KANSAN.COM
SPORTS
+
Notebook:Derrick Neal tests cornerback; Cummings likely won't return next season
Quarterback Michael Cummings surveys the Oklahoma State defense on Oct. 11, 2014.
CHRISTIAN HARDY
@ByHardy
JAMES HOYT/KANSAN
Kansas, just as most college football teams, has plenty of guys wearing the same number on different sides of the ball. Wide receiver Bobby Hartzog Jr. and linebacker Marcquis Roberts both wear No. 5. Running back Keaun Kinner and safety Greg Allen both sport the No. 22. In all, 26 numbers are shared on Kansas' roster.
Sometimes, it's easy to think an offensive player is playing the defensive side of the ball, or vice versa. For No. 7 Derrick Neal — who shares a number with kicker Matthew Wyman — that's become a reality. He's now listed as a wide receiver/cornerback on the roster; Neal has switched from being a wide receiver only to a dual threat.
"He's played defense before over there for us, and he just did
a couple things the other day in the game that are just natural," said head coach David Beaty. "He actually made a difference in the ballgame, which was good."
Neal was forced into action when Brandon Stewart went down with a groin injury against Baylor and consequently missed last week's game. He had played corner sparingly through camp, and hadn't even played on the defensive end during the regular season until four days before the game.
"With very little preparation, he went out there and played hard," Beaty said. "I just had not seen him over there, and I really think it wasn't until the game where I saw him make a tackle on a little hit screen out there that I was like, 'Whoa, he's got a little something to him out there.'"
Now that Stewart is expected to return this week, Neal will likely fall back down in the depth chart and off the field for the defense. But the versatility and depth he adds to both the offense and defense is something that's important for Kansas, and could land him some more playing time — on either side of the ball.
"The good thing about him is he's smart enough to be able to come back in there and us insert him on the offensive side if we need to do that," Beaty said. "We can do that. We can still do that."
Kansas started 4-of-4 on field goal attempts this year. Recently, the Jayhawks have gone 0-of-4, including three misses and a missed extra point versus Texas Tech on Saturday.
Even though Beaty made a switch at the punter position
Field goal woes
after Eric Kahn struggled, it doesn't sound as if he's planning to do the same at kicker.
"We've got kids that are committed to getting it fixed," Beaty said. "We're not going to go grow another kicker or go find one. It's not going to happen. We've got the two guys here we need, and our team believes in those guys, and those guys are going to come back and be productive for us."
"It's just a matter of getting focused, concentrating and utilizing your technique," Beaty said. "We do that, we're gonna
For now, Beaty will continue to roll out Wyman for long distances and Nick Bartolotta for chip shots and extra points at kicker. If Beaty and special teams coach Gary Hyman can mend those technique flaws, Wyman and Bartolotta could very well get back on the track they were on to start the season.
be fine."
Injury update
Montell Cozart (shoulder) is going to be out again this week, which means freshman Ryan Willis will start again at quarterback. Defensive end Damani Mosby (elbow), cornerback Brandon Stewart (groin), and offensive tackle Joe Gibson (ankle) are all probable against Oklahoma State after missing the game against Texas Tech.
Beaty noted that two other players — Hartzog Jr. (concussion) and defensive tackle Jacky Dezir (torn MCL) — are still doubtful.
"We think they might have a shot," Beaty said. "We'll see how practice goes this week with those guys."
Beaty also noted that Kinner (hamstring) is "as close (to healthy) as he has been" this
season, despite his drop-off in workload. He reminded Kinner in last week's game against Texas Tech of that same thing.
"I walked up to Kinner at about the middle of the second quarter ... and I said, 'You do realize this is the Big 12, that nobody's healthy, right?' Beaty said. "I loved his response, he goes, 'Coach, I know where I'm at. I'm ready.' So we put him in there and he did some things for us."
Beaty said senior quarterback Michael Cummings is not expected to be granted a sixth year of eligibility after sitting out for all of 2015 with a knee injury. If it's not granted, his career at Kansas as a player would be finished.
"We haven't heard back," Beaty said. "But it's not looking good right now."
Edited by Rebeka Luttinger
SKYLAR ROLSTAD
@SkyRolSports
After a blowout loss, Kansas soccer looks to rebound against Texas Tech
Normally after a game, a team will review the film and figure out which things worked and which things didn't.
However, for Kansas soccer coach Mark Francis, there wasn't value to be found in watching the tape of the team's last match. The Jayhawks lost 6-0 to then No. 3 West Virginia, and Francis said it was better to move on than to worry about the past.
"We didn't even show video of [the loss]. There's not really any point in it. There's nothing we're going to get out of it," Francis
said. "It was just a combination of a bad day for us and how they're [a good team]."
"[Friday] was a bad day for us, we just moved on. It doesn't really affect what we've still got left to do," Francis said. "The nice thing is it's all in our control."
That, however, doesn't take away from what the Jayhawks can still accomplish. This Friday, the team will travel to face Texas Tech, a team that sits at fifth in the Big 12, one spot behind Kansas.
If Kansas wins its last three regular season games, it can finish as high as third in the conference. This is a big weekend for Kansas because after taking on Texas Tech, they will travel to Stillwater, Olla., to face Oklahoma State on Sunday, Oct. 25.
Francis said his team has responded well to the loss in the two practices since Friday's game. Against Texas Tech, the Kansas defense will have to stop senior Janine Beckie, a Texas Tech forward who is tied for second in goals in the Big 12 with nine.
Last season, the Jayhawks went 5-3 in the Big 12 and finished third. At this point in the season, all three of those losses already happened. All three of Kansas' remaining opponents this season are ranked below the Jayhawks in the conference.
Blog: Varsity rowing boats battle each other in sprint
Boathouse bragging rights.
It's something teams fight for every day in practice, said junior rover Maddie Icelan. It's rare that teams get a chance to duke it out in a live event. But that's exactly what the rowing team had in its first regatta of the year.
GRIFFIN HUGHES
@GriffiJHughes
Boathouse bragging rights.
The Jayhawk Jamboree was the first test for rowing's 2015-16 season. Kansas competed against K-State, Iowa, Tulsa and Creighton. For the Jayhawks, the toughest and most exciting competition came from within.
The 300-meter sprint allows teams to work on their starts and perfect a strong finish. In the first heats, the Kansas varsity "A" and "B" boats swept their competition and advanced to the semifinals. One of the field's top varsity boats joined them there when the Tulsa A boat glided past the varsity C team in the first heat.
But the biggest test for the Kansas varsity boats wasn't Tulsa — it was each other.
In the blocks in the second semifinal race, the Kansas teams pulled out of the docks and looked across the water. They saw their teammates across from them - the teammates they
It made for the most entertaining race of the day. Watching two teams that knew each other and could have fun while competing encapsulated the tone of the day. Fans got to see the rowers yell and poke fun at each other throughout the entire race.
The varsity "A" team ended up taking the race by 1.02 seconds. Senior coxswain Mary Slattery said that win was "at the top of the list" for the day for her team.
train with every day.
Rowing isn't a sport a lot of people get into, but what's better than getting to see the personality of the athletes who give their heart and soul to the sport?
Francis said the coaching staff wouldn't be helped by watching the tape against West Virginia, but could point out some overall areas where his team can improve.
"Defensively, we've got to do a better job of communicating," Francis said. "We have to be a little more organized."
The Jayhawks kick off against Texas Tech at 7:15 p.m. Friday night in Lubbock, Texas.
Edited by Leah Sitz
MISSY MINEAR/KANSAN
Senior forward Ashley Williams battles for the ball against Oklahoma on October 11 in Lawrence.
EXPLORE
AFRICAN & AFRICAN-AMERICAN STUDIES AT KU!
BRINGING AFRICA AND ITS DIASPORAS TO KANSAS SINCE 1970
- interdisciplinary courses on African history, religion,and the black experience in the U.S. and the Caribbean
- language instruction and cultural immersion in Wolof, Arabic, Haitian Creole, Kiswahili, Somali, and Amharic
- public programming through the Langston Hughes Center Institute of Haitian Studies, and the Kansas African Studies Center
- opportunities for social engagement and civic responsibility