Inside Sports
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Sports
The Kansan celebrates Wilt Chamberlain's life and achievements with a special tribute to "the stilt."
Winding down
Friday
October 15, 1999
Section:
B
Page 1
SEE PAGE 4B AND 5B
Two intramural flag football divisions are close to their championship rounds, which will be played Sunday.
SEE PAGE 8B
Tough road
Kansas women's soccer hits the road to play No. 4 Nebraska and Iowa State this weekend.
SEE PAGE 9B
Contact the Kansan
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Kansas quarterback Dylen Smith scrambles out of the pocket to avoid the rush of a Kansas State defensive lineman. Photo by Christine Neff/KANSAN
Crunch time for Kansas
Healthy players open opportunities on offensive end
By Mike Miller
sports@kansan.com
Kansas sportwriter
And the hits just keep on coming.
And the hits just keep on cbm. No
Last week Kansas play at 9 Kansas
week the day the Jayhawks travel
to College Station, Texas, to play No. 13
Texas A&M.
The Aggies play ferocious defense, control the ball and play at Kyle Field, a place where they have lost just four times in the 1990s.
But that's life in the Big 12 Conference.
It's the stretch of schedule that teams dread, even if they are playing well — which the Jayhawks are not, having won only two of their first six games.
"There's so many good teams in the Big 12, how do you spread them out?" said linebacker Andrew LeClair.
"Right now, every game is a challenge for us," said Coach Terry Allen.
That's because the Jayhawks are banged up offensively, but most of the injured players will return for tomorrow's game.
Running backs David Winbush and Henri Childs, wide receiver Eric Patterson and tight end Jason Gulley will play, but wide receivers Byron Gasaway and Termaine Fulton are out for the rest of the year.
The injuries limited what Kansas could on offense against K-State. The 'Hawks
will have more options with more depth among the skill positions, but they will miss the speed that Gasaway and Fulton provide.
"It changes the complexion of your football team." Allen said.
"Speed on the outside is important to what we like to do."
The Jayhawks want to be able to throw the ball and open up the offense but haven't been able to recently. Quarterback Dylen Smith has been erratic and couldn't establish a rhythm with any receivers against the Wildcats. Part of his problems were with the K-State defense, part of them were because of injuries
"He's obviously got to be a little bit more accurate," Allen said. "He's got to be sharper for us to pull the
See AGGIES on page 2B
By Matt Tait
sports@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
Scoring will not be a problem for the Kansas men's basketball team this year. Figuring out how to get the ball to all its scorers, however, will be the challenge.
"The reason you change is to suit your personnel." Williams said.
Kansas coach Roy Williams said yesterday at the annual media day that one of the team's weaknesses this season would be his ability to figure out something different offensively, even though the 'Hawks have been successful offensively in the past.
That personnel includes Texas transfer Luke Axtell, sophomore point guard Jeff
Bosche and junior center Eric Chenowith.
Axtell, a 6-foot-10 guard/forward, came to Kansas a year ago after playing a season with the Texas Longhorns. A falling-out with the University of Texas and then coach Tom Penders created controversy, and Axtell elected to transfer to Kansas.
Last season, Axtell was forced to sit out because of NCAA rules. As he enters this season ready to play, his role has been a hot topic.
I'm not trying to invent the wheel over again," Williams said of Axell's role. "We're going to put him in a position to score, and
we're going to expect him to score."
Therein lies the basis for Williams' desire to experiment with new offensive sets.
Williams said that Kansas was going to do a lot of things differently than in the past because of scorers like Axtell. He also said that with the number of Jayhawk post players who can score, it seemed logical to tinker with ways that could create an advantage against teams weaker in the post positions.
But while Williams and the team are excited about experimenting with their offense, he said that nothing was set in stone. The Jayhawks will run the different offenses for the first three weeks of practice, and if one fits, they will adapt. However, if one does not, they will be able to return to the old-style Kansas motion offense.
Although no specifics were divulged, Williams did say that the focus of offense will center around being more up-tempo and aggressive.
Despite the uncertain nature of the offense, Boschee said that he is confident that the team will be ready to run whatever style Williams decides upon.
"This team is full of threats, and we're capable of running anything he can throw at us." Bosche said.
The first official practice for the 'Hawks will be tonight at the annual Late Night with Roy Williams. The skits and entertainment will begin about 10:15 p.m. after the Kansas volleyball team takes on Texas A&M at 7 p.m., and an abbreviated intrasquid scrimmage will begin shortly after midnight.
— Edited by
Late Night Talk...
"I'm going to bring out a few tricks. People don't really think I can jump."
Marlon London Sophomore guard
"If they want me to do the MC Hammer thing again, I will, but I want to do something different, being my last year."
Nick Bradford Senior forward
Sophomore Jeff Boschee and junior Luke Axtell pose for a picture during Media Day at Allen Fieldhouse yesterday. Photo by Aaron Lindberg
Basketball practice starts at the stroke of midnight
By Matt Tait
By Matt Tait
sports@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
When the clock strikes midnight, the 1999-2000 Kansas men's basketball season officially will begin.
The Kansas men will hold an intrasquad scrimmage at midnight, following skits and performances by the men's and women's teams about 10:15 tonight during the annual Late Night with Roy Williams.
Late Night originated in 1983 after the arrival of then-coach Larry Brown. Since then, its popularity has grown tremendously and has continued growing with
Part of the reason for the large crowds can be attributed to the University and community's anticipation of seeing their favorite players back on the court and getting a first look at the newcomers.
current Kansas coach Roy Williams. The event has drawn crowds of more than 15,000 since the early '90s, and Allen Fieldhouse has been filled to capacity several times for it.
"Last year, I went to watch Lester Earl, since I am from the same town as him and we transferred here the same year," said Krista Walker, Baton Rouge, La., senior.
"I remember Nick Bradford doing MC Hammer last year — it was impressive. I'd definitely like to see it again," said Kelly Woywod, Kansas City, Mo., senior. "Being there really makes you proud to be a Jayhawk."
However, while some fans come to see the players play, others come to see the players entertain — as in act, dance or sing.
Bradford, a senior forward who has performed twice the skit imitating MC Hammer at Late Night, said he was ready.
"One thing that makes Late Night so exciting is that when you come to school, you things that the crowd doesn't see. But when
you get to Late Night and see 16,000 people in Allen Fieldhouse, it gets you ready."
"If they want me to do the MC Hammer thing again, I will, but I want to do something different, being my last year," he said.
For others on Kansas' team, such as sophomore Marlon London, the experience has been an eye- opener.
"Last year, it kind of shocked me," London said. "I had never been in a crowd that big, with the fans yelling and stuff, but it was fun."
This year London vows that he too will be ready and said that he might have a shock for the fans himself.
"I'm going to bring out a few tricks," he said. "People don't really think I can jump."
Today's festivities begin at 4:15 p.m. at Hogwalt Ballpark, where the Kansas baseball team will play an intrasquad scrimmage. At 7 p.m. the Kansas volleyball team takes on No. 16 Texas A&M in the fieldhouse. After the game, both the men's and women's basketball teams will begin their skits.
At midnight, the men's team will emerge from the locker room and play an abbreviated intrasquid scrimmage. NCAA rules allow for Division I team practices to begin tomorrow.
Edited by Mike Loader
Hoops thrill too tempting for 'faithful' football fans
The 1999 Kansas football season ends at 7 tonight.
No, the Texas A&M Aggies haven't canceled tomorrow's game. And no, Terry Allen isn't forfeiting the rest of the season. Purposefully, anyway.
But in the hearts and especially the minds of University of Kansas students, Late Night with Roy Williams begins the shunning of football and the anticipation of the hardwood season.
I hate it. Not basketball of course — no one can argue against the excitement of a game at Allen fieldhouse — but the passing of
the little football spirit we have around this leaf-covered campus. It's as if the Athletics Department gave us a fancy renovated stadium and video board for Christmas, but we're tired of playing with them by January. Depressing.
Matt
James
sports columnist
spotted at kansan.com
I'll try not to wonder if Luke Axell will be an impact player in his first year of action at Kansas.
Depressing. This year, though, I will not fall into the trap. I won't start thinking about basketball early.
I'll try not to think that Marian Washington's team may be headed to the Final Four or that senior Lynn Pride might become the first Kansas woman to dunk in a game. Don't roll your eyes. I've seen her do it in practice.
I won't envision forward Lester Earl and guard Suzi Raymant with healthy knees, re-enacting seasons-of-old with thunderous blocks and long-range jumpers. The blocks being Earl's and the jumper's Raymant's, of course. If Lester pulled up from long range, Coach Williams might hurl a chair at him from the bench.
And don't think Coach Washington will scold her if she does attempt it.
I swear I saw Hoosiers playing out before me as I walked into the echo-filled cathedral. Shooter was yelling, "Don't get caught watching the paint dry." Then Jimmy came around the picket fence and sank the shot. He always does.
I won't conjure up images of the fieldhouse — like the time my mom and dad first took my brother and me there when I was in high school. I don't think it was supposed to be open, but we walked around to a side door and sneaked into the house that Phog built.
I was afraid to walk on the court because I thought I might accidentally scratch it. I thought the excitement would fade away after a while, but I get the same chills at every game. My dad is more of a general sports fan than a Kansas fan, but when he came to see a game at the fieldhouse he caught the fever — standing, swaying and humming the alma mater in the student section. I think he even may have thrown a little confetti.
"She's been working on it in practice. I told her if she gets a breakaway to go for it." Washington said at a press conference last season.
The band starts ripping off those tunes, and you just can't help it. The trumpeters scream out those notes so high that veins pop out the sides of their heads, and it entrances you. It's basketball heaven.
Sorry, I guess I got carried away.
I'll try to stay faithful next year.
---
James is a Hugoton senior in journalism.