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Mangino's Jayhawks Embrace the Incredible
In his fifth year as head coach of Kansas, Mark Mangino has the Jayhawks undefeated and headed in the right direction.
(Matt Slocum - AP)
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For the better part of a century, there was little to relish on the football field at a school with a historic basketball tradition. While Kansas claims John Riggins and Gale Sayers as part of its lineage, the Jayhawks have won more than six games only three times -- in 2005, 1995 and 1992 -- over the past 25 years.
Mangino arrived in 2002 with sound experience in helping to rebuild Big 12 football teams, having been an assistant under Bob Stoops at Oklahoma and Bill Snyder at Kansas State. He knew he faced a hard sell in recruiting, but urged players to see the campus and get to know the coaches.
"He is doing what Bill Snyder did," said Stallard, who wrote "Tales From the Jayhawks Gridiron." "Take three-star players and coach them into four- or five-star players that Texas A&M or Texas overlooked."
Reesing is an Austin native who grew up a Longhorns fan. But Texas, as well as every other major school other than Kansas State, Duke and Kansas, decided not to offer Reesing a scholarship largely because he is 5 feet 10, short for a quarterback.
The sophomore has thrown for a school-record 30 touchdowns that are offset by only four interceptions. The offense ranks second nationally in scoring. Texas Coach Mack Brown recently told reporters, "Anybody who did not recruit him, including us, made a mistake."
Talib was so lightly recruited he could not even remember the other major schools that offered him a scholarship. He said he chose Kansas because Mangino came to his house and showed more effort than any other coach. Now he is a finalist for the Bronko Nagurski Award, given to the nation's best defender, and the defense ranks second nationally in scoring defense.
Defensive tackle James McClinton, a native of Garland, Tex., said he received more than 10 scholarship offers, but chose the Jayhawks largely on faith. "My pastor saw me playing for the Kansas City Chiefs," McClinton said. "That's close to Kansas. Coach Mangino came to my house and did not put too much pressure on me."
Mangino continues to strengthen player relationships. During this period of unprecedented attention, Mangino is determined to keep his players well grounded. He said that tackling, blocking and catching -- not emotion -- will determine Saturday's outcome. He told players they should have the same friends today that they had a year ago when they were 6-6.
But he also feels they should enjoy the spotlight because they deserve it after committing to his hope of what the team could be.
"They have invested in this program and deserve the opportunity to play on center stage," Mangino said. "This is what the players who came to Kansas, the ones who came on faith, had hoped for."
