Longhorns blow out Jayhawks in second half

Texas quarterback Tyrone Swoopes (18) squeezes in for a touchdown past Kansas defensive end Anthony Olobia (56) during the first quarter on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2015 at Darrell K. Royal Stadium in Austin, Texas.

Austin, Texas ? After a rare competitive first half on the road Saturday night for the downtrodden Kansas football program, the Jayhawks snapped back to their familiar reality in the second half of a 59-20 loss to Texas, at Darrell K. Royal Stadium.

The Jayhawks, who lost their 37th consecutive game away from Lawrence, gave the Longhorns a scare before halftime, getting within 24-14 of the home team late in the second quarter. Following a fumble recovery touchdown by receiver Shakiem Barbel in the first quarter and a punch-in, one-yard TD by running back De’Andre Mann in the second quarter, Kansas actually had a shot at making it a one-score game headed into the break. However, after going 35 yards and getting inside the UT 10-yard line, KU and head coach David Beaty settled for a 26-yard field goal attempt and kicker Nick Bartolotta banged it off the right upright as time expired.

Once the second half began, UT (4-5 overall, 3-3 Big 12) got back on track, with easy scoring drives on offense and constant pressure against KU true freshman quarterback Ryan Willis on defense.

The Longhorns snagged momentum for good just less than five minutes into the third quarter, with a 93-yard rushing touchdown from D’Onta Foreman.

Foreman, who rushed for two second-half touchdowns and finished with 157 rushing yards was just one of KU’s problems. UT also repeatedly burnt Kansas deep in the passing game. John Burt caught an 84-yard TD on the Longhorns’ first series, and both Texas quarterbacks — Jerrod Heard and Tyrone Swoopes — threw for long scores.

Texas out-gained KU, 598-426 on the night.

Willis, who left the game early in the fourth quarter, with Kansas down 38 points, threw two interceptions and completed 17 of 34 passes. UT sacked the freshman QB six times, hurried him five other times and broke through to pressure Willis almost constantly after halftime.

The winless Jayhawks (0-9, 0-6) play at TCU next week.

— See what people were saying about the game during KUsports.com’s live coverage

HOW THEY SCORED

First Quarter

12:06 — John Burt 84 pass from Jerrod Heard. Nick Rose kick. A false start on a fourth-down try killed KU’s opening drive and the Longhorns made ’em pay on the first play from scrimmage on their opening drive. Burt got a step behind KU cornerback Marnez Ogletree and then fought him off when the ball arrived. (UT 7, KU 0).

8:56 — Nick Rose 29 field goal. Texas jumped on top by two scores with a nine-play, 54-yard drive that took 2:21 and featured another deep pass from Heard. This time Heard connected with Lorenzo Joe for a 37-yard gain that set up Texas in Kansas territory. (UT 10, KU 0).

6:51 — Tyrone Swoopes 4 run. Rose kick. A Ryan Willis interception that was returned by Dylan Haines to the KU 4 yard line set up the Longhorns’ third score of the night, which came via the 18 Wheeler package handled by back-up QB Tyrone Swoopes, who carried twice on the drive and reached pay dirt on the second try. (UT 17, KU 0).

0:21 — Shakiem Barbel 1 fumble recovery. Nick Bartolotta kick. The Jayhawks finally got something going on offense when Willis hit Darious Crawley with a 32-yard pass to jump-start the drive. Nine plays later, De’Andre Mann caught a screen pass and sprinted toward the end zone but fumbled just short of the goal line. Barbel came from the outside and pounced on the loose ball to put KU on the board. (UT 17, KU 7).

Second Quarter

11:58 — Swoopes 1 run. Rose kick. After KU stuffed the Longhorns and forced a punt, Derrick Neal muffed the UT punt and a Texas player recovered the ball at the Kansas 17. Five plays later, Swoopes again rumbled in from a yard out and Texas grew its lead. (UT 24, KU 7).

8:49 — De’Andre Mann 1 run. Bartolotta kick. Kansas answered Texas’ short scoring drive with a 12-play, 59-yard drive of its own. Ryan Willis connected with Kent Taylor for two third-down conversions and also hit Darious Crawley on third down to keep the drive alive. The score took 3:09 and featured five consecutive runs on the back end. (UT 24, KU 14).

Third Quarter

10:01 — D’Onta Foreman 93 run. Rose kick. The Kansas defense held UT on its first possession of the second half, but after the Jayhawks stalled on offense, UT broke the game open with a 93-yard TD run from Foreman on first down after a 51-yard punt by Matthew Wyman pinned Texas deep in its own end. (UT 31, KU 14).

5:34 — Foreman 9 run. Rose kick. Texas regained complete control of this one with a nine-play, 53-yard drive that followed another KU three-and-out and spanned 3:06. Heard converted two third downs and a fourth down near midfield to put the ‘Horns up by 24. (UT 38, KU 14).

Fourth Quarter

14:54 — Armanti Foreman 40 pass from Swoopes. Rose kick. On the first play of the final quarter, UT blew this one open with a 40-yard TD pass from the back-up Swoopes to another Foreman on UT’s roster. The TD play capped a four-play, 68-yard drive that took 1:59. (UT 45, KU 14).

13:25 — Swoopes 44 run. Rose kick. Texas continued to bully the exhausted Kansas defense with its big bodies up front. The UT O-Line blew open a huge hole for Swoopes on the fourth play of this early fourth-quarter drive and the big QB did the rest, rumbling for his third TD of the night. (UT 52, KU 14).

8:49 — Swoopes 10 fumble recovery run. Rose kick. Texas tacked on yet another score after a nine-play, 86-yard drive that ended with Swoopes scooping up a Nick Johnson fumble and rumbling 10 yards to the end zone for his fourth TD run of the night. The drive took 3:22. (UT 59, KU 14).

1:07 — Darious Crawley 19 pass from Keaton Perry. Team run failed. With backups to backups playing for both teams, KU quarterback Keaton Perry saw his first action as a Jayhawk late, and he capped an 11-play, 80-yard drive with a well-thrown ball to a covered Crawley in the end zone, after running back Ryan Schadler carried Kansas most of the drive. A bad snap on the extra point led to KU failing to even get an attempt off. (UT 59, KU 20).