GAME BREAKDOWN
KEY MATCHUP: Kansas has been good at creating turnovers with its defense and also flying to the football with linebackers such as Joe Dineen and Bryce Torneden. If the Jayhawks do that and contain a Kansas State run game that features the quarterback along with power back Alex Barnes, the Wildcats have limitations throwing the football, especially if their starting quarterback, Skylar Thompson, does not return from concussion protocol.
DRAFT SLANT
–LB Bryce Torneden essentially plays a rover position for the Jayhawks and could at least eventually get an NFL look if he improves even more next season. He has been in on 67 tackles, with two fumble recoveries and an interception for an opportunistic Kansas defense. Torneden, a hometown product, played for the same Lawrence high school as the Jayhawks’ leading tackler, LB Joe Dineen.
ROSTER REPORT
–CB Elmore Hempstead played for the first time since his brother, Michael A. Edwards, was shot and killed in Libson, Ark. Hempstead wore the No. 3 to honor his brother. Hempstead was to leave for funeral services shortly after the Nov. 3 loss to Iowa State.
–S Mike Lee returned to the Kansas starting lineup after coming off the bench in the Oct. 27 win over TCU. Lee was in on seven tackles against Iowa State but was burned in coverage for an 83-yard touchdown pass caught by the Cyclones’ Hakeem Butler.
–WR Evan Fairs, as well as WR Quan Hampton and WR Kerr Johnson, are all out with undisclosed injuries and their status for the Kansas State game is unknown. Each showed flashes this season, though production has been inconsistent among all of the Kansas wide receivers.
–QB Miles Kendrick missed his fifth straight game. The sophomore backup suffered a shoulder injury in September and Kansas coach David Beaty has indicated Kendrick will probably be targeted for a redshirt with QB Carter Stanley now the backup to starting QB Peyton Bender.
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