photo by: Nick Krug

Kansas wide receiver Steven Sims Jr. (11) tears down the field as he is trailed by the TCU defense after a catch during the first quarter on Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016 at Memorial Stadium.

Not even halfway into his sophomore season, Steven Sims already has as many touchdown receptions as any Kansas pass-catcher in the years since record-breaking quarterback Todd Reesing headed back to his home state of Texas.

Sims has five TD receptions with seven games remaining, matching wide receiver Nick Harwell’s total in 2014 and tight end Jimmay Mundine’s in 2013.

Sims has more touchdown receptions this season than all Kansas wide receivers had in 2012 (zero) and 2013 (three) combined (three).

A case could be made that the most productive player on the offense and the defense are in the same class and come from the same city. Defensive end Dorance Armstrong also is a sophomore from Houston.

Credit head coach David Beaty with sound talent judgment for pursuing a wide receiver no other Big 12 school deemed worthy of a scholarship.

Among Big 12 receivers, only Texas Tech’s Jonathan Giles (seven TD’s) and James Washington (six) have more scoring catches than Sims, who ranks seventh in the conference with 82.6 yards per game.

When Sims catches his next scores on a catch he will have the most touchdowns in a season by a Kansas receiver since Dezmon Briscoe had nine in 2009.