Wagner Grade Card: The offense

There is not a lot you can be upset about when the offense goes out and hangs 631 yards of offense and 32 first downs against Wagner.

Let’s face it, Wagner lacked the size, depth and speed to keep up with the Jayhawks. They are a middle of the pack FCS team in their own conference, so the team did what they needed to do.

If you want to get picky there are things you can look at. In the first half when Wagner had their starters in, there were three stalled drives out of seven. Two ended with punts after going three and out and the other on an interception by Jalon Daniels. After the game Daniels credited Jayden Brown with the pick and said he made a great play.

Those empty drives can happen against Wagner, but the offense needs to be more productive. The second half was more difficult to get a read on things. Much like Kansas, Wagner started to bring in their second and third string players. They can only travel so many, but they cleared their bench. Wagner played 35 different players on defense. That makes it hard to grade how the players did in the last two quarters.

Quarterback

Jalon Daniels had another solid stat line, not quite as efficient as Fresno State. He was 18-of-25 with an interception. He has thrown four touchdowns three different times in his career. The last time he did was against Arkansas in the Liberty Bowl. Daniels carries were limited and that was a smart decision because his legs will be needed against Missouri.

Cole Ballard and Isaiah Marshall got snaps in the second half. By the fourth quarter it was hard to tell much because the level of competition they faced was far under D1 standards.

Running back

Daniel Hishaw had a solid night rushing for 89 yards on 14 carries. The Jayhawks were without Leshon Williams, who is a key player moving forward. Lance Leipold said after the game he could have played if needed. Four other running backs got carries in Johnny Thompson, Harry Stewart, Justin Thurman, and John Kelly. The RB who caught my attention was Thurman, who looked fast and quick.

Wide receivers/Tight ends

It felt like Daniels could hook up with Henderson whenever he wanted. The Wagner corners couldn’t stay with him. After Henderson the next leading receivers caught two passes. There were 11 WR and TE who caught passes.

Offensive line

The offensive line played well and that was the expectation. Daniels had 22 drop-backs and was under pressure only 12 percent of the time. Wagner blitzed 56% of the drop-backs and Daniels was never hurried. They averaged 6.5 yards a carry on the ground and there is not much negative you can take away.

PFF Grades

Here is how PFF graded the offense.