NSAN
2008
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2008
5B
SOCCER (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
phenomenal there too against very, very good competition. So we said 'Hey, lets leave her in the middle.'"
Even though Johnson played some center back in high school, she said the move from left back had been a gradual adjustment as she acclimated to tracking players on both sides of the field.
She is also developing another part of her game that is more mental than physical. Johnson is one of three team captains chosen by her teammates alongside junior goalkeeper Julie Hanley and senior midfielder Jessica Bush.
Sauer was the de facto leader of the backline last season, and Johnson said playing with so many talented defenders has given her excellent examples of what it takes to be a leader.
"Last year that was Afton's role and I think I've learned a lot from her," Johnson said. "I am kind of trying to step into her shoes and lead by example back there."
So far that example has helped guide Kansas to 12 victories, limited opponents to 1.43 goals per game and facilitated the team's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2004. Johnson also turned in
two sterling performances in last week's Big 12 Tournament in San Antonio, earning her a spot on the all-tournament team. Francis said he was happy to see Johnson's play acknowledged, but that he was surprised not to see the versatile defender's name on the all-conference teams earlier in the week.
"To be honest, I thought she should have made it last year," Francis said. "As a defense sometimes it's a little bit tough. Forwards have stats. You can say 'I've scored this many goals.'"
Johnson scored her first career goal this season even though her
role in the attack had diminished. Looking more like a striker than defender, she dribbed the length of the field and scored from long range against Oklahoma State. Johnson said she missed the few forays forward she was afforded as an outside back, but acknowledged her new role was where she was more needed.
It's that kind of attitude, as well as her sense of humor, that has allowed the junior to help keep her teammates focused in training and games while also keeping the mood loose during tense moments.
"Estelle is a goofy kid." Francis said. "She knows when to say something funny to get everybody to relax a little bit. But on field, whether that be in practice or a game, she is one of our most competitive kids. I think that rubs off on other people."
Johnson isn't afraid of a little contact either. She is second on the team with three yellow cards, and junior midfielder Shannon McCabe said Johnson's intensity and physicality gave Kansas an extra edge to its game.
"I would say she is passionate and emotional," McCabe said. "I"
feel like it's important to have your emotions invested in the game. Sometimes they can get the most of you and you can get yellow cards, but it's that fire that kind of helps the team."
The same fire is what makes Johnson such an effective defender. Her mad-dog mentality has stuck with her. She still refuses to rest until the ball is gone.
"I just have an attitude," Johnson said. "You aren't going to get by me, and if you are, you aren't getting by me clean."
Edited by Brenna Hawley
ROBINSON (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
Kansas assistant coach Joe Dooley received Robinson's official letter of intent around 12:30 Wednesday afternoon. Robinson was the only Kansas recruit to sign his letter on signing day.
Elijah Johnson, a Las Vegas point guard and Rivals.com's No. 27-ranked player, has also verbally committed to the Jayhawks. Johnson, however, will not sign his letter until Monday because of scheduling conflicts with his signing ceremony.
Self is only allowed to comment on players who have already committed under NCAA rules. He had plenty to say about Robinson.
"He's a rebounder. He goes after every loose ball." Ball said. "He's a
high energy guy with a motor. He probably has as good a motor as anyone we've recruited since we've been here."
Robinson is Self's first five-star commit since Sherron Collins and Darrell Arthur picked Kansas in 2006. Self briefly compared Robinson to Arthur before concluding Arthur was more of a scorer out of high school while Robinson is more of a rebounder.
He continued to think of players to compare Robinson to. One might surprise Kansas fans.
"I'm not saying he's Tyler Hansbrough," Self said. "But he competes, he goes after the ball like Tyler does."
Xavier Henry, an Oklahoma City shooting guard who is ranked as the No. 3 player in the nation, and Michael Snaer, a Moreno Valley, Calif. shooting guard who is ranked as the No. 11 player in the nation. Snaer is choosing between Kansas, Florida State and Marquette. Henry is deciding between Kansas and Memphis. Snaer and Henry have both delayed their decisions, but they could be coming soon.
Rivals.com ranks Kansas' recruiting class as No. 4 in the nation with Robinson and Johnson.
Kansas'remainingtargetsinclude
"Hopefully, it will be better than that when it's all said and done," Self said.
Edited by Scott R. Toland
NFL
Packers move on after Favre
BY CHRIS JENKINS ASSOCIATED PRESS
ASSOCIATED PRESS
GREEN BAY, Wis. - When Green Bay sent Brett Favre packing in training camp, team officials knew they were trading away a wildly popular, remarkably tough player who might still have a good year or two left in him.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is sacked by Minnesota Vikings Jared Allen, right, and another Vikings player, lower left, during the first quarter of an NFL football game Sunday, in Minneapolis. Minnesota won 28-7.
They also were waving goodbye to an unashamedly self-centered, notoriously indecisive diva with a penchant for throwing the ball to the other team. The Packers had learned to live with those things for years, and probably could have done so for one more season.
The one thing they couldn't live with was a player who admitted he couldn't get over his lingering resentment toward a front office that — wisely — ignored his advice about signing Randy Moss, hiring Steve Mariucci, and a handful of other personnel decisions.
Faced with a star player who was becoming a monumental distraction to the team he always claimed to put first — and who might have been trying to pout himself a path to play for division rival Minnesota — trading Favre to the New York Jets was the right call.
Even now, with the Packers teetering on the edge of playoff contention, it's still the right call.
If you think the Packers' 4-5 record would be significantly better with Favre at quarterback instead of Aaron Rodgers, it might be worth making a list of the Packers' biggest problems — then figuring out just how far down that list you have to go to find Rodgers.
Yes, the Packers have fallen out of first place in the NFC North after two straight losses, and face a tough fight to make the playoffs. But given all their other problems, it seems the
Packers were bound to take a step backward with or without Favre.
They've been hit hard by injuries, something they largely avoided on their way to the NFC Championship game last year. Defensive lineman Cullen Jenkins was lost early on, and now you'll be without middle linebacker Nick Barnett for the rest of the season.
Several other key contributors have missed significant playing time because of injuries.
Beyond that, the Packers are playing a more difficult schedule. And they're having a tough time running the ball on offense and stopping the run on defense, two fundamental flaws Favre wouldn't have been able to fix.
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Conference wanted Texas to win the game so they could make the BCS, which would have brought in a large sum of money for the league. He was fined $5,000 by the conference and issued an apology soon after.
Mangino was trying to build a program, and he said he wasn't going to be pushed around by the conference or the league's bigger and higher spending teams.
FOOTBALL(CONTINUED FROM 1B)
"I appreciate if any coach goes out and sticks up for his team," said linebacker Joe Mortensen, who was was redshirting and standing on the sidelines during the game. "We knew that he had our back and we felt that it was an unjust call. He said it and I know he got fined and got in trouble and ESPN showed it, all that stuff. But we knew he had our backs — that's the most important stuff. The people in here, we could count on him."
"We had lost some difficult ball games that year, and our kids after that game were just crushed," Mangino said in May. "I had never been around a team that had been so disheartened about a loss. So I just warned people, some administrators, on my way to the press
Mangino wouldn't talk about the outburst during Tuesday's press conference but did speak about the rant during a luncheon for The National Football Foundation and the Football Writers Association of America last spring.
"I knew I was going to get criticism for it and take some bullets, but Kansas hadn't had a winning program for many years, we were trying to get it on its feet. We were getting close but just couldn't get it over the hump, so I took a bullet for it."
Most current players weren't on the team at the time, but safety Darrell Stuckey was in the stands on a recruiting visit. He remembers the play - and the ensuing rant - like it was yesterday.
room, what I was going to do, and it was to save the team.
"I saw Charles catch the ball and everybody was cheering and then all of a sudden we see the flag come in," Stuckey said. "It was thrown late, and I was like 'Oh man, this is not going to be good.'"
Like Mortensen, Stuckey was proud with the way his future coach stood up for his team and was behind the coach 100 per cent.
"I was totally behind him," Stuckey said. "I was like, 'Yeah!' Its one of those things where it shows the character of a coach. It showed that he cared about his players and that he wanted a fair game for his players. Coach Mangino knew the consequence that potentially could happen and he still fought for his players. At the time we were a struggling program and we were trying to gain respect and he felt like they were taking advantage of that."
The rant was a stepping stone for Mangino and the Jayhawks, who had gone 0-8 in the Big 12 just two years before and were trying to turn the KU football program into one of respectability.
A win over No. 7 Texas would have done wonders in jump-starting the turnaround, and Mangino felt his team had a hard-earned victory stolen from them. Not only did he want the league and the country to know that Kansas football was on the rise, but he wanted his players to know as well.
"It showed that KU is not going to be just another doormat for the marquee teams in the conference to walk over, just because it's better for everybody if they end up going to the BCS," said John Larson, who was a redshirt during the 2004 season.
"That's something I've always admired in coach — his honestly and forthrightness throughout whatever is going on. If he felt like it was a bad call, he was going to say so."
And his outburst appears to have worked. The Jayhawks were 11-23 under Mangino before the rant with and 32-16 since.
Mangino said in May that he wished he would have handled the situation better. His players, however, are glad and thankful for what he did.
- Edited by Scott R. Toland