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KANSAN.COM
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Uniforms hang to show how the locker room would look on a game day.
Baxter Schanze/KANSAN
Raxter Schanze/KANSAN
The new locker room has color changing lights. a surround sound music system and a nine-screen media center.
Locker room upgrades help build team cohesion
▶ SEAN COLLINS
@seanzie_UDK
Senior safety Bazie Bates IV is the best Madden player on the team. At least, that's what he told reporters.
"Bazie doesn't have any credibility," redshirt junior Montell Cozart joked. While Bates thinks he is the best, Cozart would rank himself and sophomore offensive lineman Clyde McCauley III at the top of the totem pole. "He hasn't played against Clyde or I, so he can't talk."
Madden has become a popular part of locker room life for the Jayhawks. But after only three weeks in the locker room, the players haven't yet had the
opportunity to play with the whole team watching.
Video games are just one of the options the team has for entertainment in the new $2 million locker room. The spacious lounge room has a pool table, foosball table and a Multicade arcade game.
While the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in the team's new locker room have created a way to bond and compete off the field, the team thinks they can have an impact outside the Locker room itself.
"Ever since we got it redone we have bonded as a team more than the way it was at first," sophomore Dorance Armstrong Jr. said. "We are in there a lot more often."
In the new locker room, a controllable lighting system lines the ceiling, tinting the large area with shades of neon blue and red, giving the room a futuristic feel. On each wooden locker, above the storage space for uniforms, pads and whatever else the players need, the owner of the locker is announced by name, hometown and Twitter handle.
All the details in the locker room, which were revealed to the team on Aug. 28, have helped the Jayhawks become a closer group, and the coaching staff has taken notice.
"It gives those guys a great rest haven to get away from everything and then also be in the building,"
wide receivers coach Jason Phillips said. "They are here more."
Ever since we got it redone we have bonded as a team more than the way it was at first."
Veterans that have been at Kansas experienced the old locker rooms, and said the new renovations have changed the team's relationship with each other for the better. The large open area has become a space where the whole team can
be together, instead of in smaller groups.
"I feel like ever since we got it redone we have bonded as a team more," Armstrong said. "It brings a lot of chemistry on and off the field, so when we get on the field we are more comfortable with the people we usually aren't around."
Armstrong believes that the renovation will make a big difference when it comes to recruiting, making it easier for the Jayhawks to rebuild.
"Last year, we had a lot of recruits and the locker room wasn't even what it is now, but now that we have it redone we will have a lot more big-time recruits coming in," Armstrong said.
The renovations came
quickly and in perfect timing for the 2016 season, but this was something coach David Beaty needed athletic director Sheahon Zenger for after last season's struggles.
"I went to [Zenger] and said, 'look, this is what we need to do and we've got to do it now. We've got to do it yesterday,'" Beaty said.
Zenger then presented the team with a new locker room for the season. Beaty, like the rest of the team, was thrilled.
"That's going to help us moving forward," Beaty said. "That's how we are going to continue to work on improving around here. It's about developing and recruiting."
Kansas tennis looks for strong start in Arkansas
► JAMES BUCKLEY
@JBuckets80
After a rigorous offseason regimen, the Kansas tennis team will begin its season at the Little Rock Invitational on Friday, Sept. 23. With all the practice during the offseason, the players and coach Todd Chapman are anxious to get started.
"I think they're excited to get out and play somebody other than their teammates," Chapman said. "All summer, six of the seven were here and they've been beating up on each other," Chapman said. "The most exciting thing for us coaches is it gives us a chance to evaluate really where we're at as a team."
The teams Kansas will be competing against are Arkansas, TCU and West Virginia. TCU was the Big 12 tournament champion last year. Should Kansas face either TCU or West Virginia, it could be a preview for the spring postseason.
However, a Big 12 matchup is only a possibility. Chapman knows for sure, though, that the tournament will be a good gauge for freshmen Tanya Nikolaeva and Maria Toran Ribes.
"Our returning players know what to expect, so that sets them up well to be successful," Chapman said. "Our two freshman will get the chance to see what a good level of college competition looks like."
After the success of last season - when Chapman
was named the ITA Central Region Coach of the Year and Anastasiya Rychagova was Freshman of the Year
the Jayhawks have put themselves on a higher level. Extending that success of last year, when the team made its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 17 years, starts with this tournament, according to Chapman.
"One thing our players have to realize, is we're going to have a target on our back for the first time in a long, long time as a program," Chapman said. "We're not going to sneak up on anybody, so we're going to get everybody's best shot."
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