2022 Kansas Football Post Mortem: Defense
If you want to play good defense, play less of it. And take away what the offense does best early.
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For the second straight week, the Horns turned in a very strong defensive performance against a quality offense, tying the Jayhawks’ season lowest scoring output with 14 points while pitching a shutout at halftime. With the Texas offense busy smashing the Jayhawks on nine consecutive scoring drives and opening up a massive lead, 2nd half Jayhawk adjustments and two touchdowns felt more like empty calories than a lapse.
Texas was also able to stop the run with a core six defenders, specifically thwarting the Jayhawk preferred trips formation from which they typically run the ball extremely well and murder overcompensating defenses with big play RPOs. Texas defended that formation with a single high safety and 4 DBs on 3 KU receivers, effectively telling the Texas front and Ford/Overshown to handle the run and option games. That group made standout runner Devin Neal irrelevant. A runner who had accumulated an amazing 523 combined yards from scrimmage against Texas Tech and Oklahoma State with explosive plays of 63, 53, and 42 yards was held to 50 total yards from scrimmage, his longest play a 15 yard run. His other 13 touches totaled 35 yards.
What’s most encouraging about this performance is that the Horns did so well on critical downs and in critical situations. Situational defense. My mantra and cry about modern college defense for years. An area where Texas was deficient in some key losses earlier this season. While Jayhawk big plays were not lacking in the passing game (Daniels hit explosive passes of 55, 42 and 31 yards), they resulted in limited damage because Texas consistently dominated critical downs and turned the Jayhawks over in Texas territory by downs and interception.
So while Kansas managed a healthy 5.9 yards per play, they only ran 59, were robbed of their big play run game identity (104 rushing yards at 3.5 per carry), had a turnover in Texas territory, and were only 4 of 13 on money downs, failing to convert a 4th and 2 on the Longhorn 42 and another 4th and 2 at the Longhorn 47. Those 4th down stops on the Texas side of the field were effectively turnovers.
Contrast that critical downs effort with the Texas Tech loss in Lubbock (to a worse offense) where the Horns held Tech to only 4.8 yards per play. Except that Tech ran 99 of them because they converted 6 of 8 on 4th down and had zero turnovers.
DL
They owned the line of scrimmage. Cold weather made the big fellas frisky and seeing T’vondre Sweat chase screens when the score was already out of hand is good stuff. Barryn Sorrell had a great hustle tackle for loss unblocked on the back side of a running play, aided by the front side interior stacking up Neal’s initial hole. Alfred Collins had a terrific tackle for loss on a 4th and 2 and he has been outstanding in limited snaps for several weeks in a row. Daniels was a load to try to corral in the pocket, but Texas did a pretty good job of flushing him off of his spots when he held on to the ball for anything longer than a quick RPO read.
Their primary charge was to destroy an explosive KU running game and keep Daniels from hurting the defense with scrambles and that’s what they did. This wasn’t a “stat game” but it was a darn effective one.
LB
Ford grabbed a one-handed pick on the Texas 28 yard line and capably covered Devin Neal when KU tried to hunt him in the passing game. Good play as usual. Overshown had one of his statistically quietest games of the year, but that may have been his most disciplined linebacking performance. I saw some good things from DMO. Diamonte Tucker-Dorsey earned an obvious targeting call and a personal foul which offered the sideline reveal that he puts on more white makeup than the Wayans brothers in White Chicks.
DB
Really solid game against the run and taking away some of KU’s early staples in the passing game, particularly RPOs in the middle of the field. Texas was brutal against the Kansas screen game. Gave up a few too many big shots, but some of them – like the throw in the seam to their big TE – were defended well and perfectly executed by the Jayhawks. Pass defense is about trade offs and Texas chose to take away comfort early.
Another great game from Ryan Watts and Jahdae Barron. Barron will regret dropping an early Pick 6 opportunity, but his tackle for loss on a Kansas wide receiver screen on a 3rd and short continues his amazing streak. Note to offenses: Barron is not the dude to target in your screen game. He’s about effective a nickel as I can remember in disrupting that. Barron also combined with Jerrin Thompson for another big play against the Kansas screen game on their first failed 4th and 2 attempt, seen above. Anthony Cook led the Horns in tackles and had a couple of authoritative tackles in run support when Kansas tried to go jumbo. Michael Taaffe did a good job as single high safety, but he’s a tad slow to react in zone.
D’shawn Jamison returned and was adequate though he split quite a bit of time with Terrance Brooks. Morice Blackwell got a lot of run as a walked-up safety/hybrid linebacker and he looked much more comfortable than weeks previous, notching 6 tackles including an nice combo stop with Jett Bush on a 3rd and short run.
Final
A strong game plan attacking the core offensive identity of the Kansas offense. They inevitably adjusted and hit some big shots, but the game was already over. Texas took away the base Kansas offense early and diagnosed well on critical downs. Now Texas will face the somewhat novel challenge of a wide zone play action style offense on a short week, but there’s good reason for optimism that they can present as many challenges to the Bears as they’ll present to Texas.
