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KANSAN.COM/SPORTS | MONDAY, JUNE 26, 2017
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KANSAN.COM
Mason III, Lokedi named candidates for Athlete of the Year
**Missy Mininear/KANSAN**
Senior guard Frank Mason III looks to set up a play in the first half against Oregon on March 25. The Jayhawks fell to the Ducks, 74-60.
▶ WESLEY DOTSON
@WesDotsonUDK
Missy Minear/KANSAN
former Kansas guard Frank Mason III and track and field's sophomore Sharon Lokedi have a chance to receive more recognition for their stellar 2016-17 seasons.
On Sunday, the Big 12 Conference nominated Mason as Kansas' male Athlete of the Year candidate, and Lokedi was named the female Athlete of the Year candidate.
Mason turned in one of the most successful seasons in the history of the program this past year. He averaged 20.9 points, 4.1 rebounds and 5.1 assists per
game, making him the first player in Kansas and Big 12 history to average over 20 points and five assists in a season.
The 5-foot-11 guard also completed a sweep of national player of the year awards and became the first Jayhawk to win the AP National Player of the Year award.
Mason was drafted No. 34 overall in the NBA draft by the Sacramento Kings last month and was recently signed to a contract by the team.
Lokedi, a two-time All-American, found more success in her sophomore campaign for the Jayhawks. She captured Big 12 titles
in both the outdoor 5,000 and 10,000 meters at the Big 12 track and field
championships in May making her just the seventh female in the conference's
history to win both events at a Big 12 meet.
Lokedi was also named
the Big 12 Outstanding Female Performer of the Year by Big 12 coaches.
Lokedi's stellar season propelled her to an NCAA Outdoor Championships appearance in June. She placed sixth in the 10,000 meters at the championships after clocking a personal-best time of 32:49.43.
One male and female candidate from each school has now been selected. Fans will be able to vote for their choices through July 25 on the Big 12's official website. The fan voting results will be taken into consideration in the conference's final tally for selecting the winners.
FOOTBALL FROM
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football.
It's been a slow process, but the drawnout turnaround for Kansas football all goes back to hiring Beaty. It hasn't been a smooth run by any means for Beaty, with the winless season in 2015 and painful play calling marring his first two seasons in Lawrence. But, the key is improvement, something he's shown since arriving.
Winning games at all is an important part of a coach's job, so that was a clear step up last season. And, by hiring Doug Meacham to take over as offensive coordinator, the program is clearly dedicated to improving the on-field product (Defensive coordinator Clint Bowen deserves a shout out as well due to the defense's
vast improvement over the course of 2016).
Beaty was known as a great recruiter while at Texas A&M, where he was the Aggies' recruiting coordinator and wide receivers coach. He's carried that over with him to Kansas, where, as of July 20, the Jayhawks have the 33rd-best 2018 recruiting class per 247Sports, despite only a handful of wins in his tenure. The recruits are improving every year and so is the team in general. Success breeds success.
It may feel like grasping at straws to put so much stock in potential and hope. But, while the plight of Kansas football is well known across the map, it doesn't really sink in how dreadful the team has been until it's verbalized or written in plain sight.
The most recent crop of
four-year graduates from the University saw eight wins over the course of four seasons. That group was in the first weeks of their freshman year of high school when Kansas last won on the road. They were eighth-graders when Kansas last won a conference game on the road.
Games like Homecoming 2015, a four-hour, 55-point blowout to Oklahoma, were more snuff film than football game. There has been a lot of bad football under the Kansas Jayhawks banner in recent memory.
That's the past, though. Being skeptical is an understandable approach considering the program's futility. But, it wasn't that long ago that Kansas went to back-to-back bowl games and was at least competing with conference foes. It
won't be long until we see that again, either.
Kansas may not be a bowl team this season, but it will certainly be a better team than it has been over the past several years. The program is distancing itself from bad players, bad hires and the unending negativity (or worse, apathy) of the past more and more every day.
There's reason to finally have faith in the Jayhawks.
termoons have been spent cheering for the Jayhawks through thick and, unfortunately, a lot of thin moments. But, it's impossible to argue that the stadium doesn't need improvements.
Miranda Anaya/KANSAN Kansas Athletics announced that a $300 million renovation will be coming to Memorial Stadium, which will include an indoor practice facility and infrastructure upgrades.
Miranda Anaya/KANSAN or proactive facility and
It's the seventh-oldest stadium still used by an FBS team. It shows signs of wear across its exterior. It's severely outdated by contemporary standards.
thing else at the University.
This is a great move for all interested parties. For the fans, it's going to enhance the game-day experience for the die hards who trek down the hill to see the Jayhawks play. For the players, specifically future recruits, it becomes a more inviting and
It's undoubtedly time for an upgrade.
Discussing college athletics finances is a great way to find out that someone has absolutely no idea what they're talking about. Kansas football isn't going to use $300 million that otherwise would have gone to improving the School of Education or updating equipment in the School of Journalism or whichever department you feel is underfunded.
Things like the Williams Fund and private donors are main sources of income for supporting Kansas Athletics projects. It's understandable that seeing a huge sum of money being spent on football facilities could cause a stir, considering the financial straits the University might be facing in some areas. The reality, though, is that this money will be completely disconnected from the rest of the University.
Football is a massive tool for recruiting (both athletically and for general students), alumni relations and income, and if you don't see that then you simply aren't paying attention.
Alabama is a perfect case study for this. A gold standard for college football, the Crimson Tide's on-field success has generated an unconscious amount of money
and publicity for that school. It's unrealistic for Kansas, or really any program, to think it can reach Alabama's level of success, but it's clear that improving football will improve the University in other areas.
Again, you need to spend money in order to make it. Putting money into the program now, or at least in the near future, will show dedication to the program and is going to help bring in more high-level recruits over time. The football team needs to get better, and this move will
help in that pursuit.
And if your argument is based around asking why you would spend $300 million to help a football team that won two games in the last two seasons combined, take a moment and think critically.
Most of the arguments against the spending come up baseless and sound unintelligent. The money isn't being stolen from other University programs. Memorial Stadium is nearly 100 years old - it needs to be repaired and updated.
Why wouldn't you spend money to try to improve the program? What else would you do, just ignore the disaster and let the team fall into irreparable ruin? That notion is ridiculous and poorly thought out at best.
The cost of this project is a small price to pay for improving the team, and subsequently the University, over time. Don't get caught up in the price tag or the view from your ivory tower. Trying to better the football team is better for all of us who support the University.
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