Here are Phog.net's grades from KU football's loss to Nicholls State.

QB play — C+

Peyton Bender's performance may have seemed unspectacular, and generally speaking, his numbers were. However, much of that falls on the offensive line, as Bender received several uncatchable snaps and also had little time to throw on several occasions. His rhythm was also disrupted when Miles Kendrick was inserted into the game for a drive in the first half after Bender had consistently played well and hit receivers all over the field.

Bender finished the game with 187 passing yards and two touchdowns. He completed 19 of his 35 passing attempts, meaning he didn't have the best numbers, but his final line would have looked a lot different if not for a trio of drops by Steven Sims.

Most notably, Sims dropped a perfectly placed would-be 35-yard touchdown pass that led to the Jayhawks settling for a field goal on a first-half drive. If you were to just change that completion: Bender's would-be line of 223 passing yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions — and a win in regulation — would have felt a lot different.

Offense — D

Here's the thing about the offense. The offensive line really, really struggled against Nicholls State. Alex Fontana had issues snapping the ball. He and Andru Tovi seemed to lack chemistry at times, and the line often gave Bender little time to set up and throw.

However, the offense was essentially two Sims drops away from an extra seven points at minimum (and probably an extra 11 points). Putting up 30 (or 34) against Nicholls State wouldn't be a bad thing. But they didn't do that.

Considering the drops, the mistakes on the offensive line, the ineffectiveness of Kendrick as a change-of-pace thrower and an inability to establish the run game, the Jayhawks were fortunate to finish with 20 points in regulation and then 23 in overtime. I wavered between a D and a D+ here, but the fact of the matter is that KU should've scored a lot more against Nicholls State.

Run defense — D

So this is the part I expect to hear a little resistance on. Nicholls State had several long runs against the Jayhawks, first gashing the Jayhawks on their opening offensive possession to take a 7-0 lead and later getting a 40-yard touchdown run to go up 17-10 in which it appeared the Jayhawks may not have been set defensively.

Nicholls State finished with 187 rushing yards on 50 carries (3.74 YPA), but it's worth noting the KU defense did tighten as the game went on. After its touchdown late in the third quarter, Nicholls State wouldn't score again until its field goal to tie the game. In that span, the KU defense forced a stop (and safety), forced a three and out and then got another stop, giving the offense several opportunities to get back into the game. For that, I didn't want to overreact and give too harsh a grade, though again, I considered going up to a D+.

Pass defense — C

KU's pass defense was fairly unremarkable, which I suppose is a good thing. Chase Fourcade, the Nicholls State quarterback, tabbed only 142 passing yards (12 for 24 attempts). Fourcade had only three completions that went for more than 10 yards.

Hasan Defense got burned on one deep ball and committed a pass interference penalty in overtime, but Nicholls State really only had one pass play in the entire second half that hurt the Jayhawks. Corione Harris didn't look overwhelmed despite being targeted by Nicholls State in one-on-one coverage. The spectacular plays stand out, but the unit was actually fairly solid.

Special teams — B

Kyle Thompson (and for one punt, Donovan Gagen) had a few solid punts, but also a couple touchbacks. There wasn't much to be had in the return game, but Kwamie Lassiter actually did a pretty solid job when he was back there (even though Sims was listed as the starter on the depth chart).

KU also got a safety on a botched snap by Nicholls State. The Jayhawks blocked one punt and recovered a fumble on a muffed punt the other way. And Gabriel Rui drilled a 54-yard field goal in the first half.

However, the Jayhawks also made a number of mistakes in the special teams game. At one point, KU only had 10 players on the field for a punt. On another, the Jayhawks were flagged for kick-catch interference. It wasn't their only penalty on a special teams play, either. Those mistakes keep the rating from being that much higher, but special teams was a net-positive for KU.