californian threw for an impressive 172 passing yards despite issues with the Jayhawks’ offensive line in the second half. The air attack for Kansas had worked intermediately throughout the first half, with senior Stephon Robinson making a 23-yard reception.

The ability for Kansas to move the chains however, was almost nearly absent. Despite an impressive start from the Jayhawk offense, it was evident that our rushing attack wasn’t going to be able to subsidize the faults in the air.

Recognizing the issues on the offensive line proved to me that this is a significant issue for the Jayhawks. With as many offensive weapons as the Jayhawks possess, Kansas simply cannot afford to make the same mistakes again and again when it comes to protecting the pocket. Kansas went 4-16 on third down, furthering their inability to put points on the board.

Defensively, Kansas couldn’t halt the Baylor rushing effort. Bears’ senior running back, John Lovett, rushed for 78 yards on 17 attempts. This was a huge problem for the Jayhawks, as Baylor’s unchecked rushing gouged Kansas drive after drive.

In the second half, Kansas’ special teams gave up 183 combined yards from 2 kickoff returns by Baylor’s senior running back Trestan Ebner, who also found the endzone twice on special teams. The Jayhawks had pilled up mishaps on the other side of the ball, furthering us from showing any consistency throughout the game.

For a road trip, I had expected some changes on both sides of the field. In the earlier stages of the game, Kansas’ had kept themselves in the game by putting pressure on Baylor’s receivers and taking advantage of the brand new Bears’ defense.

Kansas lost their edge in the second half and this proved to be the clear reason for the 33 point loss. Keeping the Kansas Jayhawks in the battle is something head coach Les Miles is going to have to channel from the Jayhawks if he expects any change of tempo heading further into the season.