Thursday, October 30, 2008
The legend of the Todd Reesing videotape has many versions. Some say he mailed it to coach Mark Mangino himself. Others say his high school coach mailed it in. Some even say that Reesing gave it to a friend on campus who walked it down to the office himself. Mangino doesn’t even know how he got the tape — but he’s glad he did.
“I’ve heard 10 different versions,” Mangino said. “I’ve never really asked him how I got the tape. The bottom line is, the tape got to me, which is good.”
Quarterback Todd Reesing's height kept him from getting offers to big-time schools. Before becoming a Jayhawk, Reesing turned down a scholarship to Kansas State
Reesing’s tape was sent after his junior year of high school and contained highlights as well as a full half of a game. He sent it out to several schools around the country but received offers from only Kansas, Kansas State and Duke.
While attending a football camp at Kansas State, Reesing arranged to stop by the KU campus on his way back to Austin, Texas.
“It was interesting because the first time I had ever been to Kansas was to come look at both the schools that were in Kansas,” Reesing said. “I never thought that I’d end up going to school in Kansas growing up, but its working out pretty well.”
Mangino and the coaching staff had already watched the video when Reesing stopped by the campus, and they were impressed with what they saw.
“You could see that he was not a really big guy on tape, but boy, he made plays,” Mangino said. “He made play after play after play.”
Reesing and his father met with Mangino in his office, and Reesing impressed the coach with his confidence and the way he handled himself. The two then went on a campus visit while Mangino talked with his assistant coaches.
“I remember exactly what I said,” Mangino said. “I said, ‘He’s small, but I like him. I want to offer him a scholarship.’”
Reesing had been offered a scholarship by then-Kansas State coach Bill Snyder. But after only two weeks of thinking it over, Reesing called the KU coaching staff and said he was headed for Lawrence.
“It didn’t take a lot of convincing for him to believe that I had a chance to play,” Reesing said. “He was the only person where it didn’t take a lot of convincing. I didn’t have to come throw the ball in front of him or anything. He saw the tape — he saw a guy who could make plays.”
Reesing’s height kept him from getting offers at other big-time schools. Several schools inquired about the 5-foot-11 gunslinger but soured on him when they saw him in person.
“As soon as they laid eyes on him in the hallway or at spring practice,” Mangino said. “When they saw his size, even though they liked everything he did, it was a great concern for some people.”
Reesing also was concerned about his height but hoped that Mangino would see past his size on his videotape. He hoped that his talent would be the difference.
“I knew he wasn’t going to like me for my size,” Reesing said. “That was really the only chance I had, for him to like the fact that I could make plays and throw the ball well.”
Luckily for Jayhawk fans, Mangino got Reesing’s tape and liked what he saw. Even his size.
— - Edited by Jennifer Torline
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