Sept. 20, 2008
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LAWRENCE, Kan. - Kansas junior quarterback Todd Reesing threw for 356 yards and two touchdowns to lead the No. 19 Jayhawk football team to a 38-14 victory against Sam Houston State here Saturday night.
The victory was KU's 12th straight at Kivisto Field at Memorial Stadium as KU improved to 3-1 on the season. Sam Houston State dropped to 1-1 on the year.
In a battle of quarterbacks, Reesing went 23-for-38 for 356 yards and two touchdowns to outshine SHSU's Rhett Bomar, who went for 26-for-46 for 340 yards, a touchdown and three interceptions. The three KU interceptions led to 21 of Kansas' 38 points.
For Reesing, it marked his third-straight game of 350-plus passing yards this season. Additionally, the junior from Austin, Texas, broke the school record for most 200-yard passing games with 14 for his career, including all four games in 2008.
For the second straight week, one of Reesing's favorite targets was junior Kerry Meier, who had eight catches for a career-high 136 yards, surpassing his career best of 120 receiving yards set at South Florida on September 12. Jayhawk sophomore wide receiver Dezmon Briscoe had his second 100-yard receiving game of the year with 124 yards on five catches. Both Meier and Briscoe were recipients of Reesing touchdown throws in the game.
Kansas' defense allowed a season-low 45 rushing yards on 16 attempts for the Bearkats as the Jayhawks outgained SHSU 528 to 385 in total offense.
After a scoreless first quarter, Kansas pinned SHSU deep in its own territory. KU junior Darrell Stuckey intercepted a Bomar pass with 10:27 to play in the second quarter and returned the ball 14 yards to the SHSU one-yard line. Reesing then scored on the next play, a one-yard plunge, to give KU a 7-0 lead. For Reesing it was his second rushing touchdown of the season and seventh of his career.
On the ensuing possession, SHSU drove to the KU 18-yard line before Jayhawk redshirt freshman Isiah Barfield picked off a Bomar pass and returned it 16 yards to the KU 34. Three plays later Reesing hit Meier on a 68-yard touchdown pass to make the score 14-0 in favor of the Jayhawks at the 7:02 mark. The 68-yard pass was the longest for KU this season and the second longest in the last four years for Kansas (Marcus Henry's 82-yard TD catch at Oklahoma State last year).
Sam Houston State used a short field for its lone score of the half, a Bomar eight-yard quarterback draw to make the score 14-7 in favor of KU with 1:57 before intermission. The Bearkats only had to drive 36 yards as KU failed on a fourth and inches.
KU then used its two-minute offense to end the first half scoring when Reesing connected with Briscoe on a 57-yard touchdown pass. On the play, Reesing scrambled out of numerous Bearkat would-be tacklers before finding a streaking Briscoe behind the SHSU secondary.
Kansas took the second half kickoff and drove the ball 44 yards in five plays to up its lead to 28-7 on a Jocques Crawford two-yard score. On the ensuing drive Sam Houston State covered 79 yards in four plays with Bomar hitting Justin Wells on a 46-yard strike to make the score 28-14 with 12:58 to play in the third quarter. Later in the period KU freshman kicker Jacob Branstetter connected on a 24-yard to end an 11-play drive for the Jayhawks to make the score 31-14.
In his first career start, KU junior Angus Quigley made the score 38-14 on a one-yard run up the middle to cap an 11-play, 79-yard drive which ate up 6:51 off the clock. Quigley led KU with 61 yards rushing on 16 carries for the game. The drive was set up when KU junior Justin Thornton intercepted a Bomar pass with 1:15 left in the third quarter.
Kansas will take a week off before opening Big 12 play at Iowa State on Oct. 4. Game time from Jack Trice Stadium is to be announced.
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