SPORTS UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Wednesday, August 25, 1993
11.
Chandler finds success
Player hopes to make it in the pros
Kansan sportswriter
By Matt Doyle Kansas sportswriter
In the last decade, a pair of quality tight ends have left Big Eight Conference schools and have attained success in the National Football League.
Keith Jackson was a four-time All-Big Eight selection, 1984-87, at Oklahoma, and has become the top tight end in the NFL, initially with the Philadelphia Eagles and currently with the Miami Dolphins.
Johnny Mitchell turned consecutive All-Big Eight performances in 1990-91 at Nebraska into a first-round draft draft by the New York Jets in 1992.
And now Kansas tight end Dwayne Chandler, 1992 All-Big Eight selection, hopes to follow in the footsteps of Jackson and Mitchell after catching 35 passes for 743 yards and eight touchdowns in the last two years.
When Chandler first arrived at Kansas, he was a running back who ran for 1,536 yards during his senior season at McPherson High School. Coach Glen Mason moved Chandler to tight end before the 1990 season.
"I thought it would be hard making the adjustment from tailback to tight end," Chandler said. "Now, I have been getting all this recognition and it's come as a total surprise to me because I didn't think I would do that well at tight end."
Strength, needed for blocking, is an area that tight ends' coach Tim Phillips stresses and was the one area Chandler said he had to improve when he made the switch to tight end.
Pro football scouts have said that they think Chandler had the possibility to go pro because he possessed outstanding speed, size and strength.
"I was a pretty good blocker in high school as a running back, but I didn't have the weight to block some of those defensive ends when I moved to tight end," he said.
Mason has said Chandler has been an integral part of the team's success.
"The only problem I have with Dwayne is that we haven't gotten him the ball nearly enough." Mason said. "That's my fault. When he gets his hands on the ball he has the potential to make a big play."
He was held without a reception in four games last season. Kansas lost three of those games. In the game against California, one of the games in which he did not catch a pass, Chandler spent most of the game blocking to keep Golden Bear defenders off quarterback Chip Hillary.
"Cal did a great job of anticipating the plays to the tight end and really took Dwayne out of the game completely," Pat Ruel, Kansas' offensive coordinator, said. "We can't let that happen this year because we need to get him the football more."
Senior tight and Dwayne Chandler led the Big Eight Conference last year in yards per reception with 23.4, the fourth best in Kansas history.
Expectations focused on senior
Runner-up role not good enough for Kansas diver
Bv Kent Hohlfeld
Kansan sportswriter
Tim Davidson was eight years old when he took his first plunge off a diving board. He thought it was a fun summertime event, but by the age of 10 he was diving year-round and knew that he had more than a passing interest in the sport.
"Aslgof older I found that I had a talent for diving," the senior swimming and diving captain said.
That talent progressed in high school, where he was a two-time All-American. He was recruited by various universities, one of which was Kansas.
Davidson contributed during his freshman year by qualifying for the NCAA Championships in the one- and three-meter diving events.
"I'd taken other trips, but I really had a good time here and felt that I could contribute right away," Davidson said.
His early success has been tempered by the fact that he has failed to win a conference event and has not managed to return to the National Championships since his freshman year.
Davidson was the first alternate last year, which left him one spot away from returning to nationals. He was always within five points of winning a Big Eight event.
"He's been second and third more times than I can count," duing coach Don Fearon said.
Davidson is looked to as the leader of a team mainly composed of freshmen and sophomores. He is also considered the top diver going into the season.
"He leads by example," said Kris Hoffman, sophomore diver. "He gets things moving, and all the underclassmen look up to him."
Davidson said he did not think high expectations put any undue pressure on him or the team. Instead, they helped motivate the team. He said he thought the incoming freshman would make the team hard to beat.
"We finally have some depth on the diving board." Davidson said. "This should help us against teams like Nebraska and SMU."
Davidson said that being a senior did not affect the way he went into this season.
Seminoles hexed by the 'wide right'
By Matt Doyle
"I just try to focus on myself," Davidson said. "I want to improve each time I go out and strengthen each dive."
University of Miami football coach Dennis Erickson was asked what he thought of when he heard the term 'wide right.'
Kansan sportswrite
"Florida State," he said.
Wide right.
The words have haunted the Florida State football program the past two seasons against Erickson's Hurricanes and probably cost the Seminoles a chance at the national championship each year when Seminole kickers missed two field goals. Both sailed wide right.
Seminole coach Bobby Bowden tried to solve this problem last winter by signing the top high school kicker in the nation, Scott Bentley of Aurora, Colo., and naming him Florida State's starting kicker.
Bentley, a consensus high school All-American selection, will get his first chance to solve the team's kicking problems in Saturday's Kick-off Classic against Kansas at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. The game begins at 11 a.m.
"I knew there would be a lot of pressure on me and I don't mind dealing with it," Bentley said. "Everyone knows about the kicking legacy at Florida State."
The truth is that when people think of our program the last couple of seasons, they think 'wide'
The missed field goals against Miami have been the focal point of negative attention for the Seminole program. Gerry Thomas missed a possible game-winning 34-yard field goal in 1991, and Dan Mowery missed a possible game-tying 39-yard field goal in 1992.
right' and there is no way to hide from it. 'Bow'
den said. "Anyone who comes here as a place,
kicker will have to live with that until we do
something about it."
Sports Illustrated is making the Florida State kicking situation the cover story for its college football issue, which comes out this week.
The cover will have Bowden, Bentley and actor Burt Reynolds, a former Seminole running back, appearing on it. Reynolds serves as Bentley's holder in the photograph.
Bentley's parents talked him into doing the Sports Illustrated photo opportunity, something he was originally against.
"It is a chance of a lifetime to appear on the cover," he said. "Besides, the story is more oozing."
Bowden was asked in a press conference earlier this month if all of this attention on his kicking game could have been alleviated if he would have signed Kansas kicker Dane Eichloff out of high school in Fort Lauderdale.
"I don't remember if we recruited him or not," Bowden said. "All I know is that there are several college kickers from Florida winning games with field goals and that it scares me."
Bentley made 35 of 50 field goals in high school with most misses coming from beyond 50 yards. He did connect on seven field goals of more than 50 yards, including a 57 and a 58-yard field goal. The one thing he has not done is attempt a last-second winning kick.
"I don't know how I'll react when the situation comes up," he said. "I'll just try to do my best." And he hopes that the kick goes through the uplights, not pride with.
And he hopes that the kick goes through the uprights — not wide right.
Crew members strive for unity when rowing
Kansan sportswriter
By Anne Felstet
Coined on posters and from the mouths of crew members as the ultimate team sport, crew demands a unified symphony of motion from every team member.
Crew began its stand at Kansas 16 years ago under the direction of Don Rose. Today, both the men's and women's teams are coached by Rob Catloth, a former four-year oarsman with the Jayhawks.
Catloth said that crew was a technical sport. A perfect stroke is never achieved, yet members always strive to attain it, he said.
Junior oarsman Bryan Tylander has an advantage over most Kansas crew members. He came to Kansas with crew knowledge from high school. Most members are crew newcomers.
Approximately 130 to 150 people join the crew club in the fall, testing the waters to see if crew is the sport for them. During the spring season, only 60 to 80 members remain with the team.
Crew is a very physical sport, Catloth said. He said he told members that if they stayed with the sport all through the spring that they would be in the best shape of their lives. So far no one has falsified that statement, he said.
Crew treasurer Erin Cunningham, a second-ear owlersman, said that she returned to crew because of the good workouts. She also said that it was fun and that the people were great.
Cunningham said her biggest challenge in crew was the off-season. The team had its hardest workouts in the winter, and winter was the hardest to endure because the team was not on the river.
Luke Evans, junior oarsman, said that he had never been in crew before but that winning was a great thrill.
Evans was one of the many crew members helping to distribute crew flyers yesterday in front of Strong Hall. Catloth said he had set up a boat in front of Strong Hall every fall in hopes of attracting recruits.
The eight-man shell, like the one the team positioned in front of Strong Hall, as it passed out information, is 58 feet long and can range in weight from 190 to 225 pounds. Catloth said.
Catloth said the team usually practiced on the Kansas River, but because of the flooding, the team would be docking at the Clinton Lake Mariana. The varsity team begins its day with a 6 a.m.practice, and the novice members practice at either 3:30 or 5 p.m.
Catloth said he expected the crew team to compete in five regattas this fall but did not specify dates.
A Kansas crew team informational meeting will be held this week. For further information call Michael Amick, club president, at the boothhouse at 841-2927.
Kansas diver Tim Davidson hangs in the air above the waters of Robinson Pool during practice.
Tom Leininger/Kansan