2B
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY APRIL 2 2009
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"As for hitting the thing, frankly, I just don't think it it's humanly possible. You could send a blind man up there, and maybe he'd do better hitting at the sound of the thing."
— New York Mets' outfielder John Christensen in George Plimpton's 1985 St. Louis; "The Curious Case of Sadd Fitch," wily redefined as the greatest April Fool's Day food in sports history
FACT OF THE DAY
The first letters of the story's subhead, "He's a pitcher, part yogi and part recluse. Impressively liberated from our opulent life-style, Sidd's deciding about yoga — and his future in baseball," spell out "Happy April Fool's Day — ah(a) fb." Despite this and the many absurdities in the story, several people believed it was true and SI had to announce it was a hoak two weeks later.
— S1.com
TRIVIA OF THE DAY
Q: How fast could Finch throw a baseball, according to George Plimpson's story?
A: 168 miles per hour. Finch, Plimpton's fictional creation, was reportedly deciding between a career as a major leaguer and pursuing his love of the French horn.
- SI.com
@KANSAN.COM
The Give and Go.
Last night was a historic game for the women's basketball team, and the guys were there to break it all down once the final buzzer sounded.
Courtside: Jayson Jenks gives you the most in-depth COURTSIDE WNIT coverage around at the Courtside blog. Who shined for Kansas? Will there be another April
THIS WEEK IN KANSAS ATHLETICS
No events
TODAY
FRIDAY
Women's Tennis
Baylor, 6 p.m.
Waco, Texas
Baseball
Baylor, 6 p.m.
Lawrence
SATURDAY
Baseball
Baylor, 2 p.m.
Lawrence
Softball
Texas Tech, 2 p.m.
Lubbock, Texas
Women's Soccer
Marquette, TBA
St. Louis, Mo
Women's Rowing Texas, TBA Kansas City, Kan.
Track
Arizona Invitational,
All Day
Tucson, Ariz.
Women's Soccer
Saint Louis, TBA
St. Louis, Mo.
SUNDAY
Tennis
Texas Tech, 11 a.m.
Lubbock, Texas
Softball Texas Tech, Noon Lubbock, Texas
Women's Golf
Susie Maxwell
Berning Classic,
All Day
Norman, Okla.
Baseball Baylor. 1 p.m. Lawrence
MONDAY
Women's Golf
Susie Maxwell
Berning Classic,
All Day
Norman, Okla.
COMMENTARY
Five-minute guide to 'Recruitapalooza'
So here's the truth. I've never really been all that interested in college basketball recruiting.
There.I said it.
Sure, I want my team to bring in blue-chippers with gold stars by their names, or whatever system they're using nowadays to rate players. But I've never really been all that interested in the soap opera aspects of it.
The constant updates on the lives of 16- and 17-year olds, the preliminary lists that include about 17 schools, and of course, those silly made-for-TV press conferences where the kid puts out a bunch of hats and uses them to select his school of choice.
Yes, you see this Duke hat here! Watch me as I pick it up and place it upon my head, therefore signaling to the world that I shall become a Dukie.
Yea, I never got that.
Like I said, I've never been a recruiting guy. That is, until now
As you've probably know, John Calipari was announced yesterday as the next coach at Kentucky. And as you probably know, Calipari had three of the top five recruits in country lined up to go to Memphis. Those recruits being Xavier Henry, DeMarcus Cousins and John Wall. Now all three recruits
will most likely reopen up their recruitment. Lance Stephenson, another top-10 recruit who was thought to be leaning toward Kansas, is still making up his mind.
WORLD CLASS CATERING!
What does this all mean?
Ladies and gents, welcome to
Recruitapalooza 2009.
This chaotic, unpredictable recruiting festival could potentially last all month long. And chances are, we've never seen anything like it.
XAVIER HENRY
Here's The Morning Brew's five-minute guide to Recruitapaloza '09.
The skinny
Hometown: Oklahoma City
Position: guard
Height: 6'foot. 6'
The family.
Henry's top two choices were Kansas and Memphis. He chose Memphis.
Why? His brother, C.J.,
Henry
committed to Kansas a few years ago before deciding to go play minor league baseball, is on
the roster at Memphis. But now Coach Cal is gone. Did we mention Henry's father, Carl, played basketball at Kansas? See, I told you this stuff was interesting.
Prediction: Kansas
LANCE STEPHENSON
Hometown: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Position: guard/forward
Height: 6-feet-6
The skinny: Multiple
reports had Stephenson locked in on Kansas, but Stephenson called off a press conference on Tuesday and will wait to
Stephenson
make his decision. I guess Lance just didn't want to miss out on Recruitapooza.
Prediction: If Henry comes to Kansas, Stephenson will probably be forced to go to one of his other top choices, St. John's or Maryland.
JOHN WALL
Hometown: Raleigh, N.C.
Position: guard
Height:
6-feet-4
the skinny Wall, a point guard who has drawn comparisons to Derrick Rose, has
© 2008 JIMMY JOHN'S FRANCHISE, LLC ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Wall
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been sly during the recruiting process, but it looked like he was leaning toward Memphis. Now that Calipari has left Graceland, Wall could follow Calipari to Kentucky. Of course, he had mild interest in Kansas, so you never know.
Prediction: Kentucky
DEMARCUS COUSINS
Hometown: Mobile, Ala.
Position: center
Height: 6-feet-11
the skinny; Cousins, like
; heavily tow
Cousins
but he hadn't signed with the Tigers yet. Cousins also had interest in Kansas State, and now, with former Virginia
Commonwealth coach Anthony Grant taking the Alabama job, there's a rumor that Cousins may want to stay home and play for the Crimson Tide.
Prediction: Kentucky
Wall, was heavily leaning toward
Remember Makolm Gladwell's book The Tipping Point? The worldwide bestseller discussed how social trends move through society, and it seems the sports world isn't immune to this phenomenon.
THE TIPPING PLAYER
Strasburg, a six-foot-four, 255 pound power pitcher with command of his offspeed pitches, struck out 133 batters in 97 innings last year as a sophomore, including 23 in one game against Utah.
It started with a Sports illustrated feature story last month. Soon, ESPN's media machine jumped into the fray. And now, it seems Strasburg mania is taking over the baseball world.
Of course, Strasburg is being advised by everyone's favorite super-agent, Scott Boras. And a report last week suggested that Boras will attempt to negotiate a record $50 million contract for Strasburg, who will likely go No.1 in MLB's amateur draft. Apparently, nobody told Boras about the economic recession.
Ever heard of Stephen Strasburg? He's the baseball super-prospect from San Diego State whose fastball tops out at
Only $9.95
with StudentID
SUNDAY BRUNCH
Chances are you'd never heard of him until last week. But now, Strasburg is a living, breathing, smoke-throwing version of Gladwell's tipping point theory.
— Edited by Realie Roth
www.tellerslawrence.com
BIG ASS
THURSDAY
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Associated Press
JAMIE STENGLE
Police officer resigns after Moats incident
DALLAS — The police officer who pulled out his gun and threatened an NFL player with jail instead of allowing him inside a hospital where his mother-in-law was dying resigned Wednesday.
Officer Robert Powell had been placed on paid leave pending an investigation of the March 18 incident.
"I made this decision in the hope that my resignation will allow the Dallas Police Department, my fellow officers and the citizens of Dallas to better reflect on this experience, learn from the mistakes made and move forward." Powell said in a statement issued through his attorneys.
He had stopped Houston Texas running back Ryan Moats'
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SUV outside Baylor Regional Medical Center in suburban Plano after the vehicle rolled through a red light.
The officer pulled out his gun and threatened Moats with jail as the player and his family pleaded to be allowed to go inside the hospital. Powell continued writing Moats a ticket and lecturing him even after a fellow officer confirmed that Moats' mother-in-law was dying.
Jonetta Collinsworth, 45, died of breast cancer before Powell allowed Moats to go inside the hospital.
Powell's resignation was first reported by Dallas-Fort Worth television station KTVT. He later issued an apology, and Moats said he would accept it.
"I still hope to speak with the Moats family to personally express my deep regret, sympathy, and to apologize for my poor judgment and unprofessional conduct," he said in the Wednesday statement.
He also said he wanted to apologize to his fellow officers.
Dallas police Chief David Kunkle previously apologized to the family and said Powell acted inappropriately. He also lauded Moats' restraint, noting that he did not try to seek special treatment by identifying himself as an NFL player.
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