SPORTS
SOCCER TEAM ENDURES THROUGH TOUGH SEASON, FINISHES STRONG
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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WWW.KANSAN.COM
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2007
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Rivalry apparel gets ugly
Mizzou's new shirt goes a step too far
BYTRAVIS ROBINETT
KANSAN COLUMNIST
TROBINETT@KANSAN.COM
Let's tally the score for recent classless T-shirts inspired by the rivalry between Kansas and Missouri.
-Kansas' Muck Fizzou shirts, which suggest offensive language: one to the jayhawks.
— Missouri's new Quantrill's Raid shirt, which was posted by Nathan Fowler on his AOL sports blog on Monday and portrays Lawrence burning to the ground with "SCOREBOARD" underneath the picture: somewhere between 150 to 200 to the Tigers.
That's how many people died that morning in early August 1863. No one is sure of the total, said Jennifer Weber, assistant professor of history.
"It was cold-blooded murder," she said.
Lawrence was the headquarters of the Kansas abolitionist movement and the most prominent anti-slavery city in the state. The Civil War was two years underway, and five years had passed since Bleeding Kansas died down.
A federal law made it illegal to aid confederate guerillas — of course, this was aimed to stop Quantrill and his men. In turn, all the wives, mothers and sisters of these men were rounded up and jailed in Westport. The jail collapsed, killing four women and one girl. Weber said that Quantrill claimed the deaths were the immediate cause of his infamous raid.
Senior center Sasha Kaun rises up for a dunk during the second half of the game against Washburn Thursday night in Allen Fieldhouse. Kansas defeated Washburn 92-60. Kaun had 10 points on 4-for-4 shootout.
"Quantrill came with people in mind who he wanted to kill," Weber said. But he didn't get any of them.
On the back of this controversial T-shirt, which MU students thought up, is a Quantrill quote: "Raise the black flag and ride hard, boys. Our cause is just and our enemies many."
"Obviously we wouldn't be endorsing something of that nature that definitely steps over the lines of good taste," said Chad Moller, Missouri's assistant athletic director for media relations. "If a shirt like that has an official MU mark on it, then what we would do is turn to our licensing people on campus."
More surprising than the T-shirts themselves is that everyone I called at Missouri on Wednesday and Thursday
Instead, his raiders swept through Lawrence on horses, killing any man they found. Many of the victims were shot in the back as they tried to run away, defenseless. Then Quantrill, the man who taught outlaw Jesse James his trade, took a torch to the business district and was on his way by noon.
the athletics department, the multicultural department, three history professors and Missouri's student newspaper, The Maneater — either hadn't heard about the shirts or didn't call me back. A Missouri logo is in clear view on the front of the shirt, and more than a day had passed since the shirts surfaced on the Web.
Apparently some Missouri fans think it's OK to make T-shirts that glorify a band of murderous racists.
Their cause was slavery. Their enemies were abolitionists. They took the lives of many without regret and wanted to keep freedom away from men like Gus Rigel, who in 1950 was Missouri's first black student, and Norris Stevenson, who in 1957 was Missouri's first black football player.
Jon Goering/KANSAN
Hawks soar past Ichabods 92-60
"Unfortunately, Missouri has that cloud hanging over its head," said Carol Anderson, a professor of history at the
If Quantrill's politics had prevailed, these two would have been in shackles instead of earning college degrees. The same goes for every black student at Missouri today, especially those who are NCAA student athletes. Can fans cheer them on by celebrating Missouri's racist history?
SEE MIZZOU ON PAGE 3B
BY MARK DENT mdent@kansan.com
Darrell Arthur had heard words of advice and encouragement on the court during the season's first two games.
"There you go, boy," Rush shouted at Arthur after he fed him the ball in the post.
None sounded as sweet as those that came from Brandon Rush with six minutes left in the first half of Kansas' 92-60 victory against Washburn.
It was the voice Kansas fans, players and coaches had been waiting since summertime to hear during a game. Rush, a junior guard, helped spark Kansas in the first half of its victory against Washburn on Thursday night, his first game back.
The well-kept secret made it all the more special when Rush walked to the scorer's table with 16:37 left in the first half. Fans gave him a standing ovation and chanted his name when he stepped on the court for his first game action since his May ACL tear.
Rush's rustiness was apparent right away. He missed long on a three-pointer for his first shot attempt when the ball bounced off the backboard. Three minutes later, Washburn's Brady Sisk boxed out and out-jumped Rush for a rebound.
No one knew Rush would play Thursday, Kansas coach Bill Self told him he could on Monday, but he told the media it would be a game-time decision. Rush only told his mom, teammates and AAU coach.
"I did not hold back at all." Rush said. "In practice I was aggressive all the time so I just tried to bring it out here on the court. I was a little nervous, but I was not worrying about my knee at all."
After a quick break, Rush returned with 8:09 left in the half. He looked more ready this time. Rush found sophomore forward Darrell Arthur open for an easy basket down low to give Kansas a 15-11 lead. His outside touch hadn't disappeared either. Rush made
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FOOTBALL
KANSAN FILE PHOTO
Marcus Henry, 86, and Kerry Meier, 10, celebrate during their perfect season. The players attribute some their success to their close friendships away from the field.
Cohesiveness key to players' success
BY ASHER FUSCO afusco@kansan.com
Putting together a quality football team is a bit like preparing a fine meal. All of the ingredients must be perfectly proportioned to as provide the best taste possible — or in football's case, the most victories. At first glance, the mix of different personalities on Kansas' roster might seem a bit too scattered.
"We all hang out and that's one of the reasons we're playing so good." Mortensen said. "We're all family and this is the closest team I've ever been on. Everybody on my team is like a brother. I've got everybody's number on my phone."
But according to junior linebacker Joe Mortensen, all of the ingredients blend just fine.
Toss a heaping spoonful of mild-mannered Brandon McAnderson into the pot and mix with a pinch of self-proclaimed country boy Jake Sharp. What do you get?
The two backs have settled into their roles as the Jayhawks' one-two punch as the season has progressed. McAnderson, a bruising but deceptively agile 235-pound back, has gained more than 100 yards in three straight games. Sharp has put his devastating speed to use as the team's change-of pace back, picking up 705 yards on only 122 carry.
The third best rushing offense in the Big 12 Conference.
The Kansas defensive backfield is home to junior cornerback Ajib Talib, who is a national sensation, finalist for multiple individual awards and notoriously talkative. Surely that's a recipe for disaster isn't it?
"We're actually a real close bunch of guys, and that's what helps us a lot," sophomore safety Justin Thornton said. "We all care for each other and when we go out there we know everyone on that field is willing to fight for the guy next to him."
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BASKETBALL
Self brings in another top 10 recruiting class Last players sign letters of intent to play for KU
BY MARK DENT mdent@kansan.com
Quintrell Thomas signed his letter of intent Thursday to officially become a member of the Kansas Jayhawks. Marklee Morris, Marcus Morris and Mario Little signed Wednesday. Travis Reelford, Kansas' other verbally committed player, signed Thursday but didn't fax his letter of intent, meaning Kansas coach Bill Self can't talk about him yet. Rivals com ranked Self's early signing period clars No. 8 in the country.
MARKIEFF MORRIS School: APEX Academy (N.J.)
MARCUS MORRIS
School: APEX Acad-
emy (N.J.)
Position: 6-foot-8 power forward
Rivals Rank: No. 37
Self Quote:"He's
one of the most versatile guys we've signed since we've been here. He's kind of like Julian in some ways, not necessarily the exact same skill set but versatile like that.
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