Football looks ahead with spring game, practices
The team prepares to follow up its successful past season.
By Asher Fusco (Contact)
Monday, April 14th, 2008
The Kansas football team certainly deserved kudos for its 2007 season. The Jayhawks went 12-1, marched up the top 25 polls nearly every week and won the Orange Bowl.
But as the Jayhawks prepare to play in the annual spring game at 7 tonight, the overwhelming success of last season isn’t breeding any complacency.
Photo by Anna Faltermeier
Junior running back Jake Sharp runs upfield in a game last season. Sharp is one of three of running backs that will be competing for carries next season in tonight's spring football game.
“We worked harder this offseason, definitely, than in past offseasons I’ve been here,” junior running back Jake Sharp said. “Everybody is buying into what we’re doing here. There’s no, ‘Why are we doing this?’ We’re doing this because we’re Orange Bowl champs.”
Motivation aside, Kansas will have to replace several key components of its 2007 team, including two of the offensive linemen who paved the way for Sharp and protected junior quarterback Todd Reesing. Left tackle Anthony Collins entered the NFL Draft after his junior year, and right tackle Cesar Rodriguez exhausted his eligibility, leaving a four-way battle for the two spots at the ends of the offensive line.
Senior Matt Darton and redshirt freshman Jeff Spikes are competing to take Collins’ place at left tackle. Darton started one game last season when Collins suffered an injury. Spikes, at 6-foot-6 and 314 pounds, has drawn rave reviews from coaches since coming to Kansas one season ago.
“Spikes is a guy with a lot of talent,” Kansas coach Mark Mangino said. “He is young, but at the end of the day, he may be one of the most talented offensive linemen we’ve had here.”
Either sophomore Ian Wolfe or junior Nathan D’Cunha will inherit Rodriguez’s spot at right tackle. Wolfe saw action as a reserve last season, but is undersized at 280 pounds. D’Cunha is a native of Campbelltown, Australia, who is 25 years old but has only played one season of college football.
Fans could also get a sneak peek at who will be running behind Kansas’ retooled offensive line Saturday. Last season’s leading rusher, Brandon McAnderson, graduated, leaving several potential replacements. Sharp started one game in 2007 and finished 12th in the Big 12 Conference with 821 rushing yards, but his production tailed off near the end of the season.
Junior Angus Quigley and sophomore Carmon Boyd-Anderson each contributed in late-game situations last year and participated with the second-string in this year’s spring practices.
“The running back position should be positive for us with Jake coming back,” Mangino said. “We are anxious to see what Angus Quigley will do, running the ball and blocking, as well.”
Several potentially important pieces of next season’s squad will not appear tonight. Transfers such as junior running back Jocques Crawford and sophomore punter Alonso Rojas have not arrived on campus yet but could snag starting positions in 2008. Senior linebacker Joe Mortensen, senior center Ryan Cantrell, and junior safety Justin Thornton will not participate in spring practices because of injuries.
— Edited by Matt Hirschfeld
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