kansan.com
Volume 124 Issue 66
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
COMMENTARY
Nightmare is almost finished
For Kansas football fans, each Saturday has been like waking up from a bad dream. But don't worry, the nightmare will come to an end this weekend.
For the 120th and perhaps final time, the Jayhawks will take on Missouri in the Border Showdown, and Kansas may not even stand a chance against its century-old rival.
After putting together two consecutive close games against Iowa State and Baylor, the Jayhawks responded with arguably their worst showing in an already embarrassing season. Texas A&M absolutely dismantled the Jayhawks, mercifully winning 61-7. Kansas only managed to gain 1.2 yards per carry and trailed 44-0 at halftime.
Kansas' abysmal performance at Texas A&M virtually eliminated any existing hope when it comes to capturing a conference win in 2011. For a 2-9 team, Saturday's game against Missouri gives Kansas a chance to end the season on a winning note. However, coach Turner Gill has not shown that his teams can play with superior talent.
Missouri opens this game as a 22.5-point favorite, but the jayhawks' ability to win is not my concern. I am more worried about the embarrassment that will likely take place at Arrowhead Stadium on Saturday.
As much as Kansas would love to send Missouri off to the Southeastern Conference with a loss, I don't see any way that happens. It all comes down to the weekly lack of preparation on the side of Gill's coaching staff. Instead of designing schemes and actually sending a prepared team onto the field, Gill has been preaching the same clichés and motivation tactics that do absolutely nothing to improve the team on the field.
I am a firm believer that coaches need at least three years to rebuild a program, but Gill has not showed any signs that he is cut out to coach at this level. He may be a great person of high moral standards, but he is not the right man for the job.
Missouri coach Gary Pinkel was recently arrested for suspicion of driving while intoxicated, and although Gill would more than likely never make that mistake, Pinkel's winning pedigree only cost him a one-game suspension. Pinkel will coach on the sidelines at Arrowhead Stadium.
I am also curious to see if fans' displeasure with the coaching staff will keep them away from Arrow-head. This is the last Border Showdown, so the Kansas faithful should do everything it can to keep Missouri from dominating the 76,000-seat stadium. On the other hand, judging by the recent lackluster turnouts at Memorial Stadium, there will be very little crimson and blue in the stands.
The chances of Kansas earning its third win of the season are extremely slim, but fans should take comfort in knowing that the nightmare is nearly over.
Edited by Jayson Jenks
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL@KANSAN.COM
Jayhawks ready to host Thanksgiving break tournament
CATCH THE HIGHLIGHTS OF THE BASKETBALL VICTORY OVER GEORGETOWN PAGE 6
ALOHAWKS
Senior guard Tyshawn Taylor drives down the court during the first half of Monday's first round of the EA Sports Maui invitational against Georgetown held at the Lahaina Civic Center.
CHRIS BRONSON/KANSAN
BIRDS OF PARADISE
MAX ROTHMAN
mrothman@kansan.com
LAHINA, Hawaii — A week removed from a loss in New York and a few long-distance flights, the Jayhawks never had a second to catch a breath of the fresh tropical air.
Georgetown wouldn't let them.
Kansas slipped out of the Lahaina Civic Center with a 67-63 victory, but coach Bill Self couldn't sit down on the sideline. He never had a lead that would enable an easy rest on the bench.
Carried by junior forward Hollis Thompson, a stringy skyrocket who shoots 3-pointers with mechanical form, the Hoyas never relented, even if the team rarely led. Thompson dazzled outside, swishing several contested shots from deep, yet never shied away from taking it to heart of the Kansas defense. Georgetown coach John Thompson III orchestrated his typical Princeton-style offense, lulling the Jayhawks with passes to and fro, screws that snuck from behind and plenty of patience.
Kansas had to work around varying zone defenses and presses that clogged lanes and denied the
right to dribble. At times, Georgetown's formations dictated the pace of the game and morphed Kansas into a slower half-court team. Without the privilege of steady fast breaks, Self needed his shooters to step up.
Senior guard Tyshawn Taylor obliged, proving that his long summer of shooting was worth the effort. He knocked down all three of his 3-point attempts, establishing himself as a far more complete player than he's ever been. Then there was a brief scare.
three, but fell to the floor grabbing his calves. With players, referees and trainers around him, Taylor repeated: "I can't do it." After stretching on the bench for a few minutes, Taylor returned. Just as he had done before the fall, he energized an offense that was often dumbfounded by Georgetown.
With 14:28 left in the game, Taylor jumped to defend a Hoya
Under Taylor's lead, junior forward Thomas Robinson thrived. His experimentation with midrange shooting produced average results, but he didn't need it. Instead, he hung by the basket, where he's always been affective. Alley-oop dunks and two-handed
rebounds came in bunches, as Robinson finished the game with 20 points and 12 rebounds.
The Hoyas didn't allow the Jay-hawks to sleepwalk through the contest. While the tight game may have been a product of sloppy basketball just as much as determination, a mere 15 minutes of pre-game warmups at a distant high school gym can do that to a team. And now, even after the victory, Kansas still can't fully rest, as UCLA awaits in the semi-finals on Tuesday.
Edited by Jayson Jenks
FOOTBALL
Border Showdown is Kansas' bowl game
MIKE VERNON mvernon@kansan.com
When senior center Jeremiah Hatch's career is done, he'll have plenty of mementos to help him remember his time at Kansas.
Most notably, he has rings from the Orange Bowl in Miami and the Insight Bowl in Phoenix. But those games aren't what he will remember when he reminisces about playing at Kansas. Instead, he will think of playing Missouri.
And while the stakes are always at a premium when Kansas plays Missouri, this year's game will have even greater implications. As the Tigers prepare to leave the Big 12, the game will, in all likelihood, be the last time the two teams play in the foreseeable future.
"Those games are just unbelievable," Hatch said. "A lot of people think I would remember the Orange Bowl or Arizona. But those Missouri games, all of them. Even the ones we lost."
Coach Turner Gill has said that he doesn't think the Jayhawks will play Missouri in the future and other comments from Kansas officials have
indicated that this will be the last game in the 120-year rivalry.
Hatch said he couldn't imagine the two schools bringing the rivalry to a close.
"I wish those younger guys would get the chance of seeing some of the atmosphere of the game, realizing the importance
of the game,
the fun of the
game," Hatch
said. "You wish
those guys
would get to
see that."
Even though 119 games have been played in the history of
the series, it will all come down to number 120. The series history, although disputed, is tied at 55-55-9. Kansas and NCAA records have it that way, while the Missouri has the series record at 56-54-9 in the Tigers' favor.
The dispute dates back to the 1960 Border War in which No. 1 Missouri played host to No. 11 Kansas, Kansas, led by two-time All-American John Hadl, defeated Missouri 23-7.
Kansas running back Bert Coan was later ruled ineligible by the Big Eight and had to forfeit the game. The NCAA ruled in 1999 that the game counts as a win for Kansas.
Either way, Saturday's edition of the rivalry carries weight.
"You want to get that win and have bragging rights for
JORDAN WEBB Quarterback
however long,
sophomore
quarterback
Jordan Webb
said. "It's going
to be a
huge game."
Eventthough they are 2-9 this season, the lavhwaks
have plenty to play for.
"Since we're not going to a bowl game," junior cornerback Greg Brown said, "I guess we'll go in and look at this as being our bowl game."
Coming off a 61-7 loss to Texas A&M. Gill isn't concerned about any lack of effort.
"We've got one more big one." Gill said. "All you got to say is Missouri."
Edited by Jayson Jenks
CHRIS NEAL/KANSAN
Jordan Webb scrambles for a play last Saturday. Next, the team takes on Missouri.