Baylor is projected to finish last in the Big 12 South this season but it has higher aspirations 10A Jayhawk football fans came out in full force last night to watch Kansas' open practice. 9A
THURSDAY, AUGUST 24, 2006
WWW.KANSAN.COM
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
SPORTS
PAGE 12A
DANCING NACHOS
Jayhawks display ups, downs at fans' day
BY MICHAEL PHILLIPS
KANSAN SPORTS EDITOR
MPHILIPS@KANSAN.COM
The Kansas football team opened the doors of Memorial Stadium for fans to watch the last 30 minutes of Wednesday's open practice for its annual Fan Appreciation and Kids' Day. The event successfully served its purpose: To get people talking about the football team in advance of the season opener.
There's a lot to be excited about, but behind every hope is a fear and both optimists and pessimists will have plenty to say before the team gets the final word on the field.
OPTIMIST: Freshman quarterback Kerry Meier is the real deal. Meier has been working with the first team since spring practices and is displaying a poise rarely seen by freshman quarterbacks.
Sophomore cornerback takes spotlight
Perhaps most impressively, Meier showed a Vince Young-esque tendency to run with the football as soon as he gave his receivers a look. When defenses are caught off-guard, Meier will easily gain 10 yards with his feet. When they are anticipating the run, it should free up receivers to make big plays.
PESSIMIST: Meier's will have his lunch eaten the second he leaves the pocket. Spread offenses are now the norm in the Big 12 Conference; even Nebraska is headed in that direction.
PROFILE
PESSIMIST: Tight end Derek Fine summed it up nicely: "I'm hot."
Combine that with the risk of injury, and there's no reason to let Meier leave the pocket. Remember that as soon as he goes down, Adam Barmann retakes the reigns for the Jayhawks.
OPTIMIST: It may have been a hot day, but as coach Mark Mangino pointed out, "we're used to it."
OPTIMIST: The cornerbacks and safeties held their own against Kansas' impressive core of receivers.
SEE PHILLIPS ON PAGE 8
Jared Gab/KAMSAN
Sophomore cornerback Agib Tallib is expected to fill the shoes vacated when Charles Gorden left the Kansas football team after his junior year in order to pursue a career in the National Football League.
Talib ready to fill shoes of departed Charles Gordon
BY SHAWN SHROYER
When Aqib Talib was born, he was given two unique gifts: His name, which brings with it questions of its origin, and his athletic ability, which brings with it attention from media and opposing offenses.
These two gifts have stayed with the sophomore cornerback as he's gone from New Jersey to Texas to Kansas; from the basketball court to the football field to the big screen; from offensive weapon to shutdown defender, and from a moderately recruited high schooler to a blip on the National Football League radar.
But it all starts with the name.
"When I was born, my parents were practicing Islam, so I have a Muslim name," Talib said of his parents, Okolo Talib and Ted Henry. "They're not really practicing it any more, but I always kept my Muslim name. I kind of like it."
The road to Kansas
Watching Talib play on Saturdays, it's hard to tell football was not his first love. Born in Trenton, N.J., Talib said nobody in the state played football. Instead, baseball and basketball were the prevalent sports. He chose basketball.
But a move to Dallas when he was in eighth grade brought him into the world of football.
"I had been playing basketball all my life, and football was just something new," Talib said. "It got me right away. I was like, that's what I want to go to college to do."
Even in his first year of football, Talib had a knack for making the big play. He said he scored eight touchdowns his first season, mainly on screen passes and kick returns.
In Texas, Talib moved back and forth between Dallas and Richardson and attended Berkner High School, where he began to focus on football.
He switched sides of the ball to defense and was a game-changer in a different capacity on special teams. As a senior, Talib intercepted three passes and blocked four kicks, garnering first team all-district, first team all-city and Berkner Defensive Back of the Year honors.
Despite his accolades, Talib
SEE TALIB ON PAGE 9A
FOOTBALL
Fan Appreciation and Kids' Day gives fans preview of coming season, highlights new and returning players
Kerry Meier, freshman quarterback, prepares a pass from a deep pocket yesterday evening during the Jayhawks' open practice at Memorial Stadium. Meier is expected to start the football season at quarterback.
Jared Gab/KANSAN
The stadium opened at 5:30 p.m. for fans to watch the final 30 minutes of the team's practice.
In a short address to the nearly 3,000 people in attendance, coach Mark Mangino thanked the fans and others who attended the annual event for their support of the football program.
In an event that was high on enthusiasm but short on football, the Kansas football team hosted its annual Fan Appreciation and Kids' Day at Memorial Stadium Wednesday night.
BY RYAN SCHNEIDER
"I'd like to thank the best band in college football, the cheerleaders, Big Jav, all the lays," he said.
Mangino also took time to publicly introduce the 2006 captains: Senior offensive lineman David Ochoa, junior tight end Derek Fine, junior defensive lineman James McClinton and sophomore linebacker Mika Rivera.
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Redshirt-freshman quarterback Kerry Meier was fairly sharp, completing four of five passes on his longest offensive drive of the night. He also scrambled for a 15-yard rushing touchdown, one of several plays that put Meier on the run.
The offense and defense scrim-
The starting wide receiver spots still appear open, with at least five different receivers seeing playing
> Senior running back Jon Cornish and junior fullback Brandon McAnderson both saw time with the first-team offense. McAnderson and freshman running back Jake Sharp are expected to back up Cornish, after last week's injury to redshirt-freshman Angus Quigley.
Senior quarterback Adam Barmann's deep touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Jeff Foster drew the loudest cheers of the night. Barmann, who has practiced with the second-team offense throughout training camp, threw a mix of short yardage passes to receivers and backs before his longest pass of the night.
X
maged. Some observations:
The three starting linebacker spots also seemed unsettled as redshirt-freshman Jake Schermer, sophomore Joe Mortensen, sophomore Mike Rivera and senior Eric Washington saw time with the first-team defense.
time alongside Meier with the firstteam offense. Senior Brian Murph, junior Marcus Henry and sophomore Marcus Herford saw time with the firstteam offense and each recorded a catch.
Injured players redshirt-freshman Darrell Stuckey, senior safety Jerome Kemp and sophomore safety James Holt did not practice. Mangino said Kemp might be available for the season opener Sept. 2 against Northwestern State, but Stuckey and Holt would not.
Kansan senior sportswriter Ryan Schneider can be contacted at rschneider@kansan.com.
Edited by Dianne Smith
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