Kansas’ potent offense will be matched against No. 9 Texas Tech’s stout defense when the teams play Saturday night in a Big 12 Conference game at Lubbock, Texas.
The Jayhawks (4-2, 2-1) average 434.8 yards and 35 points a game behind senior quarterback Jalon Daniels, who ranks 13th nationally with 1,497 passing yards.
Daniels has completed 103 of 153 pass attempts for 16 touchdowns, with two interceptions. His top target, Emmanuel Henderson Jr., leads the Big 12 with 488 receiving yards on 28 catches.
Daniels can also be a dual threat; he has rushed for 239 yards and a touchdown on 50 carries.
“Daniels is an outstanding quarterback,” Texas Tech defensive coordinator Shiel Wood said in a press conference. “He can make all the throws, and then his legs are a tremendous asset to him. Doesn’t seem like they’re trying to run him as much in these early ballgames, but he’s got the ability to make you pay with his legs.”
Texas Tech (5-0, 2-0) ranks No. 9 in the nation in total defense, yielding an average of 244.4 yards per game. The 11.2 points per game the Red Raiders have allowed is No. 4 in the nation.
Texas Tech outside linebacker David Bailey, a Stanford transfer, was a late addition via the portal, boasting 6.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. Bailey’s presence helps make the Red Raiders’ defensive front one of the best Kansas will face this season.
Texas Tech is coming off a 35-11 win at Houston last week.
“Explosive, good front, very athletic, it’s as good as a front as we’ve seen,” Jayhawks coach Lance Leipold said. I know we played a good Missouri team, but this is an excellent defense all across the board and it’ll be a big challenge.”
On Sept. 6, Kansas led host Missouri 21-6 in the first quarter and was leading when the Tigers scored two touchdowns in the last five minutes, resulting in the Jayhawks’ first loss of the season, 42-31.
Kansas’ other loss was 37-34 at home on Sept. 27 against a Cincinnati team that is 4-1 overall and 2-0 in the Big 12. The Jayhawks are coming off a 27-20 victory over UCF last week.
“If you look at them, they should be 6-0, easily could be 6-0,” Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire said of Kansas. “They were dominating Missouri at Missouri. They are a really good football team.”
Kansas tight end DeShawn Hanika, who led the Jayhawks in receiving against Missouri with 74 yards and two TDs on six catches, will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing season-ending knee surgery last week.
The transfer from Iowa State had 10 receptions for 97 yards for the season before suffering the injury against Cincinnati. He battled back from a season-ending knee injury last season to return for a sixth year of college football.
“Quality young man; feel for him, (because of) everything that he sacrificed to get himself back to play,” Leipold said.
The Red Raiders are the only undefeated team in the nation to win every game by at least 20 points. Their average winning margin is 37.4.
