Hawk Digest Annual Awards 2008: Part IV -- Monte Cozzens Award (2 of 5)

Photo Credit: http://annependleton.comTodd Reesing

• 329 completions
• 495 attempts
• 3,888 yards
• 32 touchdown passes
• 66.5% completion percentage
• 148.53 QB rating

The kid who answered the question, "What if we had a great quarterback on this team?" Todd did as much to change the attitude of KU football as Mark Mangino and fittingly so, he becomes the first two-time winner of this award. What I like about Todd Reesing this year is I think he learned a lot. Teams had an offseason to study him and hone in on making him do what he doesn't like to do. He lost some pretty good components from the 2007 team and there were some rough moments in 2008. Against Texas, I saw Todd as frustrated as I had ever seen him. He didn't go into full meltdown prima donna mode though and embarrass the university with displays of poor sportsmanship. Instead he came out swinging against Mizzou and looked like the gunslinger that he's always been. Here's to Todd keeping his mojo through the 2009 season and making a run at something great. And not because, I need to see KU win more games or a north championship, but because I like the way he approaches life and the game (like a lot of his teammates) and you like to see that example succeed. Well, maybe a little bit because I need a north championship.

Cozzen's Award Winners--The Complete List:
1997 Ron Warner
1998 Patrick Brown
1999 Carl Nesmith, Chad Coellner
2001 Algie Atkinson
2002 Marcus Rodgers
2003 Bill Whittemore, Gabe Toomey
2004 Charles Gordon, Nick Reid, John Randle
2005 Charlton Keith, Jon Cornish, Banks Floodman, Mark Simmons
2006 Jon Cornish
2007 Todd Reesing, Anthony Collins, James McClinton, Brandon McAnderson, Aqib Talib
2008 Kerry Meier, Todd Reesing, ???, ???, ???

Awards Schedule
Tuesday -- Part I: Play of the Year
Wednesday -- Part II: Wes Welker Award
Thursday -- Part III: Blog Awards
Friday -- Part IV: Monte Cozzens Award

Photo Credit: annependleton.com

Hawk Digest Annual Awards 2008 -- Part IV: Monte Cozzens Award (1 of 5)

Photo Credit: annependleton.comThis award started long before Hawk Digest (see below). I always singled out the KU football player or players that played hard no matter what each season -- the guys that delivered. In other words a list of my favorite players. Sometimes you can earn it on one play. And that is what Monte Cozzen's TD run against Oklahoma in 1992, hence the name of the award. It's gotten tougher the last few years, because nearly all of Mangino's players emulate that spirit. Still, I like to highlight a few players and for 2008 I have selected five players. I want to spend some time on each one, so these will roll out one post at a time. First up is Mr. Jayhawk himself:

Kerry Meier

The Stats:
97 receptions (KU record)
1045 yards
8 TDs

You really can't put into words what Kerry Meier is and has done for this team. He's the story you dream up in the backyard as a kid when you had your KU football jersey on and were throwing the football at trees and trash cans in the backyard in an imaginary march to a Big 8 Championship for the scrappy Jayhawks. For anyone who's been to a practice or a spring game, here's a fact -- Kerry Meier is a damn good quarterback. People will pin an up-and-down performance on him for the 2006 season, but he had a bad shoulder and was still getting some experience with very young overall Jayhawk squad. Nope, if you understand football, you know he can quarterback. I can name five teams in the north that would have an improved outlook for 2009, if he was on their roster. However, it just so happens we have another great quarterback at KU and he edged out Kerry for that job prior to the 2007 season. We all know the story. He was definitely down about losing the job, but pushed ahead and later in the season asked to play wide receiver. Really, he was instantly solid and the best hands on the team. The season was a great ride for everyone and merited an SI cover for Kerry. As the Orange Bowl win sunk in, there was a lot of talk about "just getting started." You can certainly say that Kerry Meier did the work in the offseason to get better. We all know the stats, we've seen the catch 1,000 times and know that he collected a team-record 14 receptions that day while playing on one leg (the legend will grow to a broken leg and maybe a leather helmet as I grow older). Now he wants a championship. How could I possibly doubt him? I leave you with this quote from current issue of the KU Alumni Association magazine:

"I came here to be a Jayhawk, I'm always going to be a Jayhawk, I'm leaving here a Jayhawk."

Note: I know I've already mentioned this, but when I started Todd Reesing over Kerry Meier in 2007 on the old X-Box, Kerry transferred at the end of the year. That's one thing that's not in the game -- Kerry Meier's heart. Keep trying EA. Also, I was depressed for about two days.

Cozzen's Award Winners--The Complete List:
1997 Ron Warner
1998 Patrick Brown
1999 Carl Nesmith, Chad Coellner
2001 Algie Atkinson
2002 Marcus Rodgers
2003 Bill Whittemore, Gabe Toomey
2004 Charles Gordon, Nick Reid, John Randle
2005 Charlton Keith, Jon Cornish, Banks Floodman, Mark Simmons
2006 Jon Cornish
2007 Todd Reesing, Anthony Collins, James McClinton, Brandon McAnderson, Aqib Talib
2008 Kerry Meier, ???, ???, ???, ???

Awards Schedule
Tuesday -- Part I: Play of the Year
Wednesday -- Part II: Wes Welker Award
Thursday -- Part III: Blog Awards
Friday -- Part IV: Monte Cozzens Awards

Photo Credit: annependleton.com

KU Quarterback Club Hosts A Signing Day Party

The KU Quarterback Club will host a special event to showcase KU's 2009 football recruiting class Thursday, February 5th from 7 – 8 p.m. at Zig and Mac's Bar and Grill (SE corner of Bob Billings Parkway and Wakarusa). The event includes a rundown of KU's newest football recruits, including video highlights, by recruiting coordinator Brandon Blaney and co-defensive coordinator Clint Bowen. Highlights of the 2008 season will be shown. Also “Rock Chalk – Sports Talk” will air live from Zig and Mac's from 3:30 - 6 p.m. featuring special football guests. Both events are open to the public, so get there early and bring a friend. Contact Pat Henderson in the Williams Educational Fund at 785-864-3196 for more information.

Hawk Digest Annual Awards 2008: Part III -- Blog Awards

College Football Blog of the Year

Rock Chalk Talk

This category was called opponent blog of the year for the first two years. The reality is with five/six real KU blogs out there now (consolidation?), I don't read the opponent blogs often enough to go outside of the Jayhawk arena for this award. This was a close race between KJ-IBT and Rock Chalk Talk. Both blogs set a new standard by providing interesting interview pieces. I gave RCT the edge due to the denverjhawk recruiting interviews. That kind of content rivals anything out there and frankly makes my efforts here look pretty weak. The landscape is interesting and always changing on this scene and I can't wait to see how it all turns out. Inside of the SBNation structure, RCT is becoming a legitimate force. However, now with The Shiver on the scene, it looks to be serious battle for that number one slot for KU sports blog sites. It'll be interesting to see how the standalones can hold up against a network blog.

Question: Did you like KJ-IBT better when it was KF-IBT?

As for the previous winners, I still enjoy DXP for the photography and of course, BearMeat really set the standard for college sports blogging. No blog since has even come close to emulating the BearMeat style.

2007: Double Extra Point - Nebraska
2006: BearMeat - Baylor (RIP)

Blog Post of the Year

KJIBT -- It's Business Time B*tches

I had to look through a lot of mullet photos to find that post.

2007: Double Extra Point Surrender
2006: BearMeat's Comparison of the SWC and The Goonies

HD Blog Post of the Year

MU Fun With Real Movie Quotes by ROWYHO
You really just can't go wrong with this type of post

Big 12 YouTube Video of the Year




Honorable Mention: The Texas A&M video on Kansas State with a student posing as Jon Wefald (I can't find the link anywhere and I'm actually not sure that it came out in 2008, but I saw it in 2008).

Awards Schedule
Tuesday -- Part I: Play of the Year
Wednesday -- Part II: Wes Welker Award
Thursday -- Part III: Blog Awards
Friday -- Part IV: Monte Cozzens Award

Where Will You Be When KU Plays Nebraska Next Year?

Hawk Digest Annual Awards 2008 -- Part II: Wes Welker Award

Wes Welker AwardHarrell vs MU / Creative Commons - eagle102.net
(Heisman-like performance by an opponent at Memorial Stadium)

2008: Graham Harrell, Texas Tech
Five TDs on 34 of 42 passing for 386 yards and a 63-21 win. That ought to do it.

Runner up: Michael Crabtree, Texas Tech (9 catches, 70 yards, 2 TDs)

Previous winners
2007: Joe Ganz, Nebraska, 4 TDs and 405 yards passing / KU 76, NU 39
2006: Adarius Bowman, Oklahoma St, 13 receptions, 300 yards, 4 TDs / OSU 42, KU 32

Awards Schedule
Tuesday -- Part I: Play of the Year
Wednesday -- Part II: Wes Welker Award
Thursday -- Part III: Blog Awards
Friday -- Part IV: Monte Cozzens Award

Photo credit link: eagle102.net

Hawk Digest Annual Awards 2008: Part I - Play of the Year

Since the football team will have their awards ceremony on Saturday night, there's no better week to crank out the Hawk Digest Annual Awards.

Play of the Year (decade?)

Todd Reesing to Kerry Meier for the win

Honorable mention

Darrell Stuckey runs down LA Tech's Phillip Livas

Todd Reesing bounce back TD pass to Kerry Meier vs NU

Laptad's Safety versus MU

Phillip Strozier blocks MU's attempt to tie (at the 4:31 mark)

Reesing to Meier to Briscoe (Insight Bowl)

Reesing dances/eludes SHSU, connects with Briscoe

Dezmon Briscoe amazing catch versus Texas

Previous Winners
2007: Aqib Talib Pick Six in the Orange Bowl
2006: Todd Reesing 63-yard run vs Colorado

Awards Schedule
Today -- Part I: Play of the Year
Wednesday -- Part II: Wes Welker Award
Thursday -- Part III: Blog Awards
Friday -- Part IV: Monte Cozzens Award

Who Killed Kansas State's Football Program?

Today, I was inspired by this post on TechCrunch that posed the question, "Who Killed Microsoft?"

It was an empty post, yet 35 comments had already been made. Rather than trying to answer questions that are sent to me, I think I'll try this one out as a weekly and see how it goes. I'm even going to try to leave the body empty if I can (at least brief). For starters though ...

Who Killed Kansas State's Football Program?

Kansas Football Fans: Rock the Vote

This image was just too classic to pass on. I like how they split the negative options, so it always appears the "yes" votes are way out in lead. Either way, the answer is clear and you should head on over and exercise your right to vote:

http://mbd.scout.com/mb.aspx?S=173&F=2670&T=3812058&P=1

Another Recycle: Four-Star Bradley McDougald Commits

I've got a pretty good backlog of original content building up, but Kansas football news is dominating the scene right now. This has become a 365-day a year operation. Looks like I need to find some interns. Anyway, let's roll with the best news first.

BEST MANGINO CLASS EVER
Hey, print is not dead because I read this one in the print version of the KC Star. Four-star safety Bradley McDougald (6-0/181/4.5) out of Dublin, Ohio committed to KU yesterday and plans to play at wide receiver. Rivals is not listing him yet, but Scout has him on their list as a three star.  I can't wait to see what kind of bump this gives us in the Rivals team rankings.

D.J. BESHEARS TALKS DB
The word over at Rock Chalk Talk is that D.J. Beshears will play at cornerback for KU. It makes sense for his size (5-9/185) and McDougald thinking receiver. I really like the depth we're building in the secondary with this class.

KANSAS FOOTBALL AWARDS JANUARY 31
This was in the forum yesterday, but I think it's worth another mention. It'll be 7: 30 p.m. on January 31 at the Lied Center in Lawrence. I attended last year and I would recommend the event for all fans. The video alone is worth the trip.

GALE SAYERS HONORED AGAIN
They say KU football history started in 2007. Wrong again, my dirtbag friends. Just so happens that the greatest running back to ever play the game is a Jayhawk. Gale Sayers will be in inducted into the John McClendon Minority Athletics Administrators Hall of Fame on June 19 in Orlando, Florida. Old-timers remember what Sayers did on the field. I always remember him for the post-Terry Allen coaching search. He was part of the committee and when word started to surface that Mark Mangino was the leading candidate, Sayers said, "This is the right guy for the job."

That was all I needed. On the field, off the field -- the guy knows football.

Update on Saturday, January 24, 2009 at 07:08AM by DJ Goodwin

Bradley McDougald officially came off the KU board for both sites yesterday. Essentially, he's not ready to announce a decision. There's a lot of chatter that this will still happen, but we'll see.

KU Football Recycle: Crazy Talk From Ole Miss

The Red Solo Cup Ole Miss blog is pushing an interesting rumor:

We're hearing rumors which would lead us to believe that the Rebels will be playing the Kansas Jayhawks in 2009. If this is indeed true, the matchup will be held in Dallas at the New Cowboys Stadium (is that really what they're calling it?) with a guaranteed payout of $6 million for each team.

Everyone on the Gridiron Board is all in except me. I like the gambler's attitude over there, but I don't see this as a good idea. Yeah, the money would be nice, but it's a 12-game schedule and the physical toll of matching up with an SEC team in the non-con is going to wear on us by mid-season, just like the USF game did last year. We have Texas, OU and Tech on our schedule and conference games count (non-cons are to prepare for Big 12 play). We need to focus on winning the division and championship game.

Also, consider that we need development time for the brand new interior line and the new linebackers. We will not be ready for top 10 competition in September.

JAMES HOLT vs THE NATION
Graduating senior James Holt will get in on one of the senior All-Star games. It's called the Nation vs Texas and will be played January 31 at the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas. The game starts at 2:00 p.m. and will be televised by CSTV.

THE NEW DL COACH
The Jayhawks announced their new defensive line coach earlier this week. Fresno State's DL coach Kerry Locklin take the position at KU after working with the FSU line since 2000. Here's a look at the Fresno State defensive stats during his tenure:

Year	PA	Yds Allow/G	Rush/G	Pass/G	YPR
2000	NA	NA	NA	NA	NA
2001	25	381	117	264	3.2
2002	27	405	160	245	3.9
2003	23	381	175	206	4.6
2004	21	340	165	175	4.1
2005	22	347	149	198	4.2
2006	28	363	141	222	4.2
2007	27	407	181	226	5.0
2008	31	411	210	201	5.6

KU Football Weekend Scraps: Bill Young, Recruiting Rankings and the ChickenHawks

ESPN's Holly Rowe interviewed Todd Reesing at the basketball game last night. Holly, when Todd says we're a two-sport school, we're a two-sport school.

Looks like former KU defensive coordinator Bill Young is considering a move to Oklahoma State? That was quick. Sources (i.e. message boards) indicate the $700,000 annual salary is inflated.

Did you know that Nebraska fans refer to Iowa as the ChickenHawks?

KU has it's highest ranking overall that I can remeber on Rivals this late in the recruiting season at #32. A few days ago they were actually at #31. Leading the north is Nebraska at #24 and Missouri is just behind KU at #33. Full list of Rivals Big 12 Team Rankings. I don't like Scout's list so much. The have Nebraska #28, Mizzou #30 and KU at #44. Of course, Rivals is pretty much recognized as the source for football recruiting rankings.

Updated Scout Recruiting List with D.J. Beshears: