6B SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
BIG 12 FOOTBALL PREVIEW
THURSDAY, AUGUST 28, 2008
Conference prepares for rule changes
BY TAYLOR BERN
tbern@kansan.com
A new season brings with it a new set of rules, and the one change that Big 12 coaches have their eye on most is the new play clock.
The old 25-second play clock has been scrapped in favor of the 40-second running clock used by the NFL. The goal is to try and shorten the college game to keep the viewing public's attention.
Instead of a 25-second play clock that starts when the ball is marked ready, the 40-second clock will start as soon as the previous play is whistled dead.
On an out-of-bounds play, the clock will start on the referees' signal as opposed to the snap of the next play.
That second rule is void in the last two minutes of each half, when the clock won't start until the play begins, just like the NFL.
Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops sees the change as a way to standardize the clock rules, because it will no longer hinge on how quickly a referee places the ball.
"I think as much as anything, it's
going to make a consistent pace of play" Stoops said.
Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said that since most teams in the conference were going to a no-huddle or hurry-up offense anyway, the new clock rules wouldn't have any negative effects and could allow more plays per game.
STUCK IN NEUTRAL
Three Big 12 teams have difficult first games on neutral fields—sort of.
On Saturday afternoon, Oklahoma State will play Washington State in Seattle. The game is technically a home contest for the Cougars, but their fans will certainly outnumber the Cowboy faithful.
Gundy isn't judging Washington State by its 5-7 record from a year ago, but more at the level of competition that it faced.
"They play in a BCS conference and they're athletic," Gundy said. "We don't have any idea what they're going to do."
No. 6 Missouri's Saturday evening match-up with No. 20 Illinois in St. Louis is the marquee game
of the week. The Tigers' national championship hopesdepend on winning this game.
"We're certainly going to find out real fast where we're at," Coach Gary Pinkel said.
Pinkel will likely have to win without a pair of Alexanders. Pinkel said wide receiver Danario Alexander is out with an injury and linebacker Van Alexander is doubtful but will still travel with the team.
Sunday afternoon Colorado will battle Colorado State in the teams' annual rivalry game in Denver. Last year the Buffalooes won 31-28 in overtime.
NEW SUBSCRIBER?
During Tuesday's Big 12 coaches teleconference, Kansas State coach Ron Prince was asked if he would subscribe to Playboy after the gentleman's magazine ranked his team No. 22 in its preseason poll.
Prince laughed off the question and the following comment that he could claim he only wanted it for the articles.
"I guess that's nice that someone thought that we're putting in the
work to have a nice season". Prince said.
In other Wildcat news, Prince said he's finally found a starting running back.
After injuries and disciplinary issues left him with a depleted unit, Prince announced that junior Keithen Valentine has planted himself as the top tailback.
Prince
Valentine, a walk-on from Mississippi Delta Community College, ran for 104 yards on 15 carries in the spring game. Prince said he knew then that Valentine was a great speed runner, but didn't realize how versatile he was.
"What I didn't know he was capable of was to run with power, which he showed in our training camp." Prince said. "That was probably our most pleasant surprise.
"He just seems to get the most out of every single run."
Edited by Scott Toland
U. S. OPEN
Jankovic narrowly escapes upset
ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEW YORK — Jelena Jankovic bent over her racket, leaned against a back wall with a towel pressed to her face, and sprawled on her stomach in the middle of center court.
Then the No. 2 seed gutted her way into the third round of the U.S. Open.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Jelena Jankovic of Serbia reaches for a shot from Sofia Arvidsson of Sweden during their match at the U.S. Open tennis tournament in New York, Wednesday. Jankovic won in three sets to advance to the third round.
Jankovic outlasted Sweden's Sofia Arvidsson 6-3, 6-7 (5), 7-5 Wednesday on yet another uncharacteristically mild August day in Flushing Meadows.
The combination of not being in match condition following a summer knee injury and an array of hard forehands and well-placed drop shots by Arvidsson left Jankovic fighting to get her wind during the 2 hour, 44 minute match at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
"That was a really tough one," said Jankovic, who has reached the fourth round in the first three Grand Slam events this year. "As you can see, I am completely out of breath. She really pushed me to the limit."
Jankovic twice served for the win in the middle set against Arvidsson, yet couldn't put her away — even with a match point in reach. Jankovic held off Arvidsson in a back-and-forth third set when both had trouble holding serve.
When Arvidsson fired long on
the final point, Jankovic had her third service break of the third set and eighth overall. There was suddenly a spring in her step as she waved and blew kisses to the crowd.
Even with the squandered chances on her serve, Jankovic still had an opportunity to advance without going the distance. She jumped to a 3-0 lead in the second set tiebreak before losing six straight points.
Jankovic extended the set by winning two points on her serve, but fired wide as she approached the net — drawing an exuberant "Yeah" from Arvidsson.
Several times, Jankovic hunched over and leaned on her racket but didn't appear to be in distress. The Serb, who held the No. 1 ranking
If anything ailed her other than fatigue Wednesday, it wasn't evident in the decisive third set when she raced to a 3-0 edge. Jankovic doubled over again when a fortuitous shot by Arvidsson crept over the net after it smacked the cord in the fourth game, but that appeared more out of exasperation than discomfort.
earlier this year, lost in the fourth round at Wimbledon after injuring a knee in the previous match.
After a drop shot eluded her dive, Jankovic dropped to the court face down and stayed there for several moments. If anything, it gave her a brief rest.
"I'm still not yet at my full potential, but I'm trying my best," said Jankovic, whose serve was broken twice in each set. "I am still a long
way from where I want to be."
While Jankovic escaped an early exit, No. 8 seed Vera Zvonareva couldn't. Zvonareva was upended by Tatiana Perebiyinis 6-3, 6-3 in the tournament's biggest upset yet. Svetlana Kuznetsova shook off an early break and rallied to a 7-6 (3), 6-1 victory over Sorana Cirstea.
In men's first-round play, fifth-seeded Nikolay Davydenko beat Dudi Sela 6-3, 6-3, 6-3; No. 18 Nicolas Almaso eliminated Frank Dancevic 6-3, 6-4, 7-5; and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, the No.19 seed, moved on with a 6-7 (3), 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 win over Santiago Ventura.
The afternoon session on Day 3 at the Open also featured No. 3 seed Novak Djokovic, who followed countrywoman Jankovic onto center court.
tence, and we likely could know the effects of fantasy football on office productivity after devouring the Wall Street Journal's "latest" findings.
COMMENTARY (CONTINUED FROM1A)
Fantasy football's continuous ascent into becoming one of sports fans' greatest obsessions has a great deal to do with this Information Age we live in.
Every NFL snap on television broadcasts is now succeeded by a graphic popping out of the scoreboard with each player's stats. Larry Johnson: 1 rush, -2 yards. Larry Johnson: 2 rushes, 1 yard...
We can also draft, trade and set our lineups via cell phone. And of course there is the Internet: A vast plain of knowledge for us to track each touchdown, knee sprain and arrest.
No longer must league owners stay up late each Sunday and calculate the stats of each fantasy leaguer's team as my dad did. Today our computers do our work for us after every play.
No, phones still had cords then and those cords were usually wrapped around the neck of the poor schmuck who picked Barry Sanders ahead of my dad.
Fantasy football will always have a sense of nostalgia with me. Peering out of the hallway in our awkward footie pajamas, Kevin and I didn't see our dad scanning his iPhone for draft advice.
So on the eve of fantasy football's 47th season, this theoretical sport inches closer to overtaking real football as America's New New Favorite Pastime.
- to watch Adrian Peterson and LaDainian Tomlinson go on their touchdown benders.
Meanwhile, our homes and the sports bars of America will become the real stage for this new sport as we don the jerseys of players from our fantasy teams and cheer and jeer at every moment of every game.
Chiefs coach Herm Edwards is ahead of the curve. In his attempt to put positive spin on the Chiefs upcoming season, Herm alluded to personnel decisions as being "like fantasy football."
Because with fantasy football, at least one person will have something at stake every minute of each season.
Edwards, an NFL coach, just compared reality to fantasy.
Each season, as ticket and parking prices grow more obscene at NFL stadiums, corporate executives and other big wigs will fill the luxury boxes — which will soon replace all other seats
Perhaps he's on to something. When he is fired by Carl Peterson in Peterson's last attempt to save face in Kansas City, Edwards can become a head coach in America's most popular sport.
CANADA (CONTINUED FROM 1A)
Edited by Becka Cremer
Like many of us already are.
"It's going to be exciting," Aldrich said. "We're really trying to work on practice. We've got such a young team. We're trying to get a lot of things in before the season starts."
Practice. That's the buzz-word surrounding the Jayhawks' trek to the Great White North. Kansas coach Bill Self and his players have stressed that their trip to the land of maple leaves and "Terrance and Phillip" isn't going to be treated the same way a regular season road game would be treated.
leading up to them to help eliminate those same mistakes when the season rolls around in three months.
Self knows his team is young. He expects them to make mistakes. But he also expects the three games and the week of practice
"If we take advantage of these eight days, I think that could help us
"If we take advantage of these eight days, I think that could help us a lot come December."
Self was unsure if Collins would be able to play in Ottawa. The NCAA hasn't ruled incoming freshmen Marcus and Markieff Morris academically eligible yet. Unless the Morris twins are cleared in the next two days, they won't play either.
games. Junior guard Sherron Collins, the only player on the roster with starting experience at Kansas, hasn't practiced since the team began Thursday because he's not in good enough shape.
Even without them, five newcomers will make their first official appearances as Jayhawks. Junior college transfers Mario Little and Tyrone Appleton should
BILL SELF Coach
lot come December," Self said. "I don't want to wear our guys out by any means, on the flip side, we've got to get a baseline on how we're going to play."
It would appear that Self also needs to get an idea of who is going to play. All the starters from last year's national championship team are gone. These games in Ottawa could serve as the perfect opportunity to tinker with lineup combinations for Self. Then he might have a better idea of potential starters come November. Right? That's not the way Self is looking at it.
"I could care less," Self said. "I don't even care to have a mindset of 'hey, this will be our best lineup' at all."
A few key players might not participate in the exhibition
receive significant minutes in the front-court. Fellow guard Tyshawn Taylor, who scored 47 points and recorded 17 rebounds in one amateur league game
this summer, will try to continue on his impressive summer.
Kansas City native Travis Releford will play in his first game since competing for Team U.S.A. in the FIBA Americas Under 18 Tournament this summer. Freshman forward Quintrell Thomas will be the only scholarship player down low, other than Aldrich, if the Morris twins don't qualify in time.
Teams are only allowed to travel to Canada for exhibition games once every four years. Self said he was glad Kansas could go this year because of how inexperienced its roster is.
"I think this is the best time we could possibly do this." We said.
Edited by Scott Toland