THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2006
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2006
SPORTS 3B
HOMECOMING (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
Denny is not the only student who would like to see a later kickoff. Kyle Hake, Olathe freshman, usually tailgates before games; Saturday, he is choosing to head straight to the stadium instead of the grill.
"You know it's early when you have to set an alarm clock for a KU football game." Denny said.
If the game was not on TV, Jim Marchiony, University of Kansas associate athletics director, said the game would start later in the day to allow for Homecoming activities. However, the networks have the final say on the game time.
"If we had the best scenario, it would be on TV at 6 oclock at least until the middle of October," Marchiony said. "Because it seems from the feedback we've received, some majority of fans would prefer
it at 6."
Jimmy Humphrey, Fredonia sophomore, lives in Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity house, 1111 W. 11th St., and is setting his alarm for 6:30 a.m. Saturday to welcome alumni and prepare to park cars in TKE's parking lot. Humphrey said he would have gone to the parade if the game was later in the day. Instead, he's heading to the stadium early to get good seats.
The parade, which features former voice of the Jayhawks Max Falkenstien as the grand marshal, should last about an hour, Denny said, and should leave enough time for fans to make it to kickoff.
Kansan staff writer C.J. Moore can be contacted at cjmoore@ kansan.com.
Edited by Erin Wiley
WASHINGTON (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
The source said he had no reason to believe Washington had suffered any recurrence of the temporary paralysis he suffered after a hit in last week's game against Nebraska.
Repeated attempts to reach Washington's mother, Linda Hobbs, at her home in Detroit, were unsuccessful.
Mason Logan, associate media relations director, said he couldn't confirm or deny that Washington had been admitted to the hospital
It is Kansas football policy not to comment on injuries.
Washington was injured in the third quarter of last weekend's game at Nebraska. He attempted a head-first tackle, bounced off a Nebraska running back and fell to the ground.
Teammate Joe Mortensen said he knew something was wrong after the hit.
"I tried to pick him up and he went limp," Mortensen said at the game.
Team trainers attended to Washington as he remained on the turf for nearly 15 minutes.
Washington was taken off the field on a stretcher and transported to a Lincoln hospital. Washington had no feeling in his extremities while on the ground, but his feeling had returned as he was transported to the hospital.
Washington suffered a concussion and temporary paralysis, Mangino said after the game. He was kept at a Lincoln hospital until Monday morning.
Mangino said Tuesday that Washington would visit a doctor who specializes in head- and neck-sports injuries. He said Sunday night that Washington might play again this season.
Washington came to Kansas as a junior last season. He spent his first two seasons of his eligibility at the University of Minnesota and Minnesota West Community College.
Kansan senior sportswriter Ryan Schneider can be contacted at rschneider@kansan.com.
Edited by Shanxi Upsdell
SOCCER
Jayhawks to play Longhorns, Aggies
BY MARK DENT
It's been almost 11 months now, but the bitter feelings remain.
Kansas players gathered together last November during the NCAA Tournament selection show confident of receiving a bid, but were turned down, while Texas was surprisingly chosen for postseason play.
"When you're sitting in a room with your team waiting to hear your name called and don't," Kansas coach Mark Francis said, "That's motivation."
The Jayhawks finally have their chance to get even with the Longhorns when the two teams play at 4 p.m. today at the Jayhawk Soccer Complex.
The animosity Kansas feels toward Texas isn't just sour grapes over the Longhorns being selected for the dance and the Jayhawks being left home. It comes from knowing that they not only finished with a better record and higher ranking in the Big 12, but also beat the Longhorns in their head-to-head matchup last season.
The victory over Texas last year was the first in Kansas soccer history, and was one of the most memorable moments of the season for the
Jayhawks. The Jayhawks went on to finish second in the conference with an 11-7-2 record while the Longhorns went 11-9-1 and placed sixth.
"Since they got in the tournament last year and we didn't, there's a little extra confidence that we can beat them," sophomore goalkeeper Julie Hanley said. "It'll be good to play them."
Kansan file photo
This season, Texas (8-3-1, 2-1-1) returns 10 starters and is the No. 18 team in the country. The Longhorns are tied for second in the conference in goals scored per game, but they are coming off a bad weekend that included a loss to Oklahoma State and a tie against Oklahoma, a team that has yet to win a conference game.
Michelle Rasmussen, senior midfielder, and the Jayhawk soccer team take on Texas at 4 p.m. today and Texas A&M at 1 p.m. Sunday at the Jayhawk Soccer Complex. This weekend's games could be key in determining positioning for the Big 12 tournament at the end of the season.
Kansas faces Texas on the heels of one of its best performances of the season, according to Francis. The Jayhawks only beat the Cornhuskers 1-0 Sunday, but Francis said the offense created more opportunities than it had in the last two weeks.
The Jayhawks lead the conference in shutouts and have allowed the least amount of goals compared to the other Big 12 teams.
Kansas' stingy defense will be key in its second match of the weekend against No. 8 Texas A&M on Sunday at 1 p.m. The Aggies (8-3-1, 4-0)
won the Big 12 regular season and tournament championships last year. The Jayhawks have only defeated the Aggies once.
"These are two of the toughest teams in the conference," Francis said. "I'm just glad we're playing
them at home."
Kansan sportswriter Mark Dent can be contacted at mdent@kansan.com.
Edited by Brett Bolton
FOOTBALL
Aggies tough test for Jayhawk defense
BY RYAN SCHNEIDER
something has to give on Saturday
Kansas' defense has had little trouble stopping running backs this season. But that could change come Saturday.
In its first four games, Kansas has faced teams that have thrown the ball on more than 50 percent of their plays. This weekend, though, the Jayhawks will take on this season's first rushing opponent.
This season, Texas & A&M has run the ball an average of 41 times a game for 214 yards. That's an average of 5.2 yards a carry. With Kansas' defense giving up less than 90 yards a game,
"We will definitely hunker down so that he does not get too many rushing yards," sophomore defensive lineman John Larson said.
A&M's rushing attack is led by its running back, Jorvorskie Lane, who stands at 6-foot, 274 pounds. By comparison, Kansas' Jon Cornish is listed at 6 feet, 204 pounds. This season, Lane is averaging 60 yards a game on 12 carries.
Lane is not known as a back that can rush for big yardage. Instead, he's used more in short yardage and goal line situations. Already this season, Lane leads the Big 12 Conference
with 11 touchdowns in five games.
Kansas' defense hasn't allowed 100-yard rusher in nearly two seasons. The last back to rush for more than 100 yards was Texas' Cedric Benson in 2004, who rushed for 161 yards.
The key for Kansas during that stretch has been getting good pressure up the middle by the defensive line and linebackers.
"We've played downhill as linebackers," Mangino said. "We're jumping gaps and getting up field on the defensive line."
The defensive front's success comes as a surprise, considering Kansas returned just one starter.
Nearly all of the new starters this season saw some time last year, but not significant time.
Senior linebacker Eric Washington left the game on a stretcher last weekend because of a concussion and is expected to miss at least two games. Mangino said Washington's outside linebacker spot would be filled by either sophomore James Holt or freshman Arist Wright.
Kansan senior sportswriter Ryan Schneider can be contacted at rschneider@kansan.com.
Edited by Dianne Smith