Arrowhead Spin: University Event No More

The Benefits of Moving Off-Campus

Now that the move has been made, I've had a few days to reflect and it's time to embrace the positives. One interesting aspect that occurred to me is how the creation of this event affects Kansas State football. Effectively, they've been left out in the cold on this deal and it really gives the Kansas and Missouri football programs a big recruiting plus, not to mention the million dollar profit. The media hype surrounding the Arrowhead version of the Border War will be massive in year one, and if the dreamers get their wish and it ends up at 80k in attendance, that hype will continue each year. If the game becomes the idealistic version that Lew Perkins envisions, KSU really has nothing that they can do to match this type of annual spectacle (other than go to the Big 12 championship game). In fact, with the exception Texas and Oklahoma, no other football team in the conference can match this event. Nebraska can't even match this. Are they going to play Colorado in Denver? Oklahoma at Arrowhead? No way, there's no real benefit to either of the schools. Of course, at Nebraska, Texas, Oklahoma and Texas A&M, every home game is an event that can match the level of a capacity Arrowhead stadium. So, let's just say, that if this game goes big-time, it'll be one thing both Kansas and Missouri can point to as a major weapon in competing with the big boys of the conference. Most importantly, it looks every recruit in Kansas and western Missouri will have to factor in the possibility of playing in this game.
 
Take heart Kansas State fans. There are a few factors that could wreck this thing before it builds momentum.

• One bad season by either team in either of the two years could really set back attendance
• Two straight Missouri wins (in fact, KU really needs to win game one for this to survive)

Plus there's the wildcard, and it's no secret. The two schools really don't get along. Even with millions on the table, this will be an uneasy alliance. If one school or the other even perceives an advantage for the other school, hasta la vista Arrowhead.

Question

Did Blake Lawrence commit too early. Can you really pass on the opportunity to play in a big-time game at Arrowhead as a Kansas City football player? Looks like Tony Temple made a good call. Josh Freeman, not so much.

Local Merchants

Hey, I'm not going to begrudge you your rightful earnings made from the efforts of young men clashing in the gladiator-type arena of violence that is college football. However, if you can't see the potential future revenue possibilities on the local side, then I guess you'll just have to whine about it for two years. And perhaps, retail just isn't your gig. This is simple. If it goes big-time, you'll get your payback. If it misses, you lost one game. Take a risk.

Anthony Davis Headed To Kansas

KU Picks Up Oklahoma Cornerback

Another commitment reported by Rivals.com as two-star cornerback Anthony Davis (5-11/184/4.5) from Tulsa, Oklahoma chose Kansas University over Oklahoma State and Tulsa today.

Rivals Profile

WR Johnathan Wilson Verbals

Two-Star Wide Receiver Added to Class

During all of the Arrowhead hoopla, Rivals reported another Kansas football commitment. Two-star WR Johnathan Wilson (6-3/185/4.6) is out of Houston,  Texas and had 685 receiving yards on 37 catches. He also had 10 touchdowns for the year.

Phog Discussion

Arrowhead For KU-MU Football

Arrowhead Press Conference Scheduled For 2:00 p.m. Today

Obviously, this has the potential to become a huge event as both schools will most likely make this a part of their season ticket package. A televised rivalry played in front of 70,000 to 80,000 could become quite a spectacle for both Kansas and Missouri as well as the Big 12. My biggest concern is fan safety. Hopefully, I'm way off, but as I've said before, I fear a national embarassment coming on as these two fan bases come together in large numbers with alcohol on hand. I don't want to see the Border War move college football into international soccer fan territory.

http://www2.kusports.com/news/2007/jan/22/border_war_move_arrowhead_2007_and_2008/

Justin Springer Switches To Kansas

Two-Star Linebacker Had Committed to ASU

According to Rivals, two-star linebacker Justin Springer (6-4/220) has switched his commitment from Arizona State to the Jayhawks. Besides ASU, other schools interested included Houston, Rice and SMU. This thread on the Gridiron board has photos, videos and some great quotes on KU's latest commitment. Additional info can be found here:

Lawrence-Journal World Article

Scout.com Profile

2007 Kansas Football Commitments

PS  STAR Player/Location/Ht/Wt/40/Signed
CB   ***  Brian Murphy/Lawrence, KS - 5-8/165 - 06/21/2006
LB   ***  Drew Dudley/College Station, TX - 6-2/221/4.59 - 07/24/2006
LB   ***  Steven Foster/Sedgwick, KS - 6-2/235/4.60 - 10/6/2006
CB   ***  Kendrick Harper/Butler County CC - 5-10/185/4.45 - 12/1/2006
DB   ***  Patrick Resby/Corsicana Navarro CC - 6-2/195-12/10/2006
RB   ***  Carmen Boyd-Anderson/Jacksonville, TX - 6-1/200/4.5-12/11/06
DE   ***  Aaron Mack/Phoenix, AZ - 6-3/240/4.6 - 12/17/06
OL   ***  Chet Hartley/Butler County C.C. - 6-4/310/5.0 - 12/17/06
OL   ***  Jeremiah Hatch/Dallas, TX - 6-3/301 - 1/1/2007
WR  **   Ryan Murphy/Lawrence, KS - 5-9.5/170 - 06/09/2006 
WR  **   Isiah Barfield/Haven, KS - 6-0/175 - 06/29/2006
DT   **   Patrick Dorsey/Houston, TX - 6-0/255/5.30 - 07/27/2006
WR  **   Chris Tuck/Dallas, TX - 6-4/200/4.50 - 05/22/2006
QB   **   A.J. Steward/St. Louis, MO - 6-4/210/4.6 - 11/19/06
DE    **   Richard Johnson/Jefferson City, MO - 6-4/255/5.0 - 12/10/06
DE    **   Jake Laptad/Jenks, OK - 6-4/214/4.9 - 12/17/06
ATH **   Chris Harris/Bixby, OK - 6-0/180/4.4 - 1/7/07
K      **   Stephen Hoge/Oklahoma City, OK - 6-2/200 - 1/18/07
LB    **  Justin Springer/Los Fresnos, TX - 6-4/200 - 1/21/07

Cornish Has A Solid Day

West Wins 21-3

Senior KU running back Jon Cornish picked up 43 yards on 13 carries in last night's East-West Shrine game at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas. Cornish played quite a bit in the game and seemed to be used as decoy quite a bit in the first half. By now, that role has to be pretty familiar. He also looked good in picking up blockers in the pass game. He was also in on the punt coverage package.

Nick Reid Headed to Europe

The KC Star reported on Friday that Nick Reid has signed a contract with the Kansas City Chiefs to be allocated to NFL Europe this spring.

“You start thinking about other things and moving on with the rest of your life,” Reid said. “But it’s been a dream of mine to play football forever. When the opportunity came up, I had to take a chance and give it the last go-around.”

Sounds like Reid is starting to think of a life outside of football. That's wise for all athletes, but I certainly think Reid should hold onto the dream as long as possible. I don't care what they say about his speed, this guy can play football.

The Kicking Game

Webb will be a senior in 2007 | Credit: www.annependleton.com

Stephen Hoge Is A Two-For-One

Some people don't get two excited about a kicker commitment, but this week's verbal from Stephen Hoge really represents a nice two-for-one deal. Hoge can handle both kicking and punting duties. As Ryan Wood points out in the LJW today, outgoing senior Dane Broadie served as a back-up to both Scott Webb and punter Kyle Tucker. Both Webb and Tucker will be seniors next year, so Hoge can fill that back-up role in 2007 and have a shot at claiming one or both starting positions in 2008. No matter how you look at it, it's nice scholarship management by Mark Mangino and his staff for a critical position. When the kicking game is going well, it get's taken for granted. Webb certainly hasn't been flawless, but he's been pretty solid. It's wasn't that long ago that KU fans were lamenting missed field goals that cost us close games. Now we're finding new ways to lose the close ones, but at least the kicking game looks solid. I hope that's not a jinx.

Scott Webb 2006 Stats

XPM XPA XP%  FGM FGA FG%  1-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50+  LNG PTS
37    38    97.4  13    18    72.2  0/0    1/2      8/8      4/8      0/0   49   76

Kicking Game Roster

Name Pos. Yr. Exp. Ht./Wt.
9   Dane Broadie K Sr. RS 6-0/180 
22 Kyle Davis P Fr. RS 5-10/178
49 Alex Hanson K Fr. RS 6-0/180
15 Kyle Tucker P Jr. 2V 6-2/210
39 Scott Webb K Jr. 2V 5-11/180

Updated KU Football Commit List

2007 Kansas Football Commitments

PS  STAR Player/Location/Ht/Wt/40/Signed
CB   ***  Brian Murphy/Lawrence, KS - 5-8/165 - 06/21/2006
LB   ***  Drew Dudley/College Station, TX - 6-2/221/4.59 - 07/24/2006
LB   ***  Steven Foster/Sedgwick, KS - 6-2/235/4.60 - 10/6/2006
CB   ***  Kendrick Harper/Butler County CC - 5-10/185/4.45 - 12/1/2006
DB   ***  Patrick Resby/Corsicana Navarro CC - 6-2/195-12/10/2006
RB   ***  Carmen Boyd-Anderson/Jacksonville, TX - 6-1/200/4.5-12/11/06
DE   ***  Aaron Mack/Phoenix, AZ - 6-3/240/4.6 - 12/17/06
OL   ***  Chet Hartley/Butler County C.C. - 6-4/310/5.0 - 12/17/06
OL   ***  Jeremiah Hatch/Dallas, TX - 6-3/301 - 1/1/2007
WR  **   Ryan Murphy/Lawrence, KS - 5-9.5/170 - 06/09/2006 
WR  **   Isiah Barfield/Haven, KS - 6-0/175 - 06/29/2006
DT   **   Patrick Dorsey/Houston, TX - 6-0/255/5.30 - 07/27/2006
WR  **   Chris Tuck/Dallas, TX - 6-4/200/4.50 - 05/22/2006
QB   **   A.J. Steward/St. Louis, MO - 6-4/210/4.6 - 11/19/06
DE    **   Richard Johnson/Jefferson City, MO - 6-4/255/5.0 - 12/10/06
DE    **   Jake Laptad/Jenks, OK - 6-4/214/4.9 - 12/17/06
ATH **   Chris Harris/Bixby, OK - 6-0/180/4.4 - 1/7/07
K      **   Stephen Hoge/Oklahoma City, OK - 6-2/200 - 1/18/07

Stephen Hoge Will Kick For KU

Jayhawks Land 13th-Ranked Kicker

According to Rivals and Scout, kicker Stephen Hoge out of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma has commited to play for the Jayhawks. Hoge is listed at 6-2/200 lbs by Rivals and is rated as a two-star recruit. Rivals also ranks him as the 13th best kicker in the nation. The timing seems just right for KU as current kicker Scott Webb is heading into his senior season. KU also has redshirt freshman Alex Hanson listed on the roster as a kicker. Another kicker, Dane Broadie graduated this year.

Gridiron Discussion on Hoge

The Dreaded De-Commit Phenom

The Lawrence-Journal World has an interesting listing of players that have de-committed to KU in recent years. There are exceptions, but in general, it seems that players who de-commit have a high rate of "not working out" at the D1 level.

Arrowhead Talk Won't Die

Moving the KU/Missouri Game

As reported in the KC Star earlier this week, KU and Mizzou are still talking about the possibility of moving the Border War to Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, MO. Here's a list of items to consider. I'll update this for those who want to make additions through the comments functions.

Pros

• $$$
• Big-time atmosphere appeals to the players/good for recruiting
• Students may be in KC over Thanksgiving weekend anyway

Cons

• It's in Missouri
• No home-field advantage
• Alcohol plus 40k of each fan base is a recipe for disaster
• College football belongs on campus
• The Arrowhead staff made it pretty clear that they hate KU fans last time we were there

Field Trip for Texas Recruits

Welcome To Lawrence

It's a big weekend for the Hawks as five recruits from Texas will be visiting Lawrence. The most high profile is four-star wide receiver William Cole from Cedar Hill, Texas who will visit with WR teammate Dezmon Briscoe. With two young quarterbacks with Big 12 experience in Kerry Meier and Todd Reesing, it's a great time for young wide receivers to come to Kansas. A lot of fans are thinking one of the two QBs will have a breakout year in 2007 and that could lead to a big year for some young wideout. Think Charles Gordon and his 57 catches during Bill Whittemore's senior season. Here is the full list for the weekend visits with profile links:

William Cole 5-10/165/4.5 -- Cedar Hill, Texas WR ****
http://kansas.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?pr_key=40254
http://scout.scout.com/a.z?s=172&p=8&c=1&nid=2440722

Dezmon Briscoe 6-2/180/4.7 -- Cedar Hill, Texas WR **
http://kansas.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?pr_key=40255

Michael Ray 6-2/237/5.2 -- La Marque, Texas DE **
http://kansas.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?pr_key=43579

Adrian Campbell 6-6/255/4.8 -- Richardson, Texas DT ***
http://kansas.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?pr_key=40102
http://scout.scout.com/a.z?s=172&p=8&c=1&nid=2434400

Joseph Leary 6-1/180/4.55 -- Copperas Cove, Texas S **
http://kansas.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?pr_key=48906
http://scout.scout.com/a.z?s=172&p=8&c=1&nid=2479497

Kerkoff Expounds on the "System"

Bowls vs Playoff

Blair Kerkoff offers what I believe is supposed to be a clever little attack on the idea of a college playoff in today's edition of the KC Star. Tell it to Boise State, buddy. For believers in the current bowl system, there are three items you need to fix:

• Eliminate approximately 10-15 bowls, then maybe we can talk about the "tradition" of the bowls.
• Play the games on or around New Years Day. Around means Dec 31 and Dec 30, period.
• Stop talking about a national champion -- AP, UP, USA Today or CNN -- it just doesn't exist. That's okay, if you'll just stop trying to crown some sort of champion with a popularity poll.

Fix those items and I'll back off the idea of a playoff. I'm a traditionalist. I like the old school bowl system.  And I'm fine with the way the Big 12 Championship game fits in with the bowls. In the current setup, that's what I consider to be the big game. Nothing else matters. The farce that the NCAA puts on afterwards is out of our hands and truly embarrassing, but the Big 12 Championship game makes sense to me.

I find the defense of excluding Boise State in the current system to be pretty appalling. Don't get me wrong. I do not think Boise State is better than Florida or Ohio State. However, they are undefeated and they are in D-1 football. If you are not going to include them in the system then don't allow them to be a D-1 team. You can't have it both ways NCAA -- they're in or they're not.

The traditionalists are all over the January 8 date as well. Too long of a season. Not enough time to talk about the NFL playoffs. Here, how about they play on Tuesday or Wednesday, then you can talk about 30-year-old multi-millionaire free agent mercenaries collecting additional checks playing a child's game all day on Monday.

Another big argument for the bowl guys is the idea that a playoff will diminish the regular season games. Sure, you could easily breeze through a schedule losing four or five games and still qualify for an 8-, 10- or a 16-team playoff out of 119 teams. Give me a break. It would be a dogfight to get in all year.

Bottom line. Go old school bowl system or go playoff, but get it done. The in-between is not working.