THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 1. 200B
SPORTS
5B
WHEELER (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
rebounds. Their talent combined with the intensity of the rivalry will be the toughest test for Kansas during the regular season.
Wherever the Wildcats play the Jayhawks again this season, they will continue to be waiting and ready to seek their first season sweep over Kansas since 1983. After checking the schedule, it is confirmed for Beasley that there will be no game in Africa, but there is a good chance the two teams will face each other two more times this season with the
MAJOR LEAGUE (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
last game coming during the Big.12 Tournament.
When Kansas State comes to Lawrence on March 1, the Jayhawks should remember the long bus ride back to Lawrence and the performance of this year's Kansas State team. The Jayhawks' loss Wednesday needs to serve as a reminder of how tough teams will be in the NCAA tournament.
Edited by Patrick De Oliveira
something.
"I saw his velocity improve dramatically between his junior and senior season." Price said.
Jon Goering/KANSAN
With Zagurski's fastball reaching 94 to 19 miles per hour, Price said he thought Zagurski might have a bright future in the Minor Leagues.
But Minor League Baseball isn't the glamorous lifestyle that some might expect. And Zagurski soon figured that out after the Philadelphia Phillies organization drafted him in the 12th round in 2005.
"You make 1,100 dollars a month," he said. "You're paying rent in one place, you're spending half your time in another place. You're eating a lot of McDonalds, because you're getting 20 bucks a day for food."
Zagurski's fortunes changed in 2007. He began the 2007 season with the Clearwater Thresers - the Phillies High-A affiliate. In early May, Zagurski was promoted to Double A. Pitching for the Reading Phillies, He began to wonder if he was close to realizing his Major League dream.
"They say when you're in Double-A, you just one call away from the Majors."
On May 24, 2007, Zagurski's Double A manager pulled him aside. He was needed in Atlanta. The Phillies were playing the Braves the next night.
"The first person I called was my dad," Zagurski said. Next, was his girlfriend, and then his brother.
“There’s a lot of people who have been there for a long time. And when I wasn't doing very good they always inspired me to keep going”
Two weeks after being called up to the Major Leagues, Zagurski was in Kansas City, Mo. On June 8, 2007, Zagurski pitched an inning against the Kansas City Royals in front of his family, friends and former teammates.
"It was kind of nice homecoming, I wouldn't have traded it for the world." Zagurski said.
Zagurski's season ended abruptly. On Aug. 18, 2007, he attempted to field a batted ball and tore his hamstring off his pelvic bone. Zagurski on his onchus in a cast and thought: Could my Major League career be over after 25 games? Those thoughts didn't last long.
"Every year when a guy goes out there he has a chance to lose his job." Zagurski said. "I'm hoping to come back pretty healthy."
Coach Price doesn't doubt he can do it. "One thing about Mike Zagurski," Price said. "his make-up is just off the charts."
Zagurski has spent the last four months in rehab. He had planned to live in Lawrence this offseason. The injury changed that.
"I definitely miss Lawrence. I've lived there every offseason since I finished there," he said.
Zagurski is now focused on getting healthy. He'll report to Clearwater, Fla., on Feb. 13 for the start of spring training. He has experienced major league baseball, and he's not taking it for granted.
Brandon Rush attempts a steal in Wednesday's 84-75 loss to Kansas State. Referring to coach Bill Self's postgame speech, Rush said, "He just told us to keep our heads up and not make it two." Kansas will face Colorado on the road on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. in an attempt to keep pace with the Big 12 leader Kansas State.
"If you're not doing your job they're going to give it to somebody else who is," Zagurski said.
— Edited by Patrick De Oliveira
BASKETBALL (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
"We weren't as physical as we should've been," sophomore guard Sherron Collins said. "We didn't do a good job of cleaning up and going after loose rebounds. We didn't block out enough."
Kansas State made its fair share of important shots, but Kansas made plenty of mistakes, too. The Jayhawks had 16 turnovers and only stole the ball from the Wildcats three times. Fouls were also a problem. Senior center Sasha Kaun and sophomore forward Darrell Arthur had to sit out for a major portion of the first half because of foul trouble. Their absence forced Kansas to play small and gave the Kansas State a decisive edge on the offensive glass.
"it's like a wake up" Collins said. "It's something we needed. We needed a game like this. I don't think this loss will hurt. We just have to stay positive and go on
another good run here."
A "good run" is far from a guarantee, though. Although losses have sparked winning streaks lately, that hasn't always been the case. In 2005, a Wayne Simien-led Kansas team suffered a crushing loss to Texas Tech on the road and was never the same afterwards. The Jayhawks followed that game by losing two more, to Iowa State and Oklahoma. As fans will likely remember forever, Kansas ended the season with a loss to Bucknell in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
That team was laden with veterans, just like this year's. Those upperclassmen faded after their struggles. Will it happen again?
The remaining schedule is tough. The Jayhawks play Baylor at home Feb.9, at Texas on Feb. 11, at home against Kansas State on March 1 and at Texas A&M on March 8.
While a late season letdown is certainly possible, it's unlikely, given Kansas' previous Big 12 dominance. Before K-State, the Jayhawks were beating teams by more than 20 points per game in conference play.
Those statistics show that Collins could be right about another quality stretch of play coming up for the Jayhawks. And if they do finish strong, a Big 12 Championship and a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournaments are strong possibilities.
"We weren't trying to go undeafed," Arthur said. "Were trying to win championships. We can go get back in the gym and start back from scratch."
That's good enough for Arthur. He won't care about a January loss to a rival if the Jayhawks can still compete for bigger prizes.
Edited by Patrick De Oliveira
BASEBALL
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a double standard when it comes to baseball.
"We're adding football games and we're adding basketball tournaments into exempt status and we're the only sport they're looking to cut games." Price said. "It's been a tough year for baseball at the NCAA level"
The one positive result Price has seen from the Issues Committee's rule changes is the new fall practice guidelines. Under the new rules, teams are allowed to hold 32 practices within a 45-day window. In the past, Kansas usually held only 14-20 practices during the fall. As a result, the coaches were able to work extensively with the players and Price was able to give the team fall break off for the first time.
For now, Price is content to let the season play itself out. While he's curious to see how other coaches react to the rule changes at season's end, winning games is his first priority.
"I love the rule change in the fall," Price said. "I still don't like the rule change in the spring. I'd rather be indoors preparing my team to play than just sitting here doing nothing. I wish they could have extended the fall like they did and left the spring the way it was.
"The best thing I've learned in my 30 years in the game is to only worry about the things you can control. My whole focus is just to get us to overachieve. We know we're an underdog in the conference we play in. I try not to let those distractions affect the way we go about our preparation."
Edited by Russell Davies
opening day
Kansas' previous season opener game dates during Price's tenure:
2003 - January 24
2004 - January 16
2005 - February 5
2006 - February 1
2007 - February 1
2008 - February 22
Supply Chain Industry Night
Wednesday, Feb. 6 6:00 - 8:00 pm Relays Room - Burge Union (3rd floor)
Representatives from local companies will be present to meet with students to talk about their careers in Supply Management.
Regional corporations are very interested in graduates of KU's NEW Supply Chain Management major! Demand for professionals in this area is growing rapidly! SCM professionals are found in virtually EVERY industry! Similar programs have reported a 90% placement rate of undergraduates with an average salary of about $44,000.
Participating companies include:
Hosted by
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS The University of Kansas