4
Volume 127 Issue 4
kansan.com
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
+
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Kansas is a place basketball coaches want to stay
COMMENTARY
By Ben Felderstein
@Ben Felderstein
KU basketball wouldn't be KU basketball without its legendary coaches. Only seven men have served as coach of Kansas basketball, and on Oct.27, four of those coaches will celebrate 60 years of Jayhawk basketball at Allen Fieldhouse.
According to the New York Times, college basketball coaches average 4.95 years per tenure at a single university. With the Jayhawks entering their 117th season since 1898, their seven head coaches have averaged 16.7 years per tenure at Kansas.
Familiar basketball names such as James Naismith and Forrest "Phog" Allen are seen around campus at Allen Fieldhouse and Naismith Hall.
Naismith, known as the father of basketball, became Kansas' first coach six years after he created the sport. Forrest "Phog" Allen was hired in 1907 as the Jayhawks' second coach. He led the Jayhawks to three National Championships in 1922, 1923 and 1952.
Former Kansas player Dick Harp was hired as Kansas' third coach. He amassed a 121-82 record in Lawrence, but was responsible for one of the greatest players ever to lace up in Allen Fieldhouse: Wilt Chamberlain. Harp also led Kansas to two conference titles and two NCAA Tournament appearances.
Under Harp, the Jayhawks fell to the North Carolina Tar Heels by one point in triple overtime during one of the greatest National Championship games of all time in 1957.
In 1964; Ted Owens took over for 19 seasons and ended with a 348-128 record. The Jayhawks won six Big Eight titles and earned seven NCAA Tournament berths. Kansas also made it to two final fours under Owens' coaching.
Larry Brown earned a 135-44 record as Kansas' coach, including a 1988 national championship victory against Oklahoma. The '88 team was dubbed "Manning and the Miracles," and had the lowest regular-season win percentage to win a national title.
Roy Williams took over in 1989 for the next 15 years, averaging a .805 win percentage with a 418-101 record. Williams' teams of the '90s recorded the most wins and highest winning percentage of the decade.
The coach for the last 12 seasons of Kansas basketball has been Bill Self. Under Self, Kansas has won 10 straight Big 12 titles and a 2008 National Championship victory against Memphis. Self is responsible for some of Kansas' greatest talents, such as Andrew Wiggins, Joel Embiid and Mario Chalmers.
The group of Kansas basketball coaches is one of the most elite fraternities in the world. Arguably one of the greatest basketball programs in the country, Kansas has been led by only seven men. In comparison, Kentucky has had 22 head coaches, and Duke has had 18.
Edited by Alyssa Scott
FILE PHOTO/KANSAN
Senior defender Caroline Van Slambrouck fights for the ball in a game against Baylor on Oct. 20, 2013. Van Slambrouck and the other five seniors are eager for a NCAA Tournament berth.
CHRISTIAN HARDY
@HardyNFL
It has been two long seasons without an NCAA Tournament appearance for the women's soccer team. Senior defender Caroline Van Slambrouck, looking back on her freshman year during Fall Media Day, thought it had been even longer.
The five other seniors would agree: It has felt like more than two years for the Jayhawks.
"We've got a big group of seniors this year that wants to finish," Coach Mark Francis said. "They haven't appeared the last couple of years, so I know they've been hungry to get back. I know that's been a big emphasis for
them in terms of what they want to get done this year."
With their sights set on the NCAA Tournament after what the team would consider a down year, the Jayhawks brought a new mindset in summer training.
The squad was able to come together earlier than ever this offseason, as the Kansas Athletics Department funded a June arrival, which Francis had never been granted before. This gave the team almost nine weeks to find a new footing.
"The mentality has changed because we had a season that we didn't want last year," Van Slambrouck said. "We haven't really had any conflict with trying to get people on board, and that's been tough in years past.
This year everyone wants to be here. That makes my job easier, because I'm not fighting with anyone. It's just easy."
Change has been at the forefront for the Jayhawks this offseason. A different fitness test including a competition between the 26 players was newly introduced, as well as new scheme, which Francis
"They haven't appeared the last couple of years, so I know they've been hungry to get back."
MARK FRANCIS Soccer coach
said "lends to the offensive personnel."
With 26 players, including eight new faces, the team also has competition within positions for travel spots. Finally, the Jayhawks have Rock Chalk Park, a new facility with a surface that hasn't quite come into its own yet, which has led to an unsteady playing ground.
"We put some different challenges on them," Francis said. "That's the amazing thing about this team. If you challenge them to a different level, with a group like we have, they're going to step up to that challenge."
The seniors led the way through the change this summer with a strong sense of urgency to advance past the regular season, and the
underclassmen have followed right in line. Van Slambrouck said some teammates — primarily junior midfielder Liana Salazar — have taken the lead at times when she needed them to.
For Van Slambrouck, it's the final months with a group girls she has come close with over years of training and dedication. She has come to the realization of "this is it."
"It's the end of a journey that you've been on since you were 5," Van Slambrouck said. "This is the last three or four months that I am ever going to play soccer. You've also created a bond with 25 other girls, and you don't want that to end."
Edited by Logan Schlossberg
Soucie confident in new role for Kansas
The women's volleyball team enters the 2014 season saying goodbye to seven seniors including Caroline Jarmoc, a third team All-American and the Kansas record holder for blocks in a season. But sophomore Tayler Soucie, of Osawatomie, is confident the team can continue its success this season. Soucie set the freshman blocks record a year ago, and looks to fill Jarmoc's shoes this season.
GJ MELIA
"We can't focus on losing [Jarmoc] because we have so many great athletes we can still build our program off of," senior Chelsea Albers from Papillion, Neb., said. "Tayler Soucie had an amazing freshman year, so obviously I think the only way to go up is up."
During the offseason, Souci transitioned toward more of a two-hitter position, and worked on becoming a more well-rounded player.
Although she is only a
@KansanSports
... I think [my role] would just be to try to bring up the underclassmen as much as I can."
sophomore, Soucie looks at herself as a natural leader. One of her goals is to be someone the newcomers can look up to. In high school, Soucie lettered all four years and earned the 2013 Tri-County Spotlight Player of the Year award. She was named to the All-State Second Team her senior season and posted 779 kills, which was the most in the country, according to Kansas Athletics.
TAYLER SOUCIE
Sophomore middle blocker
Soucie will look to lead the seven incoming freshmen, as she understands how important it is to build a strong bond with all of them. She also pointed out that team chemistry is not a goal for just this season, but the rest of her college career.
"I think everyone on our team, especially the returners, are trying to get that role." Soucie said. "Different personalities fit different roles, and I think mine would just be to try to bring up the underclassmen as much as I can."
The pressure and expectations are high this season after last year's trip to the Sweet 16. Yet similar to Albers, Souci is looking at this added pressure as a plus for the team.
"Being a sophomore, and being only one year older than the newcomers, I think that it will definitely be beneficial if I can help them because I'm going to be with them for the next three years," Soucie said.
"It's definitely motivation." Souci said. "I don't take it as pressure. I think it's really good for our team to have that new expectation to make the NCAA Tournament every single year."
— Edited by Logan Schlossberg
In addition to the youth of the team, the Jayhawks are staying positive about the upcoming nonconference schedule that includes an NCAA Tournament rematch with Creighton University and the defending national champions, Penn State University.
"I think we're going to be competitors," Albers said. "We have a lot of tough games coming up this season, but I don't think that is going to be anything that scares us away."
FILE PHOTO/KANSAN
Sophomore middle blocker Tayler Soucie hits the ball past two Wichita St. players during Kansas' NCAA Tournament game at Allen Fieldhouse on Dec. 6, 2013. Soucie set the freshman blocks record last season.
FILE PHOTO/KANSAN
Sophomore middle blocker Tayler Soucie, middle, looks at senior middle blocker Caroline Jarmoc, left of Soucie, during the Baylor game on Oct. 30, 2013. Soucie set the freshman blocks record a year ago, and looks to fill Jarmoc's shoes this season.
.
+