Jayhawk Q&A With Ryan Wood

Ryan Wood from the Lawrence Journal-World was gracious enough to talk some Jayhawk and Big 12 Football with us. The Kansas Jayhawks are coming off a 7-5 season where they won the Fort Worth Bowl over the Houston Cougars.

My Opinion on Sports: Former Sooner offensive coordinator Mark Mangino is entering his fifth season as the head coach of the Jayhawks. Give us your thoughts on his tenure there in Lawrence.

Ryan Wood: It's been a slow but steady process. While Mangino didn't come in right away and wow anybody with a 10-victory season or anything, he is making Kansas a respectable football school again. Attendance is improving, win totals are improving and KU fans are excited about more than basketball now. So he's definitely doing his job.

My Opinion on Sports: Kansas had one of the top defenses in the Big 12 last season. What can we expect from the 2006 defensive unit?

Ryan Wood: The 2006 defense is going to be different, and almost surely a step backward, but I don't think it's going to be a liability. Only three starters return, but one, CB Aqib Talib, has everything NFL scouts want to see in a cornerback. Furthermore, the front 7 has a lot of talent even if they don't have a lot of starting assignments. Don't expect 2005-type numbers, but do expect Kansas to field a decent defense once again.

My Opinion on Sports: It seems as if every school in the Big 12, except Iowa State and Oklahoma, is looking at putting a new quarterback on the field this season. Who is going to play qb for Kansas and what should we expect?

Ryan Wood: Kerry Meier, a redshirt freshman, is KU's guy this year. He's a powerfully built dual-threat quarterback that had a great showing in the spring game. He's got the bloodlines, too – his brother, Shad, is a tight end for the New Orleans Saints, and his other brother Dylan is lining up to be Kansas State's starting QB. The question is how big of an impact those inevitable freshman mistakes will make in the scope of a game. In the long run, though, Kerry will be a good quarterback in the Big 12.

My Opinion on Sports: In a recent column you predicted the conference to finish like this; South - Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech, A&M, Baylor and Oklahoma State; North - Nebraska, Iowa State, Kansas, Missouri, Colorado and Kansas State. Share your reasoning behind picking OU and Nebraska to win their respective divisions.

Ryan Wood: I think Oklahoma, top-to-bottom, matches up comparably with Texas in terms of talent. I picked OU over the Horns for two reasons: 1) Adrian Peterson is healthy and the best RB in college football, and 2) Rhett Bomar is way ahead of any UT quarterback in terms of savvy and skill.

As for Nebraska, their front seven on defense just looks nasty, and the offense keeps getting better and better as they get more acquainted with the west-coast style that Callahan implemented. On paper, they have more talent than any Big 12 team by a good margin.

My Opinion on Sports: Who wins the Big 12 Championship Game between OU and Nebraska?

Ryan Wood: I'll say Oklahoma 24-20.

My Opinion on Sports: You picked the Jayhawks to go 7-5. Which bowl game do you see them winding up in?

Ryan Wood: It's hard to get a feel for predicting bowl games, because what teams which bowls pick depend on so much more than record. My number one guess would be the Independence Bowl, but another game like the Insight Bowl wouldn't surprise me, either.

My Opinion on Sports: You can check out more of Ryan’s thoughts and opinions on the Kansas Jayhawks and the Big 12 Conference at the Lawrence Journal-World. Thanks for your time Ryan. I really appreciate it!

Ryan Wood: No problem. The blog looks good.

Thanks for the compliment Ryan! We'll see you around basketball season.

To discuss Ryan’s Q&A and his Big 12 picks head to the Ryan Wood thread on the My Opinion on Sports Message Board.