6B THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY, AUGUST 16,2004
SPORTS
Texas prep standout earns respect, learns the ropes
By RYAN COLAIANNI
rcolaiani@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTWRITER
When a running back gains nearly 4,000 yards in his final two high school seasons, he usually expects to shoulder a portion of the running attack as a freshman at the collegiate level. That is probably not the case for Gary Green II, who is stepping into a deep Kansas backfield.
Green, a freshman from San Antonio, Texas, rushed for 1,729 yards in his senior season with 23 touchdowns. Plus, Green was not
"I was in one of the toughest districts in the
Gary Green II Freshman running back
state of Texas. It was like the Big 12 of high school.
playing against soft competition. Last season he earned 442 yards of total offense with seven touchdowns against the defending Texas state champions.
"I was in one of the toughest districts in the state of Texas," Green said. "It was like the Big 12 of high school."
Coach Mark Mangino is considering redshirting Green because junior Clark Green and sophomore John Randle are likely to log the majority of carries this season.
Clark Green rushed for 968 yards last season with six touchdowns, and Randle rushed for more than 500 yards as a freshman. With this competition, Green could find it difficult to get carries.
"When Gary Green gets the ball, he does some good things."
Mangino said. "There is not enough footballs and repetitions to work all those guys, so we have got to make some decisions."
The Kansas backfield is loaded with talent but there are not enough opportunities to give running backs the number of catches they desire in practice.
Green is confident that he is prepared to step into the backfield this season, he said. But his only playing time could be logged at different positions.
Mangino may use Green as a kick and punt returner though sophomore Charles Gordon and junior Greg Heaggans saw all of
last year's action and are expected to do the same this season. Senior Brandon Rideau and Randle are also competing for the job.
Clark Green is most impressed with his teammate's heart, not his blazing speed.
"I really in my heart want to play this year, but if I redshirt, then I redshirt," Green said. "That's really coach Mangino's decision. If he thinks that's best for me, then that's what I will do."
"These couple days in pads, he has been getting after it," Clark Green said.
to become better running backs. In return, Clark Green and Randle are showing him the ropes.
"They have been through the smoke of the season already, so they got the years of experience," Green said.
According to rivals.com, Green was the seventh-ranked all-purpose back in the country. He chose Kansas over UCLA, Pittsburgh and Texas Tech. Green has football in his blood; his father was selected in the first round of the 1977 draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Summer professional sports whet appetite for fall
— Edited by Ashley Bechard
During the summer, as Jayhawk athletics prepared for the fall season, we sports fans were forced to supplement our appetites with the pros.
Isn't there something special about the professional athlete? Isn't the "big business" of professional sports so pure? It's a world where egos and attitudes are rivaled in size only by bank accounts, and the summer was rife with significant moments in pro sports.
Here's a glimpse back.
One of the summer's brightest moments and biggest whoopings came early on when the Detroit Pistons spanked the mighty Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals.
The Lakers, led by four future Hall of Famers, were supposed to walk straight to the title.
But the Pistons were a team key word, "TEAM" - led by a bunch of guys who flat-out
played basketball together and got it done. The Lake-show's two-man game between Shaquille "The Diesel" O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, the most notorious visitor of Eagle, Colo., could barely compete with the Pistons and Ben Wallace's megaafro and Richard Hamilton's please-don't-hit-me-in-the-face mask.
By defeating Phil Jackson's Lakers, Larry Brown, Pistons' coach and former University of Kansas head man, became the first coach to win an NBA title and an NCAA title. His Jayhawks won the NCAA Championship in 1988.
After the five-game series, the embarrassment the Lakers became was dismantled.
Jackson quit.
Jack Weinstein
jweinstien@kansan.com
The Lakers traded O'Neal to the Miami Heat and Gary Payton to the Boston Celtics, and Kobe flirted with free agency offers
between trips to court. What we knew of the Lakers over past five years is no more, so look for the Pistons to defend their title in 2005.
In possibly the summer's most miraculous feat, Lance Armstrong won his sixth-consecutive Tour de France, obliterating the field by nearly seven minutes.
No one has ever achieved what Armstrong has in cycling, and it's not likely anyone will eclipse him.
The only obstacle Lance Armstrong faces now is himself.
After the crazy summer, the upcoming NFL season should be
pretty boring. With no more Ricky Williams dreadlock tackle stories, I'm not sure if I'm even interested anymore. Not really, I'm lying. I can't wait. Ricky's retirement kick-started what should be a fantastic season.
Who cares if Ricky wanted herbal freedom, or if he wanted to pursue "The Truth," or if he just lost his desire to get the living snot kicked out of him every week? I say, whatever. Good luck and good riddance.
The sport that rules the summer, America's old favorite pastime, has had one interesting twist. The best team in baseball is not the Yankees; it's the St. Louis Cardinals.
After key acquisitions that made headlines in the offseason, the Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros were supposed to fight for the top spot in the toughest division in baseball.
Instead, because of injuries
INSIDETHEPARK
Look for Weinstein's inside the Park every Tuesday
and poor hitting, the Cardinals are looking in the rearview mirror at the Cubs and Astros. Sorry Chicagoans, maybe next year.
Back to the college game and the upcoming Jayhawk football season. The Jayhawks would love to build on last year's 6-6 season, but losing former quarterback Bill Whittemore is the least of their problems.
The Jayhawks have the unfortunate pleasure of playing eight of their 11 games against 2003 bowl teams, resulting in the fourth-toughest schedule in the country. Adam Barmann, sophomore quarterback, needs to help us forget about Whittimore.
ing back, needs to stay on the team, and Johnny Beck, senior kicker, has to make field goals. Even if the linebackers continue to be the pride of the defense and the Charles Gordon cornerback situation works out, Mangino's boys are still have to play well to win games this year.
In the end, America's sports viewers got a taste of what they craved this summer: championship performances, abysmal failure, crowning achievements, utter confusion and interesting surprises.
What else could anyone ask for from a long, but not entirely unusual summer in the world of professional sports? Not a whole lot — maybe a victory from the Royals, but that's just me. I'm Jack Weinstein, and you stay classy, Lawrence.
Weinstein is an Overland Park senior in English.
BY MATT RILEY
The Parthenon
Marshall University
via U-wire
Marshall soccer squad uses paintball to inspire teammates
But not your typical soccer shooting.
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — There's nothing quite like shooting at a new teammate to get the 2004 soccer season started on the right track.
Wednesday, instead of taking shots on goal, the Marshall women's soccer team headed to Scary Creek Painball and took shots at each other.
the friendly fire was aimed to get the coaches, veteran team members and the Herd's 15 newcomers acquainted in a loose, fun environment before starting practice to prepare for the fall season.
"You can definitely tell the difference in the girls who went last year and got more into it and they helped the freshmen get more
"I think today was a good chance for the
freshmen to get to know the upperclassmen because the freshmen have all been together all week in the dorms, so this was good to get everyone together."
Kelly Jackson Rochester, N.Y. freshman
Sure, there were a few welts and bruises, but Hill said once everyone realized it didn't hurt too bad, the timidness went away
into it and it created a lively atmosphere," assistant coach Cory Hill said.
and the competitor in each of the athletes came out.
While playing paintball created a good atmosphere for team bonding, it also allowed the players to work together as a team and offered up plenty of competition as the group split into two teams and played several survival games.
attacks came up.
"It was funny at first to see them hesitate about getting hit, but then they really jumped in feet first and got after it," he said. "It was nice and relaxing to start out the first day with because now everybody's talking about it and it's a good common ground to get them more comfortable around each other and it was just a good event to bring everyone together so quickly."
"With all the freshmen coming in, it's nice to just get everybody together to have fun, let loose and kick it before things really get started," junior Jaime Gruber said.
Gruber and her fellow team
mates start practice in hopes of turning around last year's 2-15-1 record, and they're hoping bonding with fun activities like painball will help get the ball rolling the right way.
"It helped us get to know each other better already and it was a fun way to meet the new teammates," senior goalkeeper Ashleigh Woods said. "It's becoming a team in a different sort of way. You get the camaraderie with the smaller group and it helps you come together whether it's shooting at a coach or a teammate — whatever it takes. It was good."
While it helped bring about a sense of bonding and strength as a team for the returnees, it also gave the freshmen a chance to ease into their new surroundings.
"I think today was a good chance for the freshmen to get to know the upperclassmen because the freshmen have all been together all week in the
dorms, so this was good to get everyone together," said Kelly Jackson, a freshman from Rochester, N.Y. "It's exciting to be with a big group and getting to know everyone. There's a lot of expectations of everyone coming in and I'm excited to see everyone play together. I think today was good for all of us."
The expectations coming from the players and coaches are based on the talent level of the new class brought in, along with the crop of returnees hungry to avenge last year's season. Head coach Chris Kane's recruiting class was ranked No.22 in the Great Lakes Region.
"I think it's going to be a good transition and a whole lot better than last year," junior Jenn Short said. "We've got a lot of talented players and I think all the new players are going to fit in well with our system and what coach wants to do with them. I think we'll be a well-rounded team. We've got
everything we need that we've been lacking."
The Herd get their first test Aug. 21 at the University of Pittsburgh, and the players are looking forward to the challenge of the season ahead.
"We're doing a lot of team building and getting know each other right now, but it's going to be exciting to see our fitness get better and our strength get better as the season gets here," Woods said. "We're really excited about the new kids coming in and we're really anxious to get on the field and see our versatility."
So whether it's paintball or on the soccer field, one thing's for sure about the upcoming women's soccer season.
"We go balls to the wall, even in paintball," Gruber said. "That's what you can expect from Marshall women's soccer on the field this year. We're going to get after it harder than ever."
KU & K-State
- Beite
• Checkbooks
The
Etc.
Shop
• Key Rings
Dog Collars
& New Stocking
Stufferel
928 Massachusetts • 843-0611
FREE Parking in Garage Before Store
Locally owned and operated for over 40 years
SUMMER SPECIALS
$8.99
ATKINS MEALS AVAILABLE!
Sunday: 3 piece Fried Chicken
Monday: Pan Fried Chicken Fried Chicken
Tuesday: Ribs & Fries
Wednesday: 7 oz. Kansas City Strip
Thursday: Chicken Fried Steak
(specials served with potato & Texas toast. Sun - Thurs)
kansan.com the student perspective
East Highway 10, 1/2 Mile East of 23rd & Huskell • 843-3110
Nic im tr wh def did wit
MC