September 25, 2010

Kansas Rolls Past New Mexico State 42-16

Sept. 25, 2010

Final Stats in PDF Format

Postgame Interviews: Coach Gill | Webb | Wilson | Springer

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Running backs D.J. Beshears and James Sims combined for five touchdowns to lead the Kansas football team to a 42-16 victory over New Mexico State at Memorial Stadium here Saturday night.

A Band Day and K-Club Day crowd of 46,719 endured a light first-quarter rain and witnessed Kansas even its record at 2-2 on the season heading into Big 12 play next week at Baylor. KU is now 22-4 in its last 26 non-conference games and 20-4 in its last 24 home non-league battles. New Mexico State fell to 0-3 on the season.

Beshears rushed for two touchdowns and returned a kick for another score. The Denton, Texas, sophomore accounted for accounted for 151 yards of total offense with 38 yards rushing, six yards receiving and 117 yards on kick returns. Sims, a freshman from Irving, Texas, had two infantry scores and rushed for 116 yards against the Aggies.

As a team, Kansas amassed a season-high 501 yards total offense, including a rushing best 237 yards. Redshirt freshman quarterback Jordan Webb threw for a season-high 249 yards and one touchdown completing 11 of his 17 attempts.

On KU’s second possession of the game the Jayhawks took 49 seconds to go up 7-0, covering 88 yards in three plays toward the end of the first quarter. Webb hit wide receiver Jonathan Wilson streaking down the right sideline for a 43-yard pick up. Then he connected with senior running back Angus Quigley for 43 yards on a screen pass. Beshears covered the final 10 yards up the middle for the touchdown. It was Beshears’ first career TD and marked the seventh different Jayhawk to score a touchdown in 2010.

New Mexico State answered quickly with a five-play drive covering 44 yards with as senior running back Seth Smith scoring on a one-yard plunge to make the score 7-7 with 13:55 to go in the half. Smith ended the evening with 52 rushing yards on 16 carries and one touchdown.

As the rain diminished, Beshears then took the ensuing NMSU kick 96 yards up the middle and to the right for a touchdown give the Jayhawks a 14-7 lead. The 96-yard return, the eighth longest in KU history, was the first for a KU player since Dezmon Briscoe went 98 yards last season against Texas.

Following a NMSU punt, KU junior Daymon Patterson accounted for 45 of Kansas’ 76 total yards as Beshears scored his third touchdown of the half on a seven-yard rush over the left side of the line. Patterson returned the Aggies’ punt 23 yards and had 22 of KU’s 53-yard scoring drive with a pair of receptions from Webb. Beshears score gave Kansas a 21-7 lead with 9:29 before half.

Kansas took the second half kick and marched 62 yards in five plays to go up 28-7. Freshman running back James Sims caught a pass from Webb for 30 yards and two plays later rushed 10 yards to the one yard line before taking the football over for the score on the next play. The TD was Sims’ second of the season.

KU’s most impressive drive of the evening followed an NMSU punt downed on the Kansas one-yard line. The Jayhawks then marched 99 yards in 17 plays and took 6:09 off the third-quarter clock. KU twice converted fourth downs on the drive with Webb rushing for 24 yards over the right side on a fourth and one at the NMSU 34. Five plays later, Webb hit junior tight end Tim Biere on a fourth and two for a touchdown to make the score 35-7 with 2:34 remaining in the third quarter. It marked Biere’s second TD of the season and Webb’s first touchdown pass of the contest and fifth of the season.

NMSU narrowed the gap when junior quarterback Matt Christian hit senior wide receiver Marcus Allen on a 25-yard fade route to the left corner of the end that capped a six-play, 74-yard drive making the score 35-13 following the missed extra point. Christian ended the game 11 for 17 for 111 yards and one touchdown.

Sims went over the century mark for the game and the second time this season when he rushed over the left side on a 11-yard touchdown run to make the score 42-13 with just over 10 minutes remaining. Sims ended the night with 116 rushing yards to mark first time since Clark Green during the 2002 a Kansas freshman has two games of 100-plus rushing yards.

Kansas will open Big 12 play at Baylor next Saturday, Oct. 2, at 11 a.m. (Central). The game will be televised on Fox Sports Net.