Season opens Saturday
KU harriers young, confident
By DAN REEDER Kansan Sports Writer
It's not that he didn't want to talk about cross country—Head Coach Bob Timmons, that is. It's just that he has been so intent on finishing KU's new Tartan track that he didn't have time.
Once he found a few free minutes, while he was waiting for the painters to arrive to line the track, Timmons radiated enthusiasm as he reflected on last year's team, and pondered the 1969 squad.
"Our team is young." Timmons said. "Last year at the national meet, the team was so 'up' that they started out running about a 57 second quarter mile and about a 2.10 half-mile. We were running a six-mile race instead of the usual three-miles of the Big Eight conference, and that's just too fast. We're going to have to watch mistakes like that this year."
"The attitude of our seniors, and our whole team, is just great," Timmons said. "They have a winning attitude and that's the most important thing right now."
Pictured above are the members of the 1969 Kansas cross country team. In back from left are Corbet Dotson, Brian McElroy, Jim Neihouse, Jay Mason, Jon Callen, Roger Kathol and Paul Mattingly. Shown in front from left are Dennis Petterson, Rick Petersen, Mike Solomon, Dennis Stewart, Glenn Cunningham and Dave Anderson. Absent at the time of picture are Doug Smith and Rich Elliott.
urday. The following Saturday Kansas runs its only meet over the KU course when the Jayhawks entertain Southern Illinois.
country in a dual track meet, would emerge the winner.)
KU opens the 1969 cross country campaign at the Oklahoma State Jamboree in Stillwater Sat-
Timmons said that a theoretical survey done last year placed KU as the number one dual team in the nation. (KU, when slotted against any track team in the
Timmons coached the entire track team to a tremendous record last year. In addition to winning the Big Eight crown in cross country, KU was the national indoor champions and second in the country in the outdoor nationals, narrowly losing to San Jose State.