"You Wait All Year ... and Then It's Here"

Series: First Meeting
Line: Kansas (-7.5)

The Rundown
I'm not usually a big believer in over-estimating early games, but for this season and at this stage in Mark Mangino's career this is a huge game. If KU wins, this team can go onto a great season. If they lose ... we'll, it's not a disaster, but we'll be looking at another 2005/2006-type season, and I'm not sure that will be enough for Lew. If they win, 4-0 looks possible with a bye prior to the K-State "road" trip. The last time KU went 4-0 -- 1995.

The Key
KU's defensive line and more specifically the ends. To have a great season, KU needs the defense to return to 2005 form and attack opposing quarterbacks. Last year, we kept waiting for improvement from the pass rush and it never really happened. I'll be watching Brorsen (#81) and Larson (#87) carefully tonight and make my final evaluation after the game. This looks like the key to tonight's game and probably to the season as well.

Predictions

• KU fans, known for their tolerance, won't even notice or mention the construction
• KU's first TD of the game -- Marcus Henry (add your guess to the comments, winner is awarded status as a legend)
• If we get less than 45k, I'll whine about it all next week in this blog
• There will be no survivors at our tailgate -- beeritas (sp) are on the drink list and that's a recipe for disaster