KANSAN.COM / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2010 / SPORTS
3B
Coach Turner Gill walks out with the team from the locker rooms onto the field before the game Saturday against Iowa State. The Jayhawks lost to the Cylones 28-16.
Mike Gunnoe/KANSAN
Despite rough first season. Gill's job not in jeopardy
FOOTBALL
Coach's contract has no buyout clause, so he's here for five years
REALIGNMENT
BY KORY CARPENTER kcarpenter@kansan.com
Big 10 postponing new division names
CHICAGO — Commissioner Jim Delany wants the names of the Big Ten's new divisions to "conjure up the right feelings in people a positive, emotional response."
The move was a shock to fans and media alike, as Perkins announced in the summer that he would remain at the helm of KU Athletics until September 2011.
Finishing the season with at
After a middling FCS team stunned coach Turner Gill in his Kansas debut on Sept. 4, he faced another cold, hard reality three days later. Lew Perkins, the man who hired Gill in December 2009, formally resigned as director of athletics.
"Those are things I have no control over," Gill said of the AD hire. "All I can do is focus on teaching our players and to do the best that I can for our football team."
gruntled fans. He signed Gill to a 5-year contract worth $2 million per year also.
least one conference win would most certainly relieve some pressure off Gill and his staff, but anyone who thinks Gill's job is in jeopardy after year one needs to
Three days after the embarrassing loss to the North Dakota State Bison, Perkins was out, replaced by associate director of athletics Sean Lester.
After opening the season 2-2. Gill has lost four straight games in the Big 12. With a matchup against the Colorado Buffaloes on Saturday, Gill said he doesn't have time to worry about who the next athletic director will be.
The timing of the resignation added fuel to the
TURNER GILL Football coach
"I have confidence in the administration to give us time to accomplish what we're trying to do here."
fire of speculation across campus and in the media regarding Gill's performance in week one. His biggest hire while at Kansas was probably looking for support after the bad loss. Perkins had none to offer. Instead he took his $2 million settlement check and left the spotlight, leaving Gill to deal with the media scrutiny and dis-
Mark Mangino, the University Athletic budget is in no position to shell out an additional $8 million to bring in another coach. Critics will have to wait patiently while Gill settles in.
Still implementing his system and yet to have a full recruiting class of his own, Gill said he just hopes to see improvements every week from his players.
When Lew Perkins hired Gill in December, he didn't include a buyout for the $10 million, 5-year deal. Kansas Athletics would have to pay Gill the remaining $8 million if it decided to fire him after this season. With the money paid to Perkins and the buyout money still being paid to former coach
read the fine print of his contract.
"I know we are making progress here, particularly in the last two ball games," Gill said.
After leading Iowa State at halftime last Saturday and only losing by 12 (as opposed to 48, 52 and 35 the previous three weeks), the team showed some signs of improving in the running game and pass rush, running for 119 yards while grabbing two more sacks, bringing the season sack total to eight.
No matter what happens against Colorado or the following three games to end the season, Gill said he believes he will have enough time in Lawrence to carry out his plans.
Wouldn't "Stars" and "Stripes" fit the bill?
"We believe in what we are trying to accomplish," Gill said. "We're still trying to get the right players in the right place, and I have confidence in the administration to give us time to accomplish what we're trying to do here."
"Not bad." Delany replied. "Good suggestion. It's there with everything else."
Delany set an original goal of Dec. 1 to unveil the names, plus a new logo that will reflect the
Edited by Anna Nordling
12-team Big Ten. But last week he said he might need an extra 60 days.
I asked readers last week to suggest division names. More than 60 of you did, and all I can say is: Wow, this ain't easy.
Many ideas still contained
names from Big Ten folklore ("Grange" and "Griffin", "Berwanger" and "Stagg") or stubbornly pushed for a geographical flavor ("Great Lakes" and "Prairie", "Rust Belt" and "Grain Belt"), despite the league's reluctance to use either geography or the
names of legendary coaches or athletes that represent just two schools.
The majority were serious, including "Caps" and "Gowns"; "Thunder" and "Lightning"; "Victory" and "Triumph" and "Rose" and "Thorn."
McClatchy-Tribune
One reader commented: "The way they screwed up those divisions, 'Dumb' and 'Dumber' might be more appropriate"