FRIDAY,MAY2,2003
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN = 5P
Recruiting
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1B
Roberson — proved that the formula works.
Those players helped to lead the Wildcats to an 11-2 record and a No.7 final ranking. In Snyder's 14 seasons at Kansas State, he has landed 530 players: 208 from Kansas and 85 from Texas.
Snyder's recruiting classes never ranked in the top 10 on the national lists, but his recruiting style has made Kansas State a perennial top-10 team.
Mangino was an assistant at Oklahoma from 1999-2001. The Sooners recruit small to build what may be the
lastest defense in college football.
Mike Stoops, Oklahoma defensive coordinator, told Sports Illustrated speed was everything.
"We recruit athletes, not position players."
Oklahoma also thrives on Texas players. Four of its All-Big 12 stars came from the Lone Star State.
be quick to fit within the framework of the defense.
Mess with Texas
"There is more talent a lot of times just in the city of Houston than there is in some entire states."
Texas, Florida and California are the major recruiting hotspots, with Texas being the top target for many Big 12 teams.
Mangino uses both of these strategies; looking for speed and looking to junior college players for immediate answers. To succeed, he will look to Texas for the occasional players who have slipped through the cracks.
Stoops said. "I'm not talking about high school 40 (yard dash) times, which are bullshit. We're looking for catch-up speed and the ability to change direction on a dime."
Stoops said that the coaches evaluate speed by watching game tape.
Hardee McCrary
Texas recruiting coordinator
Oklahoma's theory is that if players come in with the necessary athletic ability, the coaches can teach the athletes to play football. The defense has thrived with the likes of Jimmy Wilkerson, a former 220-pound option quarterback who played defensive end when he went to Norman, Okla. He bulked up to 260 pounds by the time he left and was recently drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs. All players, small or large, must
Enter Texas recruiting coordinator Hardee McCrary. Texas is a national recruiting powerhouse, having landed several top classes in the last few years. McCrary's job is to convince
the top players in Texas to stay away from those blasted Sooners. It is a tough job, as he has to develop a national recruiting base and, at the same time, make sure the top players in Texas wear the burnt orange of the Longhorns.
Texas has stockpiled unbelievable talent year after year. Last season, three quarterbacks on the roster — Chris Simms, Chance Mock and Vincent Young — were named the top high school quarterback in the nation as seniors.
Just how good a recruiting state is Texas? Normally a national recruiting team, Texas closed its borders this year, signing 18 players and having one walkon, all from Texas. Not one player was
from out of state, but Texas still landed Bill Hodge's eighth class nationally and the second-best Big 12 class behind Oklahoma. Hodge is a recruiting analyst for the Official College Sports Network.
McCrary said this was the first year Texas hadn't signed anyone from out of state.
"There are a lot of really successful high school programs here, and when you look at it, there is more talent a lot of times just in the city of Houston than there is in some entire states," McCrary said.
Kansas high schools
Kansas high schools typically don't produce top national recruits. When players are of that caliber, such as Kamerion Wimbley of Wichita Northwest, they go elsewhere to play football. Wimbley just finished his first year at Florida State.
What Kansas is good at producing are the projects - players who may not be the best right out of high school or who may have question marks attached to their scouting reports.
Gene Wier, Olathe North High School football coach, had a player who suffered through those problems.
Always a contender for a state championship, Olathe North had several national recruits through the years. Darren Sproles was not one of them. The leading rusher in Olathe North history, Sproles ran for 5,230 yards and 79 touchdowns in three seasons on the varsity team. He tallied 2,485 yards and 49 touchdowns his senior season and won the Thomas A. Simone Trophy, given annually to the top player in the Kansas City metropolitan area. Sproles had one problem; he stands just 5-foot-7 and weighs 170 pounds.
Kansan file photo
Quarterback Bill Whittemore runs from a Colorado defender. Whittemore was one of Mangino's first junior college recruits and scored 22 touchdowns on his way to Big 12 newcomer of the year honors last season. Kansas will look to junior college recruits to address the team's immediate needs.
"There were quite a few coaches concerned with his height," Wier said. "We even had one coach question his speed."
Kansas State took the chance on Sproles, and the Wildcats were rewarded. He ran for 1,465 yards as a sophomore last season and earned second-team All-Big 12 honors.
Kansas is where Mangino will probably look to get a many of his players. While not as talented as other states, Kansas is filled with solid players to build a program around.
He will then look to JUCO transfers to fill the holes.
Junior college transfers
Mangino has already exploited the area junior colleges. Bill Whittemore, Kansas quarterback, came from Fort Scott Community College. Whittemore said Mangino first called him when he was on the way to another college visit. Whittemore then signed without actually ever coming to see Kansas' campus. Whittemore started the second game of the season last year, accounting for 22 total touchdowns before injuring his knee late in the season. He still won Big 12 newcomer of the year.
At most schools, junior college players are used to fill the pressing needs that cannot be filled immediately by high school players. Usually two years older, JUCO transfers are often more physically mature than high school players and can be ready to step into a starting role.
One person who fits that mold is Lyonel Anderson. Mangino recruited the tight end out of Alfred State in New York to start at tight end. Through spring practice, Anderson is the leading candidate for the job.
"Coach recruited me, talking about
Brandon McAnderson runs over a tackler during a Lawrence High School scrimmage. McAnderson could play either running back or linebacker for Kansas next season.
Mike Yoder/Journal-World Photo
how he used Trent Smith at Oklahoma," Anderson said. "I knew that I could play right away and, in order for teams to get good, good players have to come over and play."
Smith was an All-Big 12 tight end whom Mangino coached at Oklahoma. Mangino moved him all over the field to exploit his athleticism and create mismatches.
Kansas State often uses junior college players on the offensive line because they are stronger and can gain immediate playing time. If K-State loses an offensive tackle to graduation, the Wildcats can grab a junior college tackle as an immediate replacement. This is something Kansas expects to do as it rebuilds.
Blending the strategies
"We think we have a pretty good thing to sell here." Mangino said.
So far, Mangino has sold Kansas well.
This season's recruiting class ranked highly in most recruiting circles and was No.40 in Bill Hodge's rankings. It was a good combination of strength and speed, as most of the skill position players ran
4. 5 seconds of faster in the 40-yard-dash, and the offensive line prospects averaged 288 pounds per man, not counting longsnapper Zack Hood, who won't
BIG 12 RECRUITING CLASSES RANKED IN THE TOP 50
In an unusual twist, seven of this year's players came from California, more than from any other state, including Kansas. Two came from Texas.
This year was atypical because only two players from the state of Kansas were
Oklahoma 6
Texas 7
Texas A&M 11
Colorado 19
Nebraska 24
Oklahoma State 26
Kansas 41
Missouri 45
Baylor 47
iowa State, Kansas State and Texas Tech were not ranked in the top 50 teams.
Source:TheInsiders.com, 2003
be on scholarship until 2004
Rashaad Norwood, generally accepted as the No.1 recruit in the state of Kansas, originally committed to become a Jayhawk. He then decommit-
Two of the junior college players arrived in the spring and participated in spring practices. Mangino said Anderson and center Joe Vaughn would start at their respective positions. The rest of the transfers arrive in the fall with the high school players, and several will be given starting opportunities.
"In order for teams to get good,good players have to come over and play."
signed, Brandon McAnderson of Lawrence and John Randle from Wichita. Mangino will likely recruit Kansas more heavily in the future.
Lyonel Anderson Kansas tight end
The class is high on junior college transfers because the Jayhawks have a lot of immediate needs.
"This will be the last time we bring in this many junior college players," Mangino said on signing day. "We felt it was necessary to do it."
recruiting heavily.
ted, saying he wanted to play for a competitive team and signed with Kansas State. Mangino then signed Randle, the No. 2 recruit in Kansas, whom Kansas State was
One of the most important parts of recruiting is reloading quickly. When Mangino lost a prized recruit, he snatched another one.
And what happened to that player who disappeared in the Kansas City airport?
"We still think that he accidentally bumped into somebody from Missouri," Mangino said. "We don't know. We never talked to him after that, so we have no idea what happened. I think he may have signed with Texas Tech.
"That was quite a while ago, that was about ten years ago. Things happen."
— Edited by Ryan Wood
Kevin Flaherty is a Kansan staff writer. Contact Flaherty at kflaherty@kansan.com.
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