THURSDAY, MAY 5, 2005
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SPORTS ADMINISTRATION
Perkins recognized for achievements
By Ross Fitch
rfitch@kansan.com
KANANS STAFF WRITE Writer
The University of Kansas Athletics Department has brought in more than $60 million in the last two weeks between contracts with adidas and ESPN, but this week has been particularly rewarding for Athletics Director Lew Perkins.
Perkins was elected to the Board of Trustees for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Tuesday. He also will receive an honorary education degree from the University of South Carolina Aiken tonight, where he was a coach and athletics director for 11 years.
Perkins said he was thrilled to join the board of trustees.
"The game of basketball has made a tremendous impact on my life," he said. "I now have a great opportunity to give back to
the game I love. It means even more to me now that I'm at Kansas, where Dr. Naismith coached and began the great legacy that is Kansas basketball."
Jim Marchiony, associate athletics director for external affairs, said Perkins' election to the hall of fame board reflected well on the University.
"Whenever someone is recognized like this, it points out the fact that Kansas is a pretty special place with a lot of accomplished people," Marchionny said.
The hall of fame is recognizing Perkins' long-time contributions to men's and women's basketball and the visionary role he can play in the hall of fame's future. Marchiony said.
The hall of fame looks for board of trustee members who are passionate about basketball and have an interest in promoting the game, said Scott Zuffelato, vice president for
advancement for the hall of fame.
"Lew was the perfect candidate because he has spent his lifetime in basketball," Zuffelato said. "He has a tremendous passion for the game."
Zuffelato said the 39 board members upheld the bylaws of the organization, helped dictate policies and attended meetings, which were held
twice a year. He also said the hall of fame was nonprofit, so it needed candidates who could help raise money. This also made Perkins a good choice.
Zuffelato said that, in Perkins' case, having a candidate with connections to the University of Kansas was also
Perkins
important. Fifteen hall of famers are KU alumni, which is remarkable, he said.
The Naimmith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame building was founded on Feb. 17, 1968, on the Springfield College campus in Springfield, Mass. The first induction class in 1959 included Ed Hickox, a Springfield College basketball coach and National Association of Basketball Coaches president, and James Naismith, the founder of basketball and the first Kansas coach. Zuffelato said 263 people were now enshrined.
In addition to receiving an honorary degree, Perkins also will deliver the commencement address tonight at USC Alken. He served as the school's athletics director from 1969 to 1980 and was the head basketball coach from 1969 to 1979. During those years, the university grew from a junior college to a four-year institution.
USC Aiken will award Perkins the degree for his achievements in intercollegiate athletics, his role in developing the USC Aiken campus and for his "personal commitment to upholding high standards and ethical principles in all aspects of his life."
Perkins received the National Invitation Tournament's Man of the Year award in March and the 2000 National Athletic Director of the Year Award, while at the University of Connecticut. He has been at the University of Kansas since June 2003 and has been athletics director at the University of Maryland and Wichita State.
Perkins also was a highly recruited basketball player in his youth and played for the University of Iowa under hall of fame coach and KU alumnus Ralph Miller.
- Edited by Megan Claus
Senior leader excelled despite slow start
PROFILE
After soccer injury swimming became a driving passion
BY KELY REYNOLDs
kreynolds@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTWRITER
Becca Zarazan doesn't define her career with swimming efforts, but with the coaches and teammates that have made her career enjoyable.
in the 100 butterfly.
Passion for the sport drove Zarazan, senior swimmer and co-captain, to be one of the best swimmers in Kansas. She was a three-time letter winner at Blue Valley North High School in Kansas City, Mo., where she broke records in the 200 freestyle and 100 freestyle. She also was a member of the record-breaking 200 medley relay and 400 freestyle relay teams. Blue Valley North took first place at the state meet in 1999, second place in 2000 and third place during Zarazan's senior year in 2001. At the 2001 state meet, Zarazan captured second place
"I've always been a butterflier," Zarazan said. "It was my event, my baby. I loved swimming butterfly."
Kansas has not always been her home. She has lived in Houston, Chicago, Phoenix and Overland Park. Her family lives in Southlake, Texas, a suburb of Dallas.
Zara zan also was not always a swimmer. She played soccer as a high-school freshman, but her season was cut short by a hip injury. She decided to try.
Zarazan
out for swimming as a sophomore where, unlike many of her teammates who had swum for years, she had only one year of previous swimming experience in middle school.
"I absolutely fell in love with the sport, my team and my coach," she said.
Zarazan knew that she wanted to be a collegiate athlete. Athletics have always been important to her family, Zarazan said.
"My dad played football for Drake," Zarazan said. "My mom was a gymnast there, too."
As college approached in 2001, Zarazan decided that she would swim at Colorado State University. In her freshman campaign with the Rams, she finished seventh place in the 200 butterfly and sixth place in the 100 butterfly at the Mountain West Conference Championship in 2002. She also was a part of the All-Academic Mountain West Conference team.
Despite a successful season at Colorado State, unexpected family problems led Zarazan back to the Kansas City area.
"I wanted to be closer to my family during that time," Zarazan said.
Although Zarazan was a member of the KU sophomore class in 2002, she fit in well with the freshmen class and new
"I was torn between two classes," Zarazan said. "It was like being a freshman all over again."
Campbell said that he was aware of the significant time Zarazan had spent in the pool while at Colorado State.
"It became more a matter of helping her continue to develop," Campbell said.
From the beginning of her Jayhawk career, Zarazan's goal wasn't to be a captain, she said.
"My goal was to be the best for my team," she said.
Campbell, however, said he could see Zarazan as a leader from the beginning. He said it was the little things that started to add up.
"She always gave 100 percent," Campbell said. "If people came to her, she was always willing to help people one-on-one. She was not afraid of work."
training environment, Zarazan said.
Zarazan served as co-captain this year alongside seniors Amy Gruber and Miranda Isaac. The three created a competitive
Zarazan was a major contributor in the butterfly and freestyle events, although she did not end her career on the note that she wanted to, she said. Zarazan's best time in the 100 butterfly was a 56.06, set her junior year, but her fastest time senior year was just a 58.38 recorded at the Big 12 Conference Championships.
"It happened so fast with such intensity," Zarazan said. "Now I'm starting to be Becca the grown-up, not Becca the athlete."
Zarazan is considering a career publishing after she graduates in December, and she is particularly interested in the magazine industry. Whatever life may bring her after graduation, swimming has her prepared.
AUTO RACING
"Swimming teaches you a lot about heart, love-hate relationships, determination, loyalty and communication," Zarazan said.
Edited by Ross Fitch
NASCAR returns for Mother's Day
DARLINGTON, S.C. — Dale Jarrett shrugs his shoulders when he looks at what has become of the old country track he used to visit when his daddy went racing.
Gone is the big scoreboard and play structure at Darlington Raceway where Jarrett would climb while his father, Ned, mixed it up with NASCAR stars of the 1960s. Now, rising up around the track's perimeter is a multimillion-dollar lighting system.
And Darlington's first official night race, the Dodge Charger 500 on Saturday, is also a NASCAR departure — running on Mother's Day weekend, normally an off week in Nextel Cup.
He said studies show that NASCAR spectators have shifted in the past two decades from about 70 percent men and 30 percent women to almost 50-50. That means more families are bringing mom along to watch the race with them, Browning said.
At first, Darlington president Chris Browning saw the switch to Mother's Day weekend as one more step toward the eventual demise of the longtime Nextel Cup venue. Then he realized demographics had changed in the past two decades.
Pete Jacobelli/The Associated Press
NBA BASKETBALL
Okafor named Rookie of the Year
NEW YORK — Charlotte Bobcats forward Emeka Okafor won the NBA's Rookie of the Year award yesterday, the first former college player to win the award in four years.
Okafor, the No. 2 overall pick in the NBA draft, led all rookies in scoring and rebounding and was second in his class behind Atlanta's Josh Smith in blocks. He also ranked second in the NBA with 3.8 offensive rebounds per game.
He ended his season with 47 games in double figures in both points and rebounds.
The Associated Press
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