This type of subtle attack thinly disguised as objective journalism pretty much defines the the NY Times approach. The schools are cheaters and the NCAA is a bloated, incompetent bureaucracy, look at me I'm an investigative journalist, yippee!!! Next week, I'll explain how all of the athletes are criminals with no chance of graduating. The sky is falling, buy more papers!
While doing a little "research" over the weekend, I stumbled upon another Jayhawk sports blog -- Jayhawk Nation. Looks like they've been in business for over a year and they get quite a bit of discussion going on. Another great resource for KU fans. Here's the full run down of KU blogs I know about:
Hawk Digest - Focused on Kansas football
Jayhawk Nation - Appears to be all KU sports with an emphasis on basketball
Phog Blog - The big one. Definitely geared toward Kansas basketball, but they'll comment on the other sports as well
Rock Chalk Talk - Best all-around KU sports coverage
AOL Fanhouse (Kansas Tag) - Recently figured that this link is a pretty good resource for KU football and Big 12 News (added 7/21/07)
I'd also like to mention that as far as the internet and "Web 2.0" has come I feel like the search engines are pretty off base in the way they operate. If I search Kansas sports blogs, I should be able to find all four of the blogs listed above. I don't care how much optimization or links they have -- I want to see every blog on KU sports, with the one that has the highest traffic listed first. I find it insane that Hawk Digest doesn't even come up under Kansas Football Blog on Google. Yes, I know there's a whole job set based on boosting your ranking and some fairly simple tricks that do a world of good. Still, Google and Yahoo! as a search tool seem outdated. To me, they're both pretty inefficient, advertised search engines. That being said, I would guess that there are more unknown KU blogs out there. If you are aware of one, please post a comment with link and I'll add it to this entry and to my blog roll.
Back on KU resources, I thought I should note that I am aware that the newsfeeds aren't hitting my own "Jayhawk Network" page. I had a host company go out of business on me. I'll get it corrected, but I'm looking to improve the overall speed of the page as well.
You saw a little glimpse of it in 2006 -- the raw destruction that is Mike "God of Thunder" Rivera tracking down a ball carrier. It happened 90 times in 2006, but I'm not sure the Big 12 football world is quite ready for the anger storm that Rivera and his Hell's Angels linebacking crew are about to rain down on opponents in 2007. Here's a quick laundry list of why this will be KU's best unit in 2007:
The fact that Rivera, Joe Mortenson and James Holt are the likely starters doesn't really mean too much. We'll see a lot of Brandon Duncan (assuming he is injury-free) and Jake Schermer. Some fans felt Schermer was maybe a little bit slower than the rest of the corp, but all five are solid Big 12 type linebackers. The more fascinating possibilities involve the switch of Olaitan Oguntodu to LB and three-star recruit Drew Dudley. Oguntodu played in the secondary last year and has impressive speed. I'd like to see him blitzing from the edge in passing situations. Perhaps he'll be a little better in his drops as well.
Dudley has been mentioned by the coaching staff as a possibility to play as a true freshman. That says quite a bit about his talent as this is a pretty deep corp of LBs. Of course, he was ranked as the 19th best inside linebacker in the nation by ESPN.com so it's not like his skill level is a big secret.
So, while a lot of people will be zoned in on the QB battle during the spring game, I'll be focused on the linebacker crew because that orchestra of destruction is going be a lot of fun to watch.
Quick note -- all of the sudden this unit could use a coach.
Inside Linebackers
40 Mike Rivera Jr. 6-3/250 Overland Park, KS (Shawnee Mission NW HS)
Recruited: 2004 *** 4.58
16 Brandon Duncan So. 6-1/215 Garland, TX (Lakeview Centennial HS)
Recruited: 2005 **** 4.53
61 Ian Handshy So. 6-1/260 Lawrence, KS (Lawrence HS)
59 Sal Capra Fr/RS 6-3/245 Kansas City, MO (Rockhurst HS)
Recruited: 2006 ** 4.8
Outside Linebackers
12 James Holt Jr. 6-3/215 Altus, OK (Altus)
Recruited: 2005 ** 4.6
8 Joe Mortensen Jr. 6-2/245 Clayton, CA (Clayton Valley HS)
Recruited: 2004 ** 4.55
58 Jake Schermer So. 6-2/230 Nixa, MO (Ozark HS)
Recruited: 2005 ** 4.65
44 Olaitan Oguntodu So. 6-1/220 Mesquite, TX (John Horn HS)
Recruited: 2006 *** 4.45
51 Dakota Lewis Fr/RS 6-1/215 Sulphur, OK (Sulphur HS)
Recruited: 2006 ** 4.61
36 Tang Bacheyie Jr. 6-1/205 Windsor, Ont. (Sandwich HS)
Recruited: 2005 *** 4.48
More Linebackers
53 Matt Zeleznak Jr. 6-0/215 Topeka, (Hayden HS)
43 Ted Hodges Fr/RS 6-1/215 Salina, KS (Central HS)
52 Jamal Murray Fr/RS 5-10/220 Wichita, KS (Collegiate HS)
Incoming
*** Drew Dudley OLB -- 6-2/212/4.6 -- College Station, TX
*** Justin Springer OLB -- 6-4/220 -- Los Fresnos, TX
|--------Tackles----------------| |-Sacks-|
2006 LB Stats GP Solo Ast Total TFL/Yds No-Yds
------------------------------------------------------------------------
40 Rivera, Mike 12 63 27 90 8-29 2-15
8 Mortensen, Joe 12 40 42 82 12-36 4-25
12 Holt, James 8 17 12 29 2-6
58 Schermer, Jake 12 7 10 17
16 Duncan, Brandon 3 7 0 7 1-8 1-8
61 Handshy, Ian 2 2 0 2
44 Oguntodu, Olaitan 9 1 0 1
ESPN Is Offended By Our Shirt
And I was offended by their decision to choose the NBA over the NHL. Consider us even Big Brother.
Linebacker Coach is Louisville Bound
Details are little sparse at this time, but if this is a lateral move, I'm not sure I understand it. Consider this a KSU trend I'm not interested in following.
Mark Mangino Expands His Empire
Congrats on the new addition, coach!
Man, this kid plays the ball better in the air than a lot of the veterans I've seen at KU.
Did we miss Charlton Keith and Jermail Ashley last year? The theory was that we'd be able to plug in the reserves from 2005 and their loss would be minimal. It turns out that we may have actually underestimated Keith and Ashley. Along with the obvious factors, the end position was implicated a number times last year for the failure to mount a better pass defense. Perhaps it was just part of the overall change as the defense replaced eight starters. Still, fans and coaches now have a pretty high standard for the defensive line and the unit better get used to being compared to the Keith/Ashley peak.
Though 2005 wasn't up to that standard, two things did occur that bode well for the future:
1) The defensive tackles became a force and though Wayne Wilder is gone, James McClinton will be back and looking to make some noise. He did some talking in 2006 and he backed it up. You gotta love that. Our other experienced tackles are Caleb Blakesley and Todd Haselhorst. Blakesley had a great year for a freshman and Haselhorst can get the job done. He proved that when he played the position as a true freshman.
2) A lot of the younger players got some great experience at defensive end. Russell Brorsen actually started several games last year and held his own. This could be a breakout year for the junior. Both John Larson and Jeff Wheeler had their names called on big plays last year. Jason Thompson also got into the action as a true freshman.
So can the d-line bounce back in 2007? If redshirt freshman DE Maxwell Onyegbule can live up to the recent hype we're hearing (thread from Rock Chalk Wednesday), then things certainly look good. He's already listed as the starter opposite Brorsen at end. With their experience from 2006, Larson, Wheeler and Thompson should provide a great, aggressive rotation.
At tackle, McClinton is already a known commodity around the Big 12 and I suspect that Todd Haselhorst is ready to become the big-time player that we remember from his freshman year. Blakesley is a capable, young player that is continuing to improve.
As for the recruiting class, KU did a good job of building some depth. Getting Aaron Mack in would have been nice to create some competition for starter at DE, but again, if Onyegbule works out then its not that big of a loss. The best news is that it looks like we have a legitimate shot to redshirt all three.
DEFENSIVE END
81 Russell Brorsen Jr. 6-4/240 Stillwater, OK (Stillwater HS)
Recruited: 2005 ** 4.8/40
47 Maxwell Onyegbule Fr/RS 6-4/250 Arlington, TX (Arlington HS)
Recruited: 2006 *** 5.02/40
95 Jason Thompson So. 6-6/260 Dallas, TX (Madison HS)
Recruited: 2006 *** 4.7/40
87 John Larson Jr. 6-3/250 Overland Park, KS (Pembroke Hill HS)
84 Jeff Wheeler So. 6-7/250 Houston, TX (Clear Lake HS)
Recruited: 2005 ** 4.9/40
90 Richard Alspaugh Jr. 6-3/225 Overland Park, KS (Blue Valley Northwest HS)
71 Luke Templin So. 6-2/270 Andover, KS (Central HS)
DEFENSIVE TACKLE
93 James McClinton Sr. 6-1/285 Garland, TX (Lakeview Centennial HS)
Recruited: 2004 *** 5.2/40
72 Todd Haselhorst Jr. 6-4/300 Olathe, KS (Olathe East HS)
94 Caleb Blakesley So. 6-5/285 Ottawa, KS (Ottawa)
Recruited: 2005 *** 5.0/40
99 Jamal Greene Fr/RS 6-4/295 Kansas City, KS (Washington HS)
Recruited: 2006 *** 4.8/40
*** Richard Johnson Jr. DE -- 6-4/255/5.0 -- Jefferson City, MO
*** Patrick Dorsey DT -- 5-11/263/5.22 -- Houston, TX
** Jake Laptad DE -- 6-4/215 -- Jenks, OK
2006 D-LINE STATS GP Solo Ast Total TFL/Yds Sck-Yds
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
93 McClinton, James 12 38 13 51 16-60 6-41
98 Como, Paul 12 26 17 43 9-31 5-21
81 Brorsen, Russell 12 18 15 33 6-13 4-11
91 Wilder, Wayne 12 20 11 31 5-29 3-24
92 Allen, Rodney 12 10 4 14 3-21 3-21
87 Larson, John 10 8 5 13 3-9 2-8
84 Wheeler, Jeff 12 5 2 7 2-22 2-22
94 Blakesley, Caleb 11 2 3 5 1-4 1-4
95 Thompson, Jason 3 2 . 2 . .
47 Onyegbule, Maxwell 2 1 . 1 . .
72 Haselhorst, Todd 6 1 . 1 1-1 . .
Recruiting Rating Source: Rivals.com
One of the bigger concerns for Kansas in 2007 is replacing the core of the offensive line that graduated center David Ochoa and guards Bob Whitaker and Travis Dambach. On paper there's an answer for each of those losses, but the o-line has become notorious for starting out each campaign slow. In fact, looking back the last time the O-line really hit the ground running was the 2003 season when KU started 5-1. Going into year six, it would be a great time for the guys up front to establish themselves in September and October. There is reason for optimism as Anthony Collins has developed into a rising star at the right tackle position. The guy has the size, speed and fire to be dominant in the trenches. His best moment for 2006 was the domination of KSU mouthpiece Ian Campbell (rated by Rivals.com's Olin Buchanan as the best D-lineman in the Big 12 for 2007).
The other tackle position appears to be a battle between veteran Cesar Rodriguez and redshirt freshman Ian Wolfe. Both are capable tackles so either way things are looking up on the exterior of the line. Moving to the inside, junior Ryan Cantrell has big shoes to fill in replacing Ochoa at the center position. Fortunately, Cantrell saw plenty of action in 2006 and could transition easily. Of course, its still an unknown and the line will only be as good as Cantrell, so this will be the position to watch early. Things are a little more open at the two guard positions. Rameses Arceo is predicted to lock down one position, but the other one could go to three-star JUCO transfer Chet Hartley. There are plenty of other guys who could step up as well. Junior Adrian Mayes should figure into the mix as well as redshirt freshman Carl Wilson.
The three linemen that KU picked up with the 2007 class all have the potential for a big upside. As mentioned above, Hartley probably will snag one of the guard positions as he is already on campus. Jeremiah Hatch is a big-time Texas recruit and was rated as the 14th rated center in the nation. Hopefully, he'll redshirt, but it wouldn't be shocking to see him work his way into the line-up for 2007 as he already has the size at 6-3/301. Jeff Spikes was a last minute addition from Ohio that new O-coordinator Ed Warriner scored. At 6-5/316, he's already got the size, but he's had limited football experience due to injury. He figures to be a little bit more of a project, but he should work into the tackle rotation in the future. It should also be noted that Illinois and Ohio State both showed interest in Spikes.
Quick Note -- Long snapper Zach Hood graduated and Kayl Anderson is slated to take over the duty in 2007. He'll be a sophomore and this will be a transition to keep an eye on as well. Scott Webb is a solid kicker, but KU has had some difficulties in the past implementing new long snappers.
50 Ryan Cantrell Jr. 6-3/297 -- Sugar Land, TX (William P. Clements HS)
Recruited: 2004 **
55 John Marshall Fr/RS 6-2/285 -- Mt. Vernon, TX (Mt. Vernon HS)
Recruited: 2006 ** 5.51
67 Rameses Arceo Jr. 6-4/310 -- Whittier, CA (St. Paul HS)
Recruited: 2006 ***
66 Adrian Mayes Jr. 6-3/300 -- Manhattan, KS (Manhattan HS).
68 Carl Wilson Fr/RS 6-4/290 -- Redlands, CA (East Valley HS)
Recruited: 2006 ***
75 Marcus Anderson Sr. 6-4/290 -- Oakland, CA (Skyline HS)
Recruited: 2005 ***
73 Justin Pessetto Fr/RS 6-3/285 -- Shawnee, KS (Shawnee Mission Northwest HS)
62 Alex Smith Fr/RS 6-0/275 -- Basehor, KS (Basehor-Linwood HS)
78 Anthony Collins Jr. 6-6/310 -- Beaumont, TX (Central Senior HS)
Recruited: 2004 ** 4.9 as a DE
63 Ian Wolfe Fr/RS 6-5/290-- Fort Collins, CO (Fort Collins HS)
Recruited: 2006 *** 4.9
65 Cesar Rodriguez Sr. 6-7/290 -- La Puente, CA (Bishop Amat HS)
Recruited: 2003 ** 5.0
70 Matt Darton Jr. 6-6/310 -- San Diego, CA (University City HS)
Recruited: 2004 **
60 Jose Rodriguez So. 6-6/300 -- LaPuenta, CA (Bishop Amat HS)
Recruited: 2005 *** 5.2
46 Kayl Anderson So. 6-2/225 -- Tulsa, OK (Bishop Kelley HS)
*** Chet Hartley -- G -- 6-4/310/5.07 -- El Dorado, KS
*** Jeremiah Hatch -- C -- 6-3/301 -- Dallas, TX
** Jeff Spikes -- T -- 6-5/316/5.77-- Painesville, OH
The Kansas Athletic Department released final drawings of the new $31 million football complex slated to open in July of 2008. That's good news as progress on the project coupled with a strong on-the-field performance in 2007 should make for a strong recruiting class in 2008. As we all know by now, the complex will sit just south of the stadium toward the east so as to not block the hill. Warren Corman, University Architect made the following statement about integrating the building into the scenic setting:
"The new football facility will embrace the hillside southwest of the football stadium in a manner that will not detract from the beauty of campanile hill. It will nestle into the hillside where an asphalt parking lot now exists and the roof over the underground weight room will be covered with natural grass turf."
Drawings of the complex posted in the LJW story are a little easier to access than the ones held in a PDF on the KU site.
It was exciting to see that KUsports.com posted a lengthy profile on Angus Quigley and the freak injury that wrecked his 2006 season. Definitely a weird deal and from here on out, I'd like a daily report on how Angus is doing.
With all the KU football news today, the offensive line preview will be delayed another day. I don't want it to be buried three stories deep.
Olin Buchanan from Rivals.com has a preview of the Big 12 on Yahoo Sports this morning. He's picking Kansas as fourth in the north division, though his selections are pretty much by the book. He also listed the top five players by position and mentioned several KU players. Anthony Collins may actually be ranked too low.
Link to the story and full list
Defensive linemen
1. Ian Campbell, Kansas State
2. James McClinton, Kansas
3. Nathan Peterson, Oklahoma State
4. Chris Harrington, Texas A&M
5. Frank Okam, Texas
Linebackers
1. Bo Ruud, Nebraska
2. Alvin Bowen, Iowa State
3. Jordon Dizon, Colorado
4. Joe Pawelek, Baylor
5. Mike Rivera, Kansas
Defensive backs
1. Aqib Talib, Kansas
2. Reggie Smith, Oklahoma
3. Zackary Bowman, Nebraska
4. Terrence Wheatley, Colorado
5. Marcus Watts, Kansas State
Tight ends
1. Martin Rucker, Missouri
2. Chase Coffman, Missouri
3. Martellus Bennett, Texas A&M
4. Jermichael Finley, Texas
5. Derek Fine, Kansas
Kickers
1. Garrett Hartley, Oklahoma
2. Jeff Wolfert, Missouri
3. Alex Trlica, Texas Tech
4. Scott Webb, Kansas
5. Jason Ricks, Oklahoma State
Offensive linemen
1. Duke Robinson, Oklahoma
2. Cody Wallace, Texas A&M
3. Matt Slauson, Nebraska
4. Yemi Babalola, Texas A&M
5. Anthony Collins, Kansas
Let's hope that new OC Ed Warriner has been introduced to #85. Although Derek Fine did manage to find the endzone five times on 28 catches in 2006, it still feels like he was under-utilized. With Jon Cornish as the focus of opposing defenses and the nature of the spread offense, it looked like Fine was set up for a big year at tight end. Yet there were times when KU seemed to exclude him from the gameplan. He had a few key drops in the Nebraska game, but other than that he has proven to be a reliable option in the passing game. In order to be successful, our young QBs are going to have to learn to check down to the tight ends and hopefully the staff will focus more on the tight end getting Fine into the attack. Our offense seemed a lot more efficient in 2006 when Fine was in the mix.
Mark Mangino and his staff obviously feel comfortable with the depth at the position as no tight ends were included in the recruiting class. Both Fine and back-up Marc Jones will be seniors this year, so expect redshirt freshman Bradley Dedeaux to see the field more often in 2007 to make for a smooth transition in 2008. Marc Jones came in as a JUCO transfer last year but was mainly utilized as a blocking tight end. It'll be interesting to see if he is asked to catch the ball in 2007. I'd expect KU to sign at least two tight ends in the 2008 class and possibly use one of our limited JUCO scholarships for the position.
In-House
85 Derek Fine Sr. 6-3/245 Sallisaw, OK (Sallisaw HS)
2006 Stats: 28-355/12.7 5 tds
83 Marc Jones Sr. 6-4/265 Norfolk, VA (Norfolk HS)
Recruited: 2006 *** 4.6
87 Bradley Dedeaux Fr/RS 6-3/250 Midwest City, OK (Midwest City HS)
Recruited: 2006 *** 4.78
96 Marc Dierking Sr. 6-2/225 Overland Park, KS (St. Thomas Aquinas HS)
95 Mathew Matte So. 6-2/230 Albuquerque, NM (St. Pius X HS)
49 Derek Spears Sr. 6-3/215 Osborne, KS (Osborne HS)
A recent visit to College Football Resource turned up a link to this little video on a student challenge between Ohio State and Florida. I use College Football Resource whenever I need to check in on the national scene, and I highly recommend stopping by. I've added a link on the lower left. In addition, with the success of the Jayhawk Network Page, I thought I might try a few of the traditional powers. So, Ohio State Network is now open if you need a quick look at the news feeds for the Buckeyes and a spot to jump off on an Ohio State internet binge.
Last week, we covered the Quarterbacks, Running Backs and Wide Receivers. This week the Tight Ends, Offensive Line and D-Line are on deck.
Despite the loss of Charles Gordon, it looked like 2006 would be a breakout year for the KU wide receivers. The 2005 season ended with a Brian Murph explosion during the Fort Worth Bowl and Dexton Fields making a huge TD catch near the end of regulation vs ISU to send the game to OT. Jayhawk fans had reason for optimism with a talented crew on deck that included Murph, Fields, Marcus Henry and Marcus Herford. For whatever reason though, no one really stood out for the wideouts in 2006. Sure, there were a few big plays, but there really wasn’t a guy out there inspiring fear for opposing defenses. We know Murph was drawing quite a bit of attention and that should have really opened up for the field for the rest of the crew. Jonathan Lamb thrived as a possession receiver and TE Derek Fine benefitted, but the other speedsters were pretty quiet. Quiet enough that we started seeing DB Aqib Talib line up as a receiver (after his jaunt against Mizzou, he will certainly draw some attention if he takes downs as a wideout in 2007).
There were some good signs out of Fields though late in the season. He worked the short game nicely against KSU when he had 7 catches for 72 yards. I put him at the top of the list when ranking the wideouts going into 2007. Overall, I’m still bullish on the crew as Henry and Herford are too talented to not excel at the position. I suspect that Jeff Foster can take over that possession receiver role that Jonathan Lamb provided last year. The other thing is there are so many receivers on the roster and in the incoming class that I have to believe the competition is going to force someone to the top. Tertavian Ingram, Raimond Pendleton and Xavier Rambo are all players that have been talked about on the message boards. Somebody out of that crew is going to figure into the mix this year. Ingram and Rambo reportedly have 4.4 type speed, so they could possibly help out with the vertical approach that Mark Mangino has openly discussed regarding 2007.
In addition, Kansas signed four more wideouts for the current recruiting class. Ryan Murphy is the top-rated prospect in the class and could see the field in 2007 (although there was a poster on this site that said Murphy had an injury and would redshirt in ’07 – I’ve found no other confirmation, so we’ll keep an eye on that). At 6-3, both Dezmon Briscoe and Johnathan Wilson can help out as the big targets. Rell Lewis is a smaller speedster (5-10/185/4.5) who was the type of athlete that Mangino said he just couldn’t pass up.
Other than the competition at the position, I would also think that the experience Fields, Herford and Henry gained in 2006 will start to translate to game day success next season. Plus, another year working with the young quarterbacks should make for a more cohesive passing game overall. A breakout year is overdue for this unit -- can they pull it off?
In House
88 Dexton Fields Jr. 6-0/200 Dallas, TX (South Oak Cliff HS)
2006 Stats: 45-455/10.1 5 tds
Recruited: 2004 ** 4.4
86 Marcus Henry Sr. 6-4/200 Lawton, OK (Eisenhower HS)
2006 Stats: 25-316/12.6 3 tds
13 Marcus Herford Jr. 6-3/210 DeSoto, TX (Cedar Hill HS)
2006 Stats: 8-137/17.1 1 td
Recruited: 2006 *** 4.46
82 Jeff Foster Sr. 6-2/195 Cedar Rapids, IA (Jefferson HS)
2006 Stats: 1-31/31.0 0 tds
89 Tertavian Ingram Fr./RS 6-0/185 Tampa, FL (Jefferson HS)
Recruited: 2006 *** 4.4
9 Raimond Pendleton So. 5-10/180 Garland, TX (South Garland HS)
Recruited: 2005 *** 4.55
18 Xavier Rambo Fr./RS 6-0/185 Dallas, TX (South Oak Cliff HS)
Recruited: 2006 ** 4.4
Plus:
16 Hassan Johnson WR Sr. 6-0/175 Kansas City, KS (Washington HS)
37 Micah Brown WR So. 6-0/190 Kearney, NB (Kearney HS)
17 Jack Swab WR So. 6-1/185 Tulsa, OK (Cascia Hall HS)
X-Factor
3 Aqib Talib Jr. 6-2/190 Richardson, TX (Berkner HS)
2006 Stats: 1-42/42.0 1 td
Recruited: 2004 ** 4.5
Incoming
**** Ryan Murphy -- 5-11/180/4.4 -- Lawrence, Kan. (Free State HS)
*** Dezmon Briscoe -- 6-3/200/4.7 -- Dallas, Texas (Cedar Hill HS)
*** Rell Lewis -- 5-10/185/4.5 -- Muskogee, Okla. (Muskogee HS)
** Johnathan Wilson -- 6-3/185/4.6 -- Houston, Texas (Klein Forest HS)
DJ Goodwin