PAGE 6
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
FOOTBALL
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Top recruits choose KU for its coaching staff
ETHAN PADWAY
epadway@kansan.com
twitter.com/UDK_B12fBall
When Kansas football coach Charlie Weis took over the program in December, he inherited the worst-ranked recruiting class in the Big 12 according to Rivals.com, and he had little time left to recruit potential players before signing day.
Even though Weis had to start so late in the recruiting game, he was quick to make a splash after snagging three highly touted players. Senior quarterback Dayne Crist, sophomore quarterback Jake Heaps and sophomore wide receiver Justin McCay announced they were transferring to Kansas to play under Weis.
A big reason recruits are drawn to Weis is his prestigious NFL pedigree. Weis won four Super Bowls as a member of the New York Giants and New England Patriots coaching staffs during his 15 seasons in the NFL.
"To have the opportunity to play at the next level is a huge dream of mine," Heaps said. "Ever since I was a little kid, I've been training, from the time I was in middle school, for the next opportunity. I don't think
there is a better coach out there than Coach Weis to help us get to the next level."
To help him out, Weis brought in Rob Ianello, his recruiting coordinator during his tenure at Notre Dame. The pair teamed up to bring three consecutive top 10 recruiting classes to Notre Dame, according to Rivals.com rankings.
Weis downplayed the fact that only certain coaches or schools send players to the next level.
"You want to know something!" Weis said. "You can get to the NFL from every school in the country. Any school that goes out there and says 'You can't get there from that school,' that's not true. You can get there from any school."
But Weis then added that he thought having coaches with NFL experience would help prepare his players for the next level.
Weis isn't the only member of his staff with an NFL pedigree. Offensive line coach Tim Grunhard played for the Kansas City Chiefs for 10 seasons, and defensive coordinator Dave Campo won three Super Bowls while on the Dallas Cowboys coaching staff in the 1990s.
Grunhard helped land McCay,
who played for him in high school
at Bishop Miege in Roeland Park. McCay said his established relationship with Grunhard made him interested in playing for KU.
"He didn't push the school toward me at all," McCay said. "We've always been friends since I was at Miege playing with him. He just said I'm going to be happy with whatever decision you make. Whether you choose to come to KU or wherever you want to go, I'm going to be happy with you. We're still going to be close.' That helped me a lot."
For Crist, KU's future quarterback, it was a similar decision. One of the deciding factors for Crist was the relationship he already had with Weis — something they continued even after Notre Dame fired Weis two years ago.
Now, Crist and Weis will try and lay the foundation for future success at Kansas.
"He's such a competitor and a guy that wants to win so badly, it's contagious," Crist said. "Other guys that are around him just want to win that much more. I'm very excited to get another opportunity to play for him, and the rest of the team should be too."
Edited by Corinne Westeman
Coach Charlie Weis has a laugh with the press at his welcoming press conference at Anderson Family Football Complex in December. Weis' pedigree as an NFL coach has attracted three top players to his 2012 Kansas Jayhawk roster.
CHRIS BRONSON/KANSAN
WHERE WAS CHARLIE WEIS?
Graphic by Hannah Wise
New York Giants ny
Assistant coach and running backs coach
New England Patriots
Stop Highlights. Won Super Bowl XXV Spend his first year under Bill Palcins
Coached tight ends, running backs and wide receivers
Stop Highlights. Team made Super Bowl XXXI Coached under Bill Parcells
KU
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