Final, KU wins 76-39

Todd Reesing set a handful of school records when it was all said and done, finishing the day by going 30-of-41 for 354 yards and six touchdown passes. The six-pack of TDs set a KU single-game record, and gave him 23 for the season, which surpassed Bill Whittemore’s previous single-season record of 18 set in 2003. Three of his touchdown passes went to freshman Dezmon Briscoe, who now has seven on the season.

Brandon McAnderson was huge again, finishing with 119 yards on 25 carries, but doing the bulk of his damage in the red zone with four touchdown runs. He now has 797 yards and 13 TD runs on the year.

Joe Ganz in his first career start at quarterback for Nebraska threw for more than 400 yards and four touchdowns, but he was also picked off ofur times. Three of those interceptions came in a crippling second half stretch in which Nebraska turned the ball over on four straight possessions.

KU’s 76 points were the most ever allowed by a Nebraska team, breaking the old mark of 70.

KU will try to go 10-0 and stay in the Big 12 driver’s seat when it travels to Stillwater next Saturday for a 7 p.m. kickoff against Oklahoma State. The game will be televised by ABC.

4:26, fourth quarter, Kansas leads 76-39

Nebraska drove the field thanks in large part to the legs of freshman I-back Roy Helu.

The drive was capped by a Maurice Purify seven-yard touchdown catch on fourth-and-goal from the KU seven-yard line. Joe Ganz hit Nate Swift for a two-point conversion. Purify has seven catches for 157 yards and three touchdowns. Ganz has thrown for 405 yards and four TDs, but four interceptions as well.

11:12, fourth quarter, Kansas leads 76-31

Nebraska turned it over for the fourth straight possession, this time with a tipped pass deep over the middle winding up in the hands of Justin Thornton for his third pick of the year.

A first down pass to Dexton Fields gave another fresh set of downs. A play later, Brandon McAnderson went over the 100-yard mark with 112 yards on 23 carries, moving the ball down to the seven-yard line. On first and goal, McAnderson picked up a yard, and he collected the other six on his fourth touchdown run of the day. KU’s 76 points are the most ever given up in a game by Nebraska.

13:03, fourth quarter, Kansas leads 69-31

KU was once again took the ball away from Nebraska, this time with Mike Rivera picking off Joe Ganz over the middle.

To run out the third quarter clock, KU went to the ground, with Brandon McAnderson picking up a first down and nearing the 100-yard mark. He finished the third quarter with 93 yards.

The first play of the fourth quarter brought a first down strike from Reesing to Marcus Henry. A run then on first down by Jake Sharp was negated by a Reesing sack a play later. On third-and-12. Reesing overshot Briscoe on third down, giving KU it’s first TD-less possession since its first of the game. Scott Webb then missed a 51-yard field goal with 13:03 to play, but KU has the game firmly in hand.

3:34, third quarter, Kansas leads 69-31

Darrell Stuckey took the ball away yet agin from the Nebraska offense, this time recovering a fumble at the Nebraska 30. Right away, Reesing went back to work. After scrambling for a bit to his right, Jeff Foster hauled in an eight-yard pass along the sideline.

Brandon McAnderson got KU a first down with a tough run up the middle, and then Jake Sharp crossed the goal line for the second time on the afternoon, scoring on an 11-yard run in which he was spun across the goal line by a defender while being dragged down. KU is continuing to add on to its school record for most points in a conference game, surpassing the 55 scored against K-State in 1947.

5:45, third quarter, Kansas leads 62-31

Nebraska’s next drive sputtered for a bit, and then ended in an emphatic thud. Darrell Stuckey picked off Joe Ganz at the Kansas 40-yard line on an overthrown third-and-10 pass, and the sophomore safety ran it back to the Nebraska 23.

On second down, Todd Reesing went over the 300-yard barrier through the air with a 20-yard pass over the middle to Marcus Henry. WIth that catch, it gave Henry six catches for 101 yards.

KU was bumped back to the eight-yard line on a false start. Two plays later, he went right back to Briscoe in the red zone, giving the freshman three touchdown hauls on the season with a seven-yard grab over the middle in an open pocket of the defense. Reesing has 322 yards and a school-record six TD passes.

8:17, third quarter, Kansas leads 55-31

Marcus Herford’s big day running back kicks continued, as he took this one back to the Nebraska 44-yard line. After that, Todd Reesing slipped a two-yard pass to Dexton Fields, followed by a seven-yard run by Brandon McAnderson.

A couple of runs by Jake Sharp and a sideline pattern to Marcus Henry set up Todd Reesing’s fifth touchdown pass of the game, which was a bullet to Dezmon Briscoe from 14 yards out. Briscoe hauled it in while running out of bounds for his second touchdown catch of the day and his sixth of the season.

11:39, third quarter, Kansas leads 48-31

Nebraska’s opening possession in the second half began with a Caleb Blakesley sack, but that didn’t knock Joe Ganz down for long. He completed a third-and-17 pass to Todd Peterson, and then hit Nate Swift on a long toss to the Kansas 35, putting him over the 300-yard mark for the afternoon.

Ganz then ran for another first down to set the Huskers up at the KU 25. A play later brought another 10 yards on a slip pass to Marlon Lucky. Lucky was marked a bit shy of the first down, but he picked up the fresh set of downs on a carry a play later. After that run, Lucky had just seven yards on six carries.

Ganz nearly had his third touchdown pass of the game on a floater to Sean Hill after rolling to his left, but Hill couldn’t control it before running out of bounds, setting up second-and-10. Aqib Talib was taken into the end zone again, though, a play later by Maurice Purify, who made a one-handed snag in the back corner for his second score of the game, giving him five catches for 131 yards.

Halftime

Todd Reesing threw for 273 yards and four touchdowns in a first half that saw Nebraska allow more points in a first half than any Husker ever has. Brandon McAnderson had 48 yards on 13 carries, but was a butcher in the red zone, scoring on three touchdown runs inside the 10-yard line.

Nebraska’s Joe Ganz was 14-of-28 for 266 yards in the first half with two touchdown passes and a touchdown run in the first half, with four passes going to Maurice Purify, who had 117 yards and a score.

The Husker defense was completely exposed, letting KU score touchdowns on seven straight possessions after a three-and-out to start the game.

:12, second quarter, Kansas leads 48-24

Nebraska tried its hardest to score before the half, and Joe Ganz hit Maurice Purify and Todd Peterson for long passes over the middle to get Nebraska down to the KU 10-yard line. A false start call bumped the ball back to the 15.

Two incomplete passes made it third-and-goal from the 15, and a pass to Marlon Lucky only netted five yards. Jake Wesch came in for the game’s first field goal attempt from 27 yards out, drilling it to make it 48-24 with :12 to go before the half.

1:16, second quarter, Kansas leads 48-21

Caleb Blakesley tipped a Joe Ganz pass and John Larson played Johnny-on-the-spot by picking it off, giving KU’s offense another shot to score before the half.

It didn’t take KU long to do so, either. Todd Reesing hit Dezmon Briscoe for a 14-yard touchdown on the third play of the possession, as Briscoe cut back at the five from the sideline and extended across the goal line. It gave Todd Reesing 273 passing yards in the first half and four touchdown tosses.

Scott Webb’s first missed extra point of the season kept KU a point shy of tying its own record for points in a half.

2:43, second quarter, Kansas leads 42-21

Nebraska picked up a first down to start its next posession on a pass to Menelik Holt, but the drive fell apart from there. On third-and-long, Aqib Talib dove to knock away a pass intended for Maurice Purify, forcing a Nebraska punt.

KU went to Kerry Meier both through the run and pass to start its next possession following an Anthony Webb fair catch.

Meier caught a pair of passes for first downs, and after the second one, Brandon McAnderson tore off a first down run to the Nebraska 11-yard line.

McAnderson had a pair of runs from there, including a two-yard dive on the sideline to give KU a first-and-goal from the one.

Two plays later, McAnderson scored his third touchdown of the game on a one-yard plunge, giving him 48 yards on 13 carries. The 42 points in the first half ties a Nebraska record for most points ever given up in a first half.

8:30, second quarter, Kansas leads 35-21

Todd Reesing’s huge day just got, well, bigger, as he hit Marcus Henry over the middle on a rope for 41 yards to put KU at the Nebraska 5-yard line.

A play later, he hit Henry over the middle on a quick slant, giving him 237 passing yards already on the day with three touchdown passes. Henry has four catches for 75 yards and a score.

9:44, second quarter, Kansas leads 28-21

On the second play of Nebraska’s ensuing drive, Kendrick Harper took a lump for the second time on the afternoon, as Joe Ganz ended a streak of six straight incompletions.

He hit Maurice Purify over the middle, and he held Harper at bay long enough to pick up 60 yards and get to the KU 20-yard line.

Two plays later, after a Nebraska timeout, Purify hauled in a fade pass from Joe Ganz for a 19-yard score while teetering on the white turf at the edge of the end zone. Purify has three catches for 97 yards and a score so far.

10:34, second quarter, Kansas leads 28-14

Nebraska went three-and-out for the second straight possession, but this time started the drive with a run attempt. Marlon Lucky was stuffed, and Joe Ganz was again put in a sticky situation, firing is fourth- and fifth-straight incompletions.

KU’s Anthony Webb muffed a punt for the first time this season, but gathered up the ball to set the Jayhawk offense up at its own 30-yard line to start the second quarter.

An offsides call in the trenches gave KU a second-and-four early in the drive, and Reesing hit Marcus Henry for first down yardage. Then, after a short completion to Kerry Meier for four yards, Reesing hit Henry again right at the sticks. The call was defensive holding, giving KU 10 more yards and putting the ball at the Nebraska 43.

Dexton Fields hauled in a 15-yarder for KU’s third first down of the drive, down to the 28. Reesing followed it by atoning for an incompletion in the end zone with an 11-yard run for another first down. His next play was a throw to Derek Fine, who made his second tough grab of the game to the nine.

Brandon McAnderson then crossed the goal line for the fourth time in two weeks from nine yards out. It put the Jayhawks up by two touchdowns, having scored touchdowns on four straight possessions following a three-and-out to start the game.

1:00, first quarter, Kansas leads 21-14

Nebraska went three-and-out on its ensuing possession, ignoring the run game and opting for the air route. A big pass breakup on second down by Justin Thornton came on the heels of Joe Mortensen doing the same on first down over the middle.

On the second play of KU’s next possession, Derek Fine made a spectacular one-handed catch for 15 yards up to midfield on a floated pass from Todd Reesing. Two plays after that, Reesing hit a streaking Dexton Fields going out of bounds to the Nebraska 26.

It took Todd Reesing one more play to set the KU single-season touchdown pass record with his 19th scoring toss of the season, this one coming to Jake Sharp, who had two steps on his man down the right sideline and made the snag with ease.

3:16, first quarter, game tied 14-14

Marcus Herford set KU up with nice field position at midfield on a 49-yard kickoff return, but Todd Reesing overshot a pair of receivers downfield on first down.

On second down, Reesing hit Marcus Henry for the first time on the afternoon for 20 yards along the right sideline. It was followed by a five-yard run by Jake Sharp on first down, as KU is keeping up a steady mix of run and pass.

KU ran some trickery on second down with a reverse to Henry, who was sprung by a couple of solid blocks downfield in getting to the two-yard line.

Steve Octavien dragged down Brandon McAnderson on first-and-goal for a two-yard loss. On second down, Reesing tried to float a pass into the back of the end zone for Henry. The pass was incomplete, but the coverage drew a pass interference flag, giving KU a fresh set of downs again from the two.

McAnderson skipped in easily on a short option pitch from two yards out, tying the game yet again, 14-14.

4:58, first quarter, Nebraska leads 14-7

After a pair of runs, Nebraska struck again, this time with a 62-yard touchdown catch by Marlon Lucky.

Lucky, the team’s leader in receptions and receiving yards, took a swing pass into the flat and outran KU’s last line of defense – which on this occasion was Kendrick Harper.

6:38, first quarter, game tied 7-7

Todd Reesing threw short for Dexton Fields on first down to start KU’s second drive, but Brandon McAnderson ripped off a 36-yard chunk of turf on a second down swing pass, setting KU up at the Nebraska 29.

After a short Jake Sharp gain on first down, the Jayhawks ran a flea-flicker, with Sharp tossing the ball back to Reesing, who struck Dezmon Briscoe at the Nebraska 13-yard line.

Reesing rolled out on second down and was throwing to the corner of the end zone where a pair of receivers awaited. Zackary Bowman tipped tipped the ball while leaping to set KU up with third-and-10.

Third down brought better fortunes for KU, though, as Reesing threw a slant for Kerry Meier, who rumbled across the goal line for his first career touchdown catch.

Reesing was 3-of-6 for 63 yards on the drive.

9:04, first quarter, Nebraska leads 7-0

KU took the ball to start the game in front of packed stands, and the opening kick sailed to the end zone, downed by Marcus Herford for a touchback.

The Jayhawks went right to the ground game, with Brandon McAnderson picking up two yards on first down. He got another pair on second down, and an incomplete pass from Reesing into the flat put KU in a three-and-out situation on the opening drive.

Things got worse on fourth down, as Kyle Tucker’s punt was tipped and fluttered to the Kansas 46-yard line, setting up Nebraska with outstanding field position.

Joe Ganz went right to the air, finding Andy Polousky for a four-yard gain over the middle on first down. Marlon Lucky took a handoff on second down for a minimal gain, setting up third-and-five.

Ganz ran an option right on third down, and made a late pitch to Roy Helu, who evaded a Justin Thornton attempted tackle and picked up first down yardage.

A first down pass from Ganz to Frantz Hardy was next, picking up another first down to the KU 21-yard line.

Lucky gained nothing on first down, and an incomplete pass on second down gave Nebraska its first third-and-long of the afternoon.

Ganz hung strong in the pocket on third down and fired a bullet to Maurice Purify, who grabbed the ball in traffic and set up a first-and-goal at the three.

Marlon Lucky was stuffed at the three on first down, and a second down play-action pass from Ganz to Hunter Teafatiller fluttered over his head.

On third down, Ganz tucked it and ran, diving for a three-yard touchdown to draw first blood for Nebraska.

Pregame

Now this is what a gameday atmosphere at a football school looks like.

The streets surrounding Memorial Stadium have been filled since early this morning with tailgaters and fans simply taking in the scene as KU is set to play its biggest home game of the year.

The No. 8 Jayhawks have the stiff advantage on paper over the 4-5 Huskers. Nebraska’s run defense ranks dead-last in the nation coming in, while the Jayhawks last week ran the Texas A&M defense silly, with Brandon McAnderson leading the charge, registering 183 yards on 21 carries with a pair of touchdowns.

Nebraska’s offense will be a bit of a mystery until it actually hits the field today. It is the first time this season that junior Joe Ganz, now in his fourth year in the NU program, starts under center. He’s replacing senior Sam Keller, who suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in last week’s 28-25 loss at Texas.

The Huskers enter Lawrence having lost four straight conference games, and need to win out in all likelihood to earn a bowl bid.

Temperatures are expected to peak in the mid-60s this afternoon, and there’s hardly a cloud in the sky to be seen.