Gamecocks laud Kansas QB
'Whittemore is more than good. He's real special'
Jacksonville State football coach Jack Crowe knows one way to end the quarterback controversy at the NCAA Div. I-AA school.
“If I could steal him, I’d go over there and do it,” Crowe said, plotting a way to kidnap Kansas University QB Bill Whittemore, who threw for a career-high 319 yards and rushed for 62 more in the Jayhawks’ 41-6 victory over the Gamecocks Saturday night at Memorial Stadium.
“Hell, he’d be a lot closer to home. Tell him that,” Crowe added, aware Whittemore hails from Brentwood, Tenn., which is closer to Jacksonville, Ala., than Lawrence.
Whittemore passed for two TDs and rushed for another in the first quarter, burying the overmatched Gamecocks, who used two quarterbacks — Anthony Mayo and Maurice Mullins, who combined for 161 yards passing and one TD.
“Whittemore is more than good. He’s real special,” Crowe said after KU torched the Gamecocks for 641 yards, most allowed by Jacksonville State since 1997 when Stephen F. Austin piled up 602 yards.
“I don’t know if I’ve seen one guy have so much effect on a football team.”
Crowe’s Gamecocks didn’t allow a point in the second and third quarters, but relinquished 13 in the fourth.
“We had stage fright,” Crowe said. “Your eyes get fuzzy when you are emotional. We were not seeing what was in front of us. I kept asking, ‘You seeing something you haven’t seen before?’ I would say 20, maybe even 25 percent of our plays we ran on offense, we had a missed assignment.
“I think we’ve got some players in our scheme who were not in position to make plays,” Crowe said.
Kansas' Tony Stubbs, left, drags down Jacksonville State quarterback Maurice Mullins -- one of seven KU sacks on the day. KU routed the Gamecocks, 41-6, Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
“I think they (Jayhawks) over time knew who couldn’t make plays and exposed them. If we get it all corrected, we’ll send them a thank you note for showing us where our weaknesses are.”
Crowe lauded the (3-1) Jayhawks, who held the Gamecocks (1-2) to 234 yards.
“I think as long as they are moving the ball, with the concept they play on defense — bend, don’t break — they will do well. They are a sound football team,” he said.
The Gamecocks’ offensive highlight came when Mullins hit Neika Willis on a 57-yard TD pass play in the second quarter. It marked the first reception and first TD of Willis’ career. He’s a senior from Auburn, Ala., who moved to offense from defensive back just this season.
“Plenty more to come,” Willis said. “As a receiver, it boosts my confidence up seeing the ball come to me and making a catch in a college game. I haven’t caught a pass since high school.”
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As far as splitting QB duties with Mayo, Mullins shrugged: “I feel no matter which quarterback is in there, we have to get the team in rhythm.”
Mullins hit nine of 19 passes for 148 yards. He rushed for 32 yards on seven carries. Starter Mayo hit one of six passes for 13 yards. He had six carries and minus-17 net rushing yards. Mayo was sacked five times; Mullins twice.
The Gamecocks play host Saturday to Eastern Kentucky in their first-ever Ohio Valley Conference game.