kansan.com
Friday, November 4, 2011
FOOTBALL PREVIEW: READY FOR IOWA STATE? STATE
W When it comes to making something ugly more appealing, there is an old saying: you can't put lipstick on a pig.
This season, Kansas football coach Turner Gill has tried to take that saying even further. He's put lipstick on the pig, injected it with Botox and given it a nose job. But Gill's always sunny attitude regarding his historically horrible team is starting to rub Kansas fans the wrong way.
Positivity from Gill grows old
"We're doing just OK." Gill said when asked how he was doing.
It was a far cry from former coach Mark Mangino's epic rant after his team lost at Texas in 2004, which has received nearly 200,000 views on YouTube. And believe it or not, that is the closest Gill has come all season to showing that these blowout losses are getting to him.
Listening to Gill's teleconference on Oct. 30 was a surreal experience for anyone who has seen even one quarter of Kansas football this season.
And as unfair as it may be, Gill has reached that point with Kansas football fans.
Positivity is part of his character, and it is one of his greatest traits. Gill probably takes the losses harder than anyone in Lawrence not named Vic Shealy. But there is a time when positivity begins to be interpreted as apathy, and a stolc attitude is interpreted as being nonchalant.
- Edited by Ben Chipman
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Gill went on to praise the defense, saying they showed mental toughness and determination. Yes, that defense, the one that surrendered 590 total yards of offense and 441 rushing yards to the Longhorns. He said the offense played hard. Yes, that offense, the one that rushed 20 times for -2 yards and came within two yards of the all-time mark for futility for a Kansas offense.
Nobody is asking for Gill to have a complete meltdown, like the infamous "I'm a man! I'm 40!" tirade from Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy in 2007. That might be the only thing that could embarrass the University more than the losing. But Gill's positivity during chaos is making him look like Nero, fiddling while Rome burns.
Sophomore running back James Sims looks for running room but finds none in the first half of last Saturday's game against Texas. Sims rushed three times for five yards in the Jayhawks 0-43 defeat. Kansas is now 2-6 for the season and winless in conference play.
CHRIS BRONSON/KANSAN
OK, so a teleconference may not have been the best platform for Gill to unleash hell. But what about one of his many, many press conferences during the week? Surely at some point Gill could have shown some semblance of being mad as hell and not going to take it anymore, right?
TRY. TRY AGAIN
"There are a lot of good things that have occurred in our football season and also with our football team," Gill told The Kansan at a press conference. "We are No.1 in the conference in net punting."
Well, not this season. Especially not on Oct. 11 when Gill had this gem:
The Jayhawks defense is poised to break the all-time record for yards allowed per game in one season, set by Maryland in 1994 (553). The offense gave the Longhorns their first shutout since 2005 last week. Gill isn't just trying to find silver linings. He is trying to find them in the middle of destructive hurricane.
A CHANGE IN ROUTINE
MIKE VERNON
mvernon@kansan.com
The coaching staff said that they're changing the way Kansas conducts its practices this week and mother nature helped advance those changes Wednesday night.
The steady rain and cooling temperatures drove the Jayhawks out of their normal practice facilities and onto the indoor turf at Anschutz Pavilion.
"We got our debut on the inside turf today and it worked out pretty well," Turner Gill said. "We're just trying to keep our guys intense. We're just trying to change up the practice part of it and change the routine because I think when you stimulate the brain it does help some guys to do better."
A different routine may be able to help the running game that was supposed to carry the team through this season. After being a strong point throughout the first six games of the Kansas season, the rushing attack has become a detriment to a struggling Kansas offense.
In the previous two games against Kansas State and Texas, Kansas rushed for a combined total of 74 yards and the offense only scored a total of 21 points. While the negative two-yard rushing performance against Texas brings the numbers down considerably, the Jayhawks have averaged 169.8 less yards on the ground in those past two games, compared to their first six.
In those first six games, the defense was collapsing while the offense maintained itself as a steady force, keeping games somewhat respectable for Kansas. The Jayhawks averaged 206.8 yards per game on the ground and 31.6 points per game.
"We don't think throwing the ball 30 or 40 times a game is the best way for us to be productive," Gill said.
Following Kansas' sixth game of the season against Oklahoma, the Jayhawks have averaged approximately 23 more rushing attempts per game than passes. In its last two games, Kansas is averaging only 2.5 more runs than passes per game.
And that's just what Kansas has been forced to do. Unfortunately, like the diminishing rushing game, the passing attack that proved to be so efficient early in the season has also collapsed.
"I felt coming off of that last
game and practice Sunday, you never know what's going to happen and how they're going to show up mentally," offensive coordinator Coach Long said about the mood of the team Sunday. "But, they showed up in great spirits and practiced well. There was a sense of 'hey, that wasn't us, we want to do better."
The Kansas offense will have its chance to do better against a 4-4 Iowa State team. The Cyclones have a rush defense that ranks 108th in
the country. They have given up an average of 206.75 yards per game.
be the Jayhawks' last chance to shed light on a season filled with disappointments.
Before defeating Texas Tech 41-7, the Cyclones had allowed an average of 310.6 yards in their previous three games against Texas A&M, Missouri and Baylor.
The Jayhawks have ranted on the opportunities that lay ahead for them all season, and with two games to go in the season, they are running out of opportunities to speak about. Saturday's 11:30 a.m. matchup with Iowa State could
"I was telling those kids today, this is a great day, because it's another opportunity to get better, it's another opportunity to take the Kansas program where we want it to go," offensive line coach J.B. Grimes said.
— Edited by Mandy Matney
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Despite youth, Knight ready to lead the team
KATHLEEN GIER
kgier@kansan.com
In her short time with the team, freshman guard Natalie Knight has risen to a starting spot on the roster. Wednesday night she suited up for an exhibition game against Emporia State, which Kansas won 83-61. Teammates lauded the control and poise that she displayed at the point guard position despite her age as a freshman.
"It was exciting," Knight said. "I was a little nervous at the beginning, but as the opening tip went up and our team came together, it wasn't hard to get in the flow of the game."
Knight played a team-high 23 minutes after starting the game. Though scoreless, she led the team with five assists. Adding two rebounds and a steal, Knight contributed to the 22 points the Jayhawks scored in transition.
She credits junior guard Angel Goodrich with helping her make the move to the college level.
"Every day in practices, Angel pushes me and makes me better," Knight said. "She's so good; she makes very few mistakes. Coming to practice every day and knowing you have to bring it,
Goodrich is the humble leader of the young Jayhawk squad. She not only serves as a mentor for the less experienced players, but also plays a special role for the point guards.
she's helped me from the point guard standpoint."
"She learns quick," Goodrich said of Knight. "She is getting there, every day she is looking to push the ball more and more."
Knight's success is no surprise though. The Olathe native was named KBCA Miss Kansas Basketball and the 2011 Gatorade Kansas High School Player of the Year her senior year.
She snuck into the starting lineup during the team's summer tour of Italy where she impressed coach Bonnie Henrickson and her teammates.
This season, Knight is hoping to offer versatility to the team and said she is ready to help in any way.
"Whatever my role is going to be on the team, I want to do that and to help in any way that I can," Knight said. "Whatever we are lacking that game; I want to be able to help pick the team up."
Knight and the rest of team will continue exhibition play against Pittsburg State at 2 p.m. on Sunday. The Gorillas finished last season at 16-12.
Junior Carolyn Davis, who led the team in scoring last season, said it was a relief to have a game where they had a chance to evaluate their progress.
"It felt good to be on the court and shoot around," Davis said. "It came really quick, but it was good to get out there and see what everyone had to offer."
Davis was impressed with the play of the freshmen who all played significant minutes for Kansas in the victory. The freshmen scored a combined 23 points and 14 rebounds led by guards Bunny Williams, with eight points, and Donielle Breaux, who grabbed four rebounds.
The Jayhawks showed room for improvement on rebounding. They were outrebounded 39-38 by a smaller Emporia State team. They had success, however, forcing 27 turnovers and grabbing 18 steals.
"I think they all did great," Davis said. "The posts went in and played the way we play in the post. They showed us what they've been learning all week. I think the guards were very aggressive."
Edited by Ben Chipman
IESSICA IANASZ/KANSAN
Natalie Knight goes for the shot in Wednesday's game against Emporia. Though she didn't score, she gave the Jayhawks five assists, two rebounds and a steal.
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