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Some tidbits:

What Kansas did well: Play defense
What Kansas didn’t do well: Get offense from the perimeter
“What’s in store for 2007: A national championship should be the goal…”

“Darnell Jackson’s numbers have breakout season written all over them, much like Aaron Gray and Joakim Noah did last year.”

“KU is a top five team, but even with the sick defense, they are going to need more consistency on the perimeter to grease a path to the final four.”

From KUSports.com:

Kansas University basketball coach Bill Self announced at his Monday press conference that junior forward Sasha Kaun will miss 3-6 weeks after suffering a partially torn patellar tendon in Sunday’s practice.

The injury was not caused by contact, and Self said it will not require surgery, as the tendon is not ruptured or completely torn.

With the Jayhawks’ first game just three days away - a Thursday exhibition against Washburn at 7 p.m. at Allen Fieldhouse - the loss of Kaun is felt even more with the ongoing suspension of junior forward C.J. Giles, who was suspended indefinitely on Oct. 17 to get some off-court issues settled. With their absences, the only real height KU possesses is in 6-foot-8 junior Darnell Jackson, 6-foot-8 sophomore Julian Wright, 6-foot-9 freshman Darrell Arthur and 6-foot-10 sophomore Matt Kleinmann.

Self said during his session with the media that Kleinmann, a former walk-on, could see some extended playing time in the early season, as could 6-foot-4 junior Rodrick Stewart, who Self said could be used at the power forward spot to create a smaller lineup with more speed.

We’ll find out tomorrow whether he’ll end up a Dukie or a Jayhawk. If he ends up anything other than a Blue Devil, Bill Self will be cemented as the best closer in the business.

Kyle Singler, the No. 4 prospect in the 2007 basketball class, will announce his college choice at 5 p.m. CST Friday. His dad, Ed Singler, said the announcement will be made at South Medford HS in Medford, Ore.

Singler is also ranked on rivals.com as the top small forward in the nation from that class. After averaging 20.5 points and 5.4 rebounds per game as a junior, the 6-foot-9 prospect has narrowed his college choices to Arizona, Duke and Kansas.

Snip from the LJW.

technorati tags:kyle, singler

Ryan Wood of the Lawrence Journal-World reports that Kerry Meier has not recovered sufficiently from the shoulder injury he suffered in the third quarter last Saturday in Waco to play this Saturday against Colorado. Adam Barmann will make his fourth start of the year in place of the injured Meier.

Kansas struggled to run the ball after Barmann replaced Meier in the Baylor game. Barmann lacks the foot speed to pose any threat running the option which severely limits Kansas’s ground attack. (For some reason, Barmann’s lack of foot speed does not preclude OC Nick Quartaro from calling option plays or designed quarterback runs–see Barmann’s drive-killing fumbles against USF and Nebraska.)

(more…)

Another L.A. weekend. If there is a problem with college football, it is that there are too many Lame Ass games regardless of the prospect of Michigan vs. Ohio St, Cal vs. USC, and the SEC championship game in the distant future.

The beauty of the college game, though, is that they all mean something-at least to conference opponents. They all carry bragging rights to some extent to the schools and fans involved-much more so than Pittsburgh vs, Tampa Bay or San Francisco vs. Cleveland in the NFC.

So, Lame as they may be, on with the games:

1. Colorado +2 at KU

Are these the two worst BCS conference teams not named Northwestern, Stanford, or Duke? Not really. Both have been in position to win games (plural). However, Colorado lost to Baylor at HOME! HOME for god’s sake. Not even Mangino is going to be able to screw this game up-not against a team that doesn’t have the firepower to come from three scores back no matter how passive KU’s defense becomes.

KU

2. A&M -5 at Baylor

Baylor REALly does suck. Forget the curtain composed of k-state, Colorado, and KU, behind which they play at being wizards. The curtain gets dra this Saturday. When the Aggies get three scores clear of the Bears, they will step on their throats, rather than employ the KU tactic of hoping time runs out before they lose their lead.

A&M

3. Iowa St +5.5 at k-state

This game looks even too me in Manhattan. k-state might pull it out at home, but 2-3 points seems more likely.

4. Texas -11 at Texas Tech

Tech has a chance in this one if it plays an error free game. The Longhorns’ beef, however, will wear Tech down by the fourth quarter, at which time a close game will become a spread coverer.

UT

5. Nebraska -5.5 at Okie St

Now that NU has its moral victory, let’s see if it can do any better on the road vs. Okie St than KU did at home. If Bobby Reid is healthy, this is the Lock of the week. If not. . .the Cowboys will likely lose by a point thanks to missing a PAT in OT.

OKIE ST

6. Oklahoma +2.5 at Mizzou

On paper, Mizzou SHOULD win. They have the league’s best offense. OU has lost both its starting QB and AA running back. But until they beat a physical team, I’ll go with strength over finesse.

OU

7, Notre Dame -14.5 at Navy

The longest winning streak against an opponent in the country. N.D. downs Navy for the 134th time in a row. But who can the Irish beat by more than two TD’s? Well, yeah-MAYBE Navy. But I’ll have to see it before believing again that they are a truly strong team, rather than a merely resourceful one.

NAVY

8. Illinois +22 at Wisconsin

The Badgers have the best running game in the Big 11

WISCONSIN

9. Michigan St -7 at Indiana

Michigan St can finally forget the Notre Dame fiasco and revel in its own role in the fiasco in Evanston. Call the Spartans orange marmalade, because they are on a roll.

MICHIGAN ST

10. Vanderbilt -10.5 at Duke

Duke makes it two in a row. Covers that is. With a little luck, they might even beat the SEC’s version of Duke at home.

DUKE

11. Georgia +14 at Florida

A few weeks back, this spread would have been unthinkable. As poorly as Georgia has played, however, it almost looks like a gimme for Florida.

FU

12. Miami (Fl) -6 at Georgia Tech

Easy money last week taking Duke and 15 points against the depreciated Hurricanes. They will be back physically this week, but until they show that they have overcome the trauma to their psyche of the events in the FIU game and its aftermath, I will take their opponent to cover.

GEORGIA TECH

13. USC -13 at Oregon St

Vegas is starting to wise up. The USC spread is slowly but surely retreating from the 18-20 point mark where it resided for a number of weeks. 13 is still too many points against a decent team on the road.

OREGON ST

14. Arizona St +1 at Washington

Both teams came within a whisker of knocking the Trojans out of REAListic Fiesta Bowl aspirations. This game is a toss-up-meaning go with the team tasting home cooking.

WASHINGTON

15. Washington St -2 at UCLA

How will UCLA respond to its near miss at Notre Dame? Another toss-up. Another hom-cooking pick.

UCLA

Rocky Mountain Low: Colorado.

–Mark
_____________________________________________________________
These picks are for entertainment purposes only. You get what you pay for. There are no refunds.

Marcus Herford was directly involved in the failure of two plays in the second half of the Baylor game that, if executed properly, would have resulted in touchdowns.

On Kansas’s opening drive of the second half, the Jayhawks were up 35-17 and they were running the ball down Baylor’s throats. Standing 1st-and-10 at the Baylor 24, four Kansas players: Jon Cornish, Kerry Meier, Brandon McAnderson, and Jake Sharp had combined to run the ball on 15 of the last 16 offensive plays, gaining 121 yards and scoring two touchdowns.

• On 1st down, Meier threw to Brian Murph, who dropped the pass.
• On 2nd down, Sharp ran for a 1-yard loss.
• On 3rd down, Marcus Herford took a pitch on a designed wide receiver pass, saw Murph open downfield, and threw the ball out of the back of the end zone.
• On 4th down, Scott Webb missed a 42-yard field goal.

On Baylor’s next three possessions, KU’s defense forced two punts and intercepted a Shawn Bell pass. Taking over on their own 35 with 12:40 left in the game, Adam Barmann was in at QB in place of the injured Kerry Meier and Jake Sharp in at TB for (the somewhat injured) Jon Cornish.

Three runs from Sharp and a short pass from Barmann to Dexton Fields set up a 3rd-and-3 at the Baylor 46. I’ll let Jason King take over here:

“Barmann heaved a perfect strike to Herford, who was wide open as he streaked down the left sideline and toward the end zone. But instead of making the play that would’ve secured a KU victory, Herford let the ball carom off his breadbasket and through his arms.”

The lead Kansas football story in today’s Kansas City Star and today’s column by Lawrence Journal-World Sports Editor Tom Keegan are about Marcus Herford talking to the press on Tuesday and taking responsibility for the role his mistakes played in Kansas losing at Baylor.

“I choked. That could’ve put the nail in them. We were up 35-17, and we could’ve gone up by (25 points). I’m a person who’s expected to make plays. So for me not to make that one hurt me a lot.”

Frankly, the Kansas coaching staff could learn from Herford’s honesty and maturity. I obviously don’t know what goes on behind closed doors in the football offices, but the unwillingness of Mark Mangino to discuss publicly the obvious problems that have kept this team from being 6-2 or 7-1 is eroding his support among the people who care about the University of Kansas fielding a consistently competitive football team.

From the LJW today.

Meanwhile, college basketball writer Gary Parrish of cbssportsline.com, who caught up with KU coach Bill Self and players Russell Robinson and Sasha Kaun at last week’s Big 12 Media Day, taps the Jayhawks second nationally behind Florida.

Street and Smith also has Florida ranked No. 1 and KU 2, followed by North Carolina. Athlon has KU, Alabama, Florida and North Carolina reaching the Final Four, with the Tar Heels winning it all for the second time in three years.

Of course, as mentioned three times on Phog Blog last week, the Mercurial Seth Davis conjures us at number 1, both now and 5 months from now. This is the same Seth Davis who in late February still considered K State a bubble team, so you might be building your house on the rhetorical sand if you put too much faith in his prognostications.

Still, a broken clock is right twice a day, so I won’t be disparaging him or anyone else anything if I find myself dancing like a madman in Atlanta 5-6 months from now.

I loved the way your teams fought. I loved the spirit of your teams.

But you cannot justify giving away on silver platters four games. If you survive this season I will be surprised. If you can, please learn from your mistakes.

Please be humble and open your mind to the fact that maybe your game decisions aren’t working.

4 games this year that we have given away.

Am I wrong here?

Real life will keep this preview brief as I forgo breaking down the numbers (check out cfbstats.com if you need those) for what figures to be a fairly basic matchup to preview.

• Kansas should try and run the ball as much as possible.
• Baylor will throw the ball (to the two-thirds of the field uninhabited by Aqib Talib) as much as possible.

First team to 30, wins.

Longest title ever. I know. and I also know i haven’t been around much. 4 cities in 5 days.

But I couldn’t let this get by.

Dwayne Polee Jr., a 6-foot-6 freshman guard, said Tuesday he has made a commitment to USC, even though he has yet to play in a high school basketball game and is only 14 years old. Polee, expected to start as a freshman for City Section champion Westchester, said USC Coach Tim Floyd offered him a scholarship Monday and he accepted. Polee has been spending time working out at USC on his own.

Something about this story makes me sad.

Both Andy Katz (Insider required) and Seth Davis seem to think that CJ Giles is done at Kansas.

Katz: “C.J. Giles’ career at Kansas is perilously close to being over after numerous academic and behavoral issues got him suspended from the team Tuesday, according to a source close to the situation. The source said that Kansas coach Bill Self said it’s going to be tough for Giles to recover from this and make it back on the team, but the window isn’t completely closed.”

Davis: “C.J. Giles blew off a morning workout this week and was essentially suspended from the team.”

On a more pleasant topic, Davis offers this, “Until further notice, you can consider KU my pick to win the 2007 national championship.”

            Last week’s record against the spread was 10-4.  Midway through the season, it is 61-41 (with 3 pushes).  But that was when Vegas was virtually giving away money with ridiculous point spreads week after ever-loving week on three particular teams. 

            The games of Week 8:

 
1.         KU +3.5 at Baylor
 
            The return to the scene of the crime.  This is where, four years ago, I first questioned Mangino’s game management skills.  First, he twice attempted two point conversions at a time in the game when there was no point to it.   Both attempts failed.  As a result, KU entered the final two minutes of the game leading by 8 points (32-24) rather than 10.  When Baylor scored at the 1:14 mark and converted their own two pointer, they turned what should have been a 34-31 game into a tie at 32.  

         The Hawks took the ensuing kickoff and started their “drive” near midfield.  Instead of running the clock until only they could score on the last meaningful possession of the game, KU ran a play and called time out.  They called a pass play, but, when no one was open, threw the ball away, stopping the clock again.  After KU went nowhere on third down, Baylor stopped the clock.  Following the punt, Baylor had, thanks to KU’s abysmal clock management, a full minute in which to move the ball, and two and to time outs in their pocket.   What happened then was predictable.  They kicked a field goal with: 02 on the clock to win 35-32 in regulation.

 
            Four years later, Mangino still doesn’t have a clue how to manage the clock, as shown in the A&M game, where he allowed the Aggies to  run so much time off the clock while taking its first lead of the game that the Jayhawks had only 34 seconds in which to retaliate.  The game ended with two time outs still sitting on KU’s side of the scoreboard-time outs that could have been used to give the Hawks a full minute to try to move into field goal range.

 
            The question this week is whether time management will even be a factor, or whether Baylor will be so far ahead in the fourth quarter that time will be of no essence.  After last week’s second half, many would say the latter.  Still, when things look bleakest is when Mangino is at his best.  Of course, he has plenty of practice at it-sorta like the duffer whose best shot is punching the ball down the course from the woods.

 
            KU could easily cover this spread or-dare I say it-even win this game. 

 
            But that’s not the way to bet.

 
            BAYLOR

 
2.         Texas -6.5 at Nebraska
 
            NU again gets way too much respect from the oddsmakers.  The Huskers have about as much chance in this game as Arizona had Monday night against the Chicago Bears. 

 
            Of course,  in retrospect, the Cardinals covered and, by all rights, should have won outright.  NU could do either or both.

 
            But that’s not the way to bet.

 
            TEXAS

 
3.         Texas Tech -2.5 at Iowa St
 
            This is one of those games that could be a decent contest to watch-if you don’t mind watching two losers on the field at the same time.  But, then, there are a lot of those games in the Big 12 this year, what with these two teams, KU, k-state, and Colorado, as well as Okie St and Baylor on the precipice of falling into that unselect group.  Tech does have a road win-at A&M-albeit on a miracle pass.  When two teams heading south play each other, take the one that’s at home.

 
            IOWA ST

 
4.         Texas A&M +2.5 at Okie St
 
            Two teams that appear to be heading north-both at KU’s expense.  Can A&M run 40+ minutes off the clock like they did against Mizzou?  Can Okie St take its momentum and new-found confidence with it from Lawrence to Stillwater against a team that was 1 yard from being out away by KU? 

 
            I’ll take speed at home over brawn on the road.
            OKIE ST

 
5.         k-state +16 at Mizzou
 
            I might go for this line in Manhattan.  In Columbia, it is the despicable, but pretty good, Tiger-cats over the despicable and moribund wild-cats.

 
            MIZZOU

 
6.         Colorado +13 at Oklahoma
 
            Colorado fresh off a 24 point victory at home over Tech.  OU fresh off its second gigantenormous offensive loss of the season.  First no Bomar.  Now no Peterson. The Sooners could circle their wagon, dedicate themselves to stepping their game up a notch, and somehow find a way to cover this spread.  But that’s just hoping.  CU was competitive even before actually reeling in its first victory of the season.

            COLORADO
           
7.         Rutgers +6.5 at Pitt
 
            RU is 6-0 and ranked 16^th in the BCS.  Rarified air, indeed, for the Scarlet Knights. Pitt is 6-1 and not ranked.  But they are at home and have been looking good, with the exception of a loss to Michigan St back when Michigan St WAS Michigan St (i.e., pre-Notre Dame).
            PITT

 
8.         Michigan St -6.5 at Northwestern
 
            Just what the doctor ordered to return Michigan St to its status of being Michigan St.  Question:  Why would Northwestern get only 6.5 points against any BCS conference team?  Except for maybe Stanford.   But more about the Big Walking Tree later.

 
            MICHIGAN ST

 
9.         Iowa +13 at Michigan
 
            Iowa has lost its smoke.  This week it loses its mirrors to what might be the best team in the country that doesn’t have to play in Gainesville, Knoxville, Tuscaloosa, Baton Rouge, Fayetteville, or Auburn.

 
            MICHIGAN

 
10.        Ole Miss +17 at Arkansas
 
            The Razorbacks are looking good-including a recent 17 point romp over Auburn on the road.  This line is only 17 points vs. Ole Miss at home.  But Ole Miss is nothing if not stubborn.  They might lose, but their opponents know they have been in a game.

 
            OLE MISS

 
11.        Alabama +11.5 at Tennessee

 
            A possible upset in the making.  Of course, what game in the SEC isn’t?

 
            ALABAMA
 
12.        UCLA +13.5 at Notre Dame
 
            The Fighting Irish get down to BCS business.  And with a week off to prepare for the mediocrity that is UCLA. . .

 
            NOTRE DAME

 
13.        Miami -17.5 at Duke
  
            This is the time to pull out your amateur psychology degree.  How will the distractions and suspensions affect the U.  My guess?  A rare football pick:

 
            DUKE

 
14.        Washington +22.5 at Cal

 
 
            Hey, wait a minute.  Vegas is starting to wise up.  Taking Cal to cover and Northwestern and Stanford to tank has been easy money this season.  Suddenly, Cal is a risky bet?  Too risky for my blood.  Ty Willingham doesn’t like losing by 22.5.

 
            WASHINGTON

 
15.        Stanford +22.5 at Arizona St
 
            I will stick with Stanford to lose until they cover or the point spread is beyond the bounds of reason.  They will find a way to not stay within the same 22.5 spread the University of Willingham covers.

ARIZONA ST

    Baylor and/or Bust!

–Mark