Even though the calendar reads April, campus might feel a little like October on Sunday. Cool weather, tailgating and football will come together at the annual spring scrimmage at 3:30 Sunday afternoon.

After five weeks of practices and workouts, the 2007 Kansas football team will put itself on display for the public. Though the spring game is only a scrimmage, it gives fans and media an opportunity to see the program’s progress since last season and allows the coaching staff to see some of the younger players in game situations.

“Spring ball is important,” coach Mark Mangino said. “It sets the tempo for the next fall.”

The mediocre performance of last year’s team left plenty of room for improvements and adjustments, the first of which was implementing a new offense.

New offensive coordinator Ed Warinner has brought to Kansas an offense that players call “exciting,” “up-tempo” and “different.” It remains to be seen if sophomore quarterbacks Kerry Meier and Todd Reesing can make the necessary adjustments to the new scheme. How the quarterbacks fare in the spring scrimmage could help sort out the battle for playing time that has gone on since late last season.

Several young defensive linemen should provide the defense with a spark of its own. Sophomore Max Onyegbule is linebacker-turned-defensive end who possesses more speed than the average lineman. At 6-foot-7, sophomore defensive end Jeff Wheeler has enough height to frequently disrupt the sightlines of opposing quarterbacks.

The spring game will also be the first chance for new Jayhawks to suit up and play in front of fans at Memorial Stadium. Junior defensive backs Patrick Resby and Kendrick Harper are recent additions from the junior college ranks who could see quite a bit of playing time next season. Resby could be the starter at strong safety and Harper, one of the most physical players on the defense, has a good shot at stealing playing time at cornerback from incumbent sophomore Anthony Webb.

Junior offensive lineman Chet Hartley is another fresh face sure to make an impact early in his Kansas career. Hartley, a 6-foot-4, 315 pound transfer from Butler County Community College, should provide size on the interior of the offensive line.

For the players, the spring scrimmage serves as an opportunity to cap the spring practice schedule by playing in front of a crowd for the first time since last November.

“The spring game is good for a lot of reasons,” Reesing said. “It gives us a chance to show what we’ve done for the last month. We’ve put a lot of work and time into it. Hopefully we can get some people excited.”

The scrimmage begins at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday. Both admission and parking are free.

Kansan sportswriter Asher Fusco can be contacted at afusco@kansan.com.

— Edited by Trevan McGee