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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
1B
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2002
Joey Berlin jberlin@kansan.com
Recruits soon will blossom
Mustn't bring up Baylor. Mustn't bring up Baylor. There are other things going on. There have to be...
- Landing three recruits in ESPN's Men's Basketball Top 100 is a quality recruiting haul for any school in any year — and Roy Williams may add more. Two other players, Brian Butch, Appleton, Wis., and Ekene Ibekwe, Carson Calif., are ranked in the top 35 of the ESPN poll and still have Kansas on their short list.
The players who have already given verbal commitments to become Jayhawks for next year are an impressive group. Center David Padgett, Reno, Nev., who is listed No. 5 on the ESPN list, and 25th-ranked swingman J.R. Giddens of Oklahoma City both have real opportunities at starting next year, while Los Angeles guard Omar Wilkes, listed at No. 93, should also help immediately. Williams' fourth commitment is McAlerest, Okla., guard Jeremy Case, who seems like a redshirt candidate. Accounts of his play posted at Phog.net peg Case as a good shooter who doesn't yet have the body to play Division I basketball.
Mark Simmons scores on a 9-yard reception to put Kansas' first points on the scoreboard with 8:13 left in the second quarter.
A few people, mostly natives of Kansas City, Kan., took exception to my comment that Kansas freshman guard Jeff Hawkins "played against inferior competition in high school." My point wasn't that KCK high school basketball is inferior to other regions—it was that Kansas high school basketball, as a whole, is inferior.
Guess how many Kansas high school players show up on ESPN's Top 100? Zero. How about on another list, say, RivalsHoops.com's Top 100? Again, a goose egg. Occasionally Kansas high schools produce players like Wayne Simien or former Stanford standout Kris Weems. Every state has somebody; Alaska produced former Duke star Trajan Langdon. But there's a reason Roy Williams heads west to recruit every year; Kansas high school players don't cut it.
But the Chiefs don't resemble the 1999-2001 Rams as much as the 1995 Detroit Lions. That Lions team lift up the scoreboard with Scott Mitchell, who had the season of his life with 32 touchdown passes thanks to two receivers with more than 100 catches and a future Hall Of Fame running back in Barry Sanders.
■ If the Minnesota Twins manage to win the World Series, they would finish the greatest story in the history of baseball. If you don't have a team to root for during the rest of the postseason, root for the Twins and their 55,000 maniacal, towel-waving fans inside the Metrodome. And root for baseball commissioner Bud Selig, the man who attempted to eliminate the Twins franchise last off-season, to be forced to hand them the World Series trophy.
Suddenly, people around the NFL are looking at the Kansas City Chiefs. Their offense, which ranks second in the NFL in both points per game and yards per game, is making a case to take over the "Greatest Show On Earth" title vacated by the wreckage of the St. Louis Rams. The Chiefs' defense is awful- 27th in the NFL in points allowed, dead last in yards—but their scoring ability makes anything possible.
The 1995 Lions also had no defense, and when push came to shove, Scott Mitchell was Scott Mitchell, and the result was an embarrassing 56-37 loss to the Eagles in the first round of the playoffs.
Trent Green is Mitchell, and the 2002 Chiefs are the 1995 Lions. Unless they find a miracle cure for their defense, a first-round playoff exit is the best they can hope for.
Berlin is a Leaswood senior in journalism.
Football building from loss
Mangino: foundations strong but last-minute Baylor plays nailed down Kansas defeat
Duane A. Laverty/Waco Tribune-Herald
By John Domoney
jdomoney@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
Even after Kansas' 35-32 loss to Baylor University on Saturday in Waco, Texas, coach Mark Mangino had a positive attitude about his team during yesterday's Big 12 teleconference.
"For us it was a good football game." Mangino said. "It boiled down to the end of the game, where Baylor made plays within the last four minutes of the game and we were not able to make plays. Even though we lost the game, we continue to improve in many areas of our team and that's the thing that we are really focused on."
One area the Jayhawks showed vast improvement in was against the running attack of the Bears.
After giving up an average of 260 rushing yards per game through the first five games, Kansas limited Baylor to 100 yards on the ground.
"On defense, this is the best performance we have had defending the run," Mangino said. "I thought our front seven did a really good job of stopping the run for the most part."
Kansas recorded seven sacks against the Baylor offensive line, but the Jayhawk defense surrendered 379 yards passing to Baylor quarterback Aaron Karas.
Mangino said his secondary was playing too conservatively and allowing too much room for the opponent's receivers to run their routes.
"We're playing a lot of what we call some 'soft coverage' and we're giving too much room in the zone coverage," Mangino said. "And what I mean by that is that when you're in zone coverage and the ball goes in the air, we tell our kids the ball belongs to anybody."
late in the game after Kansas quarterback Bill Whitte more put the Jayhawks ahead 32-24 with under three minutes left.
The Bears marched right down the field and tied the game with a 41-yard touchdown pass from Karas to
The ball belonged to Karas and the Baylor offense
Robert Quiroga. Baylor's Chedrick Ricks tied the game at 32-all when he ran a reverse into the end zone for the two-point conversion.
SEE FOOTBALL ON PAGE 3B
John Nowak/Kansan
Senior Chris Marshall lines up a putt at the Alvamar Country Club at the KU Invitational. Marshall was in a tie for third place after two rounds of play yesterday at the Purina-Missouri Bluffs Classic in St. Charles, Mo.
Men's golf score improves to lowest in second round
Senior golfer Chris Marshall led Kansas to the lowest second-round score of the Purina-Missouri Bluffs Classic in St. Charles, Mo., Monday.
Kansas improved 14 strokes on its first round score in the afternoon's second round to put itself in fifth place going into today's final round.
"We didn't play very well in the morning but I felt that we did some good things in the afternoon," coach Ross Randall said.
Senior Chris Marshall shot an even par 71 in the first round, but followed it with a
career-best round of 65 (six below par) in the second round to land himself in a third place tie.
"Chris played a great second round," Randall said. "Even though he missed a lot of putts he hit the ball extremely close to the pin on almost every hole."
Junior Tyler Hall shot a 69 (two below par), compensating for a first-round 72 (one above par) and ending up in a tie for 15th place.
Seniors lead Kansas women
SEE MEN'S GOLF ON PAGE 3B
Sophomore Andrew Price is in a tie for
Bv Ryan Greene
By Ryan Greene
rgreene@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
After a tough afternoon yesterday, the Kansas women's golf team, which is currently in 10th place, will need a strong finish today to continue its improvement under coach Megan Menzel.
Through two rounds of play, the team is currently in 10th place in a 16-team field at the Shoot-out at The Legends in Franklin. Ind.
"Our second round of 306 is our lowest
of the year which was an improvement from the first round," Menzel said.
Senior Tiffany Kruggel and junior Jennifer Bawanan both fired rounds of 76 (+4) and 78 (+6) to put them in a share of 26th place.
Senior Heather Rose started with a first-round 81 (+9) and then finished with a career-best 74 (+2) and landed her in a share of 36th place.
SEE WOMEN'S GOLF ON PAGE 3B
Williams waiting on letters of intent
By Kelly McNearney kmcnearney@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
But that's the way it has to be, because the NCAA dictates the time, place and manner of contact universities have with prospective players.
Kansas basketball fans will have to wait, just like coach Roy Williams until Nov. 13 for official news on the status of future Jayhawks.
The contact period for Division I schools began Sept. 9 and ended Saturday. It allowed Athletic Department staff members to make in-person, off-campus recruiting trips with potential prospects.
Now Williams and his staff are limited to Lawrence, as the NCAA has implemented its quiet period. During this time, which lasts until Nov.20, it is permissible to make in-person recruiting contacts only on the University's campus. The end of the period is also the final day for prospects to sign a national letter of intent.
But they may start Nov. 13, and that's when Kansas expects to receive letters from David Padgett, Reno, Nev., and Omar Wilkes, Los Angeles, Calif.
who verbally committed to Kansas last week along with Oklahomaans Jeremy Case and J.R. Giddens, who gave their verbal agreements to become Jayhawks last spring.
A national letter of intent binds a prospective student- athlete to an institution in exchange for financial aid for one academic year. The student must meet all institution entrance requirements and must cease contact with other recruiters upon signing.
"We can not release anything that has to do with recruits until they have signed a national letter of intent and we have received it," said Mitch Germann, director of media relations.
Germann said when Kansas receives a letter from a player, he releases the player's name and information along with a statement from Williams.
Williams will not be able to witness the signing of any of his
Reno High's 6-foot-11 center, David Padgett, shoots against McQueen High last season. Padgett has reportedly given an oral commitment to Kansas after being recruited by coach Roy Williams.
prospects. The NCAA prohibits coaches or staff from being present at letter signings. They can not even deliver the letter, which must be sent via mail, courier or fax.
When Williams announces his new players, he may show video clips of the players, but only after the player has officially signed the letter of intent.
SEE RECRUITS ON PAGE 3B
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