Kansas Upsets West Virginia; Houston: You May Have a Problem
The Kansas Jayhawks pulled off a big upset on the road in Morgantown, West Virginia on Saturday night with a 55-42 overtime victory over the Mountaineers.
The win propelled the Jayhawks, who were a 14-point underdog, to their first 2-0 start since 2011. It was their first 1-0 start in conference play since 2009. It was their first conference opener road win since 2008.
It wasn’t all peaches and roses from the opening kickoff like it was against Tennessee Tech in Week 1. The Mountaineers jumped out to a 14-0 lead and the Jayhawks couldn’t get on the board in the first quarter.
Then the Kansas offense, led by quarterback Jalon Daniels and running backs Devin Neal and Daniel Hishaw, came alive and scored on five consecutive possessions spanning from the second through early fourth quarter.
It all started on the first play of the second quarter when Daniels threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to tight end Mason Fairchild to get the Jayhawks on the board.
Then each team traded scores twice, including two touchdowns from Neal. The Mountaineers maintained a 28-21 lead at halftime.
Hishaw got in on the action to start the second half, getting a three-yard touchdown run to tie it up 28-28. The Jayhawks’ defense stepped up to get a stop and Neal got back into the end zone on a three-yard run of his own to give KU their first lead of the game.
The game went back and forth in the fourth quarter. Hishaw had an explosive 30-yard touchdown in the middle of the quarter, which was KU’s only score in the fourth.
The Mountaineers tied it up with a touchdown and two-point conversion with 35 seconds left in regulation, then the overtime magic happened.
Daniels hit Quentin Skinner in the back of the end zone on third and goal to put the Jayhawks ahead 49-42. Then it was the Mountaineers’ turn.
Kansas nearly got the win on a play that was originally ruled a fumble and recovery by the Jayhawks but after a replay review, it was ruled an incomplete pass.
On the next play, it was Cobee Bryant, the Hawk Mamba, who sealed the deal with an interception. Bryant took it to the house to give Kansas a 55-42 win, the first 13-point overtime win since Central Michigan did it in 1998.
Now it’s onto Houston for the Jayhawks to attempt another upset on the road against the Cougars, who just fell out of the Top 25 after an overtime loss to Texas Tech.
Houston, you may have a problem. The Jayhawks are riding high off an overtime win, starting the season 2-0, and sitting atop the Big 12 standings.
A triple overtime win over the University of Texas San Antonio and a double-overtime loss to the Red Raiders won’t give Houston’s fans a lot of confidence. Despite a slow start to the season, the Cougars are currently a 10-point favorite over Kansas.
The Jayhawks showed they can score at will when necessary. The offensive line needs to show their power again and they will need to keep the ground game a priority.
However, Daniels is capable of using his arm (and legs) to move the Jayhawks down the field. He is ready to take this Kansas team to the next level. After the win over West Virginia, he claimed this to be a “new era” for the Jayhawks.
At this point, I wouldn’t bet against Kansas. Before the season, I thought this could be the first loss of the season for KU. Now I think they will definitely cover the 10 points and potentially come out of the weekend with another upset win.
This isn’t your 2010-2021 Jayhawks. A win would put KU over for their betting win total, which was set at 2.5 wins before the season. As Daniels said, it is a new era for Kansas football. The Jayhawks will be out to prove that again on Saturday in Houston.
