2B
Friday, April 14, 1995
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Kansas standout excels on two fields
By Tom Erickson
Kansan sportswriter
Double sports star inspires top hitter
Most athletes at Kansas struggle with balancing school and sports — not Isaac Byrd.
Instead, the sophomore outfielder balances school and two sports. He also is a wide receiver on the Kansas football team.
Byrd's .333 batting average is first on the team, and he has been the
team's hottest hitter after moving to a higher spot in the batting order.
In his last five games, Beydor is 11-for-19 at the plate. which is a
579 average. Hitting in the one and two spots seems to work well for him.
Byrd, along with freshman outfielder Eric Vann, is part of an exchange between Kansas football coach Glen Mason and baseball coach Dave Bingham.
"I've been seeing a lot of fastballs lately." Byrd said. "The opposing team doesn't want the leadoff man, so I've been seen a lot of strikes and getting some good swings. I feel that as a team we can do a lot more with me in the one spot. We can hit and run, bunt me over. I feel that I put more pressure on a team."
Both Vann and Byrd were permitted to skip spring football practice in return for playing baseball.
While Vann's playing time has been limited, the way Byrd has come in and produced right away for Kansas has pleased Bingham.
"Isaac continues to progress as a player," Bingham said. "Offensively, he has become more of a factor for us."
"I'm beginning to settle down," Byrd said. "Sometimes I can get a little too anxious to run a ball down or not pick it up cleanly, but I'm feeling pretty good out there now."
However, Byrd's recent success hasn't made Bingham too eager to make him a full-time baseball player.
Byrd's only real struggle has been with fielding, something that he said was improving.
The style of play Byrd has in both sports is similar to that of Deion Sanders, who currently plays baseball with the Cincinnati Reds and football with the San Francisco 49ers.
"I have no intentions to do that," he said. "I hope he can continue to do both."
Byrd said he admired Sanders because of his skills in two sports.
"I love Delon Sanders," he said.
"That's a guy that I look at with my situation. He plays two sports and excels at both. That's who is in the back of my mind when I'm out there
doing the things that I do."
As for following in the footsteps of Sanders, Byrd said he was not worried too much about his future in sports.
"Right now, I'm really not thinking about what I'm going to do with my career after Kansas," he said. "I will wait and see if I can play ball in one of the sports and weigh my options then."
Byrd and the rest of the Jayhawks return to action at 7 tonight at Hoglund-Maupin Stadium against Kansas State. Tomorrow the intrastate rivals will travel to Manhattan for a 7 p.m. start, followed by a 3 p.m. game on Sunday.
K-State is in fifth place in the Big Eight Conference with a 6-9 record and is 19-14 for the season.
The Jayhawks, coming off a two-game sweep by No. 4 Oklahoma State, are 13-25 overall and 4-11 in the Big Eight. Kansas is expected to send senior pitcher Dan Rude (2-2, 6-7 ERA) to the mound in tonight's game.
Byrd said that although the Wildcats were unfamiliar to the Jayhawks, he thought Kansas would do well.
"They're going to be pretty good, but I think we can sweep them this weekend," he said.
SPORTS WATCH
Live, same-day and delayed national TV sports coverage for today (schedule subject to change and/or blackouts): All lines Central
All times Central
3 o.m.
■ ESPN2 — Sailing America's Cup, challenger defender finals, at San Diego
USA — Senior PGA Golf.
6 p.m.
USA - Senior PGA Golf,
Seniors' Championship, second round, at Palm Beach Gardens. Florida
PRIME NCAA Baseball Florida St. at Miami
7 p.m.
ESPN — NHL Hockey, Boston at N.Y. Rangers or Dallas at Toronto
TNT — NBA Basketball, New York at Indiana
SOFTBALL
Sooners next up
Kansan staff report
The Kansas softball team heads back to Big Eight Conference action this weekend.
The Jayhawks will travel to Norman, OKla., and play the Sooners. Oklahoma is second in the Big Eight with a 5-1 record. Kansas, who is No. 25 in the latest national softball poll, is struggling in fifth place. The Jayhawks are 2-6 in the conference and 15-13 overall.
The Jayhawks split their last doubleheader Wednesday, defeating Creighton 6-2, but losing 3-2 in the second game.
The loss disappointed Kansas softball coach Kalum Haack. He said that even though he told his team it needed to win both games to help earn a post-season berth, the Jayhawks weren't responding.
"They're going to have to take responsibility for what they have to do," Haack said. "They aren't getting themselves going."
Gain Real World Experience at the Kansan.
Applications are due Sunday, April 16.
Applications are now available in 111 Stauffer-Flint for Fall 1995 news staff positions.
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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