INSIDE THE PARK: This basketball season — like every other one — will be one for the fans to remember. PAGE 7A
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Jared Soares/KANSAN
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2004
www.kansan.com
Junior Quarterback Jason Swanson threw the game-winning pass against Kansas State two weeks ago to junior receiver Mark Simmons. Swanson transferred last year to KU from City College of San Francisco.
Layin' low...sort of
Jason Swanson's quiet cool could result in a start at QB on Saturday
BY JONATHAN KEALING
jkealing@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTSWRIVER
All around campus, the Kansas football team's victory over Kansas State left many students and fans with one burning question.
Who is Jason Swanson?
Everyone who watched the game saw him throw the game-winning touchdown pass, but up to that point, his exposure had been limited. Before last week's victory over Kansas State, Swanson, a junior college transfer, was just 2-of-4 for 25 yards on the season.
Against the Wildcats, Swanson went 4-of-7 for 52 yards. Included in those 52 yards was the miracle touchdown grab by junior receiver Mark Simmons. Simmons hauled in the pass with one hand and reached the end zone for the score.
The natural question that arises from Swanson's clutch play is who will be the quarterback when the Jayhawks go on the road to play No. 2 Oklahoma on Saturday. Kansas coach Mark Mangino said both sophomore quarterback Adam Barmann and Swanson will have the opportunity to earn the start in practice.
"I'll be real frank with you," Mangino said. "Probably won't say anything about it. I'll get a good feeling about it on game day, and we'll do what we have to do."
With an extra week between Kansas' game against Kansas State and its contest with Oklahoma, Mangino and his assistants have extra time to evaluate Swanson and Barmann side-by-side.
"We're going to prepare them equally unless something next week tells us differently." Mangino said.
When Swanson transferred from City College of San Francisco, he was expected to give Barmann a strong challenge for the starting job. While that challenge never initially materialized, Mangino alluded to the fact that the reason for that could be that Swanson is a very laid-back guy.
After the Kansas State game.
Mangino said he wished more things would bother Swanson.
"In fairness to Jason, our system is not easy to learn," Mangino said. "Adam just felt more comfortable and had repetitions from last year."
In junior college. Swanson led his team to an undefeated season and an NJCAA championship in 2003, appearing in seven games. In his two seasons there, he went 237-of-381, posting
SEE SWANSON ON PAGE 6A
SWANSON'S VITALS
Height: 6-feet
Weight: 200 pounds
Birth Date: Jan. 24, 1983
Hometown: San Diego, California
High School: Lincoln
Junior College: City College of San Francisco
Extre: Can plan the saxophone,
clarinet, violin and piano
Source: 2004 Kansas Football Media Guide
Athletes not getting flu shot
Student-athletes are also victims of the shortage in flu shot vaccinations
BY CAROLYN THARP
sports@kansan.com
SPECIAL TO THE KANSAN
The shortage of influenza vaccines means that student-athletes who compete during flu season will not get a vaccination this year.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention set standards for individuals with the highest risk of catching the flu, and most athletes don't fall into that category.
"There will be very few athletes, if any, that will get vaccinated," said Larry Magee, team physician. "They'll just have to get by without it."
The highest risk of infection is from November to March. Student-athletes involved in winter sports — basketball, swimming and track — will have to take extra caution to remain healthy this flu season.
"The flu is a really traumatic illness to have, especially during the season," said Susan Stromblad, graduate assistant athletic trainer with the track and cross country teams. "Depending on when they get it, they're going to be out of a lot of practices and maybe even a competition."
Magee estimated that at least half of athletes competing in winter sports got the flu vaccine last year.
Stromblad said the flu could have a sustained affect on athletes. They would be sore after the virus passed through their bodies and getting caught up after missing practices would be difficult, she said.
Fans don't want to see the flu sideline a Kansas player.
"It would be very unfortunate if someone like Wayne Simien had to miss an important game because he had the flu," said Stacey Payne, Memphis, Tenn., junior. "Really, that would be horrible."
Chances of contracting the flu virus are considerably high this flu season, according to medical professionals. Cathy Thrasher, clinical coordinator of support services at Watkins Memorial Health Center, said a pandemic happens when influenza A mutates, because the population then does not have immunity to the new virus. This flu season is expected to reach the pandemic level.
"It would be very unfortunate if someone like
Wayne Simien had to miss an important game because he had the flu. Really, that would be horrible.
Stacey Payne Memphis, Tenn., junior
"There are trends where every so often we have a heavy flu season," Thrasher said. "There has been evidence that leads us to think we may be coming up to a cycle that will be very heavy."
Thrasher said the virus was highly contagious because many people did not know they had the flu right away. A person is infectious 24 hours before symptoms appear and five days after symptoms subside.
Although athletes typically maintain good health through exercise and training, they are still at risk of catching the virus.
"It's hard because they're not sequestered in the athletic department," Magee said. "They're out going to class and around a lot of people, some who may be sick."
Because the flu is so contagious, when one student-athlete becomes infected with the virus, the risk of infecting teammates is high. Stromblad said if someone on a team gets the flu, they would try to keep that student out of practices to prevent spreading the virus.
"It's so highly contagious. Someone could infect that whole team," Stromblad said. "These guys are living together. They share everything."
Because the vaccine is not available this year, health specialists recommend maintaining good hygiene to avoid flu infection. They advise people to wash their hands, cover their mouths and
SEE FLU ON PAGE 6A
Kansan file photo
BY RYAN COLAIANNI
rcolaianni@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTSWITER
kansas coach Mark Mangino, a former Oklahoma assistant, prepares the Jayhawks for Saturday's battle with the No. 2 Sooners.
When the Kansas football team faces Oklahoma this Saturday, it will be a homecoming of sorts for Kansas coach Mark Mangino.
Mangino served as an assistant coach for Oklahoma for three years, two of which were spent as the Sooners' offensive coordinator under current coach Bob Stoops. Mangino and Stoops also knew each other before they worked together at Oklahoma, both serving as assistants at Kansas State. During the years they worked together, they developed a strong friendship. Saturday will be the first time the two coaches have faced off since Mangino left Oklahoma for Kansas in 2002. If Kansas tops Oklahoma it would be the Jayhawks' first victory against the Sooners since 1997.
"It's different than maybe playing my brother Mike, in that we were assistants together for a long period of time," Stoops said of his brother, who is a first-year head coach at Arizona. "Here, Mark was with us in building this program and as the offensive coordinator that won a national championship."
Lindsey Hoyer follows coach Mark Mangino on the sideline of the Kansas State game.
Mangino's days at Oklahoma with Stoops have influenced how he runs his program at Kansas. Mangino said Stoops was a very positive person, a philosophy that affected how he coached
However, the coaches will not approach this game any differently.
"Once you get on the field, I never look at anything, no matter who we are playing, as anything personal," Stoops said. "So friendships or not, it has nothing to do with it."
and affects how he coaches now.
"When things go wrong, he tries to look for a silver lining." Mangino said of Stoops. "He looks for the good, and we've tried to operate under that pretense as well."
- Edited by Ryan Greene
"I think Mark had a great feel," Stoops said."He had a lot of influence over what we did here."
Mangino also believes strongly in family and giving his coaches a chance to spend time with their families, a value that was shown to him by Stoops.
Amanda Kim Stairrett/KANSAN
Mangino and Stoops led Oklahoma to a National Championship in 2001, and Mangino was then hired at Kansas. Stoops credited Mangino's influence as playing a large role in Oklahoma's success.
Mangino's special team
"We want our coaches to get home at a decent hour, to get some rest and spend time with their families," Mangino said. "I respect the way Bob approached things at OU in that regard, and I try to do that here."
BY JONATHAN KEALING
jkealing@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTSWITTER
Prowling the sidelines is usually the domain of coaches and players. For one University of Kansas graduate student, the sidelines are her territory as well.
Lindsey Hoyer, originally from Pittsburg, has spent the last five years as a student equipment manager for the Jayhawk football team. For the last three years she has been assigned to coach Mark Mangino, and has been his shadow ever since.
"My first year I was at every practice," Hoyer said. "Now, because of schedules and such, I work in the equipment room while the team is practicing."
Hoyer and her fellow equipment managers arrive at the stadium four hours before every game. They have to race to get everything set up before the athletes arrive two hours later. They must bring the players' pads, uniforms and other equipment from the locker room by the practice field to the stadium.
Because of her presence on the sidelines, Hoyer has seen things that many
"Game day preparation is a week long." Hover said.
At the game, Hoyer is responsible for helping Mangino with whatever he needs. She carries around his headset and keeps track of any particular information Mangino might need. Right now, her duties include keeping track of sophomore cornerback Charles Gordon's repetitions, because he plays offense and defense and Mangino worries about overworking him.
Kansas fans would never be able to understand. She has a unique perspective on the game and the crowd's influence on the players and the plays.
"Especially coming off the K-State game, that's probably the best game I've seen since I came here," Hoyer said. "The crowd was into it. The excitement on the field was unlike any other."
Not everything on the field is fun. In fact, in one game, Hoyer found herself literally running in circles to keep up with people on the field. During the game, a play came along the sideline, and an official thought he could run between Mangino and Hoyer. The two are connected by Mangino's two-foot
headset cord. Had Hoyer not run around the official, the official would have likely ended up on the turf.
No sooner had Hoyer untangled herself, then the official wanted to go back out the other way and caused another mess.
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"In all the excitement, people forget they can't go between us," Hoyer said.
Having been to every football game for the last five years, Hoyer has had a chance to travel across the towns in the Big 12 Conference, and feel the same range of emotions that the players do with wins and losses.
SEE HOYER ON PAGE 6A
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