bowl summaries 2005 Fort Worth Bowl
2008 FedEx Orange Bowl
Dec. 23, 2005 at Fort Worth, Texas
Kansas 42, Houston 13
The University of Kansas closed out the 2005 season with a 42-13 victory over Houston in the Fort Worth Bowl at Amon G. Carter Stadium. The win gave the Jayhawks their first bowl victory since the 1995 Aloha Bowl and the most wins (seven) in a decade. Junior Brian Murph put Kansas on the board early when he returned a Houston punt 85 yards for a touchdown. The touchdown return was the first of Murph’s career and KU’s longest
of the season. Houston scored its first points of the game in the second quarter (14:22) when freshman Ben Bell kicked a 32-yard field goal. Kansas made it 14-3 on the ensuing possession with a five-play, 60-yard drive that resulted in a 13-yard touchdown shovel pass from senior Jason Swanson to junior Jon Cornish. The Cougars capped a 42-yard, seven-play drive with a touchdown when junior Kevin Kolb scored on a one-yard keeper with 57 seconds remaining in the half. KU headed into the break leading 14-10. The KU defense struck early in the second half when senior Theo Baines intercepted a Kolb pass and ran it 16 yards to KU’s 30-yard line. Two plays later, Cornish took another shovel pass from Swanson 30 yards for his second touchdown of the day and 11th of the season, making it 21-10 in favor of the Jayhawks. On KU’s next possession, Swanson connected with senior Mark Simmons on a 32-yard pass to cap an 80-yard, 3:32 scoring drive. The touchdown gave KU a 28-13 lead with 4:57 left in the third quarter. KU pulled away when senior Charlton Keith picked off a Kolb pass at the Jayhawks’ 14-yard line 2:37 into the fourth quarter and ran it in for a touchdown. The interception was Keith’s first and marked his second career touchdown. Just over a minute later, Baines nabbed his second interception of the day, giving KU the ball on the Houston 46-yard line. Murph then scored his second touchdown of the day, a 48-yard pass from Swanson, to wrap up the scoring. Swanson threw for four touchdowns and had 19 completions on 29 attempts for 307 yards in the final game of his career. He joined Kolb as the 2005 Fort Worth Bowl Most Valuable Players. Kansas 7 7 14 14 Houston 0 10 3 0 KU – Murph 85 punt return (Webb kick), 10:26 – 1 UH – Bell 32 yard field goal, 14:22 – 2 KU – Cornish 13 pass from Swanson (Webb kick), 12:49 – 2 UH – Kolb 1 run (Bell kick), 00:57 – 2 KU – Cornish 30 pass from Swanson (Webb kick), 12:43 – 3 UH – Lawrence 44 yard field goal, 8:29 – 3 KU – Simmons 32 pass from Swanson (Webb kick), 4:57 – 3 KU – Keith 14 int return (Webb kick), 12:23 – 4 KU – Murph 48 pass from Swanson (Webb kick), 9:08 – 4
– 42 – 13
Weather: Cloudy, 67 degrees Attendance: 35,505 The Statistics First Downs Rushes & Yards Passing Yardage Passes (Att-Comp) Had Intercepted Return Yardage Punts & Average Fumbles & Lost Penalties & Yards
Kansas 24, Virginia Tech 21
KU UH 29 15 39-198 24-30 340 214 32-21 44-20 0 3 45 0 2-43.0 7-44.9 1-1 1-0 14-138 4-54
Playing in its first BCS game, Kansas made the nation take notice as it claimed the 2008 Orange Bowl championship. Sophomore QB Todd Reesing threw a touchdown pass and ran for another, while Orange Bowl MVP Aqib Talib returned an interception 60 yards for a TD as the No. 8 Jayhawks earned a 24-21 victory over No. 3 Virginia Tech at Dolphin Stadium in Miami. In a game that was billed to be a clash between KU’s offense and Virginia Tech’s defense, it was the Jayhawk defense and special teams that led the way. The Jayhawks matched a KU bowl game record with three INTs, while five different Jayhawks collected quarterback sacks. Of the three interceptions, none was bigger than Talib’s first-quarter pick that gave Kansas a 7-0 advantage. With 12 minutes remaining in the first half, senior place kicker Scott Webb stretched KU’s lead to 10-0 with a 32-yard field goal, capitalizing on a Chris Harris interception. KU increased its lead to 17-0 when Reesing led the Jayhawks on a 10-play, 59-yard drive that he culminated with a 13-yard strike to Marcus Henry on a slant across the middle. It marked Reesing’s 36th career touchdown pass, best in KU history. Virginia Tech answered that touchdown with a 13-play, 52-yard drive that ended with a one-yard plunge by Brandon Ore with 1:24 to go in the half. The Hokies cut the lead to 17-14 on an 86-yard punt return by Justin Harper early in the second half. Tech threatened again in the third quarter, but KU held onto its lead when junior Joe Mortensen blocked a 25-yard field goal attempt with 6:41 to go in the quarter. It was the Jayhawks’ first field-goal block of the season, and it changed the momentum of the game. The Jayhawks took advantage of another takeaway early in the fourth. Following a Justin Thornton pick-off deep in Tech territory, Reesing stretched the KU lead to 24-14 with a two-yard bootleg run. But Virginia Tech was not done. With 5:51 to go, the Hokies held Kansas on a fourth-down try from the Tech 23. They then marched the ball 77 yards on 14 plays, drawing to within three on a 21-yard pass with three minutes remaining. The Hokies tried an onside kick, but KU’s Raimond Pendleton recovered the ball at Tech’s 43-yard line. From there, the Jayhawks ran out the clock, moving the ball down to the Hokie one-yard line, where Reesing took a knee to close out the game. Reesing finished the game with 227 yards on 20-of-37 passing, throwing one TD and one INT. Eight Jayhawks hauled in passes, including junior Dexton Fields, who finished with seven catches for 101 yards. Senior Brandon McAnderson carried the ball 15 times for 75 yards, including a handful of big runs to keep the clock moving late in the fourth quarter. He also completed a pass attempt on a fake punt late in the third quarter. Junior Mike Rivera led KU’s defense with seven solo tackles and five assisted tackles as well as a tackle for a loss. Kansas 7 10 0 7 Virginia Tech 0 7 7 7 KU – 1st (5:15) – Talib, 60 interception return (Webb kick) KU – 2nd (12:00) – Webb, 32 FG KU – 2nd (7:03) – Henry, 13 pass from Reesing (Webb kick) VT – 2nd (1:24) – Ore, 1 run (Dunlevy kick) VT – 3rd (11:35) – Harper, 84 punt return (Dunlevy kick) KU – 4th (10:57) – Reesing, 2 run (Webb kick) VT – 4th (3:00) – Harper, 20 pass (Dunlevy kick)
– 24 – 21
Weather: Cloudy, 57 degrees Attendance: 74,111 First Downs Rushes & Yards Passing Yardage Passes (Att-Comp) Had Intercepted Return Yardage Punts & Average Fumbles & Lost Penalties & Yards
19 36-95 249 38-21 1 4-64 5-50.0 1-0 5-70
20 42-135 171 31-14 3 7-222 5-38.6 0-0 4-27
Kansas Rushing: Cornish 16-101, McAnderson 7-41, Swanson 7-33, C. Green 9-23 Passing: Swanson 29-19-0, 307, Luke 3-2-0, 33 Receiving: Gordon 6-86, SImmons 5-77, Murph 4-78, Cornish 2-43, Henry 2-33, Fine 2-23
Rushing: McAnderson 15-75, Sharp 9-33, Team 1-(-1), Reesing 10-(-6), Talib 1-(-6) Passing: Reesing 37-20-1, 227 Receiving: Fields 7-101, Sharp 4-30, Meier 2-24, Briscoe 2-20, Henry 2-20, Fine 2-14, Brown 1-22, McAnderson 1-18 Interceptions: Talib 1-60, Thornton 1-30, Harris 1-0
Houston Rushing: Battle 3-8 Passing: Kolb 43-20-3, 214 Receiving: Avery 5-71
Rushing: Ore 23-116 Passing: Glennon 28-13-2, 160 Receiving: Harper 4-64 Interceptions: Parker 1-0
2008 Insight Bowl
Dec. 31, 2008 at Tempe, Ariz.
Kansas 56, Minnesota 21 Todd Reesing completed 27 of 35 passes for 313 yards and four touchdowns, while Dezmon Briscoe set Insight Bowl records for receptions (14) and TD catches (three), to lead the Jayhawks to a 42-21 victory over Minnesota in the 20th Insight Bowl. The win secured an 8-5 overall record for the season and gave the Jayhawks their third-straight bowl. Briscoe tied Kerry Meier’s school record for receptions in a single game, while his 201 receiving yards ranked as the fifth-best mark in school history (and second highest in Insight Bowl history). Meier’s 10 catches tied for eighth in school history; he surpassed the 100-yard mark (113 yards) for the fifth time this year. On defense KU’s trio of senior linebackers shined. Mike Rivera matched a career high with 14 tackles, while Joe Mortensen also tied his career best with 13 stops. James Holt added eight tackles, with four for loss, including three sacks. Briscoe was named the game’s offensive MVP, while Holt was tabbed the game’s top defender. Kansas struck first, scoring on a 60-yard pass play from Reesing to Briscoe on the game’s opening play from scrimmage. Minnesota responded on its first possession, however, converting on a 75-yard pass on their opening play to set up a quick score. Trailing 14-7, in the first quarter, Kansas scored the game’s next 28 points to take a 35-14 lead in the third period. The Jayhawks scored on four of their first five possessions while shutting Minnesota down after the Gophers scored the first two times they had the ball. Minnesota’s next six possessions resulted in four punts, a fumble and a drive that ended on an exciting goal-line stand by the Jayhawks. The Kansas defense stuffed three straight Gopher runs from inside the two-yard line. Reesing was nearly flawless in the first half, throwing four touchdown passes and at one point completing a school-record 14 straight passes. He finished the first 30 minutes hitting 19 of 23 passes for 221 yards and the four scores. In the first half, Briscoe had 10 catches for 147 yards and two TDs, while Meier had five grabs for 43 yards and a touchdown. Johnathan Wilson added the other first-half touchdown reception. KU also rushed for 86 yards in the first half. Jake Sharp had 54 yards on 11 runs, and Reesing added 32 yards on six attempts. KU produced 307 yards of total offense in the first half, while the Jayhawk defense limited the Minnesota offense to 194 yards. Eighty-seven of the Gophers’ first-half yards came on their first drive of the game. Midway through the second quarter Briscoe had reached the 100-yard receiving mark for the fourth straight game, setting a school record for consecutive 100-yard games. Reesing threw for a touchdown pass for the 18th consecutive game and became the school’s all-time pass attempt leader as well, surpassing Frank Seurer. Kansas 14 14 7 7 Minnesota 14 0 0 7 KU - 1st (14:49) Briscoe, 80 pass from Reesing (Branstetter kick) UM - 1st (13:18) - Hoese, 1 run (Monroe kick) UM - 1st (4:48) - Hoese, 2 run (Monroe kick) KU - 1st (0:12) - Meier, 4 pass from Reesing (Branstetter kick) KU - 2nd (8:49) - Briscoe, 6 pass from Reesing (Branstetter kick) KU - 2nd (1:07) - Wilson, 4 pass from Reesing (Branstetter kick) KU - 3rd (8:033) - Briscoe, 32 pass from Meier (Branstetter kick) UM - 4th (13:01) - Decker, 6 pass from Weber (Monroe kick) KU - 4th (1:33) - Sharp, 2 run (Branstetter kick)
- 42 - 31
Weather: 73 degrees Attenance: 49,103 The Statistics First Downs Rushes & Yards Passing Yards Passes (Att-Comp) Had Intercepted Return Yardage Punts and Average Fumbles & Lost Penalties & Yards
KU UM 26 20 29-101 38-80 345 251 28-36 20-35 1 0 9-470 5-254 4-47.5 5-41.0 0-0 1-1 4-33 7-41
Kansas Rushing: Sharp 16-64, Reesing 12-38 Passing: Reesing 27-35-1, 313, Meier 1-1-0, 32 Receiving: Briscoe 14-201, Meier 10-113, Wilson 2-17, Biere 1-9, Fields 1-5 Minnesota Rushing: Weber 12-31 Passing: Weber 19-34-0, 176 Receiving: Decker 8-149
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