Kansas Jayhawks
Last season?s schedule included six Top 25 ranked opponents for Mark Magino's Jayhawks as they went 4-7 to cap a 10 year losing streak, but six of those losses were by single digits. This team has a 17-55 record in the nine year history of the Big 12 and has never finished in the top half of the North Division, but at least they are no longer the laughing stock of the conference. Magino has had to rely on defense to keep games close as the offense has been porous and this season should be no different.
Four different quarterbacks started at different times last year for the Jayhawks and there does not appear to be a frontrunner to take command of that position again in 2005. Last year?s freshman running back standout John Randle, was dismissed from the team after his fourth arrest in a year and a half leaving a big hole at tailback. Only one receiver with experience returns from last year and while the entire front line will be back, their collective talent level is only average.
Eight starters return from a squad that finishing 34th in the country in scoring defense. The linebackers will be very good again in 2005 and the line will be shored up by two excellent defensive ends who were instrumental in the Jayhawks earning a ranking of 23rd in the country in rushing defense, limiting opponents to 117.6 yards per contest. Third-team All-American cornerback Charles Gordon was tied for the national lead last year with seven interceptions and he will be joined by a solid and deep group of players in the defensive backfield.
The out of conference schedule for Kansas is as easy as it gets with Florida Atlantic, Appalachian State and Louisiana Tech but the Jayhawks will need cupcakes like these to push around early. Big 12 opponents this year feature the entire North Division as well as the three best teams from the South in Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Texas; all on the road.
Kansas State Wildcats
Kansas State HC Bill Snyder has done wonders with this program since taking over in 1989 but last year the wall came crashing down as the Wildcats went 4-7. The team did not play in a bowl game for the first time in 11 years and experienced their first losing season since 1992 after opening the 2004 season ranked in the Top 15.
Junior Dylan Meier will most likely be starting again at quarterback and while his receivers are talented and experienced, the pass protection is questionable this year with only one starter returning on an offensive line that will feature two true freshmen. That could also prove to be a problem for the running game as the players returning in the backfield had only a combined 77 yards between them in 2004 and superback, Darren Sproles is gone to the NFL.
Last year?s defense allowed almost 350 yards per game which is more than in the two previous seasons combined. With only five starters returning from last season and a very young secondary, don?t look for that trend to reverse in 2005. The linebackers will be asked to carry most of the load but should be assisted by three senior defensive linemen. The biggest problem will be the amount of time this unit will be on the field this season as the offense simply will not be able to sustain long drives with any regularity.
Snyder has long been criticized with his scheduling of inferior teams for KSU?s out of conference games and this year is really no exception with Florida International and North Texas at home but the team will have to travel to Huntington, WV to take on Marshall for their second game of the season. Road games at Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Iowa State and Nebraska make this year?s slate more challenging than usual.
Missouri Tigers
Last year at this time, football experts were touting the Tigers as a team to watch in 2004 but a 1-5 finish followed a 4-1 start and the hype did not live up to the billing. Gary Pinkel's team probably garnered some satisfaction in knocking Iowa Sate out of the Big 12 Championship game in their regular season finale but overall, 2004 was a big disappointment and their backers were hit hard by their 3-11 ATS record.
Back for his fourth year at quarterback is Brad Smith who last season completed 52% of his passes for 2,185 yards and 17 touchdowns. For some reason, in 2004 Smith relied more on his arm than the scrambling ability that he had shown in 2003 when he led the nation in rushing yards by a quarterback. He might be well served to revert back to his earlier form this year as the backfield and offensive line are very young. This offense has the potential to be dangerous but almost certainly, won?t be great.
Missouri had the nation?s 14th ranked defense last year and allowed only 19.5 points per game but there are only three starters returning in 2005 from that squad. Opposing teams should be able to run the ball on the Tigers as their defensive line is relatively small but the linebacking crew is experienced and pretty solid.
After opening the season in Kansas City with Arkansas State, the Tigers get five of their next six games at home but those do include tough games against Iowa State and Texas. The rest of the schedule is pretty favorable considering Missouri doe not have to play Oklahoma, Texas Tech or Texas A&M this year and with a little luck, Missouri will have a chance to contend for the Big 12 North title.
Nebraska Cornhuskers
Last year Bill Callahan debuted as head coach at Nebraska and the school suffered its first losing season since 1961. Being fully aware of the high expectations of the Cornhusker fans, he is gambling on 13 transfers to shore up the team and for his sake, better hope it pays off. Recruiting players to Lincoln is not as easy as it used to be when Tom Osborne was running the show.
One of those transfers was quarterback Zac Taylor who will run Callahan?s version of the West Coast offense and looked sharp in the spring game which was attended by 63,000 of the Big Red faithful. Cory Ross is back at running back after rushing for over 1,100 yards last season and the backups are solid with highly recruited Marlon Lucky out of California, and Leon Jackson who can fly. A solid offensive line is huge with three returning starters from last year and their success up front will be key in the performance of this offense. The receiving corps is super fast with above average ability.
Their defense of last year was not exactly reminiscent of the famous Black Shirts of Nebraska lore, allowing an average of 27 points a game and when Texas Tech dropped 70 points on them on October 9th, the Huskers never recovered from the shock. The front line should be very good again this year and it can?t hurt loosing three starters in a secondary that finished the season last year ranked 110th against the pass.
The Cornhuskers should begin the season by victimizing Maine and Wake Forest and will try to find a way to win two of the next three against Pittsburgh, Iowa State and Texas Tech. With seven home games in 2005, the Huskers need to reestablish Lincoln as one of the best home field advantages in America. Key conference games against Oklahoma, Iowa State, Texas Tech, and Kansas State are all at home and Nebraska will not have to face Texas or Texas A&M this season.
Last season?s schedule included six Top 25 ranked opponents for Mark Magino's Jayhawks as they went 4-7 to cap a 10 year losing streak, but six of those losses were by single digits. This team has a 17-55 record in the nine year history of the Big 12 and has never finished in the top half of the North Division, but at least they are no longer the laughing stock of the conference. Magino has had to rely on defense to keep games close as the offense has been porous and this season should be no different.
Four different quarterbacks started at different times last year for the Jayhawks and there does not appear to be a frontrunner to take command of that position again in 2005. Last year?s freshman running back standout John Randle, was dismissed from the team after his fourth arrest in a year and a half leaving a big hole at tailback. Only one receiver with experience returns from last year and while the entire front line will be back, their collective talent level is only average.
Eight starters return from a squad that finishing 34th in the country in scoring defense. The linebackers will be very good again in 2005 and the line will be shored up by two excellent defensive ends who were instrumental in the Jayhawks earning a ranking of 23rd in the country in rushing defense, limiting opponents to 117.6 yards per contest. Third-team All-American cornerback Charles Gordon was tied for the national lead last year with seven interceptions and he will be joined by a solid and deep group of players in the defensive backfield.
The out of conference schedule for Kansas is as easy as it gets with Florida Atlantic, Appalachian State and Louisiana Tech but the Jayhawks will need cupcakes like these to push around early. Big 12 opponents this year feature the entire North Division as well as the three best teams from the South in Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Texas; all on the road.
Kansas State Wildcats
Kansas State HC Bill Snyder has done wonders with this program since taking over in 1989 but last year the wall came crashing down as the Wildcats went 4-7. The team did not play in a bowl game for the first time in 11 years and experienced their first losing season since 1992 after opening the 2004 season ranked in the Top 15.
Junior Dylan Meier will most likely be starting again at quarterback and while his receivers are talented and experienced, the pass protection is questionable this year with only one starter returning on an offensive line that will feature two true freshmen. That could also prove to be a problem for the running game as the players returning in the backfield had only a combined 77 yards between them in 2004 and superback, Darren Sproles is gone to the NFL.
Last year?s defense allowed almost 350 yards per game which is more than in the two previous seasons combined. With only five starters returning from last season and a very young secondary, don?t look for that trend to reverse in 2005. The linebackers will be asked to carry most of the load but should be assisted by three senior defensive linemen. The biggest problem will be the amount of time this unit will be on the field this season as the offense simply will not be able to sustain long drives with any regularity.
Snyder has long been criticized with his scheduling of inferior teams for KSU?s out of conference games and this year is really no exception with Florida International and North Texas at home but the team will have to travel to Huntington, WV to take on Marshall for their second game of the season. Road games at Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Iowa State and Nebraska make this year?s slate more challenging than usual.
Missouri Tigers
Last year at this time, football experts were touting the Tigers as a team to watch in 2004 but a 1-5 finish followed a 4-1 start and the hype did not live up to the billing. Gary Pinkel's team probably garnered some satisfaction in knocking Iowa Sate out of the Big 12 Championship game in their regular season finale but overall, 2004 was a big disappointment and their backers were hit hard by their 3-11 ATS record.
Back for his fourth year at quarterback is Brad Smith who last season completed 52% of his passes for 2,185 yards and 17 touchdowns. For some reason, in 2004 Smith relied more on his arm than the scrambling ability that he had shown in 2003 when he led the nation in rushing yards by a quarterback. He might be well served to revert back to his earlier form this year as the backfield and offensive line are very young. This offense has the potential to be dangerous but almost certainly, won?t be great.
Missouri had the nation?s 14th ranked defense last year and allowed only 19.5 points per game but there are only three starters returning in 2005 from that squad. Opposing teams should be able to run the ball on the Tigers as their defensive line is relatively small but the linebacking crew is experienced and pretty solid.
After opening the season in Kansas City with Arkansas State, the Tigers get five of their next six games at home but those do include tough games against Iowa State and Texas. The rest of the schedule is pretty favorable considering Missouri doe not have to play Oklahoma, Texas Tech or Texas A&M this year and with a little luck, Missouri will have a chance to contend for the Big 12 North title.
Nebraska Cornhuskers
Last year Bill Callahan debuted as head coach at Nebraska and the school suffered its first losing season since 1961. Being fully aware of the high expectations of the Cornhusker fans, he is gambling on 13 transfers to shore up the team and for his sake, better hope it pays off. Recruiting players to Lincoln is not as easy as it used to be when Tom Osborne was running the show.
One of those transfers was quarterback Zac Taylor who will run Callahan?s version of the West Coast offense and looked sharp in the spring game which was attended by 63,000 of the Big Red faithful. Cory Ross is back at running back after rushing for over 1,100 yards last season and the backups are solid with highly recruited Marlon Lucky out of California, and Leon Jackson who can fly. A solid offensive line is huge with three returning starters from last year and their success up front will be key in the performance of this offense. The receiving corps is super fast with above average ability.
Their defense of last year was not exactly reminiscent of the famous Black Shirts of Nebraska lore, allowing an average of 27 points a game and when Texas Tech dropped 70 points on them on October 9th, the Huskers never recovered from the shock. The front line should be very good again this year and it can?t hurt loosing three starters in a secondary that finished the season last year ranked 110th against the pass.
The Cornhuskers should begin the season by victimizing Maine and Wake Forest and will try to find a way to win two of the next three against Pittsburgh, Iowa State and Texas Tech. With seven home games in 2005, the Huskers need to reestablish Lincoln as one of the best home field advantages in America. Key conference games against Oklahoma, Iowa State, Texas Tech, and Kansas State are all at home and Nebraska will not have to face Texas or Texas A&M this season.
