2B THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
SPORTS
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2005
ATHLETICS
CALENDAR
TODAY
+ Volleyball at Texas, 6:30 p.m., Austin
FRIDAY
+ Soccer vs. Baylor, 7 p.m.
Waco, Texas
SATURDAY
Cross Country Roy Griak
Invitational, 11:20 a.m., Minneapolis, Minn.
♦ Softball vs. Pittsburg St.,
noon, Arrocha Ballpark
+ Softball vs. Missouri
Southern, 4 p.m., Arrocha
Ballpark
- Vollbally vs. Baylor, 7 p.m.
Horeisi Family Athletics
Center
SUNDAY
♥ Softball vs. Rockhurst,
noon, Arrocha Ballpark
♥ soccer vs. Texas A&M, 1 p.m., Jayhawk Soccer Complex
♦ Softball opponent TBA, 2 p.m., Arrocha Ballpark
INTRAMURALS
'Mental errors' fret flag football
BY HEATHER RIFFEL
hriffel@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTWRITER
Delta Upsilon One's mental errors led to an 8-6 victory for Lime Green Machines during Monday's intramural men's flag football game.
Delta Upson One struggled to get started during its first series. A too-hike lice to Delta Upson One's quarterback Tommy Beeler, Overland Park sophomore, caused him to drop the ball in the Lime Green Machines' end zone, leading to a safety.
Lime Green Machines capitalized on this mistake and marched down the field where Jacob Nelson, Delphos senior, threw a touchdown pass to Tim Fajkus, Lenexa senior.
Delta Upsilon One was unsuccessful on its next drive when Beeler was intercepted by Lime Green Machines' Efe Ekpere, Port Charlotte, Fla. senior, to end the first half.
"There were too many mental
errors in the first half," Beeler said at halftime.
The second half started with another failed attempt to gain yardage by Delta Upsilon One when it turned the ball over on downs.
Lime Green Machines was unsuccessful on the following drive and punted the ball back to Delta Upson One. Delta Upsilon One's Nolan Seim, Salina junior, returned the punt for a long run that gave the team good field position.
Delta Upsilon One capitalized on this field position with a touchdown pass by Beeler to Scott Bradford, Marysville senior.
NFL
In the end, the mental errors were too much for Delta Upsilon One to overcome.
"We shot ourselves in the foot by not being mentally into it." Beeler said after the game. "We were looking ahead to the play-offs instead of this game."
— Edited by Becca Evanhoe
BY EDDIE PELLS THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
DENVER — The Denver Broncos signed running back Quentin Griffin yesterday, bringing back last season's opening-day starter who was surprisingly released before this season began.
Broncos re-sign running back
To make room for Griffin, the Broncos waved kickoff specialist Paul Ernster, a seventh-round draft pick who was inactive for last Sunday's game against the Chargers.
Denver also released quarterback Kliff Kingsbury from its practice squad.
Griffin opened last season with a 156-yard game against Kansas City and started the first four games, but lost his starting job after hurting his ankle in the fifth week against Tampa Bay.
Two games later, he tore ligaments in his knee and was lost for the season.
He was fourth on the depth chart in Denver's training camp and when the Broncos released Maurice Clarett, many thought Griffin's spot
“T
I the thing about a running back who's a fourth-team guy is that he rarely sees any action. Q doesn't play special teams. Chances are, he wouldn't have played this year."
was secure.
But he wound up on the list of Denver's final cuts. A few days after his release, Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said it was one of the most difficult cuts he had to make.
"It stood out because we know he can play," Shanahan said at the time. "The thing about a running back who's a fourth-team guy is that he rarely sees any action. Q doesn't play
special teams. Chances are, he wouldn't have played this year. So, we went in a different direction. I know he's a good player and I hope he gets picked up. He can play."
He may soon get a chance given Denver's status at the position.
Mike Anderson hurt his ribs in the first game and struggled last week, rushing for 49 yards on 15 carries against San Diego.
Tatum Bell hurt his ankle, and his status for this week is unknown.
Ron Dayne, meanwhile, replaced Anderson late and is the only fully healthy tailback the Broncos have.
Ernster's release wasn't a big surprise, given Todd Sauerbrun's effectiveness with kickoffs last week, combined with Shanahan's open criticism of the rookie.
Kingsbury's departure leaves Denver with an open spot on its practice squad and with only two quarterbacks — Jake Plummer and Bradlee Van Pelt in the organization.
FOOTBALL
Experienced Missouri defense struggles in early-season tests
BY BRANDON HOOPS THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Cornerback Calvin Washington doesn't blame opposing teams for testing Missouri's secondary.
The most experienced part of the Tigers' defense has struggled through the first three games, allowing an average of 230 yards passing.
That's a stark contrast to last season, when the Tigers' pass defense was the best in Big 12 and third-best in the nation, allowing an 150 yards per game.
"I think we've really got a secondary that can really shut people down. It comes to the point where we've just got to execute things. We've got the talent to do it."
not making the plays where we should, and it tells us that we've got to have a sense of urgency to eliminate that."
It's not like the Tigers have been hurt by loss of players.
Calvin Washington Missouri cornerback
Missouri (2-1) ranks eighth in the Big 12. The only interception came from linebacker Dedrick Harrington. The Tigers have this weekend off before hosting No. 2 Texas Oct. 1.
"If I was them (opponents), I would definitely go deep and try us, too." Washington said. "You can't blame them. We're
Fifth-year seniors Washington, A.J. Kincade and Marcus King anchor a secondary believed to have made considerable progress since Gary Pinkel arrived as coach in 2001.
Back then, Pinkel learned the Tigers only had one cornerback on scholarship and that player
was having season-ending surgery.
"Talk about rude awakening when you get a job," Pinkel said.
So Pinkel asked a couple of players to switch from wide receiver to cornerback.
Washington was one of those players.
Washington broke the school record for receiving yards during his senior year at Lancaster High School in Dallas. The switch to cornerback "was something I was told to do," he said. "There are a lot of guys that make a transition like that and they really can't handle it. I had my ups and downs where I wanted to go back, but I stuck with it. I was like, 'If I want to be a corner, I've got to be the best I can be.'"
Washington's sophomore season was spent learning the nuances of the game.
Last year in a backup role he continued to learn and develop, making 13 tackles.
Washington still believes the best is yet to come.
"I think we've really got a secondary that can really shut people down," Washington said. "It comes to the point where we've just got to execute things. We've got the talent to do it."
Safety David Overstreet agreed.
"We've got to make progress," Overstreet said. "We haven't played to the best of our ability."
L. G. Patterson/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Missouri's Quincy Wade (31) knocks the ball away from Troy receiver Martin Teal during the second half Saturday in Columbia, Mo. Wade was flagged for pass interference on the play. Missouri won 52-21 ranking eighth in the Big 12 Conference.
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