3 key observations as Kansas football defeats UNLV for Guaranteed Rate Bowl victory
PHOENIX — Kansas football secured a 49-36 triumph over UNLV on Tuesday in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl.
Here are three observations from the Jayhawks (9-4, 5-4 in Big 12 Conference) win against the Rebels (9-5, 6-2 in Mountain West Conference).
Kansas wins its first bowl game in more than a decade
Prior to Tuesday, Kansas had not won a bowl game since claiming a victory in the Insight Bowl in 2008. The Jayhawks topped Minnesota in a 42-21 victory that year, which saw them finish with a winning record for the last time prior to this season.
That drought is over following Kansas’s win against UNLV. It’s another step forward for the Jayhawks’ program under head coach Lance Leipold, who in three years has led a turnaround that has shocked many across the college football landscape. It also means Kansas has won nine games in a season for the first time since 2007.
Kansas’ wide receivers make highlight play after highlight play
Turnovers were a problem during the contest for Kansas. Redshirt senior quarterback Jason Bean finished with three interceptions, despite also throwing for 449 yards and six touchdowns.
Junior wide receiver Luke Grimm had three touchdown catches and 160 yards receiving. Junior wide receiver Lawrence Arnold had three touchdown catches and 132 yards receiving. And the two did so while combining for 10 catches.
Penalties, penalties and more penalties
This game got to a point where it felt remarkable when there wasn’t a flag thrown during a play. The crowd became annoyed by how regularly penalties were being called at times. It made a game that should have been over much quicker take even longer due to miscues by both squads.
At game’s end, Kansas was called for 18 penalties that went for 210 yards. UNLV was called for nine penalties that went for 99 yards. The disparity certainly allowed the Rebels to have more of a chance to top the Jayhawks than they would have had otherwise.
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Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: 3 observations as Kansas football beats UNLV in Guaranteed Rate Bowl
