Halftime Musings: Kansas trails Texas Tech 10-0 at half

Kansas came into this game with huge expectations, as they have their highest ranking since 2008 and are likely to be favored in each of their final three games. Instead, the Jayhawks are facing a feisty Red Raiders team with a dominant running back and a stout defense. Throw in some injury issues, and you have the recipe for the largest halftime deficit of the season.

While the 10-0 margin isn't insurmountable, there are worries about how this offense is performing, especially as the Jayhawks are on their third string quarterback. Here are some thoughts at halftime.

Injuries Abound

The Jayhawks have been hit hard with injuries in this game, as Mello Dotson was already a bit limited coming into the game and Jason Bean was looking to favor the knee that got hit last week in the game against Iowa State. But it wouldn't take long for the situation to get even worse. Jason Bean got crunched while picking up a first down at the end of the first quarter, and Cole Ballard took over shortly after.

Luke Grimm got hit stretching out for a catch and was shaken up. Mason Fairchild went down on a hit during a crucial catch. Kenean Caldwell went down on the final drive. The Jayhawks have the ability to come back, but they will need to figure out how to keep people on the field.

Offense Doldrums

Even before Jason Bean went down with an injury, the Jayhawks were struggling on offense. Andy Kotelnicki has focused on the run in the game, but it has been a lot of runs into the middle of the defense or all the way to the edge. Both of those help Texas Tech in defense, and the offense hasn't been able to adjust. Jason Bean was off on a lot of throws, and Ballard had some early jitters. While he was able to shake those off for a long second quarter drive and the running game started to get going just a bit, they still weren't able to finish off the drive that got down to 3rd and Goal from the 1.

Getting Blown Up By The Run

We figured that Tahj Brooks was going to have a good day. What I don't think we were prepared for was that he would have 107 yards on 22 rushes. The Jayhawks have been unable to stop him consistently in the game, and it has been just as bad as it sounds. If Kansas is going to get back into this game, they have to find some way to make it more difficult.