September - Kansas City Sports & Fitness Magazine

Gill-era begins by picking Pick as Kansas quarterback
urner Gill ushers in a new era for
Kansas football this season after taking T over as head coach last December after
the Mark Mangino era came to a not-soglorious
ending.
Gill, a former Nebraska quarterback, has
been busy building relationships with his
players, coaches, and
the community while
gearing up for the season
and implementing
his philosophy on
the Kansas football
program.
“Our guys have done
a great job coming
together as a team and
I see a great bond
forming,” Gill said
“We are moving ahead
in the right direction.”
While there are
many questions regarding this 2010 team,
one matter is certain: the Jayhawks love
playing for the optimistic Gill after the
gruff and dictatorial Mangino.
“Coach Gill is a great guy,” senior
defensive end Jake Laptad said.
“Everybody looks up to him. Everybody
loves him. He brings a lot of energy both to
the meetings and to the field.”
Gill and the Jayhawks hope to be a surprise
team this year after ending 2009 with
seven consecutive defeats. The coaches
and media picked Kansas to finish fourth
in the Big 12 North. The schedule is favorable.
The non-conference schedule
includes Kansas hosting Georgia Tech,
ranked No. 16 in the preseason, on Sept.
11 and six days later playing at Southern
Mississippi. The conference schedule,
however, does not include South powers
Texas and Oklahoma, so a 6-6 or 7-5
season and being bowl eligible are possibilities
in Gill’s inaugural season.
And possibly even better if the ‘Hawks
can successfully replace some valuable
weapons from last season.
Gone is record-setting quarterback Todd
Reesing, the two most productive wide
receivers in KU annals in Dezmon Briscoe
and Kerry Meier, the team’s leading tackler
last season in safety Darrell Stuckey, and
the 10th all-time leading rusher at KU in
Jake Sharp.
Sophomore Kale Pick, who won the
starting quarterback job this fall over redshirt
freshman Jordan Webb, will spearhead
KU’s offense in the post-Reesing era.
Pick played in seven games last season,
showcasing his running skills with 167
yards on 14 carries while also completing
four of five passing attempts for 22 yards.
12 SEPTEMBER 2010 KANSAS CITY SPORTS & FITNESS
While he is fast, Pick, a Dodge City
native, can also throw the ball as well. He
passed for 214 yards and two touchdowns
on 14 of 22 in the spring game. He
impressed Gill in practices with his “ball
security” and “demeanor in (and) outside
the huddle.”
“It’s definitely exciting,”
Pick said. “I’m
glad they made that
decision, and I’m definitely
looking forward
to our season. I think we
can do some pretty big
things if we stay on the
grind and keep working
hard every day.”
At receiver, KU will
rely by committee to
replace stars Briscoe
and Meier. This position
has arguably the deepest
depth of any on the team.
“All of the wide receivers have had
some great opportunities to show some
great speed,” Gill said. “John Wilson has
done some great things. He isn’t the fastest
guy, but he has run some great routes. He
has done an excellent job at catching the
football. We have a solid receiving core.
Daymond Patterson has done an outstanding
job, moving over from defensive back
to receiver. Brad McDougald is a steady
guy. Chris Omigie, Erick McGriff, Chris
Mathews, D.J. Beshears have all done a
great job as well. We have six or seven
different guys we feel very good about.
We have some guys that can make
some plays.”
Wilson, a senior, is the team’s most
experienced receiver, but had a disappointing
junior season, catching 35 passes for
449 yards with no touchdowns, down from
his 43 receptions for 573 yards and three
touchdowns his sophomore year. McDougald
(six starts and 33 receptions last
season) and Patterson will start alongside
Wilson. Patterson is a speedy big-play
threat. He caught 14 passes for 154 yards
and two touchdowns his freshman season
before moving to cornerback midway
through the year, the position he played
all last season.
While the Jayhawks will still throw the
ball, Gill said he would like to run the ball
more. Kansas ranked just 101st in the
NCAA last season in rushing offense at
112.08 yards per game. Senior Angus
Quigley entered the season atop the depth
chart at running back, although Gill said
“we’re going to probably rotate some
guys” as he figures “out the best fit for our
running game.” Quigley rushed for 309
yards in 2008 before being moved to linebacker
last season.
Gill’s other options at running back
include redshirt freshman Deshaun Sands
(son of former KU running back Tony
Sands), and true freshmen James Sims and
Brandon Bourbon. Sophomore Toben
Opurum has been switched to linebacker,
while junior Rell Lewis suffered a seasonending
knee injury two weeks before the
season opener against North Dakota State.
Lewis had been No. 2 on the depth chart.
On defense, KU will have to improve
from last year, where the Jayhawks ranked
ninth in the Big 12 in total defense (383.25
yards per game) and 10th in scoring
defense (28.42 ppg). KU, which returns six
starters, suffered a blow in camp when
returning starting linebacker Huldon
Tharp went down with a season-ending
foot injury.
While depth remains a big issue, KU has
some talented players on the defensive
side, led by Laptad (team leader in 2009
with 6.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss), senior
linebacker Drew Dudley, senior cornerback
Chris Harris and sophomore safety
Lubbock Smith.
Gill promises to be an attack-oriented
defensive squad with a 4-3 base, but will
play multiple schemes.
The players have adjusted
well to new defensive
coordinator Carl
Torbush.
“Coach Torbush likes
us to be aggressive and
gives us the opportunity
to make more plays and
just to be more confident
in ourselves,” said senior
safety Phillip Strozier, a
Rockhurst graduate. “He
David
Garfield
Contributing
Writer
preaches confidence to us, too; the more
confident we are, the more aggressive
we’re going to be.”
After winning their first games and
ranked in the top 25, the Jayhawks had a
disastrous ending to their 2009 season.
This is a fresh start, a new season, a new
coaching staff.
“The atmosphere is having fun and
being confident,” Strozier said. “There’s a
big difference between being confident and
being arrogant. The most important thing is
to have fun and that’s why we’re here, to
have fun and to win. As long as we’re having
fun and winning, then everything else
will fall into place.”