2B
Thursday, December 8, 1994
SPORTS UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Tailback turns outfielder this spring
Vann joins company of Sanders, Jackson
By Matt Irwin Kansan sportswriter
His name can be mentioned in the same company as Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders and he attends the University of Kansas.
Eric Vann, El Dorado freshman, is attempting to play two sports in college just like Jackson and Sanders.
Vann was a tailback on the Kansas football team this fall and will play outfield for the Kansas baseball team in the spring.
"I just love playing both," Vann said, adding that he made the decision to play two sports during high school. "I wanted to keep my options open. Every school that recruited me, I told them that I wanted to play both sports."
Richard Devinki / KANSAN
In fact, Varn said he chose not to listen to some Southeast Conference schools and Michigan, who just wanted him to play football.
Vann said he was recruited also by Texas and Oklahoma, two traditionally strong football and baseball programs, to play both sports.
He said the Oklahoma football coaches told him that they planned to sit down with him after his sophomore football season if he contributed to the team to decide his future as a baseball player.
Kansas freshman Eric Vann is tackled playing tailback during the Oklahoma football game. Vann will play baseball for the Jayhawks in the outfield this spring.
He said that he chose not to attend Texas because he didn't like the Southwest Conference in terms of football and because they wanted him to take part in spring football practice whenever he had time during the baseball season.
Vann didn't like that.
Vanl liked that and canceled a visit to Texas.
Kansas agreed to let him play both sports football in the fall, baseball in the spring.
Vann didn't like that.
"I think Coach Mason believes that if a young man can help us as a University in athletics, he should certainly be allowed to do so," said Golden Pat Ruel, Kansas assistant head coach. "But, his number
one priority is academics."
Since Vann has a football scholarship, one would think that Mason could tell Vann he needed to practice in the spring and not play baseball
"They could say that, but they would be going against their word." Vann said.
Ruel said that a mutual decision was reached that Vann could play baseball depending on how he did academically and the progress he made playing football.
"If it was our choice, and only our choice, we would say, 'You've got to be out there for spring practice,'" Ruel said. "If a young man works hard and does what he's supposed to do academically and on the football field and you deny him an opportunity to do something, he may hold that against you the rest of your life."
Ruel said that Vann was not the first athlete he had seen who played both sports.
"I told Rye Sandberg I didn't think he'd be a very good baseball player once," Ruel said, and jokingly added, "He was weighing a scholarship opposed to a financial scholarship. If he'd have done what I said, he would have had a college education today plus all that money."
"We would have recruited him as a baseball player even if he wasn't recruited as a football plaver." Bingham said.
Like Sandberg, Vann could have chosen to just play baseball, Kansas baseball coach Dave Bingham said.
Vann's college baseball career will begin after winter break. Vann said that he will lift with the football until the end of the week and then after winter break he will concentrate solely on baseball.
"It probably hurt me more not to play baseball all year-round," Vann said. "Right now, I'm not ready to play baseball."
Vann said that because of weight lifting for football, he doesn't have the flexibility he needs for baseball.
He said that not playing baseball yearround was more detrimental than failing to concentrate on football all-year.
Besides flexibility, Vann said that college baseball would probably be tougher to adjust to than college football.
"It takes a while to adjust to college pitching," Vann said and added that
because of that his defensive skills would be his strongest asset right now. "I usually get a pretty good jump on the ball."
Bingham agreed that there were many adjustments Vann would have to make.
"I think the conditioning is going to take some time," Bingham said and added that getting used to college pitching would be tough for Vann. "I think he will pick that up very quickly. The skill development takes a while. He's a switch hitter too."
"I think I can catch up," Vann said about competing with the other Kansas tailbacks. He said that playing running back was easier to return to than other positions because it was based on, "instincts and God-given ability."
"I think he'll make up a lot a ground because he's such a fine athlete. I think he'll be in our rotation of 5 outfielders."
Vann may be in the rotation of five outfielders, but missing spring practice may keep him from being able to crack the rotation of Kansas tailbacks.
Vann rushed 65 times for 274 yards and four touchdowns in his first football season for Kansas.
"I told Ryne Sandberg I didn't think he'd be a very good baseball player
Vann said that he may take more time to adjust to baseball than football, but that
Golden Pat Ruel
Kansas football assistant coach
he would have time to develop his talents behind the other Kansas outfielders.
"I'm going to try to go four years at both," Vann said, but added that if it created problems with school he would chose one sport.
But if he had to chose, which one does he like more?
"It's equal." Vann said. "During football season it's football. During baseball season it's baseball."
Kansas rugby to face Russians
By Kent Hohlfeld
Kansan sportswriter
The Russians are coming!
Five years ago that statement might have conjured up visions of invading armies marching down Massachusetts Street. Today it merely means that a Russian rugby team will be visiting the University of Kansas campus.
"We learned about this about six weeks ago," said Alun Morrell, president of the rugby club. "We weren't sure it was going to happen until about two weeks ago."
The Kansas rugby team will get to do its part for international relations when it hosts a Russian team for an exhibition game. The game will be held Tuesday at 3:00 p.m. at Broken Arrow Park, 31st and Louisiana streets.
The team is from the town of Pensa, about 400 miles southeast of Moscow. It has 29 players who are mostly college students from various universities around Russia. The team also has two players who have played on the Russian national team.
"The players on the team are from 20 to 32 years old," Morrell said. "They were going to play a game in Baltimore and then come to Kansas City."
"We have some activities planned for them on Monday and Tuesday," Morrell said.
The team arrived in Kansas City, Mo., Tuesday and planned to play a few games against Kansas City area teams. The Russians will arrive in Lawrence on Sunday.
The team will have a bus tour of Lawrence and the campus. It will also have breakfast with Mayor Jo Anderson Monday morning.
the practice of housing visiting teams in the homes of host team members is fairly common in the sport of rugby.
"It's more of a common courtesy," said Matt Delargy, team captain. "It gives them a chance to see a little American culture."
Although Kansas didn't know much about how the Russians played, Morrell said that he expected a tough contest.
"They'll be hosted here for three days," Morrell said. "We're the only team that will be hosting the players in our homes."
"I don't think they let teams out of Russia unless they are pretty good," Morrell said.
Delargy said that giving the Russians a good game and making sure that they enjoyed their stay would benefit Kansas in the future.
Two years ago, this same team won the Cherry Blossom tournament in Washington D.C., which is the largest tournament on the East Coast.
"If they go back and tell other teams that we're a good team and treated them well, we may be able to get other teams to come play us when they visit," Delargy said.
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