8
GAME DAY
W takes New looki looki The Aggi Stadi mean in no "R it up Jake to c get b a di weel T gling the 54- P game For has even hav has the' pas a b big pre a f int rid the sur ter er
AT A GLANCE
Kansas (1-2)
New Mexico State comes into Memorial Stadium as heavy underdogs, but that says more about the Aggies than the Jayhawks. Coach Turner Gill's team has had an extra day to prepare for New Mexico State, but they should not need it. The Aggies have allowed more than 40 points in each of their first two contests, both losses.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Senior wide receiver Johnathan Wilson: When the Kansas coaching
Wilson's number last Friday, the team scored on one play, a seven second drive late in the fourth quarter. Wilson gobbled up a
41-yard pass and made the difficult
make the same play look relatively easy. If the Jay-hawks want to open up their vertical passing game. Wilson has got to start getting open more often.
QUESTION MARKS
When will Jake Laptad break-out?
Laptad, a senior defensive end and team captain, has struggled all season against double teams by opposing offense. He's come close to dragging down the quarterback but so far has only forced hurries. Laptad is the best player on the field for the Jayhawks, but he has been somewhat invisible through the first three games. Will he break out against a below-average Aggie offensive line?
OFFENSE
For only the third time in Kansas football
histo: y, two freshmen lead the team in both passing and rushing. Quarterback Jordan Webb and running back James Sims have both taken starting jobs from their older counterparts and look to become the first duo since Frank Seurer and Kerwin Bell in 1980 to accomplish the fea
DEFENSE
Webb
When senior cornerback Chris Harris is
when senior sent on the blitz, good things happen. While the front four have been unable to rack up sacks, Harris has two already, Cornerback blitz schemes are risky, but the defense has yet to be burned for it. The secondary has still not allowed a massive pass
Harris
play, which gives defensive coordinator Carl Torbush a riskier playbook.
SPECIAL TEAMS
For the second time in three weeks, the special teams unit allowed a blocked punt. This time, it cost the Jayhawks seven points. With the score still a respectable 14-3, senior punter Alonso Rojas was engulfed by a Southern Mississippi player who proceeded to return it to the end zone. The special
COACHING
teams also over-snapped the ball on an extra point attempt. Needless to say, this is the team's biggest problem area.
Coach Turner Gill placed much of the blame
Rojas
Coach Turner Gil places on himself and his staff for the communication issues on both sides of the ball against Southern Mississippi last Friday. The defense struggle against the Golden Eagle's no-huddle and the offense had trouble getting plays called in critical moments.
Gill
Matt Galloway
Neither team has momentum in this contest, but the last time the Jayhawks played in Lawrence, they defeated then-No. 15 Georgia Tech, 28-25. At least the student section should be rowdy.
MOMENTUM
Sophomore wide receiv D.J.Beshears
JAYHAWKS STARTING LINEUP
Offense
| Pos. | Name | Number | Year |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| QB | Jordan Webb | 2 | Fr. |
| RB | James Sims | 29 | Fr. |
| WR | Johnathan Wilson | 81 | Sr. |
| WR | Bradley McDougald | 24 | So. |
| WR | Daymond Patterson | 15 | Jr. |
| TE | Tim Biere | 86 | Jr. |
| T | Tanner Hawkinson | 72 | So. |
| G | Sal Capra | 59 | Sr. |
| C | Jeremiah Hatch | 77 | Jr. |
| G | Trevor Marrongelli | 69 | So. |
| T | Brad Thorson | 76 | Sr |
Defense
| Pos. | Name | Number | Year |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| DE | Quintin Woods | 93 | Sr. |
| DT | Richard Johnson, | 97 | Jr. |
| DT | Patrick Dorsey | 92 | Jr. |
| DE | Jake Laptad | 91 | Sr. |
| OLB | Drew Dudley | 49 | Sr. |
| MLB | Justin Springer | 45 | Sr. |
| OLB | Steven Johnson | 52 | Jr. |
| CB | Isiah Barfield | 19 | Jr. |
| SS | Olaitan Oguntodu | 44 | Sr. |
| FS | Lubbock Smith | 1 | So. |
| CB | Chris Harris | 16 | Sr. |
Big Jay will
..Kansas decimates the Aggies, ably the last shot at a blowout w have this season. Fattening up a should build some much-needed to Baylor.
Baby Jav will
...the Jayhawks finish their non- closing to the redheaded stepchi clearly a rebuilding year, but if it against a team picked to finish ence, who on earth can they be
Predict
THE WAVE SEPTEMBER 24, 2010
Kansas 45, New Me
THE UNIVERSITY DA
Adam Buhler/KANSAN
SWIMMING & DIVING
Coohomore Monica Johannessen moved from Norway to swim at the University. Last season she finished first against Nebraska in the 100 meter freestyle with a time of 49.93 seconds
Norwegian returns for second year
kcarpenter@kansan.com
BY KORY CARPENTER
Monica Johannessen had to adapt to college life a little differently than her teammates. When the sophomore swimmer decided to make the University of Kansas her new home, her first trip to Lawrence was a long journey. The Haugesund, Norway native left her family and friends behind for a chance to study abroad and continue her swimming career.
Johannessen committed to the Jayhawks without so much as a recruiting visit to Lawrence. She says the coaches, along with the beautiful campus, made her decision easier.
"I just talked to the coaches and they made me really confident,
and I just went for it," she said.
Her favorite event is the 100 meter freestyle, where she boasts a career best time of 49.93 seconds and a first-place finish against Nebraska last season. After failing to qualify for the NCAA championships as a freshman, Johannessen said she hopes her sophomore campaign is different. She had a qualifying time last year, but the time was set in Norway, not in America.
During her freshman campaign Johannessen placed in numerous events while earning a spot on the senior Norwegian National team. That gave her opportunities to travel home to see family, including her twin sister who also swims.
Day: Friday
Date: Sept. 24
Location: Lawrence
Time: 4 p.m.
Being away from home presents challenges to Johannessen, who has been thrown out of her comfort zone while being in the United States. She said her qualifying time from back home was attributed to familiarity with her long time teammates and twin sister.
"The time obviously didn't
ALUMNI MEET
transfer over to KU, but I feel like I can make that time in Lawrence this year," she said. "My biggest goal this season is to qualify for the NCAA championships."
"I had confidence back home," Johannessen said. "I was able to swim with my sister as well, which really helped me out. It was also my first year of college so I was still getting used to everything."
confidence, who last season was a First Team Academic All-American and was also named to the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll both semesters while studying psychology.
After graduating from the University, Johannessen plans on returning home to Norway to continue her career with the National Team.
Another year in Lawrence should help Johannessen gain
Edited by David Cawthon
5
COMMENTARY
Big 12 realignment leaves mixed feelings
Also, Turner Gill won't draw the same lucky slate that helped Mark Mangino to an Orange Bowl. If he goes BCS bowling, it'll be with wins over the big guns of the South — Texas and Oklahoma are on the schedule every year from here out.
crazy.
The revenue that both schools bring in — especially now that Bo Pelini has the Cornhuskers competing for BCS berths again — will also be missed by whoever is named athletics director, starting June 30 next year, per Tuesday's announcement.
With only 10 schools, the league will go to a double round robin schedule — eighteen conference games, with each team playing all the others twice.
So no, I'm not happy they're leaving. But, man, I am geeked for basketball next year. I almost wish I could be around one more year to cover it for The Kansan
Nebraska fans are always listed among the most hospitable in the country and, for my money, Boulder is the best town in the Big 12. (If you haven't been, picture Lawrence with a mountainous backdrop.)
I'm not going to say I'm happy to see Nebraska and Colorado leave the Big 12. That'd be crazy.
Texas twice. Baylor twice.
Maybe Bill Self can get his record in Stillwater to .500 if he gets a crack at his alma mater every year.
College basketball fans have loved the Big East over the last few years — even though late finishes have been cutting into the beginning of Kansas games on ESPN. Every week in the Big East it seems like there's at least one
top-10 matchup and no games off.
It looks like the Big 12 (they really need to get a new conference name, by the way), will be in that upper echelon come the 2011-2012 season. This conference has always been in the discussion of which is the best in the country for basketball. Drop the bottom two teams in the league, and it just may not be a discussion answer.
BY TIM DWYER
tdwyer@kansan.c
There will obviously be bottom feeders — I'm skeptical that new coach Fred Hoiberg can turn around Iowa State and Jeff Capel won't keep getting top-tier talent to Oklahoma if he keeps losing — but there will be seven, eight or nine teams every year that are in serious contention for NCAA Tournament bids.
Last year, for example, according to the RPI, there were eight Big 12 teams that ranked above the worst-at-large team.
If they play each other twice, that's 14 games that are eminently losable for each one of those teams. There won't be another undefeated team in the Big 12 because there will be just too much competition.
And that will make the games all the sweeter.
Edited by Abby Davenport