University Daily Kansan
Wednesday. August 18. 1976
5
Kansan predicts Oklahoma dethroned, KU third
Poor Barry Switzer. After four years of the Selmon Bros. Wrecking Crew, the Joe Washington and Steve Scoring Manager of Brooklyn Nets, Brooklyns Brooks Glue Factory, they're all gone.
Gone with them are two straight national championships, four consecutive Big Eight titles, 37 straight games without a defeat and two only losses in its past 48 games.
Here is the way the Kansan sees the "76 Big Eight race:
Switzer has lost only once in 34 games as coach of the Sooners, but he won't be as fortunate this time. It's the other Big Red Ss that don't mean the Giants' choice to win the Big Eight crown.
FIRST: Nebraska-10-2 last season; 19
memorning return; 11 starters lost.
Steve Pisarkiewicz
Tom Osborne the Cornhuskers return 14 starters from last year's team that lost only two games in the N.C. League in Fiesta Bay. Fourteen returning starters tell it all: Nebraska should be awesome
Offensively, the 'Huskers have rocket-
armed Vince Ferragamo calling the signals for
an offense that has a super offensive
lead. The team also sends receivers.
Ferragamo, an All-America candidate,
will be behind an offensive line
that returns four of five starters from last
Except for a breakaway back, the Cornnaskers have everything. Now if they can only get by their recent problems with them, they should win the Big Eight crown.
Defensively, Nebraska has two All-Emiria candidates--Mike Fultz and Ron Prunet --on the line, its usual hard-hitting line-backers and a defensive backfield that seems to have adequately replaced three starters.
SECOND: Oklahoma-11-1 last year; 30 lettermen returning; 11 starters lost.
Sure, Barry Satter利 lost people who can hardly be replaced. But don't think
Oklahoma's well of talent is completely dry. That's hardly the case.
The Sooners are loaded with talent at three spots—running back, offensive line and secondary. Starters Horace Ivory and Travis Johnson were all impressed. Many think that the only thing that has kept them from smashing rushing records and winning post-season honors is having to play in the shadow of Washington. And now they super-talented young backs behind them.
The offensive line is as sold as ever with three starters returning. The Sooners have to replace Owens and Brooks at receiver for the remaining three, while he has the people to fill in both.
Switzer knows his linebackers and secondary will be the strong points of his defense. In fact, every one of his starters is back in the secondary.
Gym squad is better but so is conference
By DAN BOWERMAN
KU Coach Bob Lockwood says he will have his best men's gymnastics team ever, but he concedes he still will probably take fifth in a conference of five teams.
Only five of the Big Eight schools participate in gymnastics, (Oklahoma State, Missouri and Kansas State do not have a football team) is still one of the toughest in the nation.
Lockwood had a young team last year. He only lost one gymnasium to graduation—Jerry
Colorado is a distant fourth, but remains ahead of KU. The Jayhawks' hope lies in Utah's defense.
Iowa State and Nebraska are always among the top teams in the nation, and Oklahoma will be up there with the addition of Texas and Illinois high school standout Bart Conner.
HE RETURNS HIS all-around corps of Les Kerr, Mike Hynes and Jody Summers. Kerr and Hynes are junior and Summers is a senior.
All three gymnasts scored in the upper 48s in all the air-around. An all-air competitor danced on the floor, performing a hoop routine.
Two other all-around men will be coming to KU this fall. Joseph Lavato will join the gymnastics team after two years at New Mexico Junior College.
Lockwood said Lavato scored 49.9 in the all-around and was especially strong on the ball.
Scott Holman, a freshman from Houston,
will also be added to the all-around team.
Holman is strongest on the parallel bars
and still rinses.
VERBISKI
“HOLMAN HAS GOOD technique and has some coaching on compulsions, which should help him against freshmen all-arounders,” Lockwood said.
Sean Williams, John Nunley and Bill Harms will also be returning from last year. Williams is a floor exercise and long horse training. James, Ben, Karen and rungs and Harmes does the pommel horse
Ford Culbertson and Ralph Holt will be returning to gymnastics after layoffs of two years and one year, respectively. Culbertson will work three events for the Jayhawks-parallel bars, horizontal bar horse. Holt is a floor exercise specialist.
THE KANSAS STATE High School 5A parallel bar champions, Chris Cohen, will be on the team this year. Cohen, from Shawnee Mission East, also placed on the still rings.
Two more freshmen will be on the pommel horse team this year. Chad Kelly from Chicago and Eric Mandel from San Francisco scored six high sevens and low eights on a scale of 10.
Lockwood said he also expected that four or five other gymnasts from Kansas would attend.
The key to success will be whether the Jayhawks can avoid injuries, Lockwood said, reminiscing about last year's Big Eight Conference meet.
At that meet, the Jayhawks took only seven gymnasts because the others were out with injuries, including the No. 1 all-around, Kerr.
The size of competitive teams have been reduced for this season, according to Lockwood. The 12-man team has been reduced to four, and the 10-man unders and two specialists on each event.
Vince Ferragamo
Lockwood said the move was to make the all-around more important by gradually eliminating specialists. He added that teamwork and continuity continue to compete but, in more events,
The Jayhawks' first meet will be the Big Eight Invitational early in November.
Transportation has changed...
But Switzer's biggest job is replacing the Selmons and defensive end Jimb Elrod on the team, and replacement there, the Sooners could contend with Nebraska for the conference title. If he doesn't find them, then the Big Red may fall back with rest of the com-
THIRD: Kansas--7-5 last season; 40
lettermen return; six starters lost.
If the Jayhawks can avoid injury in the face of a defensive backoff and defensive line, they have a shot at finishing right behind Nebraska in Alabama, certainly not a good position.
The Kansas Jayhawks were voted the most surprising team in the Big Eight Conference last year, finishing fourth. This year, they aren't likely to surprise anyone, and their finishing third in the Big Eight is an "iffy" proposition.
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On defense, the 'Hawks have the best lines in the Big Eight, led by Allen Hewitt and Joey Browning, but tuckable. One linebacker is secure with Terry Beeson, returning. But in the defensive backfield, Bud Moore is going to have to produce a miracle not unlike KU's own.
Nolan Cromwell, the rugged runner from Ransom, who gained more than 1,100 rushing last year, leads what is now the fastest first-stirring backfield in the conference.
How productive that speedy backfield will be, however, depends on how well KU can solidify its offensive line, from which two starters were lost from last year.
Lack of depth is the one thing that might hold the Jayhawks back, especially if injuries plague the squad. The breaks will for Kansas to do as well as it did last year
FOURTH: Oklahoma State—7-4 last
year; 45 return lettermen; five starters
Jun Stanley, the Cowboys fourth-year coach, has plenty of talent. In running backs
Stanley can't say the same thing about his defense.
"We have a mile to go there," Stanley said. "And I'm speaking of all the parts of our defense. If we do, we have the makings of one of the better teams we go at OTN."
FIFTH: Colorado -9-3 last inst; 71 determen returning; 13 starts lost.
Colorado lost a ton to graduation. Thirteen starters seem like a lot to lorelize.
Kansan predictions
1. Nebraska
2. Oklahoma
3. Kansas
4. Oklahoma State
5. Colorado
6. Missouri
7. Iowa State
8. Kansas State
Terry Miller and Robert Turner, defensive tackle Phillip Dokes and punter Cliff Parsley, Oklahoma State has players who are all-conference material.
But the problem Stanley faces is the depth of his talent. He's not sure he has the second-line players who can do the job if injuries hit.
Offensively, he's not too worried. Charlie Weatherbie will again be the Cowbies who will be in town for new offense—the vier. The line doesn't look outstanding, but adequate. The receivers should also be one of OSU's pluses. And the player doesn't know if there are any better.
especially when 11 of them were drafted by NFLI teams.
But Bill Mallory, the CU head coach, thinks he has the people to replace them. He says Jeff Austin can replace David Williams at quarterback and he says Steve Gaunty can fill in for Dave Logan at end and that Jim Kelleher can replace Alison Wright. But neither is so confident on his offensive line. Graduation really took its toll there.
Mallory is seeking improvement by the Buffalos' defensive line. If the defensive line comes around, Mallory says he'll have a solid defense.
The question is whether Colorado has the
kind of replacements Mallory says he has.
The Buffs look no more that it will take a
year.
SIXTH: Missouri--5-1 last year; 38 letter
returning; eight starters lost.
Even Al Onofrio is asking who is responsible for the Tigers' 1976 schedule. Not only does Missouri have to compete in an improved Big Eight Conference race, but his team will be ranked second-ranked in the nation last year, and always-tough Southern California.
Fifteen starters return to Missouri from its '75队, but playing what will probably be four of the top six teams in the country is bound to take its toll on Missouri.
See PREDICTIONS page six
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