SPORTS
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30,1994
SECTION B
COLUMNIST
GERRY FEY
'Success in the eye of one fan
Gary Gibbs did his job
He was hired as football coach of the Oklahoma Sooners to improve the academic reputation of a crooked program, and he did.
Gibbs was fired last week.
Okay. He wasn't fired. He forcefully resigned, but that's the same as getting canned.
What is wrong with this picture? In this age of big-time college athletics, coaches must win at any cost, even that cost is a student-athlete's future.
In 1989, Gibbs jumped from assistant to head coach at a program that was in shambles. When Barry Switzer, the school's most successful coach, resigned, he left a team that had many skeletons in its closet.
The closet is cleaned out now, but the team is not winning as much as Oklahoma boosters would like.
If this sounds like an isolated situation, it is not. This year's list of jobless coaches is endless. Most of them have been let go because they could not win enough: George Perles at Michigan State, Pat Jones at Oklahoma State, Pat Wilden at Iowa State.
I, like many Kansas football fans, have criticized Kansas coach Glen Mason for not winning more games this season.
But, it's time to re-evaluate our criteria for determining what is or is not a successful athletic program. A student's education should be the top priority for any college athletic department.
Unfortunately, college athletics has turned into big business for universities, and resetting these priorities may be impossible. But at the very least, we as fans and college officials should be happy with a legal, well-respected program above success.
Realistically, if the dayhawks were a team with a 10-1 record rather than a 6-5 record, fans would be satisfied from the outside. But I would be deeply ashamed if that same队 was violating NCAA rules and constantly on probation.
Gibbs would have none of that as head coach and improved the program's graduation rate in the process.
The Oklahomateam is a great example of a program smothered by success. The Sooners hit the critical point in 1989, finally getting choked to death by probation.
It got so bad that Oklahoma quarterback Charles Thompson pleaded guilty to selling 17 grams of cocaine to an undercover cop. It was so bad that cornerback Jerry Parks shot a teammate with a 22 caliber rifle. It was so bad that three other players were charged with first-degree gang rape.
Too bad Gary. You went to five bowl games and had a 44-22-2 record in six years, but you could not win the big games.
Obviously, Kansas' situation is different. However, are we really ready to pay the price of success at Kansas? I'm not. In 1989, Oklahoma was known as a national disgrace. There is no place for that at Kansas.
I went to Norman, Okla., during Thanksgiving break to watch the Nebraska-Oklahoma football game.
I drove by the infamous Bud Wilkinson dormitory for student-athletes where all the ugly crimes were committed. It was a building that still seems to have a dark shadow cast over it.
The building should be a grim reminder of what can happen if college athletics are taken to the extreme.
So the next time you hear a Kansas fan yell at a football game condemning Mason's play-calling, just stop and think for a minute. What is the greater good?
We should be proud of a football team that steers clear of probation's black hole. Otherwise, a student-athlete's education and well-being might be destroyed by the obsession for success.
Firm hand leads UMass
Knight Ridder Tribune
Massachusetts coach John Callipari gives instructions to one of his players on the basketball court.
By Frank Fitzpatrick Knight Ridder Tribune
Calipari teaches toughness to team
AMHERST. Mass. — Not more than a mile from the brick house where Emily Dickinson, the frail Belle of Amherst, wrote poetry, John Calipari, the Belligerent of Amherst, is affirming his own philosophy of fearlessness.
"I can get guys to play hard, to compete, to battle," said Calpari, his neck throbbing with emotion. "We have warriors here. Guys who even when they lose, walk off the floor knowing they're going to learn from the loss. They won't ever let it happen again."
"They never stop playing until the horn goes off. There's no backing down. All we do is compete. And that's why we have so many great rivalries. Teams come after us, and we're not backing down. 'Here's how we play. Try and beat us.'"
You can be sure teams will try. As hard as they are able.
As feisty as he is fervent, combining a street punk's pugnacity with the zeal of an evangelist, always trying to ignite a similar passion in his team, Calipari, coach of the No. 1-ranked University of Massachusetts basketball team, inspires a special animosity among coaches, opponents, columnists, commentators and others.
"Hey, people like to take shots at you when you're on top," he said. "Does it bother me? No, Do I expect it? Yes. Hey, I'm 35. I'm having great success. I'm on top of the hill, I expect it."
And while no other coaches have yet matched the fury Calipari evoked in Temple's John Chaney last February, you can be sure they take delight in beating Massachusetts. That has never been easy in Calipari's tenure.
The Minutenen, 27-8 last season,
began the season by walloping
defending national champion and
then No.1-ranked Arkansas 104-80 in
the season opener. They'll take their
top ranking to a noon Saturday
match-up against No. 7 Kansas in the
See UMASS, Page 2B.
Who's who in the Top 10
Massachusetts, which trounced Arkansas in its season opener, took over the No. 1. ranking for the first time Monday. Kansas will meet the Minutesmen Saturday in the Wooden Classic.
| | Record | Pts | Pvs |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 1. UMass (58) | 1-0 | 1,616 | 3 |
| 2. N. Carolina (6) | 1-0 | 1,506 | 2 |
| 3. Kentucky (1) | 1-0 | 1,441 | 4 |
| 4. Arkansas | 1-0 | 1,406 | 1 |
| 5. UCLA | 1-0 | 1,322 | 6 |
| 6. Duke | 2-0 | 1,256 | 8 |
| 7. Kansas | 1-0 | 1,165 | 9 |
| 8. Florida | 1-0 | 1,094 | 10 |
| 9. Arizona | 2-1 | 988 | 5 |
| 10. Cincinnati | 1-0 | 975 | 12 |
--laying a close game against Virginia affected the Jayhawks in their second game. Washington said the team was not as sharp on the court and suffered from poor shooting. The Jayhawks shot 29.4 percent from the field and 42.3 percent from the free throw line and still lost by only two points.
Kansas Basketball Notebook
Kansas last faced a No.1.ranked team in 1993
The Jayhawks came out on top the last time they
faced a No.1.ranked team - 83-77 over Indiana in
the finals of the 1993 NCAA Midwest Regional.
Kansas is 2-1 vs. No.1.ranked teams during Roy
Williams' seven years at Kansas.
Kansas not at full strength this week
Kansas not at full strength this week
Kansas sophomore point guard Jacque Vaughn is expected to be back in practice today. Vaughn suffered an abdominal strain in Saturday's game against San Diego . . . Senior guard Greg Gurley, who began feeling sick last Friday, could miss practice most of this week as well. Gurley's illness has been diagnosed as a form of laryngitis, trainer Mark Cairns said.
Jayhawks find success, fun in Hawaii
Melissa Lacev / KANSAN
Kansas junior guard Charisse Sampson dribles the ball to the basket. The Jayhawks won two out of three games in last week's tournament in Hawaii.
Amid sun and sand, members of the Kansas women's basketball team had basketball on their minds.
Women's basketball team discovers right combination of players
The team competed in the Rainbow Wahine Classic during Thanksgiving break in Honolulu. Being in Hawaii gave the Jayhawks an opportunity to snorkel, spend time at the beach, tour and shop, said Kansas women's basketball coach Marian Washington.
By Jenni Carlson Kansan sportswriter
"It was great to see the players seeming to enjoy themselves," Washington said. "But they were very focused."
"The tournament ended up being one of the best pre-conference tournaments in the country," Washington said.
The No. 16 Jayhawks remained focused enough to win two of their three games in the tournament. Kansas upset No. 8 Virginia 86-84 in their first round game before losing to No. 15 Florida 58-56 in the semifinals. The Jayhawks rebounded to defeat Hawaii 73-68 and claim third place in the tournament. The defending national champion North Carolina Tairweels won the tournament title with a victory against Florida.
The Jayhawks faced a Virginia team returning all five starters from last sea-
"We really had opportunities to win," Washington said.
“(The victory) was a tremendous boost for us,” she said. “It reinforced what we are working towards.”
"We worked so hard the game before, we didn't have the legs."
son, Washington said. Kansas led by one point at half-time, and the lead changed hands seven times in the second half until sophomore guard Tamecka Dixon's layup with 3:06 left in the game gave the Jayhawks the lead for good. Washington said the team maintained its poise and performed down the stretch.
"That third game took a lot of heart and a lot of determination," she said.
front of the biggest crowd of the tournament because their game preceded a Hawaii men's game. Playing their third game in three days against the hometown team was a challenge for the Jayhawks, Washington said.
In the Hawaii game, the Jayhawks played in
Senior forward Angela Aycock and junior guard Charisse Sampson led the Jayhawks throughout the tournament. Aycock scored a career-high 30 points against Virginia and added 18 points in Kansas' loss to
"（The victory) was a tremendous boost for us.It reinforced what we are working towards."
Marian Washington Kansas women's basketball coach
Florida. Aycock was named to the all-tournament team for her efforts.
Sampson registered double figures in points and rebounds twice in the tournament. Against Florida, Sampson scored 14 points and had 11 boards. She followed up that performance with a team-high 26 points and 14 rebounds against Hawaii.
"What was a key was that those two players were supported by a very young cast of players," Washington said.
Kansas lists three sophomores in its starting lineup, Dixon and forwards Shelly Canada and Jennifer Trann.
Sophomore Angie Halbleib is the Jayhawks' first player off the bench.
During the tournament, several of Kansas' transfers and freshmen played an important role in the team's success.
The Jayhawks utilized junior forward Keshana Ledet and freshman center Koya Scott to counter the size of Virginia's and Florida's inside players.
"We just had to get everyone involved," Washington said. "Where we really got pounded in all three games was inside."
Even though they were outsized, Washington said she was pleased with the team's effort in the tournament.
"I thought our players really performed well," she said.
"I feel that was a very successful tournament for us."
Rough waters won't sink Kansas crew team
By Kent Hohlfeld
Kansan sportswriter
While many Kansas students are still in bed, members of the Kansas crew clubs are busy preparing for their next competition.
At 6 a.m. every weekday morning, members of the teams can be found at their boat house, working out to prepare for the clubs' spring schedule.
"Everyone in crew has a tremendous love of rowing," sophomore Melissa Liem said. "We're all very dedicated."
That dedication was tested during the teams' fall schedule, which included regattas at Rockford, Ill., Atlanta and Kansas City, Mo. The teams had to face more than just
tough competition. The motors on the coaches' boats were stolen Sept. 27th.
"The motors being stolen meant we weren't able to coach the team for almost two weeks," crew coach Rob Catloth said.
The damage to the teams was compounded by the fact that they started using a new rowing style this season.
"Our placings weren't as high as we would have liked," Liem said. "With the things that happened this fall, that wasn't too surprising."
The weekend after the motor theft, one of the team's trucks broke down. That stranded the truck and all of the equipment, which was inside the truck.
In its four fall regattas, the varsity team's highest finish was fourth, which was at the Atlanta regatta. This came from a team that had been accustomed to being one of the strongest in the Midwest.
"Without the little mishaps, we would have been a lot stronger team," said team captain Bryan Tylander. "Considering everything that happened, we had a pretty strong fall."
"The fall races tend to be longer races," said junior Mike Hutchingson. "We tend to be a better lightweight team, which is better in the sprint competitions in the spring"
That strength is one of the reasons the Athletic Department decided to start a varsity-level women's rowing team next fall. Kansas will join Wisconsin and Iowa as the only Midwestern schools to have a women's varsity rowing team.
The spring schedule will include
"Wisconsin has been the dominant team in the Midwest," Catloth said. "They're well-funded and have a good队."
"We're really excited about it," Tyler said. "We're hoping to possibly see some sharing of space and equipment next fall."
The teams' more immediate goals are to get ready for the spring portion of its schedule.
Tylander said that he hoped a women's varsity-level rowing team at Kansas also could help the men's club team.
regattas at Kansas State, Topeka and the Big Eight championships. As soon as the weather warms up, the teams will begin two-a-day workouts, which will include a training trip to Louisiana.
"There are a lot of teams that head south to train," Tylander said. "The water's nicer and it gets warm earlier."
Tylander said the trips, combined with a novice team that provided the club's only first-place finish in the fall, would make the club's spring season better than the fall had been. Catloth agreed.
"We came a long way this fall," Catloth said. "I think we're set up pretty well for the spring."