4B SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2007
HENRY (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
player for us," Mangino said. "The last couple of years he was always what you'd call a solid player. Now he's kind of taken his game to the next level where he's a factor in the games"
Henry reeled in seven catches for 103 yards against Central Michigan and five more for 119 yards last week against Southeastern Louisiana. His 222 receiving yards place him third in the Big 12 Conference behind two players from the pass-oriented Texas Tech offense.
Sophomore quarterback Todd Reeing, who is quickly becoming a star at the same time as Henry, has
clearly found a favorite target in Kansas' new offensive scheme. Though many Jayhawk receivers swap in and out at the other wide-out position, Henry is a constant in the lineup, and for good reason — he fits into the new offense perfectly.
"The last couple of years he was always what you'd call a solid player. Now he's kind of taken his game to the next level where he's a factor in the games."
"Our offensive system this year is different," Henry said. "We're getting the ball out to the receivers a little more this year, so any receiver on the team can have a 100-yard game with the way this offense is built."
THE RIGHT TIME
"This year it just feels different," Henry said. "Just knowing it's my senior year and this is my last time going around. I just want to take advantage of everything."
Despite the fact that Henry humbly said his success is a product of the system, there could be more to his breakout season.
That could catch some casual observers off guard, but it would not surprise his teammates, who voted
Henry is making the most of his opportunities up to this point. He is on pace for more than 70 receptions and 1,300 yards, marks that would eclipse the current Kansas single-season records. If he continues on his current pace, national attention will inevitably follow.
MARK MANGINO Football coach
him most likely to surprise in a preseason poll. When asked about the honor, Henry chose to deflect some of the praise back to his teammates.
"Id congratulate them for picking me for that, but anybody on the team could be
a big surprise with the way our offense is made up," Henry said. "We have a lot of young people out there playing and anybody could be a surprise."
Marcus Henry has lived up to his teammates' prediction through the first two games of 2007. That leaves 10 more opponents for the Kansas wide receiver to catch off guard.
— Edited by Luke Morris
by the numbers
Marcus Henry, senior WR, 6'4", 210 lbs.
2006:
Receptions Yards Long Avg. TDs
25 316 33 12.6 3
So far in 2007:
Opponent Receptions Yards Long Avg. TDs
Central Michigan 7 103 46 14.7 1
SE Louisiana 5 119 66 23.8 0
Projected 2007 totals:
Receptions Yards Long Avg. TDs
72 1332 66 18.5 6
between last season and now.
Reesing thinks it's more than Talib's magnetic-like attraction to the end zone that makes him a valuable asset to the Kansas offense.
TALIB (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
Reeing said that Talib helps the offense even when he's not catching the ball. He also works as a great decoy to draw defenders away from other receivers.
"His presence on the field really gets people alerted," Reesing said.
but when Aqib goes in we all look up and say 'Alright, we've got Aqib in, we've got to watch', senior linebacker Joe Mortensen said. "I'm excited for him."
The opposing defensive players aren't the only ones noticing when the Richardson, Texas native trots out to his position at slot receiver. It also grabs the attention of all the Jayhawks.
THE CATCHES
This season isn't the first time Kansas has used Talib as a receiver. The Jayhawks began tinkering with the idea at the end of last season. Talib recorded his first career recen-
"When Aqib goes in we all look up and say 'Alright we've got Aqib in, we've got to watch.'"
"We usually don't pay that much attention to the offense because we are trying to figure out what we need to do,
JOE MORTENSEN Kansas Linebacker
tion in the final game against Missouri. It was a 42-yard touchdown catch on a screen pass. It didn't resemble the two touchdowns from this season because instead of catching a
deep pass in stride, Talib juked his way through the Missouri defense.
Against Central Michigan, Todd Reesing launched a 49-yard pass
that Talib caught on a seam route in perfect stride for a touchdown. In the second quarter Saturday, Talib similarly took off toward the end zone, caught the Reesing pass around the five yard line then ran it in for another touchdown.
"I think it was the exact same play we called last week and it was the same result," Talib said. "Todd threw a nice ball and I made a play on it."
AS THE YEAR GOES ON
This has been established: Aqib Talib knows how to find the end zone and knows how to provide a spark for his team. The only question now is how often he'll be used as the season progresses.
Fans who are worried that Talib on offense may be some sort of non-conference schedule experiment can rest easy, because Mangino has no plans to stop now.
"Aqib's number one priority is defense but there are some appropriate times that we think he could be helpful," Mangino said. "There
will be days where we will need him for a few more snaps on offense. No question"
Edited by Luke Morris
touchdowns
Aqib Talib's offensive career four catches, three touchdowns
Nov. 25, 2006 at Missouri
Tallb caught a screen pass from QB Kerry Meler then scampered for 42 yards and a touchdown.
Sept. 1, 2007 vs. Central Michigan — QB Todd Reesing fired a 49-yard bullet that hit Talib right in stride for a touchdown.
Sept. 8, 2007 vs. Southeastern Louisiana — On an play eerily similar to the previous week's, Talbh caught a 36-yard touchdown pass.
MLB
Cardinals extend losing streak to five
Cincinnati defeats injury-prone St. Louis 7-2 with grand slam, solo homer
BY JOE KAY ASSOCIATED PRESS
CINCINNATI — Adam Dunn hit a grand slam and a solo homer off Mark Mulder, and the Cincinnati Reds extended the St. Louis Cardinals' losing streak with a 7-2 victory Tuesday night.
The defending World Series champions had dropped five in a row, matching their season high. After regrouping for an impressive comeback, the Cardinals have started unraveling down the stretch.
They were $10\frac{1}{2}$ games out at the end of June, but had rallied to within a game of first place in the NL Central before they hit their current slump. The loss left them
four games out, their biggest deficit since Aug. 24.
One of the stars of their summer charge was a big reason this one slipped away.
Right fielder Rick Ankiel let a fly ball drop for a double, then let another deflect off the heel of his glove for a two-run error during Cincinnati's six-run third inning. Dunn, who hit a solo homer in his first at-bat, hit his seventh career slam off Mulder (0-2) during the 10-batter inning.
David Eckstein and Ryan Ludwick hit solo homers off Matt Belisle (8-8), who allowed six hits in seven innings.
There was more bad news for St.
Louis before the game. Outfielder
Chris Duncan is out for at least 10
days — and possibly for the season — because of a sports hernia that will need surgery at some point. Also, third baseman Scott Rolen had season-ending shoulder surgery.
The Cardinals' rotation was the foundation for their about-face. It's been a big part of their recent downturn.
The 30-year-old Mulder hoped to shore it up by making his comeback from shoulder surgery last Sept. 12. He rejoined the club and gave up six runs in four innings of an 8-2 loss to Pittsburgh last Wednesday.
He was hit hard in his second start, lasting only four innings again. The Reds piled up seven hits and seven runs, aided by Ankiel's
misadventures.
Ankiel was one of baseball's feel-good stories last month, when the failed pitcher made his return to the majors as a slugging outfielder. He hit a grand slam and drove in nine runs during a three-game sweep of the Reds from Aug. 31 to Sept. 2.
Since then, he's come under scrutiny for reports that he received shipments of human growth hormone in 2004, before it was banned by Major League Baseball. A few fans chanted "HGH!" when he came to bat and grounded out in the eighth, leaving him in an 0-for-17 slump.
Ankiel's defense was the main problem on Tuesday.
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NFL
Rams player suspended for violating substance policy
four games for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy.
Wroten's suspension begins immediately and he will be eligible to return to the team on Oct. 8.
NEW YORK — St. Louis Rams defensive tackle Claude Wroteen was suspended Tuesday without pay for
The second-year player made no tackles in Sunday's loss to Carolina.
As a rookie, Wroteen played in 15 games and made 11 tackles with one sack.
Associated Press
Projected as a likely first-round draft pick in '06, Wroten's stock fell when in January of that year, he was stopped for speeding.
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