Friday night’s game between Kansas University and Toledo might have been a contest to see which team could give the other more overtime gifts.

Kansas (2-1) and Toledo (1-2) combined for three turnovers in double overtime, but it was the latter team that prevailed with a 37-31 victory.

In the first posession of overtime, Toledo faced a 4th-and-goal from its own 25-yard line. Instead of having their true freshman kicker attempt a 41-yard field goal, the Rockets surprisingly went for the touchdown.

UT gift #1.

Perhaps they reflected too hard on the Jayhawks surrendering a 37-yard touchdown pass on 4th-and-15 with 51 seconds left in the first half. That didn’t happen in overtime. Sophomore cornerback Aqib Talib, in his first game of the season, interrupted a potential touchdown-scoring fade route. Kansas ball – all it needed was a field goal to win from the opposing 25-yard line.

But on the first play of the second overtime possession, freshman quarterback Kerry Meier fumbled the ball and Toledo recovered.

KU gift #1.

As a result of initially defending during the first overtime, Kansas started the second overtime on offense. The momentum appeared to heavily favor Kansas when Meier scrambled and had his facemask grabbed for a personal foul and half the distance to the goal line. With the ball inside the 10-yard line, Meier threw a fade route on 1st-and-10, trying to find junior wide receiver Marcus Henry in the corner of the end zone. Meier did not put nearly enough arch or power on the ball and it fell dicrectly into the hands of Toledo cornerback Bo Martin for the fourth UT interception of the night.

KU gift #2.

UT running back Jalen Parmele made sure the Rockets didn’t match the Jayhawks with another turnover. He actually made sure of it on the ensuing play from scrimmage when he took the handoff 25 yards around right tackle for the game-sealing touchdown.

Quick stats

Meier finished the game 23-of-41 with 243 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions. Meier added 57 yards and an additional score on the ground. Senior running back Jon Cornish had 89 yards on 20 carries. Henry had four catches for 67 yards and a touchdown. Sophomore tight end Derek Fine, who had one catch before Friday, hauled in five catches for 49 yards.

With the KU defense being suspect last week, it held Toledo quarterback Clint Cochran to an inefficient 15-of-47 passing for 136 yards and one touchdown. Cochran did not throw an interception.

Regulation

The Jayhawks elected to play for overtime. They gave senior running back Jon Cornish two carries and ran out the clock. Kansas won the toss and elected to play defense first in overtime.

On a 3rd-and-10 for Toledo, sophomore Mike Rivera nearly picked off Clint Cochran’s pass. The attempt fell incomplete and Toledo was forced to punt with 1:21 left in the game. Senior wide reciever Jonathan Lamb called for a fair catch at the KU 18-yard line.

Kansas went three-and-out and was forced to punt. Junior punter Kyle Tucker did not get off a good punt. It landed out of bounds at midfield. Toledo had 1:52 left in the game.

The KU defense forced Toledo to punt with 3:13 left in the game. The ball landed at the 10-yard line, but kept rolling and ended up in the end zone. Freshman quarterback Kerry Meier will start the KU drive at its own 20 with three minutes left.

Freshman quarterback Kerry Meier took the ball on the two-point conversion and scrambled out to the right for an option. He decided to keep the ball. Meier went airborn, diving over his offensive linemen and into the end zone. Kansas and Toledo were tied at 31 with just under four minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Meier found wide receiver Dexton Fields for a 20-yard touchdown pass. Meier found Fields in the flat. Fields made a UT cornerback miss and made a move toward the right sideline. He then beat the UT secondary to the endzone. The score is 31-29, and KU took a timeout to decide whether it will go for the two-point conversion.

Freshman quarterback Kerry Meier completed a pass to wide receiver Marcus Herford for a 7-yard gain and a first down. There is four minutes remaining in the game. Meier then found wide receiver Marcus Henry for a 15-yard pass to put Kansas at the Toledo 20-yard line.

Toledo called a timeout with 4:31 left in the fourth quarter. Kansas will face a 3rd-and-7 just at the Toledo 44-yard line.

The Toledo defense has produced four sacks, three interceptions, a safety and a touchdown against the KU offense.

The first interception of Toledo cornerback Barry Church’s career couldn’t have come at a better time for the Rockets. With 7:19 left in the third quarter, Church picked off freshman quarterback Kerry Meier on 3rd-and-3. Kansas was threatening, inside the UT 20-yard line. Church intercepted a short pass attempt and took the ball back 84 yards for the Toledo score. An extra point put Toledo ahead of Kansas, 31-23.

Toledo safety Tyrell Herbert will not return to the game tonight. He was taken off on a cart in the first half.

Toledo running back Richard Davis saw four consecutive carries before he punched the ball in from the 1-yard line. Toledo faced a 4th-and-goal from its own 1-yard line and elected to give the ball to Davis again. He plowed his way through KU defenders and fell on the goal line for the score. The extra point hit the upright and bounced in to give Toledo a 24-23 lead in the fourth quarter. It was the second Toledo touchdown of the night on fourth down.

A crucial 2nd-and-9 situation saw freshman quarterback Kerry Meier throw a pass to Marcus Henry, but it went straight through Henry’s hands. UT cornerback Bo Martin was in the right place at the right time to intercept the wobbling ball off of Henry’s hands. Martin returned the ball to the KU 8-yard line, setting up a 1st-and-goal opportunity.

Kansas and Toledo both went three-and-out to end the third quarter. When the fourth quarter began, Kansas lined up to receive a Toledo punt.

On first-and-10 from the UT 33-yard line, freshman quarterback Kerry Meier threw to a wide open Marcus Henry in the end zone. The pass was short and Henry dove and made the touchdown catch on the ground. It was Henry’s third touchdown reception this season. Junior kicker Scott Webb booted through an extra point to put Kansas ahead, 23-17, with 4:26 left in the third quarter.

UT quarterback Clint Cochran was back in the game on the next possession.

Sophomore defensive end John Larson sacked UT quarterback Brandon Summers in his own end zone, resulting in a safety. Summers had only thrown one pass this season, and it was intercepted. Kansas only trailed by one, 17-16.

Cochran left the game with 8:30 left in the third quarter with cramps in his left leg. Brandon Summers replaced Cochran at quarterback.

In a second half full of punts, junior punter Kyle Tucker may have had the best one of the night. Tucker pinned Toledo inside its own 2-yard line. The punt landed around the UT 10 and senior running back Jon Cornish trapped the ball when it reached the Toledo 2-yard line.

After a Toledo punt, which put Kansas at the UT 49, it represented the third time Kansas started a drive in its opponent’s territory.

Sophomore cornerback Aqib Talib was back in the game to start the second half. Talib suffered apparent cramping earlier in the first half and had to miss a series.

Kansas had to punt to open up the second half after picking up a first down on a 15-yard Toledo late hit penalty. Tucker booted a punt to the Toledo 6-yard line.

Halftime: Toledo 17, Kansas 14

Talib was spotted holding his right side on the last possession. He was not in the game for much of the Toledo touchdown drive. True freshman cornerback Anthony Webb took Talib’s place.

At halftime, Meier was 8-of-15 passing for 75 yards and an interception in the air. Meier had a touchdown on the ground and added 22 yards rushing. Cornish had nine carries for 64 yards in the first half.

Clint Cochran’s 37-yard strike at the end of the first half put the Toledo quarterback at 12-of-29 passing for 132 yards and a touchdown in the first half. KU stopped the run effectively in the first half. The leading Toledo running back has only 23 yards.

On a 4-and-15 situation from the KU 37-yard line, Toledo elected to go for it – the decision paid off. Cochran threw a strike to wide receiver Stephen Williams, who ran past the KU secondary into the back of the end zone for the score. There were only 51 seconds left in the first half. On the two-point conversion, Cochran found wide receiver Nick Moore wide open in the back of the end zone. Toledo led Kansas, 17-14, with 51 seconds left in the first half.

Meier threw his first interception of the game with 3:25 left in the second quarter. On a 3rd-and-19, Meier tried to force a pass downfield into double coverage. UT defensive back Tyrell Herbert intercepted the pass at the Toledo 29-yard line.

After senior wide receiver Brian Murph caught a 9-yard pass, UT defensive lineman Tyree Pollard remained on the ground. His injury was unknown, but trainers came out to place Pollard into a cart so he could be taken to the locker room. He would not return in the first half.

The KU defense held Toledo to its second three-and-out possession of the game. Senior wide receiver Brian Murph called for a fair catch at the KU 38-yard line, but a block in the back penalty pushed KU field position back to its own 28.

Junior running back Brandon McAnderson put Kansas ahead, 14-9, with 6:44 left in the second quarter. McAnderson ran straight ahead for a 2-yard touchdown run. Cornish made two huge plays on the drive. After being called for holding, Cornish immediately redeemed himself with a 18-yard shovel pass. He then ran in between the tackles on the next play and broke a run down the right sideline. Cornish paused, waiting for UT defenders to pass him on the sideline, cut it back upfield, and took the ball to the UT 2-yard line, setting up the score.

Cornish now has 66 yards rushing on eight carries.

Toledo running back Jalen Parmele put Toledo ahead, 9-7, with a 1-yard touchdown run around left tackle with about 10 minutes left in the second quarter. Toledo marched 70 yards down the field and gained four first downs on the drive. Cochran found tight end Chris Hopkins twice on crucial third down situations for six and 16-yard gains.

Webb missed a 48-yard field goal, handing the ball back to Toledo on its own 30-yard line with 14:25 left in the second quarter.

Kansas produced two first downs on its next drive, but was unable to get past its own 40-yard line. A Kyle Tucker punt resulted in a touchback.

Toledo freshman quarterback Brandon Summers is the backup quarterback, should Toledo need to take Cochran out of the game. Summers has attemped one pass this season. It resulted in an interception.

Kansas forced the second Toledo punt of the night. Cochran limped down the sideline as he made an attempt to reach the first down marker. He did not get hit on the play, which raised questions of why Cochran was limping. Toledo trainers tended to Cochran’s right knee on the sideline.

Starting the second drive deep in its own territory did not help Kansas. With 8:03 remaining in the first quarter, Meier lost the ball in the end zone. Cornish picked the ball up and tried to make a move. He ran out of room. Toledo tackled Cornish in the end zone, resulting in a safety. Kansas still led, 7-2.

The KU secondary looked solid on Toledo’s second possession of the game. Cochran threw three straight incompletions after two first downs. UT punter Brett Kern placed the ball deep in KU territory. The Jayhawks will start their second drive of the game on the 8-yard line.

Meier ran for a 12-yard touchdown near the right corner of the end zone for KU’s opening score. It was the Pittsburg native’s fourth touchdown run of the season. Kansas led 7-0 with 12 minutes remaining in the first quarter. Meier also had a 15-yard run before that on a quarterback option keeper. Arguably the most important play of the drive saw Meier completing a 19-yard pass to junior tight end Derek Fine for only his second catch of the season.

Toledo went three-and-out on its first drive. The Rockets gained only one yard on the drive. On their punt to the Jayhawks, a halo-infraction was called on the Rockets for interfering with Murph. Kansas started with good field position, at the Toledo 45-yard line.

Kickoff

Kansas kicked off to Toledo to open the game. UT’s Richard Davis returned the ball to the Toledo 15-yard line.

Game preview

Kansas will take on Toledo tonight at 7 p.m. on ESPN2. The Jayhawks welcomed the Rockets to Memorial Stadium in 2004 and destroyed them, 63-14. However, Toledo is coming off of a 9-3 season, which saw it defeat UTEP, 45-13, in the GMAC bowl. Kansas went 0-5 on the road last season.

This will be the Rockets’ second game against a Big 12 opponent this season. Toledo (Mid-American Conference) hasn’t won a game yet, and is 0-2. It lost to Iowa State and Western Michigan on the road. This will be UT’s first home game. Toledo has an impressive home field record of 34-2 since the end of the 1999 season.

Kansas (2-0) easily defeated Northwestern State, 49-18, the first week of the season, but suffered a scare last week against Louisiana-Monroe. The Jayhawks defeated the Warhawks by only two points, 21-19.

Sophomore cornerback Aqib Talib will be back in the KU secondary and start tonight’s game. The Jayhawks arguably need Talib badly for this game after surrendering 377 passing yards last week. Kansas is currently ranked last in the Big 12 in total defense, giving up an average of 353.5 yards per game.