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SPORTS
GUARD'S INJURY STILL AN ISSUE
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Mario Little has a more serious injury than previously thought and won't play on Tuesday. MEN'S BASKETBALL | 7B
SOCCER'S LOSS ESPECIALLY PAINFUL
The team's loss to Missouri means that Kansas will have to win the Big 12 Tournament to have a chance at NCAA Tournament play. SOCCER | 8B
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2008
WWW.KANSAN.COM
COMMENTARY
A rare glimpse of coach's feelings
Mark Mangino rarely gives us any glimpses of emotion. That's his way. So we have to live on the tiny scraps, the little slivers of passion, that slip past his stoic exterior.
Well, he gave us something Saturday. It was small, but it was something.
With 10:55 left in the first quarter, junior running back Jake Sharp slashed into the end zone and gave Kansas a 6-0 lead. It was early. Football games are long. College football games seem to last an eternity. But Kansas had struck first, and Mangino showed his players how much this game meant to him.
As Kansas' offensive players ran back to the sideline, Mangino was there to meet them.
This is KU - Kansas State, he seemed to be saying, We ain't losing this game, not today, not against them.
He pumped his fist, he yelled, and he clapped his hands.
And that was the game. K-State never stood a chance.
You have to know this about Mangino.
Forget all the jokes. Forget all the T-shirts.
Forget the sideline explosions that end up on YouTube. Mangino is an old-school football coach.
Hes a man who coached in a National Championship game as an assistant at Oklahoma. He's a man who coached in a Fiesta Bowl as an assistant at Kansas State. And of course, he led Kansas to an Orange Bowl championship last season.
PAGE 1B
He came to Kansas in 2002 and promptly lost his first game against K-State 64-0. It was an embarrassing loss, especially for Mangino, who had spent nearly a decade at K-State. You don't forget losses like that.
But still, you got the feeling that Mark Mangino had never coached a more important game than the one on Saturday against in-state rival K-State. And that's Mangino's genius.
Back to Saturday, another Sunflower Showdown. You knew Mangino knew what this game meant.
In 2003, K-State smashed Kansas again, cruising to a 42-6 victory. It was K-State's eleventh victory in a row in the series.
But then came 2004, and Mangino, armed with a rugged defense, flipped the script, Kansas edged past K-State 31-28.
His team had beaten K-State twice in a row and had won two out of the last three matchups. Of course, he knew what a victory meant.
"Don't count the days," he says. "Make the days count."
Mangino has a saying he likes to tell his players.
He's lived his life this way. He was raised in New Castle, Pa., a city in the heart of the working-class Rust Belt. He didn't play college football, and he took the long way to Kansas.
So that's Mangino's story. It's a story about determination and grit. It'a a story about making your days count.
And that's what Saturday was about. The Jayhawks could grab the KU-K State rivalry and put it in chokehold.
He was a 31-year-old student coach at Youngstown State, working as an ambulance driver on the side. Oh, and he had young kids too. He left Youngstown to work at a small college, which was then a high school, in Pennsylvania. Finally, he earned a job as a volunteer assistant at K-State in 1991. By then, Mangino had developed into quite the coach.
They could put all K-State demons behind them, and declare themselves the power program in the state. They could make this Saturday count.
SEE DODD ON PAGE 6B
Mangino devised a masterful game
KANSAS 52, KANSAS STATE 21
Junior running back Jake Sharp leaps over a Kansas State defender during the Jayhawks' 52-21 victory over the Wildcats Saturday at Memorial Stadium. Sharp rushed 181 yards on 21 carries throughout the game, and tied the KU single-game record with four touchdowns. The game also represented a redemptive weekend for the Jayhawks, rebounding from two demoralizing losses against Oklahoma and Texas Tech, who defeated the Hawks 63-21 during Kansas' homecoming.
HAWKS REGAIN THEIR SWAGGER
BY B.J. RAINS rains@kansan.com
It would be silly to think that the reason Kansas throttled in-state rival Kansas State
Well, after coach Mark Mangino allowed players to "spat," or wrap athletic tape
52-21 on Saturday was because of a little black athletic tape on the player's shoes, right?
around their cleats for the first time this season, players said they took the field Saturday knowing they were going to win
"Everybody had that swagger on a whole new level," said cornerbred lustin
Thornton. "Regardless of what you say, when you feel good and you think you look good — you're going to play better."
SEE FOOTBALL ON PAGE 4B
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Jayhawks tran Eleven players score points on Sunday
Jayhawks trample Fort Hays State Tigers 93-37 in season opener
BY DANNY NORDSTROM
dnordstrom@kansan.com
Led by juniors Danielle McCray and Sade Morris, Kansas trounced Fort Hays State in its season opener, 93-37, at Allen Fieldhouse Sunday afternoon.
The Jayhawks looked great both offensively and defensively, scoring 39 points off of 27 Fort Hays turnovers. McCray led Kansas in scoring with 20 points and seven rebounds. She was also solid on the defensive end, making four steals. Morris aided McCray's offense, dropping 14 points with four assists.
"I have a lot more confidence in shooting my shots," she said. "Every shot I took, I thought was going in."
Kansas led from the beginning and didn't look back. The team's largest lead was 58 points towards the end of the second half. The Jayhawks shared the ball well and were able to get multiple players involved, with 31 points coming from the bench. Eleven players scored for Kansas, with four posting double-digit totals.
"I think everyone's ability to share the ball was great tonight." McCray said.
In addition to McCray and Morris' domination, junior forward Porscha Weddington did not miss, going 5-5 from the field with 10 points and three rebounds. Also impressive was the shooting of junior guard Kelly Kohn. Kohn went 3-4 from behind the arc and did not miss from the free throw line, scoring 13 points for Kansas.
The unselfish play of senior guard Ivana Catic — who posted seven assists — also helped get the ball inside for Kansas. With the exception of several missed layups, sophomore center Krysten Boogaard played well, putting up eight points and four rebounds.
"Defensively we've got some work to do," she said. "Our ability to contain one-on-one is making me a little nervous right now."
Defensively the Jayhawks were sound with 28 defensive rebounds and 13 steals, but coach Bonnie Henrickson stressed the need for improvement in one-on-one situations.
As a team, the Jayhawks shot 53.6 percent from the field and 54.2 percent from the free-throw line. Their ability to move the ball around and get guards Morris and McCray open looks was the most important factor in Kansas' offensive attack.
After a disappointing 17-16 finish last season, the layhawks hope their perfor-
SEE BASKETBALL ON PAGE 8B
Jon Goering/KANSAN
Junior guard Mirris Morris goes up between two Fort Hays State defenders during the first half of Sunday's game at Allen Fieldhouse. Kansas won the exhibition match easily, putting away the Tigers 93-37.