It has been more than a month since Kansas last won a football game, but the residual effects of the team’s 12-1 campaign may have brought the program another victory: a recruiting class made up of junior college standouts and highly touted prep stars.

Kansas signed 20 players to national letters of intent Wednesday. The team signed three junior college transfers, one major college transfer and 16 high school players, including four in-state prep prospects.

“We are pleased with our class overall,” Kansas coach Mark Mangino said in a press release. “We have been able to meet some immediate needs and some long-range needs.”

Because of graduation and some early departures for the NFL Draft, the team’s most pressing needs are at offensive tackle, running back and punter. Kansas looked to the collegiate ranks in attempts to fill those holes by signing running back Jocques Crawford, offensive tackle Nathan D’Cunha and punter Alonso Rojas.

At the positions already filled by veteran Jayhawks, the coaching staff started building for the future. One of those building blocks could be quarterback Kale Pick. Pick, from Dodge City, decommitted from Arkansas in the middle of the 2007 season in favor of Kansas. The 6-foot-1, 200 pound prospect played just two games this season because of an injury but recorded 1,779 passing yards as a junior. Pick, along with in-state defensive tackle Darius Parish, committed to Kansas after the Jayhawks started piling up victories last season.

“If Kansas was .500, I don’t think Kale Pick would have changed his commitment from Arkansas to KU,” Rivals.com recruiting analyst Jon Kirby said.

Parish, from Wichita North High School, could see the field early in his collegiate career. With defensive tackle James McClinton out of eligibility, the 325-pound Parish – originally a Nebraska commit – could play in 2008.

Other freshly signed Jayhawks that could make contributions early include tight ends Tim Biere, Tanner Hawkinson and Nick Plato, and wide receiver Daymond Patterson. Four signees – D’Cunha, Pick, Plato and wide receiver Rod Harris – are already on campus for the spring semester.

Mangino’s signing day press conference was originally scheduled for Wednesday afternoon but was canceled because of inclement weather conditions.

Name: Jocques Crawford

Position: Running back

Height/weight: 6-foot-1, 220 pounds

Hometown/previous school: Memphis, Tenn. / Cisco CC

Stats and info: Crawford tallied 1,935 rushing yards and 19 rushing touchdowns at Cisco Community College last season and won the NJCAA Offensive Player of the Year award. He originally signed with Texas Tech in 2006 – his brother plays for the Red Raiders – but did not qualify academically. Crawford, who is listed as the 16th-best junior college prospect by recruiting Web site Rivals.com, also considered TCU and Mississippi. He will be a junior in the 2008 season.

Expert’s take: “Crawford is a true pro-style running back. He’s got good speed and he can block tremendously. He played at close to 230 pounds this year and carried the ball 35 or 40 times per game – he’s an absolute workhorse.”

Name: Nathan D’Cunha

Position: Offensive tackle

Height/weight: 6-foot-7, 307

Hometown/previous school: Campbelltown, Australia / Santa Barbara CC

Stats and info: D’Cunha, an Australian native, played on the Australian team in the World Games and competed against teams made up of players from NFL Europe. D’Cunha is ranked as the No. 37 junior college player in the 2008 class. He originally committed to Baylor and considered Kansas State and Iowa State before signing with Kansas. He has already enrolled at Kansas and will be a junior in the 2008 season.

Expert’s take: “He’s definitely a tackle. He’s tall, he has got that frame you look for and he has long arms. In the film we’ve seen of him, he’s very athletic for a big kid. The best thing about him is his best football days are still in front of him.”

Name: Alonso Rojas

Position: Punter

Height/weight: 6-foot-3, 220

Hometown/previous school: Miami, Fla. / Bowling Green

Stats and info: As a high school senior, Rojas averaged 46 yards per punt at Miami Killian high school. He played his freshman season at Bowling Green and averaged 36.5 yards per punt before returning home to Miami Dade community college for his sophomore season. Rojas did not play football at Miami Dade, but he continued working out and kept his eligibility intact. He also considered UNLV and Colorado State and will be a sophomore in the 2008 season.

Expert’s take: “If you talk to anyone who has followed kickers and punters, the one thing they’ll tell you is they have to adjust in their freshman year – playing in front of crowds, those types of things. Rojas has already done that at Bowling Green. When he was at Bowling Green, they played Ohio State and Wisconsin, so Kansas is getting a punter that has already gone through the learning experience.”

– Rivals.com recruiting analyst Jon Kirby

—Edited by Samuel Lamb