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KANSAN.COM
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Kansas football mailbag: Captain concerns, upset predictions and potential redshirts
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SHANE JACKSON
@jacksonshane3
Senior defensive end Ben Goodman is the only senior team captain for this season
Does it concern you that only one captain is a senior? Also, what do you think of Cozart as captain after last season?
— Dani Malakoff
JAMES HOYT/KANSAN
Yes, it does concern me. For those of you who don't know, the captains are senior defensive end Ben Goodman alongside juniors Montell Cozart and Fish Smithson. I don't know if there was anyone else that could have been considered. This team does not have a lot of experience or seniors who have made a huge impact.
Goodman was a no-brainer; he has started in the last 24 games that he has played in. He'll likely be the face of the defense and also the team. I understand choosing Smithson as well. He's a veteran safety who has played a lot of football for Kansas. He may not have started last year, but he still finished fifth in tackles.
So the attention turned to picking one captain on the offensive side. In this case, I don't know if there is anyone else who would be worthier. You could make the case for an offensive lineman, but coaches like having the quarterback as a captain. However, I question the decision because the coaches just decided to make Cozart the starting quarterback, and he only started in five games last year before losing his position.
You said KU will win only 1 game but if KU was to win two games,who would be the second? — John Morgan
In last week's mailbag, I admitted that I believe Kansas will go 1-11, which doesn't seem too far off now that Vegas released the over/under odds as 1.5 wins. But there is a chance that the Jayhawks can squeak out a second win.
If I had to pick, the second win would come in week two against Memphis. Let's keep in mind: Memphis had one of its best years last year, winning double-digit games. Memphis
has more talent on its roster, too.
Much like the lajahawks, however, the Tigers have lost a lot as well, especially on the defensive side of the ball. This team may not be as good as everyone thinks.
It's certainly not out of the realm of possibility. It will be a home evening game with a good atmosphere between Family Weekend and Band Day. Right now without seeing either team in a real game, I'm picking Memphis, but that answer could change this time next week.
What game do you see #kufball pulling an upset this coming year?
- Clayton Adam
Is there any chance KU upsets a Big 12 contender? #kufball
Caleb Dickey
More or less the same question, so I chose to bundle these two.
After this Saturday, it's very
likely that Kansas will enter every contest as the underdog, meaning any win would be an upset.
I think the road upsets are a very unlikely. It doesn't seem reasonable that one of the most inexperienced rosters in program history would snap the road losing streak. With that, I can safely rule out upsets against Rutgers, Iowa State, Oklahoma State, Texas and TCU.
The home game against Texas Tech on Oct.17 is an interesting matchup. The Red Raiders are coming off a bad year and are not predicted to improve. Keep in mind: Kansas played Texas Tech fairly well at home two years ago. The Red Raiders didn't go down until the second half when Charlie Weis couldn't figure out how to hand the ball to his best player.
Kansas State is another team that isn't receiving a lot of hype, but I choose to never doubt Bill Snyder.
What are realistic expectations for this year, next year and year 3 under Beaty?
- Tate Vobach
The realistic expectations this year are that this team is going to be bad. Like historically bad.
I am convinced that Beaty can't do anything on the field to lose his job. Even if this team goes 0-12 and loses by 50 points every Saturday, Beaty's job should be safe. The only thing Beaty can do this year is help this team.
All that said, I have to believe that fans and everyone else expect a competitive team by year three. Beaty hasn't been shy about how this is going to be a process, and not one that happens overnight.
Still if there aren't any signs of improvement by year three, then all his "Earn It" speeches may get restless.
What player do you expect to surprise people this year? #kufball
— Alex Blau
I have been adamant that Ke'aun Kinner is going to be the focal point of the offense. Kinner, a junior college running back from Navarro Junior College, was a stud his sophomore year and won NJCAA Offensive Player of the Year honors. He ranked second in single-season carries and set the record for rushing yards per game in a single season. Every coach and teammate I've spoken with raves about his talent.
Another name to look out for is Brandon Stewart, a junior college cornerback out of Trinity Valley Community College. He is expected to lead the secondary that has been depleted because of graduation. Stewart is likely the No. 1 corner at Kansas in this year's secondary. He held this position as a sophomore with Trinity when he led the way with 19 pass breakups. Kansas has a track record of sending corners to the next level, and Stewart shows the ability to be the next Jayhawk to do that.
What are the chances they redshirt Carter Stanley? Do you think they are signing too many transfer players for the next year?
— Heath Eisenbarth
I don't think Kansas is signing too many transfers. This team lacks experience, and sometimes junior college transfers are a quick, easy fix to field a competitive team. It doesn't seem like it will harm them in the long run; so right now I support it.
As far as Carter Stanley, I think there's a shot that he will be redshirt this year. It appears the Jayhawks want to redshirt one of the freshmen, and I don't think it'll be Ryan Willis.
For the last two years, Kansas has not finished with the same quarterback that started the season. Cozart got his chance as a freshman two years ago, and I think if Cozart struggles this year, Willis will get a similar opportunity.
- Edited by Rebecca Dowd
At the helm of KU football, Beaty is building his empire through relationships on social media
CHRISTIAN HARDY @ChristianHardy
In April, David Beaty stepped to the podium after the spring game; it was his first post-game press conference since taking the job at Kansas. And it was typical Beaty, which really isn't typical at all.
He answered every question with excitement, a fresh take, and really that's his style.
He rarely leans on coachspeak or the clichés that float around in football. He talks with the energy of a 25-year-old, but has the wisdom of a longtime head coach. His hospitality is that of someone who would invite you to have a conversation on his porch over a glass of sweet tea
He closed the press conference with two words that have resonated through every bit of the Kansas football program since he stepped in at head coach: "I'm different."
— that might come from his Texas roots.
In dire need of a revival, Kansas football couldn't have made a better decision in hiring Beaty. Ticket sales dropped 10 percent in 2014 — the fourth-largest decline of any power conference team. The home opener brought in an only half-full student section and a 36,574 attendance total, a number that some thought was higher than what the eye test revealed, but still the lowest total since the 2003 home opener.
"We knew that we needed to do something with the football program," said Jim Marchiony, associate athletics director. "The question was, who was the best guy to accomplish that goal?"
Charlie Weis, Kansas' former head coach, was the exact opposite. Weis had no previous ties to Kansas and seemed nonchalant about his presence and investment in the program. That, in turn, tanked the fans' engagement.
"We think David's personality, his knowledge of the game, and the way he coaches, he was the best person available. He knew Kansas, he knows what this program was about and what it needs."
Beaty had all nine of his coaches get active on Twitter from the start. Those 10 accounts (including Beaty's) have mostly been used for marketing the program by retweeting University-related accounts and fellow coaches.
So, naturally, Beaty's first move was to boost the team's engagement — a daunting task for a team that has averaged about two wins per season over the last four.
But Beaty regularly tweets multiple times a day and uses his feed as a recruiting tool, too.
Another great day in NW KANSAS! #EarnIt — Klint Kubiak
"You're either doing it, or you're getting passed up by other folks," said Beaty, who mentioned social media as a way of keeping tabs on recruits while staying within NCAA's rules. "It helps us understand them better, it really does.
The coaches used their Twitter accounts to post pictures of water towers, high schools and venti Starbucks drinks as they reached every high school in Kansas — all in person. Some days, a coach would even take over the program's Instagram feed.
"I talk a lot about rollin' over at 2 o'clock in the morning ... and I'm going to roll over and take a look at that Twitter. Lo and behold there's some guys that we're marking off of our list because of what's said there."
Caramel Macchiato,
Jayhawk gear and seat
belt...Let's Roll!
—Kenny Perry
-Kenny Perry
A photo posted by Kansas
And if a fan wanted to meet Beaty for a face-to-face conversation, they could have done it by now. The guy is hard to miss.
Football (@kuffootball on
May 13, 2015 at 4:42am PDT
In the spring, he held a "Campus Challenge" where he competed in mini-games with students and opened a full practice to students only. then invited them all onto the field to compete in games along with the players.
He went through six cities in Kansas in February to meet with alumni, donors and fans. He had dinner with fans in four other cities this summer. Just last week he spoke and walked around for hours meeting students and alumni at HawkFest.
"I know high school coaches were impressed with that," Marchiony said.
"What you see is what he is," Marchiony said. "Every coach brands his program in his own way. I don't think he came in here saying, 'I'm going to brand it a certain way.' He came in with the thought that he's going to be himself. And that's the way he's going to build his program."
Beaty is different than any other coach in the country, and he's certainly different than any coach who has been at the head of the Jayhawk
football program in decades. Beaty, before he has stepped on the field to coach a game, has already begun to rebuild relationships and bridges that Weis and Turner Gill burned
- with recruiters, boosters,
alumni, students and, most
importantly, the players.
We knew that we needed to do something with the football program. The question was, who was the best guy to accomplish that goal?"
JIM MARCHIONY Associate Athletics Director
jordan Shelley-Smith, a junior offensive lineman, was recruited by Beaty in his first stint with Kansas, which gave Shelley-Smith a good idea of Beaty's character. But the relationship between the two became stronger when Beaty became his head coach.
Beaty has introduced his daughters — he has two — at practice to Shelley-Smith and the rest of the team. Beaty told Shelley-Smith: "These are your little sisters. Take care of them."
"When guys say he's a player's coach, he's a player's coach." Shelley-Smith said. "You get to know him. We know his family. When a guy brings his family into it, it's a whole different aspect. He's saying, 'Come be close to my family,' and it's really cool to have that. We all have that deeper connection with him.
"His engagement pushes the other coaches to get engaged with us. I'm so close with everybody on the staff, whether it be offense or defense. Him bringing that helps with the other coaches too."
In a relationship business like college football, those connections are sure to pay dividends in due time.
Eventually, the wins will follow; if they don't, Beaty won't stay. But Kansas fans have to be patient — one more time
and let Beaty build an empire on relationships, energy and originality.
"We have to win more than we have." Marchiony said. "There's no doubt about it. (Beaty) is smart enough to know that. Everybody is smart enough to know that."
Edited by Emma LeGault
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