MONDAY, SEPT.EMBER 16, 2002
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN = 9A
Kansas coach Mark Mangino gives his regards to SMSU coach Randy Ball following Kansas' first home game Saturday night.
Mangino shows'class act'
By Doyle Murphy
Kansan sportswriter
Kansas coach Mark Mangino was the last person Ryan Porter said he expected to see while he laid on the field Saturday.
had on the front of Porter, Southwest Missouri State quarterback, twisted his knee late in the fourth quarter of the Bears 44-24 loss to the Jayhawks. Mangino quickly joined medical personnel to make sure Porter was all right.
"Usually it's the trainers from your guys' team," Porter said. "I looked up, and I was like 'Hey, that's coach Mangino. Hey."
what's up, man?"
Porter said most coaches wouldn't show that kind of concern for an opposing player. He called Mangino a "class act," and said he would never forget the experience.
However, the sympathetic ges ture didn't earn Mangino immunity from a little teasing by Porter
"I said 'Why didn't you recruit me at Oklahoma? Everyone else in the Big 12 did.' Porter said
Mangino replied that they had made some mistakes in Oklahoma.
An MRI will reveal the severity of Porter's injury, but Porter said
SMS trainers told him he would miss 2 to 3 days at the most. He had completed eight of 20 passes for 96 yards when he left the game. He threw one touchdown and one interception.
SMS coach Randy Ball was also full of praise for Mangino and the Jayhawks. SMS beat Hampton, ranked 23rd in Division 1-AA, last week, but Ball said Kansas was clearly the best team they have faced.
"They're a level better," he said. "There's no doubt about that."
that. Along with the difference in talent, SMS didn't do itself any
favors by allowing Kansas' special teams to dominate the game, he said.
Kansas averaged 42.6 yards per kickoff return while holding SMS to 18.1.
"The key to the game was special teams play," Ball said. "They had them, we didn't."
had them, we didn't SMS plays Southeast Missouri State at 7 p.m. at home in Springfield, Mo., next week. Kansas will meet Bowling Green at 6 p.m. Saturday in Memorial Stadium.
dmurphy@kansan.com.This story was edited by Amanda Sears
Contact Murphy at
Kansas linebacker Glenn Robinson comes up from behind as SMSU quarterback Ryan Porter looks for an opening. The ball was fumbled and Kansas scored a touchdown following Robinson's tackle.
Aaron Showalter/Kansan
Big 12 weekend creates whirlwind
By Doyle Murphy
Kansansportswriter
It was a wild weekend around the Big 12. Heavy favorites Oklahoma, Kansas State, Texas and Kansas all took care of business. After that, few games could be called predictable.
Although favored by Las Vegas, Colorado and Nebraska suffered blowout losses; Iowa State used a late comeback to win at Iowa; and Bowling Green handed Missouri a loss for the second consecutive year. When the dust settled, Big 12 teams had won six and lost five
Colorado dropped out of the Associated Press Top 25 after losing to USC, ranked 17 at the time. 40-3. The Buffaloes began the season ranked seventh in the nation.
Nebraska also lost favor with AP voters. They dropped 10 places to 18. Previously unranked Penn, State dominated Nebraska from beginning to end in a 40-7 beating.
-Texas A&M had the week off.
Not all of the Big 12 games were blowouts. Iowa State kicked two fourth quarter field goals to edge Iowa 36-31. Iowa State quarterback Seneca Wallace didn't do anything to hurt
his position as the conference's leading passer this season. He threw for 361 yards and a touchdown. He also carried the ball in the end zone.
Iowa State coach Dan McCarney said the Cyclones relied on their senior leader to guide the team.
In another game that featured two great college quarterbacks, Texas Tech met Mississippi. Ole Miss quarterback Eli Manning completed 34 of 57 passing attempt for 374 yards but it wasn't enough. Texas Tech's Kliff Kingsbury tossed two touchdowns and 270 yards in Tech's 42-28 win. Kingsbury also orchestrated an impressive fourth quarter drive to seal the game.
"The biggest drive of the season thus far," he said. "That's what great teams do, go down when you have to. We kind of struggled in the start of the second half and came back with that drive."
"You want him to be your rally guy on offense," McCarney said. "He always has a look of confidence in his eyes and he never gives up."
dnurphy@kansan.com This story was edited by Christine Grubbs
Contact Murphy at
Freshman kick-return breaks Kansas record
By Ryan Malashock
Kansan sportswriters
If Greg Heagans had followed his first instinct, he would still be an unknown face among the Kansas football team.
But that obscurity changed in a span of 18 seconds Saturday night during Kansas' 44-24 victory over Southwest Missouri State.
Heaggans, a freshman defensive back who converted from wide receiver last week, returned the opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown, boosting Kansas to an early advantage and revealing his talents to the college football world.
Coach Mark Mangino showed no surprise at his new big-plav
return man.
"He's a guy that works extremely hard," Mangino said. "He's a guy that wants to do anything to help the team. In the locker room, I used a reference to him because he personifies what we're really trying to do here. He's always there, always willing to do anything. His hard work and perseverance showed off tonight."
tonght.
Heaggans' scamper was made possible only after he and freshman Jon Cornish evaded a potential disaster. Heaggans and Cornish — Kansas' deep men on kickoff returns — converged on the kickoff and initially bumped into each other, unsure of who should field the ball. The ball then bounced between the two return
men, forcing Heaggans to take charge.
charge.
"I was going to down it, but I knew I couldn't when I looked down," Heaggans said. "It was supposed to be returned to the left because we saw on tape that they would mostly go to the left. But they didn't on that play and I saw a hole to the right, and I just ran."
His total of 195 kick-return yards broke a 43-year-old school record, previously held by Kansas great John Hadl, who posted 153 yards against Syracuse in 1959.
The return was the first Kansas kick return for a touchdown since Eric Vann's 100-yard return against Oklahoma in 1996.
He also sprinted 52 yards on a return that came after Southwest Missouri State closed to within
27-24.
Heaggans seemed appreciative at the opportunity to assist the team, as he knows his time in the secondary will be limited.
Heaggans worked at wide receiver last season while taking a redshirt and this preseason before he was switched to the secondary just last week.
Still, he said his limited role on the kick-return team suits him just fine.
"I just try to play hard all the time," Heaggan said. "Play hard and practice hard. I know that if I do that, good things will keep happening to me."
Contact Malashock at rmalashock@kansan.com. This story was edited by Christina Neff
Kansas linebacker Leo Etienne falls into the endzone, scoring a touchdown following a fumbled turnover at the end of the first half. The Jayhawks led for the entire second half, eventually winning 44-24 Saturday night.
Aaron Showalter/Kansan