University Daily Kansan / Tuesday, September 22, 1987
Sports
9
NFL
players strike because of free-agency conflict
The Associated Press
NEW YORK — NFL players called their second strike in six years last night, putting their six-figure salaries on the line for the freedom to choose where they work.
“As of midnight tonight (Monday) the players of the National Football League will be on strike again, and that’s really, really great. Gueshapwu, executive director of the NFL Players Association, said in announcing the strike during halftime in New England Patriots-New York Jets game.
"There's no way it can be averted. We've been forced into it," said for the players, the owners and the owners.
The owners vowed to continue the season Oct. 4-5, after a one-week delay, with non-striking regulars and free agents who were told to report Wednesday, the same day the
union planned to start picketing. The owners
said they would honor requests for ticket
The issue was free agency. The union demanded that any player with more than four years' experience be free to choose his team; the owners insisted on some compensation for teams losing free agents, a system that only one player change teams in a decade.
That was much different from the 1982 strike, which lasted 57 days and cost seven games of the 16 game schedule. That walkout was over money; but since then, the average player salary has risen from $90,000 to $230,000 a year.
"Free agency cannot be summed up in terms of dollars. It's not about money. It's about dignity and freedom," Upshaw said.
"It's about who you work for."
There had been no talks since a meeting Friday between Upshaw and Management Council negotiator Jack Donlan, and no further negotiations were scheduled. "The stone's court," said Jim Conway, assistant director of the Management Council.
The two sides have met 19 times since first exchanging proposals April 20, and each has made just one counterproposal, both within the last two weeks.
Donlan said he offered concessions Friday on several issues, including pension and roster size, if Upshaw would delay the strike 30 days. But Upshaw said the only specific proposal was to increase rosters from 45 players to 49.
"For two weeks, they refused to meet
They were too busy," Donlan said. "With seven days left, they made their first economic proposal. It would cost $200 million and throw out the system that is working. We had a good system. It's taken the players up to $300,000 in year. We don't want to throw that out."
A Management Council statement yesterday said that free agency was the only issue that had been discussed.
Although Upshaw told the players to expect a long strike, he said it should not take that long to settle the differences.
"I think you could hammer out a deal in a matter of a day, but it will take two or three days to do the language." Upshaw said. "If we started today, there would be no reason there couldn't be games Sunday. Even if we talked tomorrow, it could still be done. In
1982, they took eight weeks off and came right back."
Conway said it would take much longer. "We don't look for this falling in in 24 hours," he said. "We think the parties have some room to move where we are now and any labor agreement."
Commissioner Pete Rozelle, who attended the Management Council meeting, said he was just an observer.
"They are so far apart, it wouldn't make sense for me to intervene right now," he said.
Some teams, like Indianapolis, saw an already had full rosters of free agents to continue the season, but others had barely more than one or two players signed.
KU defensive line is no obstacle as yet to opposing teams
Upshaw insisted that the union's support was solid, "including Chicago, which had so many question marks around it."
By CRAIG ANDERSON Staff writer
On paper, the size and experience of the Kansas starting defensive linemen should look like a formidable obstacle to opposing offensive lines. During the Jayhawks' first two games, however, the defense-front foursome has been anything but fearsome.
The average size of the Jayhawks' starting front line of defense against Kent State was 6-foot-4, 261 pounds. Kansas started three seniors and a junior against an undersized Golden Flash offensive line.
The conditions seemed perfect for the Kansas defensive unit to shut don the Kent State running game. The Golden Flashes had lost their quicksilver wishbone quarterback this season, and the team was week. Young had been replaced by a less-mobile, more pass-oriented quarterback.
Kansas defensive line coach Vic Eumont said his unit had practiced well throughout the week, but when it came time to perform in the game, his linemen came up with an overall poor effort.
"Kent State made no adjustments for the game that we weren't prepared for," he said of Kansas 31-17 loss. "We were getting blocked out of plays that there was no way we should have been. We weren't aggressive at all. Missed tackles and poor technique hurt us."
quiet, laid-back personalities of the Jayhawks' linemen off the field stuck with them on the Memorial Stadium turf.
"We don't have any nasty thugs playing for us," Eumont said. "They're all nice guys. Physically they have the talent, but they need to let us play games. They have to get irritated at someone if they want to play well."
Fifth-year-senior defensive end
Eldridge Vaughan said he tried to lead
the team in the 1985 NHL season.
It seemed as though the overall
"I've been around (the football program) for awhile, so I try to help the guys whenever they need it," Avery said.
Eumont said he didn't have any idea why the defensive front could practice so well for two weeks and then come up short on two straight game days.
"It's a mystery to me why we wouldn't be ready to play," he said. "The Keen State game was worse for the team than the lack of effort throughout the game."
Fred Sadowski/KANSAN
"I thought we were ready to go," he said. "Mentally I guess we weren't." The coaches did a good job and, but it's up to us to do it on the field."
Kansas defensive left end, Eldridge Avery, right, throws Kent State quarterback, Tim Phillips, for a four yard loss, Avery and the rest of the
White started alongside junior
Senior defensive tackle David White said he couldn't figure out the Jayhawks' attitude at game time. He said he wouldn't have thought Kansas would have come out so flat when the game began.
tackle Tim Adams on Saturday.
Adams, a junior college transfer from Dodge City Community College, had been moved into starting
role last week, replacing senior Von Lacey. Adams had three tackles in his first start for Kansas. Eumont said Adams' promotion to the top of
Jayhawks could not hold back the Golden Flashes' offense Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
the depth chart was a bit misleading.
"Tight now Lacey and Adams are"
"working on the map."
Two juco transfers add talent to KU baseball
Staff writer
By DARRIN STINEMAN
Kansas baseball coach Dave Bingham isn't too big on recruiting junior college players, but this season, his first with the Jayhawks, he has made exections.
Bingham said the team had about 10 junior college transfers, but he said that number would be reduced drastically in the future. He said he brought in a high number of heo players in his first year. He said he would sort out his high school recruiting. He also said he wanted to establish a foundation of more experienced and high-quality players.
Bingham said he expected the two juniors to remain in the meat of the lineup when the real competition began in the spring season.
"When I was at Emporia State, it was really necessary to recruit junior-college players and four-year school transfers," he said. The basis at Kansas is to recruit high school players. I wouldn't make to make (junior college transfers) the main recruiting base."
The main base of the Jayhawks' offense so far this fall has been two transfers from Allen County Community College: Dan Benninghof and Troy Mentzer. Benninghof, a son of Derek and Jon, has been batting third, and Mentzer, a catcher from Topeka, has been in the clean-up spot.
good right-handed hitter and a good power hitter. Dan is a switch-hitter with good power hitting. Are they both good offensive players?
"I think we expect to have both Dan and Troy in the middle of the lineup," Bingham said. "Troy is a
each other to see who won't play. No one earned a starting spot during the game."
And they've both shown this fall. In Kansas' first game, a 15-inning game with Kansas City Bulls that ended in a noughthoff drove in six runs and hit
two home runs, one from each side of the plate. In the Jayhawks' second game, another 15-inning affair, Menter drove in four runs, going three-for-six with a homer in Counsil County Community College
The 15-inning scrimmage-like format exemplifies Bingham's philosophy about fall baseball. He
has emphasized that fall ball is merely an evaluation period and that "There's only one championship season: the spring season."
For that reason, Bingham is hesitant to call Benninghoff and Mentzer the stars of the team just yet.
"I base my opinion on the attitude that until someone has been
KU outfielder Dan Benninghoff, left, and KU catcher Troy Mentzer are two of about 10 junior college transfers on the Ja-hawk baseball team. Both players were recruited from Allen County Community College in iola.
around awhile, he's not proven," he said.
If any new Jayhawks appear ready to emerge as pro stand-outs, Benningshog and Mentzer seem to be. They both played in a semi-pro baseball league, the Jayhawk League, during the summer. Benningshog played for Clarinda, Iowa, and Mentzer played for Red Oak, Iowa. The league consists of teams from Iowa and Kansas, and it had several NCAA Division I players, the two players said.
Benningshog has been an outfielder for only two years, but he said the summer ball helped him to improve his defense. The improvement didn't go unnoticed in the fall workouts.
"Dan was a little suspect, but he has worked hard in the summer league and he really got to be a good outfielder." Bingham said. "Danny really shows that improvement all the time. The summer league really helped him."
Beninghoff and Mentzer said they felt pressure to prove themselves as the main Jayhawk run agent. "If it did, it was not an unfamiliar role."
“Oh, sure there’s pressure, but we wouldn't be there if we weren't able to handle pressure,” Mentzner said. “We've been there before.”
Mentzer was drafted in June by the Philadelphia Phillies, but he chose Kansas over the Phillies' rookie league team at Utica, N.Y.
"I thought down the road I could do better at KU." he said.
Jets smash Patriots, 43-24, in last game before strike
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Al Toon's 58-yard touchdown reception broke open a tight game last night, leading the New York Jets to a 43-24 victory over the New England Patriots in the final NFL game before the players went on strike.
The Associated Press
The Jets held just a 6-1 lead at halftime, when NFL players Association Executive Director Gene Hale joined the union would go on at midnight.
But the Jets made three touchdowns in the third quarter, with
O'Brien, who had a streak of 13 straight completions in the game, passed 16 yards to Toon. Two plays later. Hector swept into the end zone
Johnny Hector adding runs of five and nine yards to Toon's score.
Toon, an All-Pro wide receiver last year, outjumped cornerback Raymond Clayborn at the Patriots' 55-yard line, grabbed the pass from Ken O'Brien, broke Clayborn's tackle and sped into the end zone.
Four plays later, Tony Collins
touches up with Russell.
Russell recovered on the 30.
for a 20-3 lead.
New England, which had only 17 yards on offense in the third period, got a break when rookie Roger Vick fumbled at his 32 on New York's next series. Andre Tippet returned the turnover 32 yards for a touchdown.
Unfazed, the Jets came right back. JoJo Townsell ran 60 yards with the kickoff to the Patriots' 32. But he was caught from behind by Ernest Gibson as he appeared headed for the end zone.
The Jets got into the end zone anyway as they drove to the 9 and
Hector again scored on a sweep.
New York added a safety 69 seconds into the final quarter when Jeff Kinney hit the end zone after a punt by Dave Jennings was down on the 3.
Pat Leahy kicked field goals of 22 and 34 yards for the Jets in the first half. Tony Franklin hit from 32 yards in the second period for New England, 1-1, and Greg Baty caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from Tony Eason in the fourth quarter.
With the victory, the Jets joined the
Players met in the middle of the field before the game for solidarity handshakes. But there were no other reminders of the impending strike, the second to hit the NFL in five years.
Los Angeles Raiders as the only 2-0 teams in the AFC.
Nuu Faaola added two 1-yard touchdowns in the final period. O'Brien, who finished 19-for-26 for 313 yards, his 10th 300-game hit, wintes Walker with a 59-yard pass just before Faaola's first touchdown
Royals lose to Mariners
The Associated Press
SEATTLE — Rookie Mike Campbell pitched a seven-hitter for his first major league victory and Donell Nixon homered and drove in two runs as the Seattle Mariners beat the Kansas City Royals 5-1 last night.
Campbell, 1-4, who failed to win in seven previous attempts, allowed the only run on a lead-off homer in the ninth by Kevin Sitzert, his 15th. The right-hander struck out three and walked one.
Nixon gave Seattle a 1-0 lead when he led off the first inning with a home run off Bret Saberhagen, 17-10. Nixon's second homer of the year was the Mariners' third game-opening shot of the season.
Saberhagen allowed all five runs, four earned. on nine hits.
Rey Quinones tripped in the fourth inning and scored the second Marin-
Seattle added two runs in the fifth. Jim Presley singled, Dave Valle walked and ex-Royal Mike Kingery followed with an RBI single. Valle eventually scored as first baseman George Brett dropped shortstop Ross Jones' throw on the potential third out.
Alvin Davis hit a solo run in the sixth, his 26th of the year, for Seahawks.
Scoreboard
Baseball
American League
Toronto 2, Baltimore 1
Boston 9, Detroit 4
Detroit 6, Chicago 3
California 5, Seattle 3
Kansas City 7
National League
New York 7, Chicago 1
Pittsburgh 5, Montreal 2
St. Louis 3, Philadelphia 1
Los Angeles 4, San Francisco 2
Football
New York Jets 43, New England 24