Section B·Page 6
The University Daily Kansan
Tuesday, January 18, 2000
Web sites track new football recruits
By Allan Davis
sports@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
Once again, the University of Kansas football team relied upon the state of Texas for the bulk of its recruits, getting commitments from six Texans, but the 'Hawks also managed to sign blue-chip recruits from Illinois, California and Kansas.
They fulfilled immediate needs on the defensive and offensive lines, signing 10 linenemen.
NCAA football regulations prevent member schools from discussing whom they are recruiting, successfully or unsuccessfully until Feb. 2, the final day for athletes to sign national letters of intent to attend their chosen university.
However, prognosticators on the Internet maintain Web sites to keep track of which athletes have given verbal commitments and the schools to which they have given those commitments. Web sites also grade the quality of the recruited class, even before the formal announcements are made and the predicted commitments confirmed.
Two weeks before national signing day, one of those Web sites, jcfootball.com, (http://www.jcfootball.com) lists 19 junior college and high school athletes as having given verbal commitments to attend the University of Kansas. They are:
- Ryan Atkinson, defensive tackle, 6-3, 285,
Citrus J.C., Calif.
■ Demond Benford, defensive end, 6-7, 240.
Blink J.C., Texas
Jaramei Bryant, cornerback, 6-1, 190,
Phoenix C.C. Ariz.
Marion Dale, offensive lineman, 6-5, 275,
West Los Angeles. C.C., Calif.
Tony Coker, offensive lineman, 6-6, 295, Holsington
Tony Damiani, offensive lineman, 6-5, 275,
Mesa C.C., Ariz.
Marquis Hayes, defensive end, 6-4, 270. Kemper Military J.C., Mo.
Kevin Long, quarterback, 6-3, 198, Iowa
City, Iowa
Johnny McCoy, cornerback, 6-1, 190,
Killeen, Texas
David McMillan, defensive end, 6-4, 250,
Killeen, Texas
Richard Pope, offensive lineman, 6-5, 270,
Evanston Township, Ill.
Roger Ross, wide receiver, 5-10, 170, Garden City C.C.
Jonathan "J.T" Thompson, wide receiver, 5-
11 17 Kilgore Texas
Greg Tyree, linebacker, 6-2, 210, Desert Vista Ariz.
- Chris Tyrrell, kicker, 6-1, 215, Liberty, Mo.
- Brandon Watkins, linebacker, 6-3, 250,
Dallas
Travis Watkins, defensive tackle, 6-4, 290,
Derby
■ DeNard Whitfield, defensive end, 6-4, 240,
Fort Scott C.C.
Columbus Wooley, linebacker, 6-2, 225, Blinn J., Texas
According to the Web site www. Big12Recruiting.com, Damiani and Hayes have transferred from junior college to
Kansas and will enroll for the spring semester, rather than waiting until the fall. Enrolling now would allow them to participate in spring practice.
Wooley, a linebacker, is a first-team National Junior College Athletic Association All-American.
If jeffball.com is correct, this year's recruiting class will bring help for the defensive line. Six defensive linemen are on the list. Four offensive linemen, three backbackers, two defensive backs, two wide receivers, one quarterback and a punter/place-kicker complete the list.
One analyst praised the quality of the projected recruits.
Big 12 Blitz (http://www.big12blitz.com) recruiting analyst Jeremy Cerbree树 said, "This by far, has to be one of KU coach Terry Allen's best efforts so far.
"If there is one thing that Terry Allen has proven in his stay at Lawrence is that he can recruit. KU signed one of the top junior college classes in the nation last season, and he's followed it up with one of his better efforts this season."
Despite that praise, Crabtree only gave the prospective recruiting class a C+ grade.
If McCoy and McMillan, both from Killeen,
Texas, actually do become Jayhawks, Kansas
would have six athletes from that Texas
town. Assistant coach/wide receivers coach
Darrell Wyatt graduated from high school in
Killeen, Texas.
Big 12 commissioner defends Texas Tech officiating
The Associated Press
The official list of recruits will be announced at a news conference Feb. 2.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The officiating debacle at Texas Tech that triggered the suspension of a referee and drew laughter from all across the country has not given the Big 12 Conference a black eye, commissioner Kevin Weiberg maintained yesterday.
"You have the kind of problems, which come up from time to time," Weiberg said from his office in Dallas. "We tried to get all the facts. To me, there would be a bigger credibility problem if we equivocated or took no action."
"We tried to get all the facts," said Weiberg, who suspended Charles Range from working any more Big 12 games for the rest of the season.
Nevertheless, the bizarre end of Texas A&M's 88-86 victory, in which the winning bucket was allowed, then disallowed and then about 45 minutes later counted again, had a lot of people laughing.
range first said the follow shot by A&M'S Andy Leatherman had gone up before the final
"We had a number of concerns about the conclusion of the game, irrespective of judgment calls or decisions.
Kevin Weiberg
Big 12 Conference commissioner
buzzer sounded. The A&M players happily jogged to their lockerroom.
Then after consulting TV replays, Range said the basket was not good and the game was tied 86-86. But A&M coach Melvin Watkins, whose team already had left the court, refused to bring his players back out.
Instead, they left the arena and Watkins conducted his postgame news conference by cell phone from the team bus.
Weiberg said Range was suspended on Sunday night because of the way he handled the end of the game and the communication among the
coaches and the other two game officials. Weiberg conceded the other two game officials had not agreed with Range's call.
"We had a number of concerns about the conclusion of the game, irrespective of judgment calls or decisions. We had concerns about the intention of the communications which took place, and the procedure under which it took place with the respective head coaches," Weiberg said. He indicated that Range would officiate at Big 12 games in the future.
The Big 12 requires that both coaches be present when officials are discussing a controversial call. Watkins said Range told him he was going to count the basket and based on that, Watkins allowed his team to leave the court.
Watkins said he had not known that Range was suspended.
"Obviously, it was somewhat bizarre the way it all happened," he said. "Everybody was very professional. I'm fighting for what I believe is right. I'm sure James is fighting for what he believes is right."
Game clocks cause controversial buzz
Bv Chris Wristen
sports@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
Accusations flew when clock problems swept through the Big 12 Conference this past week, earning Kansas an apology and Texas Tech a loss as a result.
Coach Roy Williams was quick to defend the time keepers.
During Kansas' 87-79 victory against Kansas State on Jan. 12, three separate clock malfunctions caused extra time to run off the game clock. Fingers were pointed in an attempt to determine the cause, and television commentator Dave Armstrong placed the blame on the Kansas clock management staff.
Coach Roy Williams was quick to quote, "The game management staff in Allen Fieldhouse, I believe, is one of the most competent in the Big 12 Conference, and it is unfortunate that the announcers on the television broadcast implied that they were at fault," Williams said. "The announcers, in fact, never made mention of the new clock system that is being used in the Big 12 this season, which again, is unfortunate."
Film reviews and discussions with the game management crew and officials determined the clock malfunctions were not caused by human error but were technical errors with belt packs the officials were wearing. Film reviews also determined accurate time was returned to the game clock.
"It is unfortunate that there was a clock malfunction," said Bob Frederick, athletics director. "However, after fully examining the situation, including talking to Precision Timing Systems, we have determined the problem was in the officials' belt packs."
The belt packs are experimental in the Big 12 this season. They allow officials to stop the clock by blowing their whistles and start the clock by pushing buttons on their packs. It also can be triggered by the bench crew.
Armstrong was not aware the officials were wearing the belt packs until Kim Anderson, Big 12 director of basketball operations, called him the following day. Armstrong then issued an apology to Williams. Frederick and the time keepers.
"I just didn't know." Armstrong said. "When I found out, I felt awful about it."
winte the clock problems didn't affect the result of Kansas' game. Texas Tech was not so lucky.
In its game against Texas A&M on Saturday, a controversial basket after time expired allowed the Aggies to sneak out the back door with an 88-86 victory. The basket, which replays determined was shot after the buzzer sounded, was counted by official Charlie Range.
The basket then was waived off when the other two officials disagreed with the call. Texas A&M coach Melvin Watkins had his team leave the floor, but he returned and shouted to the officials that the basket should count. After nearly 40 minutes of debating, Range announced he would stand by his decision, and Watkins boarded the bus with his team while Texas Tech coach James Dickey went into an uproar.
After the way the situation was handled, Big 12 Commissioner Kevin Weiberg suspended Range for the remainder of the conference season, citing that Range had, failed to follow appropriate protocol in the postgame situation.
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