Both schools playing football in Lawrence, Kan. Saturday have won three national championships on the basketball court, but none on the football field. Both schools play their basketball games in historic stadiums but play their football games in ordinary facilities. Both schools are led by championship-caliber basketball coaches, while their football coaches are burgeoning stars in their own right.
Indeed, both Duke and Kansas are the quintessential basketball schools.
Both schools playing football in Lawrence, Kan. Saturday have won three national championships on the basketball court, but none on the football field. Both schools play their basketball games in historic stadiums but play their football games in ordinary facilities. Both schools are led by championship-caliber basketball coaches, while their football coaches are burgeoning stars in their own right.
Indeed, both Duke and Kansas are the quintessential basketball schools.
Yet while the Kansas football team won the Orange Bowl in 2008 and is currently ranked among the top 25 teams in the country, Duke has not been to a bowl game since 1994 and lost to an FCS school in its home opener this season.
So when these two basketball schools face off on the football field Saturday, the Blue Devils could stand to learn a few things from the No. 22 Jayhawks on how to create a competitive football program at a basketball-crazy school.
One reason that Kansas has vaulted into national prominence over the past three seasons is the play of quarterback Todd Reesing. The senior has completed more than 60 percent of his passes and thrown for 65 touchdowns over his last two seasons, and threw for 227 yards and a touchdown in that 2008 Orange Bowl victory.
Yet coming out of high school, Reesing was only considered a two-star prospect and came very close to choosing Duke instead of Kansas.
“They were my only other school that I was looking at that I had an offer from before I came here,” Reesing said of the Blue Devils. “It is a school that has a very good reputation academically and they were looking to build their program at the time and it was something I saw as an opportunity.”
And while Duke eventually found its quarterback in Thaddeus Lewis, the difference between the two teams’ successes could not be greater. Reesing, though, has consistently had better weapons at his disposal, most important of which has been a consistent running game provided by senior Jake Sharp.
Sharp ran for 860 yards and 12 touchdowns last season while averaging 4.6 yards per carry. The running back is off to another strong start this year with 227 yards and three touchdowns over the Jayhawks’ first two games.
“He is quick and faster to [accelerate] than he was a year ago,” Kansas head coach Mark Mangino said. “He is a very, very hard worker.”
Sharp’s success in the running game has come despite a relatively young Jayhawk offensive line, which starts two juniors, two sophomores and a freshman.
Despite their youth, Sharp said he loves running behind his line, especially after Kansas’ two dominant offensive performances so far this season. In fact, Kansas is one of only two teams in the country to average at least 250 yards passing and rushing per game in the young season.
The Jayhawks’ balanced offensive attack, combined with a defense that has allowed only 10 points through two games this season, makes Kansas a formidable opponent, Duke head coach David Cutcliffe said.
“They’re very physical in both lines—really physical—and I think they’re one of the top 15 teams in the country,” Cutcliffe said. “So, how do you beat a top-15 team? It’s probably the most basic formula in football: Take care of the ball, play great in the kicking game and find a way to make some big plays while the game progresses.”
So while the casual sports fan would rather see a Duke-Kansas matchup in the Final Four rather than a non-conference football matchup, Duke would like to use this game to prove to the country what Kansas has shown already—that a basketball school can have a relevant football program, too.
“You can see they are a team that is getting better,” Mangino said. “They don’t panic, they are able to stay calm and do what they have to do.”
And no, Mangino is not talking about the team that plays in Cameron Indoor Stadium, but the one that plays in Wallace Wade.
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