Inside Sports
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Sports
After its exhibition season ended Tuesday night, the Kansas women's basketball team is ready for the regular season.
Thursday
November 18,1999
Section:
B
Page 1
SEE PAGE 3B
Big 12 football
Iowa State has a recent tradition of record-breaking running backs named Davis; Kansas will be watching for Darren in Saturday's game.
SEE PAGE 4B
Baseball
Atlanta third baseman Chipper Jones won the National League Most Valuable Player award yesterday.
SEE PAGE 5B
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Kansas backup quarterback Zac Wegner checks the scoreboard at the Kansas State game. Wegner began the season as the Jayhawks starting quarterback, but was replaced midseason by Dylen Smith. Photo by Matt Daugherty/KANSAN
Sidelined, not sidetracked
Senior quarterback helps from bench
By Mike Miller
sports@kansas.com
Kansas sportwriter
Bv Mike Miller
It's not easy being Zac Wegner.
No one on the Kansas football team — except maybe teammate Michael Chandler — has had to endure more than Wegner. He's had three concussions, a broken right thumb and he's been moved from starting to second-string quarterback during his senior season, but he handles it all with grace and humility.
His assistance in quarterback Dylan Smith's development basically has made
Wegner another coach on the sidelines, all the while putting aside his personal feelings for the team's benefit.
"That's what makes Zac special to this team. It takes a lot of courage to stand up and say those things," said wide receiver Michael Chandler, who has been at Kansas with Wegner since they were freshmen in 1995.
"When Dylen came in, a lot of people looked at that and said he's the future of the program, and Zac looked at that and realized what he had to do."
But that's just part of who Zac Wegner is. A two-year co-captain, Wegner is respected among his teammates for his work ethic and his dedication to the football team. He's the one who leads the team during warm-ups and is the one who most of the guys turn to for leadership.
"For me the way I lead is by example."
Wegner said. "I can do that at practice, vocally."
It's mostly because Wegner is a player who has persevered through rough times. He suffered two concussions last season — one from a vicious hit during the 54-6 defeat against Kansas State that was replayed again and again during sports shows, and another during the Spring 1998 semester when he was beaten up walking from Gertrude Sellards Pearson-Corbin Hall to room at Javahwker Towers.
The concussions were a source of debate in the Lawrence area. It was perceived by some people that it would be dangerous for Wegner to play football again because he could suffer permanent brain injuries if he were hit again. He received clearance to play from doctors
See WEGNER on page 3B
As the millennium draws to a close, the Kansan will feature the lives and achievements of the 10 greatest athletes at the University of Kansas, as selected by former and current players, coaches, administrators and fans.
Top athletes from the University of Kansas:
10. Lynette Woodard
women's basketball, '78-'81
9. Jim Ryun track, '66-69
8. Danny Manning men's basketball, '85-'88
7. Ralph Miller men's basketball, football, '38-'40, '41
6. Jim Bausch track, football and basketball.
'29-'32
5. Al Oerter track and field, 56-58
kansas millennium athlete No.3
4. Nolan Cromwell football, track and field, 73-77
3. Ray Evans football and basketball,'41-43,
'46-48
2. Coming Dec. 1
ray evans
story by matt tait
On the field or court, Evans' strength, speed led to Jayhawk victory
Ray Evans was perhaps the ultimate Kansas athlete in football and basketball.
He was a sleek, fast-moving guard for the Kansas basketball team from 1941 to 1943, and from 1946 to 1948. During his Kansas career, he helped lead the Jayhawks to two Big Six Conference championships and two NCAA appearances.
But when the jump shots and layups stopped, Evans remained a Kansas athlete until his death in April of this year.
"He was an all-around great athlete," said Don Fambrough, Evans' football teammate from 1946 to 1948 and Kansas football coach from 1971 to 1974 and 1979 to 1982. "As a former coach, when you talk about a great athlete that's who you talk about. Not someone who just excelled in one sport, but someone who could do it all."
When it wasn't basketball season, Evans could be found on the gridiron. In direct contrast to his swift style on the court, Evans was a bruiser on the football field. Although he gained glory running the ball as a halfback, he occasionally threw it as well. He played offense with a defender's mentality. Perhaps that was because he was the starting safety as well.
His punishing defense and solid offense helped him become an All-American in 1947, which made Evans the only Kansas athlete to be named a first-team All-American in both football and basketball.
While the accomplishment was a first, Fambrough said that Evans remained humble.
"I'm sure he had a sort of quiet pride
Fans, media await end of freshmen's silence
By Matt Tait
sports@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
Every season, Kansas basketball fans and media alike are forced to wait to hear from the team's newcomers until the end of the first regular season game.
Because of Kansas coach Roy Williams' player interview policy, however, Nick Collison, Drew Gooden and Kirk Hinrich have been silent.
This year, Kansas' three freshmen have stolen the preseason show, making the desire to hear from them even greater.
The policy, which states, "Student-athletes in their first year of competition are not available for interviews until
after their first regular game," stems from the way things were run at North Carolina where Williams was Dean Smith's assistant.
In the two exhibition games thus far, both victories — a 124-101 win against the California East All-Stars and a 119-44 drubbing of Australia's Geelong Supercats — the three have recorded
While verbally the three have been silent, their play has been anything but quiet.
stats among the team's top six.
"They've all three played better than I expected, and I had high expectations," Williams said. "They're not young and restless; they're young and hungry."
Collison, a 6-feet-9-inch forward from Iowa Falls, Iowa, is third on the team in scoring with 14.5 points per game and started in both of them. His 8.5 rebounds a game ties him for the team lead with Gooden, and he is shooting 67 percent from the field.
"Nick has really grasped things quickly," Williams said. "He is fundamentally sound, and I expected him to be."
Gooden, a 6-9 forward from Richmond,
Calif., has had as good of a start. He too
has started in both preseason games, and his 12.5 points per game ranks fourth on the squad. In game one Gooden's 12 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists brought him just two assists shy of a triple-double.
"Drew has probably made more mistakes than I expected him to make, yet he's made more outstanding plays than I expected him to make." Williams said.
In preseason workouts, Hinrich, a 6-3 guard from Sioux City, Iowa, has surprised everyone from senior Nick Bradford to sophomore Marlon London. Hinrich has started one game, scored in
Commentary
Zac deserves to lead team on the field
He is Zac Wegner.
He is a quarterback for the Jayhawks, and he has spent half of his Kansas career being booed and ridiculed as much as Kansas City Chiefs' quarterback Elvis Grbac.
For those who have bad memories, let me ask the few thousand students
After four lackluster performances by Johner, students and fans were screaming for Allen
that support Kansas football to remember the 1997 season. It was Terry Allen's first season as coach. Some guy named Matt Johner was playing quarterback, and he was, well let's be nice and say, not that good.
Brad Hallier associate sports editor sports @kanasan.com
to take him out. "Put in Wegner! Zac is better!" were the cries echoing in the north bowl at Memorial Stadium. Fans got their wish when Johner was benched in the Oklahoma game. Down 10-3 at halftime, Wegner led Kansas to a 20-17 victory.
But then Kansas entered the tough part of its schedule, and Wegner only would win once as a starter, 34-24 against Iowa State.
But many were confident going into the 1998 season. Wegner was back to lead a young Jayhawk offense. Wegner looked solid in the first four Kansas games, throwing for 825 yards, four touchdowns and three interceptions, and leading Kansas to a 2-2 record. Then came the fateful first pass against Texas &M, which was picked off by linebacker Dat Nguyen.
The chants for Wegner's head started. Despite the interception, Wegner nearly led Kansas to an upset against the Aggies. Two more losses followed before the fateful concussion early in the game against Colorado. Backup Jay Alexander came in, leading the Jayhawks to a 33-17 upset against the Buffaloes.
Alexander was hailed as "the man." The next week Wegner was knocked out again, this time against Kansas State.
Two concussions in seven days brought speculation of an early retirement for Wegner. In the spring of 1999, he was cleared to play his senior year. Many people, including many in the media, thought Zac should call it quits. What did he have to play for? He wasn't going to the NFL. "He isn't that good anyway," many said.
Zac, from day one, I've been behind your decision to play your final year 100 percent. As a former college soccer player, I would give anything, including two concussions in seven days, to play one more season at that level. The point is Zac knew that this season would be it for his football career, and he never would get it back.
Sure, Wegner has been benched in favor of the mobile and exciting Dylan Smith, but Zac got the chance to play in South Bend, Ind., against Notre Dame.
Wegner will run onto the Memorial Stadium turfonce more this Saturday. Cherish it Zac. You'll never forget this last game. And what I wouldn't give to see you throw a game-winning touchdown pass in the final minutes. Because after what you went through, you deserve it.
Hallier is a Mission senior in journalism.
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