INSIDE: Volleyball team captures Charlotte Invitational. SEE PAGE 3B. INSIDE: College football roundup. SEE PAGE 2B.
TALK TO US: Contact Jay Krall or Sarah Warren at (785) 864-4810 or sports@kansan.com
SPORTS
WWW.KANSAN.COM/SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
1B
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2001
Commentary
Brian Hanni Sports Columnist sportsokansan.com
There's a new Mister Rogers taking over the neighborhood
Last week things got a little crazy in the ol' neighborhood.
This past Friday, the Rev. Fred Rogers said goodbye for the final time and handed the neighborhood keys to the next Mister Rogers, a 22-year-old named Marcus.
It didn't take long to notice the differences between the two.
The new Mister Rogers in town doesn't play with trolleys or wear sweaters. While he does hit like a locomotive, he'd never be caught dead in a cardigan — he prefers his No. 8 Kansas football jersey.
Fred Rogers always enjoyed singing old-fashioned songs and was known for his friendly smile. Marcus Rogers prefers rap music and doesn't smile as often.
When Fred called it quits last Friday, the party was just getting started for Marcus. The senior co-captain brought a lot of excitement to his Jayhawk neighbors during the weekend when he helped Kansas defeat Southwest Missouri State 24-10.
Most of the neighborhood rejoiced about the Jayhawk victory, but some were concerned about the way Marcus treated his visitors from SMS. The new Mister Rogers doesn't seem to be nearly as friendly to his guests — he ran down 11 Bears on Saturday and didn't offer to help a single one of them up. Fred would have never done such a thing. The new Mister Rogers is definitely going to take some getting used to.
Back when Fred was still around, he used to end every show by saying he'd be back again next time. Marcus said that on Saturday, too. Every time he knocked down the SMS running backs, Marcus kept saying he'd be back. And you know what? He always kept his promise.
Apparently, this is normal for him. He had 13 tackles last year in the season opener against Southern Methodist and then racked up 13 more against Nebraska later in the season. He also took down 11 Colorado Buffaloes and didn't apologize to them at all. Despite his lack of manners, the Big 12 named him Neighbor (Player) of the Week after that showing. Oh well, as fun as the old Mister Rogers was, he never brought a crowd to its feet like Marcus did Saturday.
Maybe he's not such a mean guy after all.
They say Marcus is taking the neighborhood to a whole new level. The old Mister Rogers was always stuck on PBS, and now ESPN, ABC and FOX are all thinking of showing the new Mister Rogers in action.
This week's show looks to be the best yet. The Bruins are visiting Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, and I hear Marcus has a special greeting for UCLA running back DeShaun Foster. If Marcus has his way, this could be a beautiful day in the neighborhood.
Fred Rogers will never be forgotten, but Marcus is here to stay, and the neighborhood now belongs to him.
Hanni is a Topeka senior in broadcast journalism
'Hawks win season opener
Kansas beats Bears 24-10 in first home game of the season
By Jeff Denton Kansan sportswriter
Trailing 7-0 early in the second quarter, Southwest Missouri State quarterback Austin Mohrman dropped back to pass at the Bears' 5-yard line and was smothered by Kansas linebacker Algie Atkinson.
As the 6-foot-5, 240-pound senior buried the quarterback, the football squirted loose. Kansas reserve defensive end David McMillan scooped it up and stumbled into the end zone.
The turnover made the difference in the Jayhawks' 24-10 victory in front of 37,500 Saturday night at Memorial Stadium.
PHOTO BY LAURIE SISK/KANSAN.
SMS threatened to score as it trailed by two touchdowns, driving the ball down the field late in the fourth quarter. Without Atkinson's four seconds of heroics two hours earlier, the game could have easily gone in favor of the Bears.
The sack was Atkinson's first of two of the night, moving him past teammate Nate Dwyer into fifth place all-time on Kansas' career sack list. He also made seven tackles against an experienced Div. I-AA offense.
Sophomore quarterback Zach Dyer throws for a small gain during the first half of the Jayhawks' season opener. Dyer led Kansas to a 24-10 win against Southwest Missouri State on Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
Atkinson created the cushion that Kansas needed to secure its first win of the season.
SEE ATKINSON PAGE 3B
New football offense shows potential
Game statistics improve despite a shoddy running game
By Brent Briggeman Kansan sportswriter
The Kansas football coaches promised a new-look offense all through the preseason.
On Saturday, they delivered with an offense that occasionally struggled, turning over the ball four times and scoring only two touchdowns against a Division I-AA opponent.
But the offense was still different from any during coach Terry Allen's four years in Lawrence.
The offense, led by new offensive coordinator Rip Scherer, employed four-receiver sets much of the game, dropping the tight end and fullback. The 'Hawks also ran no-huddle, a scheme Allen and Scherer had decided would alleviate the pressure of the play clock and the need
for the young Kansas quarterbacks to dictate play changes at the line.
From an execution standpoint, the Jayhawks thought the changes worked well in the 24-10 win against Southwest Missouri State.
"We love the no-huddle," said quarterback Zach Dyer, who remains in a battle for his position with Mario Kinsey, though Kinsey sat out Saturday as he served a one-game suspension for violating team rules. "We only had one offsides penalty, and that had nothing to do with the no-huddle. It just lets us relax and look at what the defense is doing."
Not only was the look different, but the play-calling differed from the past. The Jayhawks threw the ball 44 percent of the time (37 rushes, 29 passes).
Last year, the 'Hawks threw just more than 40 percent of the time.
In week one, Kansas not only showed that it intends to throw the ball, but also that it will spread the passing around. Seven different Kansas players caught
passes, six of whom notched at least two catches.
Last year, the Jayhawks passed to more players only once, in the week one loss against Southern Methodist, when eight different players caught passes.
Receiver Roger Ross, who caught three passes for 37 yards, said the offense would keep defenses guessing by going to different receivers.
Dyer's 231 yards set a team record for most passing yards in a debut for a quarterback as he completed 19 of 29 passes or 65.5 percent. By comparison, Dylen Smith completed better than 50 percent of his passes in just one game last year, a 23 of 40 effort against Texas Tech. Kansas has completed more than half of its passes in just one of the past four seasons.
Two interceptions and a sputtering running game were the obvious blemishes of the offense's debut.
Dan Coke handled much of the running back duties in the absence of Reggie Duncan, who also served a one-game
suspension for breaking team rules.
Coke saw little to work with as he was bottled for 44 yards on 21 carries.
Sam Pittman, offensive line coach, was disappointed with the offensive line's overall performance, particularly that the Jayhawks converted only once in four tries on third and fourth down with less than three yards to go. However, he said Duncan's absence had nothing to do with it.
The rusher with the most success on Saturday was the quarterback. Dyer ran for 41 yards on 12 attempts and was never sacked.
Harrison Hill, a four-year starter at receiver who has seen plenty of Jayhawk offenses, still thought the new Kansas attack could be the best since he has been at Kansas.
"We've got a long ways to go," Hill said. "I think we can be good, but we've got to do a lot better than we did tonight."
Contact Briggeman at 864-4810
Despite fall to Illinois, soccer team pleased with performance
Double-overtime good sign against ranked opponent
By Ryan Wood
Kansan sportswriter
After a 4-2 victory against North Texas in Friday's home opener, the Kansas soccer team suffered a 4-3 double-overtime loss to No. 23 Illinois on Sunday,
The Jayhawks (1-1) fell to Illinois (2-0) with 14 seconds left in the second sudden-death overtime after nearly 120 minutes of battling. If the Jayhawks had won the game, it would have been the first time in club history they had defeated a ranked opponent.
earning a split in the weekend matches.
"I thought we did enough to win the game," coach Mark
Francis said. "I told the players that physically and emotionally, we couldn't have asked for them to have done anymore than they did."
Kansas got on the board early when sophomore midfielder Maggie Mason scored from point-blank range in the second minute. Freshman midfielder Gabby Quiggle provided the assist, putting the Jayhawks up 1-0.
"My position was to shadow the goalie," Mason said. "I turned around, and the ball was at my feet, and I had a whole lot of time."
Illinois responded in the 34th minute when forward Laura Freeman connected on a header over the arms of Kansas goalkeeper Meghan Miller, tying the score.
In the 38th minute, freshman forward Rachel Gilfillan scored
on a powerful shot into the back of the net.
The 2-1 lead was short-lived, however. In the 39th minute, Illinois forward Sarah Rowland scored off an assist by Meghan Kolze and tied the game again.
In the 62nd minute, after a yellow card was given to Quiggle, Illinois midfielder Colleen Joyce scored on the ensuing penalty kick, giving Illinois a 3-2 lead.
SEE OPENER PAGE 6B