Jayhawks lose two All-Americans, assistant coach

Monday, January 7, 2008

The Kansas football team lost just once all season long. On Monday, it lost three times.

Junior cornerback Aqib Talib and junior offensive tackle Anthony Collins announced that they would forgo their senior season to enter the NFL Draft, and wide receivers coach Tim Beck officially took over as Nebraska’s running backs coach.

The departures seem abrupt but do not come as much of a surprise. Talib and Collins have held starting jobs at Kansas since their freshman seasons and both earned All-American status this season. Talib recorded 66 tackles and five interceptions and finished the season with one of his finest performances as a Jayhawk, winning the Orange Bowl MVP award for his 60-yard interception return for a touchdown.

“I talked to my family and coach Mangino and we all decided that if I wanted to get better, it was time to take it to the next level,” Talib said in a press release. “We had an excellent season and this is how I want to go out. It was a quick decision.”

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. and the Web site nfldraftcountdown.com have listed Talib as a possible first-round selection, but the his official draft-status inquiry netted a second-round estimate.

Collins, a 6-foot-5, 310-pound, first team All-America selection, anchored a Kansas offensive line that paved the way for the Jayhawks' formidable run game. Collins has not officially announced his intention to bypass his senior season, but ESPN.com is reporting that he will leave Kansas for the professional ranks.

Beck, who has coached Kansas’ wide receivers for the past three seasons, attended the same high school as Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini. Rumors of Beck’s move to Nebraska had been swirling since Pelini took over at Nebraska in early December.

Beck’s most important contribution to the Kansas program may have been his recruiting ties. He served as head coach at R.L. Turner High in Carrollton, Texas, from 1999 to 2001 and head coach at Summit High in Mansfield, Texas, from 2002 to 2004. The Jayhawks’ 2007 roster had 27 players from Texas, nearly as many as from Kansas (30).

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