Volume 125 Issue 103 Monday, April 15, 2013 COMMENTARY Spring game shows promise Nearly a year ago, the Kansas football team — under coach Charlie Weis in his first year took the field for the annual spring game. Former Notre Dame quarterback Dayne Crist looked sharp, accurately slinging the football around the field to different wide receivers. Running back Tony Pierson broke off big runs. There finally was a buzz around Kansas football. Fast forward to the end of the 2012 season, and the Jayhawks recorded one fewer victory than in the previous season. However, Kansas stayed competitive in most games only to end up losing in the final quarters. On Saturday, it felt like déjà vu. Another transfer quarterback led the charge, but this time, it was junior Jake Heaps. The former BYU player racked up 257 yards on 20 for 28 passing with four touchdowns. Pierson once again showed his big-play ability. kansan.com The buzz that was lost at the end of last season reappeared after the gar- Something feels different though. The primary running backs in Pierson, James Sims, Taylor Cox and Brandon Bourbon all return. Linebackers Jake Love and Ben Heeney are making another appearance for the 2013 season. That's not at all surprising, but Kansas finally has a true threat in junior-transfer wide receiver lustin McCav. The former Oklahoma wide out recorded eight receptions for 99 yards with one touchdown. Those numbers don't pop off the stat book, but his one-handed grab for 47 yards while being guarded caught the fans' eyes. McCay has yet to record any of official stats in college, but he was once ranked as a four star coming out of high school. Still, it's clear to see that Heaps has a favorite target, and that's a great sign. The chemistry between Heaps and McCay will be crucial for the upcoming season. Luckily, they already have a head start. Since they were transfers, both of them had to sit out for a full season. Sure, that hurt Crist and the Jayhawks this past season, but during the offseason. Heaps and McCay made sure to work with each other early on. If both Heaps and McCay continue to build on their relationship, the Jay-hawks might see something special. Picture this: the next big-time quarterback-wide receiver duo since Todd Reesing and Dezmon Briscoe. I know, it was just a spring football game. Neither Heaps nor McCay have proven themselves. But why not make the comparison? The past three years have been a disaster for the Kansas quarterback-receiver duos. Last year, it was Crist and Kale Pick, and no wide receiver caught a touchdown. The year before that was Jordan Webb and Pick, which resulted in two touchdowns. In 2010, the duo was Webb and Davidm Patterson. The big-time combination has been drastically missing since Reesing and Briscoe, but that might soon change. Heaps doesn't have the mobility like Reesing, but he certainly has the arm. McCay is lacking in speed, but he has a similar frame and athleticism as Briscoe. Look, it's a long stretch, but the possibility is there and has time to develop with both being juniors. We'll just have to wait and see it develop in the fall. —Edited by Allison Hammond 14 NOT SO BIG NOW Junior pitcher Frank Duncan is greeted by teammates after 2.1 innings of pitching. Duncan gave up four hits and walked one in Kansas' win, making him 3-4 on the season. GEORGE MULLINIX/KANSAN MESSING WITH TEXAS Jayhawks find opportunities in Texas' errors despite stiff competition FARZIN VOUSOUGHIAN fyousoughian@kansan.com Kansas took advantage of back-to back errors committed by Texas in the bottom of the sixth and scored the go-ahead run to pick up a 4-3 victory yesterday. Junior right fielder Tucker Tharp reached on an error in the bottom of the sixth. Another errortranslated into a run for Tharp to allow Kansas to retake the lead and pick up the win. "I hit a high chopper to second and luckily I got down the line well and the guy didn't make the play." Tharp said. "We took advantage of it. It was good for us to get some momentum back in the dugout after they just put up two." Despite having to battle through struggles during the season, Tharp elevated his game against Texas. He was responsible for the game-winning RBI in the 12th inning of Fridays' game, and had the only RBI in Saturday's loss. Now, he's overcome adversity and struggles by stepping up and making big plays when Kansas needs it the most. "He's a really important player for us," said Kansas coach Ritch Price. "He's one of the most competitive guys in our program. He invests and he cares. For him to have a huge weekend and lead us to a series win, I couldn't be more happy for him." Kansas played well defensively, committing just one error in 30 innings against Texas. After junior closer Jordan Piche' pitched four and two-third innings in Friday's win, he pulled on again on Sunday with a multi-inning save. The Longhorns added base runners in the eighth and ninth innings to try and force extra innings, but Piche' fought out of the jams to pick up his eight eighth of the year. "I'm really happy with the way I pitched," Piche said. "It was nerve-wracking, but I controlled it well. With the defense behind me, I'm not afraid to pitch to contact and I felt good coming out of the bullpen." The Jayhawks took two of three games in the series, making the first series win over Texas since sweeping the series played in Lawrence in 2009. All of the games between Kansas and Texas this series were one-run games. The Jayhawks won Friday 7-6 in 12 innings and won Sunday 4-3. The Longhorns emerged victorious with a 2-1 final score on Saturday. "That's two good teams playing and that's good baseball baseball". Piche' said. "You can't go wrong playing Texas. We came out to perform and play the best to our ability." Kansas pitching coach Ryan Graves was ejected after the top of the seventh inning and must serve a one-game suspension this Tuesday. The Jayhawks, now 22-13 and 7-5 in Big 12 play, will participate in non-conference action this week. Kansas will go to Omaha, Neb. Tuesday and take on Creighton at 6:30 p.m. The team will leave Omaha immediately and return to Hoglund Ballpark to play Ottawa Wednesday at 6 p.m. The Jayhawks resume conference play on Friday for a threegame series in Lubbock, Texas against Texas Tech, and look to pick up their third straight series win against conference opponents. "We've got to keep doing what we are doing." Piche' said. "A lot of guys are working really hard. We've just got to keep up on that. Guys are pitching well too. Going into next weekend, we'll take it day-by-day and get our work in." Edited by Julie Etzler
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FOOTBALL Offense shines in spring football game FARZIN VOUSDUGHIAN fvousoughian@kansan.com Kansas junior quarterback Jake Heaps shipped by completing 20 of 28 passes for 257 yards and four touchdowns in Saturday's spring game to lift the Blue team to a 34-7 win over the White team. Local media voted Heaps co-offensive MVP for the game. Kansas coach Charlie Weis said there were a couple of plays that Heaps could have executed better, but for the most part, the BYU transfer lived up to Weis' expectations. Junior quarterback Jake Heaps passes the ball during the second half of the Spring Game Saturday afternoon. Kansas' 2013 season will begin on Sept. 7 against South Dakota. "You've got to be encouraged when you watch him play." Weis said. "Strong arm, accurate, and knows how to read coverages." Heaps' biggest target in Saturday's spring game was junior wide receiver justin McCay, who shared the offensive MVP title with Heaps. McCay's eightceptions helped produce 99 yards and a touchdown for the Blue squad. Hea's and McCay spent a lot of time this offseason working together and carried it over to Saturday for fans to see. McCay sat out last year, but will be an essential part of the lawhaws' offense in 2013. TRAVIS YOUNG/KANSAN "What we need is a dynamic football player to go down and stretch the defense and make plays down field." Heaps said. "With him going out there and showcasing what he did, that's phenomenal. It helps our team a lot and it raises the expectations for these other receivers as well." Heaps and McCay, both transfer players, had to sit out in 2012 because of NCAA transfer rules. The two players spent 2012 watching their teammates every Saturday and learning as much as they could before stepping into their shoes. McCay played in three games as a redshirt freshman at the University of Oklahoma in 2011, including one against Kansas. As a Sooner, McCay did not accumulate any statistics and still awaits his first catch in a college football game. Although McCay has yet to make a name for himself, he is already a key player as Heaps continues to be the leader for Kansas. The quarterback-wide receiver duo showed a lot of potential for this season in the spring game. "It's a lot of fun to see him go out there and perform and play as well as he did." Heaps said. "Now we're going to expect that from him every single day." "I think one of the reasons why Iake had a big day is because Justin Weis opted out of coaching in the spring game and scouted the team from the press box. He liked what he saw in the duo. had a big day, and vice versa." Weis said. "One of the reasons Justin had a big day is because Jake knows where to throw and where he's going to be." Like Heaps, he sees the new opportunity to go from being a quiet football player to being a big McCay said after the game that Heaps "amazes" him in practices the two have built a lot of chemistry and camaraderie this year. contributor under Weis' offense. "It definitely humbles you," McCay said "It makes you more hungry when you get on the field. I'm just trying to compete." On Monday, the players will visit doctors and trainers to check up on injuries. Later in the week, the players will watch the spring game and receive offseason evaluations from the coaching staff. The players will have meetings with their position coaches on Wednesday and Thursday. The players will soon begin summer conditioning. The team will report for fall camp in August to prepare for its season opener at home against the University of South Dakota on Sept. 7. Edited by Tara Bryant