Kansas is headed into Friday’s showdown with Missouri with D.K. McDonald already zeroed in on where the Tigers can make life difficult: up front.
After KU’s first practice of the week on Monday, the defensive coordinator pointed to Missouri’s offensive line as the engine of the offense. That group looks familiar in spots, even though plenty else has changed for the Tigers since last season’s 42-31 win over Kansas on the road.
The names that jump out start on the left side. Cayden Green, a 6-foot-5, 324-pound left tackle, was singled out by McDonald.
Green allowed just two sacks last year and graded as one of the best offensive linemen in the country. He missed Missouri’s opener, but could return for Friday.
At center is Dominick Giudice, who started all of last season at left guard. He gave up just one hit and one sack, earned SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week against KU last year and finished in the 89th percentile, No. 40 nationally, in PFF grade among FBS offensive guards. He is also the smallest Tiger up front at 6-foot-3, 305 pounds.
Curtis Peagler rounds out that core. He allowed only one sack in his first season as a starter last year and ranked in the 56th percentile, No. 159 nationally, in PFF grade among FBS offensive guards.
Those three anchored a Missouri line that was strong a year ago, and this season they’re joined by new faces at the guard spots. The starters average 6-foot-4.4 and 319.6 pounds, which is about an inch shorter and half a pound lighter than Kansas’ starting group.
When McDonald was asked about Missouri, he went straight to that offensive line, and not just because of its pass protection numbers. His focus was on how well the Tigers can move people in the run game.
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The early returns have been hard to ignore, even before the playbook is fully in place. Kansas piled up more than 600 yards of offense in the opener, a number that suggests the ceiling here could be real if the pieces keep fitting together. The bigger question now is how quickly that identity hardens into something opponents have to spend all week trying to solve, because the version taking shape already looks like one defenses may not enjoy seeing again. [Read more 🡒]