Sports
[Football]
2003 Border War update
In the 2003 Border War, Kansas is leading 6 to1.5 points over rival Missouri with 18 points left yet to be determined this year. PAGE 8B
The University Daily Kansan
sports commentary
1B
Wednesday, October 29, 2003
Ryan Greene rgreene@kansan.com
Whittemore deserves recognition
Dear Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Selection Committee,
I saw the release of your seven finalists for the nation's top senior quarterback on Thursday, and have to tell you that you really screwed the pooch on this one. The reason many people do not take stock in the multitude of postseason individual awards, sometimes even the Heisman, is because the selection of the nominees is biased, and this year is a perfect example.
The ballot is full of glitz pre-season-hyped names such as Oklahoma's Jason White, Mississippi's Eli Manning and Michigan's John Navarre. Now those guys have lived up to the talk and have had solid seasons, but the last two names really irk me — Tulane's J.P. Losman and Virginia's Matt Schaub.
Had you told me that these two were up for the award before the season started, I would have believed you whole-heartedly, as they were both coming off outstanding junior seasons. But stuff happens.
Allow me to tell you the tale of a man named Bill Whitemore, a senior quarterback at Kansas.
It shows how shallow your research is as far as selecting candidates when you easily glanced right over the feel-good story of the college football season.
Now, Whittemore was knocked out last Saturday, likely for the remainder of the season, in a loss at Kansas State. Only after Whittemore was taken to the locker room did the Jayhawk nation see the reality of how important he really was to the program.
However, I propose to you that your committee should have looked past the media's typical darlings for this award and seen our blue-collared, hard-nosed offensive cornerstone.
As his season has ended at eight games, Whittimore is the fifth-highest rated passer in the nation and has tied and broken multiple school passing records in less than eight games this year and just nine last year. He is also second on the school's all-time touchdowns responsible for list with 44.
The guy who is in first, Chip Hilleary, had 48 touchdowns over four seasons. To boot, Whittemore only threw three interceptions this season, and until last Saturday, had not thrown one since the second game of the season.
However, his most important statistic is not found in box scores — he
SEE WHITTEMORE ON PAGE 4B
John Nielsen
Brian Luke
- 6-foot-6
- 220 pounds
- Sophomore
- Walnut Creek,
Calif. (Las Lomas HS)
- Appeared in three
games last year, completing
14-of-47 passes for 214 yards and three
interceptions. Completed a career-high
seven passes twice last season against Kansas
State and Nebraska.
'Hawks look for new QB
By Ryan Greene
rgreene@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
Don't count Bill Whittemore out just vet.
After it was speculated that he would miss the remainder of the season following Saturday's loss at Kansas State, Mark Mangino said he has been told Whitmore could return to the practice field rather soon. While the senior might be able to practice, his availability for any of Kansas' final four games is still a tosup-
ous and they suspect that he'll be out on the practice field maybe as early as the end of this week or the beginning of next week and be able to function." Mangino said. "The problem we face is that injury could lead to a more complicated situation for Bill's own personal health, and I'm not going to put him in harm's way."
"The actual injury itself is not that seri-
Now that it is certain he will not play this week, the lavihawks must shift focus.
Going into Texas A&M this Saturday as underdogs and minus one starting quarterback, Kansas is looking for any possible advantage. Coach Mark Mangino may have found that by way of
the famous element of surprise.
At Kansas State, Luke only saw one snap after Whitemore's injury, and his
After saying his starting quarterback for this weekend would be announced by Monday night or yesterday afternoon following last Saturday's game, Mangino has pushed that announcement back to later this week. Vying for position are junior John Nielsen, sophomore Brian Luke and freshman Adam Barmann. While the job has not officially been handed to any of the three, all signs are pointing to the removal of Barmann's redshirt in preparation for Saturday.
fumbled handoff exchange with tailback Clark Green led not only to a tongue-lashing from Mangino, but also an afternoon on the sideline. Nielsen came in to relieve Luke, and while he completed 8-of-12 passes, he only threw for 33 yards and was under constant pressure from the Wildcat defense.
Mangino said Barmann, who just a year ago completed 33-of-55 passes for 513 yards and six touchdowns in a high school game, was fearless and would not be rattled by Kyle Field's intimidating atmosphere.
SEE QUARTERBACK ON PAGE 4B
Volleyball team to battle rival
Sophomore middle blocker Josi Lima spiked the ball for a kill in a victory against Baylor on Sept. 27. Lima notched 8 kills and 6 dings in a five-game match with the Bears.
Sean Smith/Kansan
By Mike Norris
mnorris@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
This season has been full of long, close matches for the Kansas volleyball team.
Nine of the Jayhawks' 22 matches have lasted the full five games, with the Hawks winning four of them.
Only once has the team been swept 3-0, and it was at the hands of tonight's opponent, the Kansas State Wildcats, on Sept.17.
Kansas coach Ray Bechard said that the Wildcats were obviously among the best in the Big 12 Conference and that the Jayhawks would continue to fight hard in every match.
"If you consistently do that, you're going to have your ups and downs, but the good times will come," Bechard said.
The layhawks 3-2 loss at Colorado last
Friday dropped their record to 14-8 overall, 6-5 in the Big 12, and tied them with the Buffaloes for fifth place.
At 11-1 in the conference and 21-3 overall, the No. 8 Wildcats sit alone atop the Big 12. K-State ended Nebraska's 78-match Big 12 winning streak earlier this season, and is coming off a 3-0 win against the Baylor Bears.
kansas sophomore middle blocker Josi Lima said that K-State was playing some of its best volleyball ever this season, but that she didn't mind playing their rivals in Lawrence.
"I think just the fact that we're playing here at home helps a lot," Lima said. "We know their tendencies, and are better prepared for them."
The Jayhawks will again be without freshman outside hitter Jana Correa,
SEE VOLLEYBALL ON PAGE 4B
Cross country races in Big 12 tournament
By Sean O'Grady
sogrady@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
The University of Kansas cross country teams are ready to take on the Big 12 Conference Friday in Austin for the conference championships.
The women's team is looking to improve on its sixth place finish from last year and the men have their sights set on the highest conference finish since 1981.
"We're looking to get second place, obviously Colorado is out there in its own league." junior Chris Jones said. "Us, A&M, Texas, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State are all pretty close. If we all run well we feel we can get second."
Jones said the team could use one of its fourth through seventh runners to step up and give the Jayhawks an extra push.
"All those other four teams are thinking the same thing we are," Jones said. "So we're gonna need someone to step up and be the X-factor."
Jones said sophomore Joshy Madathil could be that factor.
"Joshy right now looks like he could be a big improvement," Jones said. "He's really been improving in practice, and I think he could take a huge step up."
Sophomore Cameron Schweir said the seniority of the team would help the Hawks compete as they know they were capable.
Coach Stanley Redwine said the team members had to go out and be competitive, but still run their own race.
"If stepping up will get us a better placing, then we have to step up." Redwine said. "We have to do what is best for our team. We just have to go out and do what we're capable of."
The men's squad return with seven of the nine runners who competed at last year's conference championship in Columbia, Mo.
"Our team is pretty amazing, we have a strong top three, a close four and five, and the rest of the guys are right behind," Schwehr said. "We're looking to get momentum heading into the regional meet."
The women's team is planning to use the meet to gain some momentum of its own.
"It's going to give us a chance to compete well. We have a stronger group of runners," she said. "Most of the season we've been plagued with injuries. We're finally overcoming those injuries and I think we're finally going to click."
Megan Manthe, who led the team this season, said the conference meet was a great opportunity for the team to come together and run well.
For seniors Laura Lavoie, Paige Higgins and Lauren Brownrigg, this is the last opportunity to make Kansas a conference contender.
The trio was Redwine's first recruiting class at Kansas. They have taken the team from an 11th place conference finish in 2000 to a sixth place finish last year, the team's highest finish since 1995.
"We kind of helped build this program together," Brownrigg said. "I think the hard work is starting to show what progress we've made."
Redwine said he was confident in the women's team, despite struggles earlier
The conference meet will also be the site of the cross country battle of the Border War.
The women have their work cut out for them against the Lady Tigers. In the last FinishLynx NCAA Division I Cross Country Poll, Missouri was ranked 17th nationally.
On the men's side, Missouri was ranked fifth regionally. The same poll had Kansas as the region's top team.
The men's eight-kilometer race will start at 9 a.m., followed by the women's six-kilometer race an hour later. Results will be available on www.kuathletics.com.
"We haven't seen Missouri yet, and we're not too sure what they have," Senior Steve Vockrodt said. "But we're pretty confident in our own abilities. I think we can take them."
"We have our best team we can possibility have out there and they're going out there to do the best that they can," he said.
in the season.
Kansan file photo
Joshy Madatthil, Liberal sophomore, is expected to make an impact on the Big 12 Conference Championships in Austin, Texas, this Friday.
— Edited by Scott Christie
TALK TO SPORTS: Contact !! Henley and Shane Mettlen at PORTS@KANSAN.COM
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