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FOOTBALL
Complaints don't surprise former players
WestonWhite/KANSAN
Kansas coach Mark Mangino looks up to the scoreboard in the final seconds of the game last Saturday against Nebraska. The 31-17 loss marked the Jayhawks httt, straight Big 12 loss this season.
By Andrew Taylor ataylor@kansan.com
Mangino being investigated after claims of physical abuse brought against head coach
Editor's note: Below is the story that appeared on Kansan.com during the day Wednesday. The information in this story is the most updated available at press time Wednesday evening.
A football player has voiced his complaints regarding physical contact by coach Mark Mangino and former players said they aren't surprised an investigation into Kansas' program was launched Monday.
The brother of senior linebacker Arist Wright confirmed that Wright had complained about physical contact by Mangino with Wright in the past, but hadn't spoken with him recently. His father, Lash Wright, said he told Wright to wait until the end of the season to address the complaints.
"All I want is my kid to make it through these two games healthy and we'll go from there," Lash Wright said.
"I know that these things happened. But right now, I'm probably too upset to talk about anything. I'm just trying to reach someone down there to find out how he's doing."
Former wide receiver Dexton Fields, who played for the Jayhawks from 2004-08, said he never had a relationship with Mangino beyond a player/coach relationship. He said he thought Mangino wasn't very well-liked by a lot of players, "probably because of the stuff that's surfacing now."
"We understood the motivational things said, but the negative kinds of occurred more than the motivational from him," Fields said. "Some of the assistant coaches stepped in on our behalf. They did more of the verbal abuse but it was to keep him off of us. I think that's part of the reason guys didn't really care for him."
Fields also said he thought the rumors that were now surfacing were legitimate and had been occurring since he came to Kansas in 2004.
"It's been a long time that that stuff has been happening and it had to surface," Fields said. "Of all the talent that KU has there, it had to
be some other reason that KU isn't producing out on the field. It's been long overdue"
Another former player who wished to remain anonymous confirmed that allegations of verbal abuse are at the center of the investigation. He could not speak to any physical abuse.
"I think there is a difference between coaching and taking personal shots," the player said. "My only issue was with him crossing that line."
Marcus Herford, a former receiver for Mangino, said Mangino's way of motivating of a player was by "demotivating" him.
"I knew it was a matter of time before somebody reported it or said something, because it's been happening since I got there and I'm sure before then," Herford said. "I'm surprised actually that it took this long honestly."
Senior Todd Reesing said Perkins told the team in a meeting Monday that an "unbiased person" would conduct the investigation. Perkins discussed the matter with Mangino before speaking with the players.
In his weekly press conference Tuesday, Mangino declined to delve into the details of the matter but acknowledged he had a brief meeting with Perkins.
"I haven't lost the team one bit." Mangino said. "I may have lost some people around here, but it's not players. Take that for what it's worth. You decipher it."
Mangino was asked if he thought there would be any issues with the program if the team were 5-1 in conference games instead of 1-5.He firmly said,"No."
"The fact of life is that these type of things are going to come up when things aren't going good," Mangino said. "That's life, that's how it works."
On hand for the weekly press conference, current players Darrell Stuckey, Chris Harris, Tanner Hawkinson and Huldon Tharp declined to discuss the situation directly.
"I just don't want to talk about that because it would be irritating for me to ponder on something," Stuckey said. "It's difficult for our team to go through this week."
THE WAVE NOVEMBER 20,2009
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN