WHAT IF ...

Todd Reesing, above, had gone to Duke instead of Kansas?

The world will never know, but KU and Duke were the only major schools that offered Reesing scholarships out of Lake Travis (Texas) High School.

"I went up there and threw and ended up getting an offer after that," Reesing said. "It is a school that obviously was very interesting for me academically, but after I came here I kind of knew that here is where I wanted to go. It was definitely a school I looked at."

Reesing, of course, has set every relevant passing record at KU and won 22 games as a starter, while Duke, which now uses dual quarterbacks, has won just six game since Reesing became KU's starter in 2007.

BY THE NUMBERS

47: Career wins for Mark Mangino, who is tied for No. 2 on KU's list with Glen Mason.

47: Percentage of Mangino's 47 wins that have come in the month of September.

18: Consecutive nonconference home wins for Kansas, dating to 2003, when KU lost its season opener to Northwestern.

8: Number of times Kansas has faced Duke in basketball (Duke leads 6-2).

0: Number of times Kansas has faced Duke in football.

WHAT TO WATCH

Duke's defense: Pay attention to the Blue Devils' alignment, and how many men are in the box. KU's first two opponets chose to stop the pass first, and gave up a load of rushing yards. If Duke plays it the other way, we'll really know something about KU's running game.

That said, expect Duke to sit back and take away the big play, and expect Kansas to use a little more play action.

Todd Reesing: He had an off night against UTEP and doesn't usually have two of those in a row. Duke's defensive strategy will be a factor here, but expect a big week from Reesing.

The most intriguing aspect of it, though, will be whether, against a sagging defense, Reesing takes off on many runs. Mangino doesn't like him to do that, but Reesing seemingly can't resist sometimes.

Maxwell Onyegbule: A reigning co-Big 12 player of the week, Onyegbule is facing a new team with a new tackle and a new quarterback. In other words, was last week evidence Onyegbule has made the leap, or did he just beat up on a bad offensive line?

FINAL WORD

"I wouldn't pose off with Kerry Meier. I'm not going to get a mancrush on him. He'd probably beat me in a pose off."

Jake Sharp, on whether he and Kerry Meier, who work out together, ever get into flexing competitions in front of a mirror after workouts.