Kansas football: These players are key if KU wants to upset Coastal Carolina
Kansas football will face a tough challenge Friday night as they travel to Conway, South Carolina, to take on the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers.
As it sits, the Jayhawks are 26.5 point underdogs, seemingly unfamiliar territory for the new head coach Lance Leipold. A spread this high isn’t uncommon for the Jayhawks as of late, but just last year, they were favored to win against this same Coastal Carolina team. In fact, the Chanticleers were underdogs in the last two games against the Jayhawks–they would go on to win both games.
There’s no doubt the Jayhawks have a tall mountain to climb if they want to pull off this upset, but if they want that mountain climb to be a little easier, they’ll need the following players to step up and have big games.
1. Mike Novitsky
The Jayhawk’s offensive line in Week 1 was well below average, falling short of their expectation of being the most improved unit on the team. While it’s now clear they have a long ways to go, one player can make that improvement happen a little sooner, and that’s junior center Mike Novitsky.
The center holds many jobs, the first being to get his fellow offensive lineman to the line and ready to go. He also makes reads of the defense and relay’s what he sees to the quarterback. Then he’s tasked with snapping the ball to the quarterback while keeping his head up, ready to block almost simultaneously.
These aren’t easy things to do, and if you don’t communicate with your fellow linemen and quarterback, things can fall apart quickly. That’s why Novitsky, the center and backbone of the Jayhawks offensive line, is one of the most important players on the team.
He’ll need to have the line ready and prepared to put out a much better effort this week. The Jayhawks may have scampered away unharmed against their FCS opponent, but the Chanticleers are the 17th ranked team in the nation, leaving no room for error.
Novitsky will have to keep his fellow linemen disciplined, so they cause fewer penalties that stall drives. He’ll also have to break down the communication barrier so everyone knows their jobs and can effectively run and pass block.
The key for the Jayhawks is to keep their offense on the field as long as possible, so the Chanticleer’s high-powered offense stays off the field. And a huge part of that responsibility lies on the back of the junior center Novitsky.
2. Kyron Johnson
One of the strengths of the Jayhawk’s defense is their defensive line. And the most important player on that unit is senior defensive end Kyron Johnson.
As witnessed in the South Dakota game, Johnson is quick and has an incredible nose for the ball. On one play in particular, he flew around the tackle and hit the unsuspecting quarterback, causing a fumble. Plays like this are what will give the Jayhawks a chance to pull off the upset.
But Johnson doesn’t need to get a sack every down; he just needs to force Coastal Carolina to change the dynamic of their offense and get them out of their comfort zone. If he can consistently pressure the quarterback and force the quarterback to rush his reads, it can cause the Chanticleers to make a lot of mistakes.
3. Devin Neal
The Jayhawks run game was atrocious in their Week 1 matchup. And on film, it appeared the rushing attack, or lack thereof, wasn’t so much on the defense as it was self-inflicted wounds by the Jayhawks.
This will need to improve dramatically, and that starts with true freshman running back Devin Neal. He only managed one carry for one yard, but it was the flow of the offense that hindered his potential carries. The Jayhawks will need to get him more involved, and if Neal can get some momentum, it will open up the offense.
It’s unusual to have a true freshman be a key player in a game as big as this one, but this is where the Kansas offense currently stands–relying on a young player to step up. If anyone can do it, though, it’s the running back, Neal. He has the most potential of all the running backs on the team and he can really make a difference immediately.