Kansas Football: Jayhawks can expect an uptick in wins in 2019
By Cullen Jekel
August & September: Indiana State, Coastal Carolina, at Boston College, West Virginia, at TCU
The Kansas Jayhawks begin their season at home with two winnable match-ups. The first comes against the Indiana State Sycamores, a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. For the record, there isn’t, as far as I know, an actual Missouri Valley.
Running back Pooka Williams will not play in this game due to suspension. However, the Jayhawks will still prevail. As they will in their next game against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers, which is another name for rooster. Hey, I’m just reporting the facts.
Things get mildly interesting the following week when, on Friday, September 13th, the Jayhawks travel to Boston to take on the Boston College Eagles. Now, the Eagles are not a bad program, but they’re not exactly tearing it up, either. In seven seasons under head coach Steve Addazio, the Eagles have gone 38-38, finishing with seven wins in five of those years.
This game will feature two stellar running backs in Williams and B.C.’s AJ Dillon, a junior with 25 career touchdowns and who rushed for over 1,100 yards last season after streaking past the 1,500 yard mark his freshman season.
Ultimately, I’m taking the Jayhawks. Miles isn’t called The Mad Hatter for nothing. In his first season with the Jayhawks, he can at least sell recruits that they went undefeated in non-conference play.
And, honestly, this team may very well start out 4-0 (1-0) depending on how the West Virginia Mountaineers fare early in the season. Gone is head coach Dana Holgorson, replaced by former Troy head coach Neal Brown. At this point in the season, West Virginia could already be under .500 as their non-conference schedule features the Missouri Tigers and North Carolina State Wolfpack.
If the Mountaineers are indeed 1-2 at this point and on a two-game losing streak, will Brown be able to rally the troops, guys he inherited versus guys he recruited? Lawrence isn’t exactly a harsh environment when it comes to football, but momentum could very well play a factor. I’m going with the Jayhawks here, earning Miles his first Big 12 conference victory since 2004.
The following week, Kansas travels to take on the TCU Horned Frogs, a match-up the Jayhawks will drop. And with this loss, the good times fade to black, and the trouble truly starts.