BOXING
Former champion plans retirement. Page 4B
FOOTBALL Alma mater, marriage tears coach's wife. Page 3B
SPORTS
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
11
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 1995
SECTION B
Nike molds Deion in its own image
I don't like Deion Sanders.
My feelings have nothing to do with the outcome of the Chiefs-Cowboys game on Thanksgiving Day. Instead, they stem from something that frustrates me as a journalist and as a sports fan — the increasing amount of corporate influence on professional and college teams.
In my opinion, Sanders, the defensive back with a $25 million contract in his back pocket, isn't the person he appears to be on the field and in his television commercials. Sadly, he is a victim of Nike's quest
to sell more shoes, jackets, hats and shirts.
Many who know Sanders intimately say that he is a quiet, reserved family man. Sanders supposedly spends most of his free time playing with his two kids, and I have no reason not to believe that.
ASSOCIATE
SPORTS
EDITOR
I remember
w a t c h i n g
Sanders play football at Florida State before Deion and the Seminoles were cool. Back then, the focus was on another two-sport superstar signed to a Nike endorsement contract — Bo Jackson.
Jackson is another tragic figure in the sports marketing world. But fortunately or not, he got out after a hip injury ended his football career and hampered his baseball ability to the point that things weren't fun for him anymore. So Jackson quit and returned home to his wife and three children who said they didn't know their father well because he was never there. I guess that's why Sanders is trying to spend so much time with his kids.
When Sanders was at Florida State, he was known more for his tight coverage of opposing wide receivers and exciting punt returns than for what kind of shoes he wore.
Then lightning struck in the heads of Nike executives.
Sanders announced that he wanted to play baseball but didn't rule out the idea of playing football as well. Although he struggled as a rookie with both the Yankees and Falcons, the folks at Nike saw dollar signs dancing around in their heads.
Eventually, the gamble paid off. In 1991, when Sanders spent his days playing football for the Falcons and his nights with the Braves in the baseball playoffs, Nike made a mint on the commercial possibilities.
I think Sanders' commercials have been entertaining, especially the ones that mimic "Dallas." But the corporate image-making seems to have affected Sanders' attitude on the football field. He seems to be more aggressive and more easily angered now. His antics against Chiefs wide receiver Lake Dawson, for example, were inexcusable.
But do the referees dare flag Sanders or the Cowboys for such behavior? Of course not. To punish America's athletic poster boy would be a big blow to the NFL's negotiations with Nike and other corporate giants.
It's OK to eject Chiefs players, though. Dawson was snakebit by Sanders all afternoon but got no help from the officials.
Chiefs defensive back Dale Carter deserved his ejection for kicking the Cowboys' wide receiver Michael Irvin. But why wasn't Irvin punished, too? The answer is simple — Dallas is Nike's team.
The Cowboy's owner, Jerry Jones, wears the trademark "Swoosh" on his lapel. The Nike logo is displayed prominently all over Texas — I mean Nike — Stadium. Soon, each team may get its own sponsor.
With the abundance of barbecue restaurants in the Kansas City area, I'm sure the Chiefs will get picked up by K.C. Masterpiece. Then maybe one of the best football teams will get a little respect from its opponents, the press and the referees.
I guess Deion isn't so bad after all. He's really been used, and that is wrong.
Jayhawks hoping to avenge season-ending Virginia loss
Cavaliers to use power last year's winning plan
By Matt Irwin
Kansas sportswriter
Kansan sportswriter
It's time for the No. 2 Kansas men's basketball team to put its demons to rest. About 8:30 tonight in Auburn Hills, Mich., the Jayhawks play the team that crushed their national championship hopes last season.
"I don't think I'll sleep well until I get to New Jersey," Kansas junior point guard Jacque Vaughn said, referring to the team's goal of getting to the Final Four next spring.
So a victory against No. 15 Virginia may not cause the demons to go away permanently. But a victory could mean a deeper sleep for at least a couple days.
"Inside, as individual people, we still have that bitter taste in our mouth," Vaughn said. "It was funny that out of seven teams we got matched up against them, but I don't mind it at all. I'm excited every game, but like I said, I haven't slept well since they beat me last year."
The Jayhawks will get a chance at some sort of revenge when they play the Cavaliers as part of the Great Eight. The game, which is being broadcast on ESPN, follows
the Oklahoma State-Wake Forest game that begins at 6 p.m.
Virginia defeated Kansas 67-58 in the NCAA Midwest Regional semifinals last season at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo. Kansas finished the season with a 25-6 record, and Virginia ended 25-9 record after losing to Arkansas in the regional final.
Kansas men's basketball coach Roy Williams doesn't see revenge as an emotional tool the Jayhawks can use.
Instead, Jones has been worrying about his team's performance early in the season. Despite two victories, including an 87-58 defeat of William and Mary, Jones hasn't been impressed with his team.
Like Williams, Virginia men's basketball Coach Jeff Jones is trying to focus on this year's game and block out the distraction of last season's. One such distraction is the focus on the match up of the Kansas and Virginia guards, specifically Vaughn and Virginia junior point Garold Deane.
"I don't think revenge can be a factor," Williams said. "If we win Wednesday, does that change the outcome of last year's game?"
"That's totally a distraction," Jones said. "That's not something we'll be worrying about."
"Our team is struggling right now, but I guess that's what the early season is all about." Jones said. "We've been real inconsistent. The biggest thing we need to do is work on our concentration."
Jones was so concerned about teaching his players the need to focus that he hadn't watched any tapes of Kansas before his team's game with William and Mary.
Virginia should know Kansas well, though. The Jayhawks have returned much of their team from last season, and Jones said the Cavaliers' strategy for defeating Kansas would remain the same.
Jones said that last season Virginia tried to get back on defense to stop Kansas' transition game and that the Cavaliers wanted to guard the Jayhawks from the inside-out. By defending the big players inside, Jones knew his team would be vulnerable to Kansas' outside shooting.
"We were fortunate their shots weren't falling." Jones said of last season.
Kansas only made 2 of 21 three-point attempts. Jones hopes that will happen again.
"I don't see last year's game as being an extremely physical game," Jones said. "We played a lot more physical games during the course of the year."
Although much was made of Virginia's strength in last season's game, Jones didn't feel it was much of a factor.
PLAYERS: The Cavalier starters and reserves. Page 28.
Containing players like Kansas forward Reef LaFrentz (left) and guard Ryan Robertson did against the Converse All-Stars will be key in tonight's game against Virginia.
Matt Flickner / KANSAN
Richard Devinki/ KANSAN
Lawrence residents Johnston (left), Paul Danger, Michael Cox and Eric Patterson founded the Turbo Dogs, a running club. The group include two former Kansas cross country All-Americans.
Three Lawrence runners may not be exactly alike, but they all have aspirations to be
Top Dogs
By Adam Herschman
Kansan sportswriter
It's not what's in a case of beer — it's the name of the beer that matters.
At least that's the feeling of a new, four-member Lawrence running club that includes former Kansas cross country All-Americans Michael Cox and David Johnston. Along with Lawrence residents Paul Danger and Eric Patterson, they agreed last spring to create a running club with Olympic aspirations.
"Everybody sort of went their separate ways for the summer, and the big project was to find a name," Patterson said, laughing. "We got back this fall and nobody could think of one."
Then Patterson was on his way to Cox's and Johnston's apartment in August for the club's first meeting.
"We still hadn't come up with a name, and I had to stop and get some beers for the meeting," Patterson said. "There it was right in front of me. It hit me in the face."
Turbo Dog Beer.
The rest was history. The group had found a name.
From that moment on, the Turbo Dogs have not been just the name of the group, but an attitude as well, Johnston said.
"The name is cool and all, but when you sit down and think about it, there's some significance there," he said. "What do dogs do? They run free. Dogs just run and they run because they like to run, and that's kind of what we do. We don't know where it will get us."
With Patterson as their coach, Cox, Danger and Johnston hope to reach the 1996 Olympics. To try to accomplish that, the three men are training to qualify for the Olympic trials in the event of their choice.
Cox and Johnston also are training for the 1996 U.S. Cross Country team, which has no affiliation to the Olympic games. To make the team, both runners must be among the top nine qualifiers at the U.S. Track and Field Cross Country Championships this weekend in Boston.
The runners became friends last spring during the Kansas track and field season, when Cox and Johnston were seniors on the team. Danger, a Kansas track and field volunteer assistant, was helping and learning as much as he could from Patterson, who then was the Kansas track and field volunteer assistant.
Of the four friends, Cox and Johnston have known each other the longest. And even though they are best friends, their personalities are as different as cats and dogs.
"David's real Republican in his thinking, very conservative," Danger said. "Michael is the other extreme — very Democrat, kind of wild."
Cox, 23, was a four-time All-American at Kansas in cross country and 1,500 meters. He also was a two-time All-American in the mile.
He is the only member of Turbo Dogs who already has qualified for the Olympic Trials. His time of 3:40.1 at the Big Eight Conference Outdoor Championships in the 1,500 meters automatically qualified him for the Olympic trials.
Johnston, 24, earned All-American status as a Jayhawk in his last cross country race at the NCAA Cross Country Championships.
See DOGS, Page 3B.
National Team brings extra weapon to game
By Bill Petulla
Kansan sportswriter
As if having seven former All- Americans and a perfect record isn't enough, the USA Women's
By Bill Petulla
National Basketball Team will have one more advantage when it faces the Kansas women's basketball team tomorrow — an expert scout.
Former Kansas assistant basketball coach Renee Brown is
now an assistant coach with the National Team. Brown, who has coached at Kansas for the past four seasons, took a one-year leave earlier this season to be an assistant to National Team head coach Tara VanDerveer.
"I're really excited about coming back to KU and playing Kansas and giving our fans a chance to see Kansas play against a high-caller team," Brown said.
Kansas women's basketball coach Marian Washington is excited about facing the National Team and seeing
Brown.
"It's really special for Kansas, not only the fact that they're going to be our future Olympic team, but we have a member of our staff that's a part of that group." Washington said.
The National Team will be coming into Lawrence tomorrow, its 10th stop on a nation-wide collegiate tour. The game will begin at 7:30 p.m. in Allen Field House. The squad, which likely will make up the 1996 Olympic roster, already has defeated the country's No. 1, 2 and 4 teams.
Washington said that being selected to assist the Olympic Team in Atlanta was one of her greatest accomplishments.
The Kansas-USA National Team
"It means so much to me, my family, my friends, the fans and especially to the Kansas program and our university." Washington said. "I think that most coaches see the Olympics as the ultimate
connection, however, does not stop with Brown. On Nov. 14, Washington was chosen by the Olympic selection committee to be an assistant coach for the 1996 Olympic Women's Basketball Team.
After Brown finishes the National Team's 20-game college tour, she will return to Kansas next season. In a phone conversation yesterday, Brown and Washington sounded more like buddies than coaches of opposing teams.
(goal), and in the back of all our minds, you hope one day you'll have a chance to experience it."
Brown even joked about her current role on the National Team with Washington.
"Right now Coach, I'm just taking care of your team for you," she said.