This has been a football season to forget for the Kansas Jayhawks. What was supposed to be a year of contention, has turned into a year of desperation in Lawrence. Needing to win five of their last six games to even be bowl eligible, this Saturday’s game against Houston is as much of a must-win as you can get.
Kansas has lost their last five games, but four of them have been by just one score. They’ve been competitive in every game, and even led late in a lot of them. Houston’s last game was a big win against TCU after dropping two straight to Cincinnati and Iowa State. Both teams are coming off of a bye last week.
Kansas Jayhawks vs. Houston Cougars Football History
If history means anything at all, Kansas is in a good spot for this matchup. The Jayhawks are undefeated in four matchups all-time against the Cougars, with the most recent win coming in 2022. In that game, Jalon Daniels threw for 158 yards and three touchdowns, while adding 123 yards and a pair of scores on the ground. Another game like that would be a sight for sore eyes for Jayhawk fans.
Key Players for Kansas
While Daniels raises the ceiling of the offense, Devin Neal should still be the focal point and the steadying factor. He is averaging just shy of 100 rushing yards per game (97.3) and has found the endzone five times. His counterpart, Daniel Hishaw, has also had a solid year, picking up 310 yards and three scores. The duo is averaging over six yards per carry.
In the pass game, Luke Grimm has still been Daniels’ go-to guy, collecting 5.5 receptions per game and scoring four times.
Defensively, Jereme Robinson leads the team with just 3.5 sacks. JB Brown has stepped up in a big way, collecting 5.5 tackles per game to go along with a pair of sacks and passes defensed. Mello Dotson has a trio of interceptions, while three other Jayhawks have one. The big question marks for the defense this week Cobee Bryant and Cornell Wheeler.
Bryant left the game against Arizona State a couple weeks ago, and didn’t practice much during the bye week. Coach Leipold listed him as “highly questionable” for the game against Houston. Wheeler is “doubtful” for the game as well, according to Leipold. If those two are unable to go, the Jayhawks will need Jaylon Todd and Jayson Gilliom to step up.
Key Players for Houston
For Houston, the offense is a bit of a mixed bag. The quarterback position has been up in the air for a majority of the season, with Donovan Smith and Zeon Chriss alternating as the starter. Smith brings multiple seasons of starting experience, while Chriss offers upside in both the passing and rushing game.
The skill groups are also a smorgasbord of production. Their top two running backs both have exactly 40 carries, and both have just over 200 yards. They also have four different receivers between 96 and 202 yards on the season. Nobody is a star, but plenty of players can be productive.
Defensively, they have a pair of players who can get to the quarterback. Michael Batton has three sacks on the season, while Keith Cooper has 2.5. They also have a ballhawk on defense, with A.J. Haulcy hauling in three interceptions of his own. For what it’s worth, the Cougars have two players with more total tackles than the Jayhawks’ leading tackler.
Keys to Victory for the Jayhawks
The keys to winning for the Jayhawks is rinse and repeat from what it has been every week. Daniels showed some flashes of his old self in the game against Arizona State, so hopefully that is a sign that he is starting to get back to that level of play.
However, the defense was what let Kansas down in that game. If the defense can get back to where they were, on top of Daniels finally figuring it out, the Kansas Jayhawks might finally have the recipe ready to win football games.
