Or, as some would call it, the dreaded public vote of confidence.
Saturday night, Kansas opened the 2018 football season, its fourth under David Beaty, with an embarrassing 26-23 loss to FCS Nichols in Lawrence. It was the Jayhawks’ 12th straight loss overall, and its third against a team from the Football Championship Division since the beginning of the 2010 season; no other Power Five team has more than one such inexcusable hiccup in that span.
“It’s time to break the cycle. It’s not going to be easy. We’re going to need all of your help to do it. Coach Beaty is our coach, and we all need to support this program, and we all need to support the young men who play the game.”
That was Jeff Long on July 11 of this year, less than a week after he was announced as KU’s new athletic director.
Tuesday, Long felt compelled to issue a rare post-Week 1 statement in which he pledged his support to, among others, the coaches. At the same time, he confirmed what’s been patently obvious since his hiring two months ago -- the coaching staff is very much on notice and under the proverbial microscope.
Under Beaty, the Jayhawks are 3-34. Two of those three wins have come against FCS teams -- as have two of those 34 losses.