photo by: Nick Krug

Kansas defensive end Dorance Armstrong Jr. (2) hits Memphis running back Doroland Dorceus (28) during the second quarter on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016 at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tenn.

photo by: Nick Krug

Kansas defensive end Dorance Armstrong Jr. (2) hits Memphis running back Doroland Dorceus (28) during the second quarter on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016 at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tenn.

A third of the way through the season, the Kansas football team’s defense has had its share of slow starts. Though the unit tends to regroup quickly, it also eventually wears down over the course of games as a result of frequent ineffective drives by the offense.

Regardless, coordinator Clint Bowen’s crew truly has been one of the scant bright spots of a 1-3 start.

In fact, in one particular category, KU’s defense has proven just as effective as some of the more recognizable brands in college football. When it comes to tackles for loss, the Jayhawks are operating in the same neighborhood as Miami (FL), Texas A&M, Clemson and Michigan.

In three consecutive games — home versus Ohio, and on the road at Memphis and Texas Tech — Kansas has tackled opponents behind the line of scrimmage at least 10 times.

Oddly enough, the Jayhawks only came away with 5 tackles for loss in a drubbing of FCS opponent Rhode Island in the season opener. Still, their season average of 9.9 tackles for loss a game ranks the squad third in the nation.

TOP 10 TFL TEAMS IN FBS

No. 1 – Miami (FL), 12.0

No. 2 – Texas A&M, 10.0

No. 3 – Kansas, 9.8

No. 4 – Clemson, 9.6

No. 5 – Michigan, 9.4

No. 6 – Illinois, 9.3

No. 7 (tie) – Akron / Southern Miss, 9.2

No. 9 – Ball State, 9.0

No. 10 (tie) – Minnesota / Toledo / Boise State, 8.8

Now with 39 tackles for loss this season, Kansas has posted the most in any four-game stretch for the program since the glory days of 2007, when the eventual Orange Bowl championship team opened the season with 44 TFL’s in its first four games.

In total, 19 different Jayhawks have played a part in KU’s tackles for loss, with the front seven doing most of the damage.

DE Dorance Armstrong Jr. – 6

LB Marcquis Roberts – 5.5

DT Daniel Wise – 4

DE Damani Mosby – 3.5

DE Cameron Rosser – 3

LB Joe Dineen – 3

DB Tevin Shaw – 2.5

LB Courtney Arnick – 2

DT D.J. Williams – 1

DT DeeIsaac Davis – 1

DE Anthony Olobia – 1

DE Isaiah Bean – 1

S Bazie Bates IV – 1

WR Emmanuel Moore – 1 (special teams)

CB Marnez Ogletree – 1

S Tyrone Miller Jr. – 1

S Fish Smithson – 0.5

DB Chevy Graham – 0.5

LB Keith Loneker Jr. – 0.5

photo by: Nick Krug

Kansas defensive end Isaiah Bean (19) gets an arm around Texas Tech quarterback Patrick Mahomes II (5) for a sack during the third quarter on Thursday, Sept. 29, 2016 at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas.

Bowen likes to see that type of production out of his defense, and said tackles for loss are a topic of discussion for his group. He has no interest in KU taking a passive, wait-and-see approach against the pass-happy offenses of the Big 12.

“We want to be aggressive, we want to challenge receivers on the outside, we want to move around and bring pressure and do different things on the inside,” Bowen said. “And I think tackles for loss are kind of a byproduct of our kids moving and playing with an aggressive style.”

Obviously the defense is nowhere near perfect — see: opponents average 35.2 points a game (tied for 104th in FBS with Oklahoma) and 432.5 yards of total offense (90th). But effective pressure behind the line of scrimmage is a nice place to start, defensively, while attempting to rebuild within a losing program.