SB Nation User Blog: Denverjhawk

Xavier and CJ Still Jayhawks?

Denverjhawk — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 18:51:52 -0000

Do Xavier and CJ Henry still want to be Jayhawks?. (AP Photo)

The smoke is thickening and there is most certainly fire surrounding the rumor that both Xavier and CJ Henry may not in fact be headed to Kansas after all. Carl Henry keeps talking to the media and dropping hints about a possible change in the decision and now reports have surfaced Bill Self and Danny Manning are flying to OKC tonight as the Henry's are having second thoughts and honestly I don't think they want to be Jayhawks.

I'm interested to hear what everyone else thinks and I certainly don't have any knowledge other than what's being talked about by other outlets but this is getting a tad ugly. I'd love to have the Henry brothers in the Crimson and Blue next year but I'm getting concerned and starting to think Self might need to draw a line in the sand here. Even if it means playing 09'-10' without the Henry's.

Make no mistake I'm still a big fan of these two and want them in a Kansas uniform but it just seems like they've had ample opportunity and if they still aren't sold something is wrong.

Tyshawn Taylor make Team USA

Denverjhawk — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 21:24:06 -0000

Tyshawn Taylor make Team USA

This might end up in RockChalk's Ramblings but in case id doesn't Tyshawn represented well out here in Colorado for the tryouts and will be playing on Team USA this summer.

BCS Restructuring Proposal Being Discussed

Denverjhawk — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 14:36:47 -0000

BCS Restructuring Proposal Being Discussed

Read this in my local paper and it sounds like the first serious discussion with regards to a proposed change. Interesting stuff and it does include a playoff format. The thing I'm not sure I like is that it calls for the top 25 to be determined at the end of the year by "A new 12-person committee, made up of one representative from each of the 11 conferences, plus Notre Dame." That's a big human factor and an entirely disproportionate bias for Notre Dame who's team would be the only one with sole representation which seems a bit ridiculous. A long way to go still but the discussion seems to be gradually progressing.

Courtesy the guys over at "The Shiver" here's a look inside this weekends Super Jayhawk Camp.

Denverjhawk — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 00:26:19 -0000

Courtesy the guys over at "The Shiver" here's a look inside this weekends Super Jayhawk Camp.

Carey Fortson Commits to Kansas?

Denverjhawk — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 13:54:36 -0000

Carey Fortson Commits to Kansas?

Some of you may have already caught this article, but it looks like the Jayhawks have picked up another commitment for the 2010 class. This one seems to have slipped completely under everyone's radar but Carey Fortson is his name and he is a wide receiver prospect out of Texas.

Kansas Releases 2010 Football Schedule

Denverjhawk — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 15:11:26 -0000

Todd Reesing

View full size photo uploaded June 10, 2009

It's never to early to start looking ahead to the post Reesing era and I have to say it would appear as if our non-conference schedule is once again being stepped up a notch. I'd be interested in everyone's thoughts on the Georgia Tech matchup specifically, good idea or bad...

LAWRENCE, Kan. - Kansas football will host three non-conference games, including a matchup with Georgia Tech, as part of the 2010 Jayhawk Football schedule announced on Wednesday.

Kansas and Georgia Tech have agreed to a two-year series, opening in Lawrence, Kan. in 2010 and moving to Atlanta, Ga. in 2011.

The Jayhawks will open the 2010 season hosting North Dakota State on Sept. 4. KU will face Georgia Tech on Kivisto Field at Memorial Stadium on Sept. 11 before traveling to Hattiesburg, Miss. to play Southern Mississippi on Sept. 18. The Jayhawks will close out the non-conference season hosting New Mexico State on Sept. 25 before opening league play at Baylor on Oct. 2.

KU's Big 12 home games include Kansas State (Oct. 16), Texas A&M (Oct. 23), Colorado (Nov. 6), and Oklahoma State (Nov. 20). In addition to traveling to Baylor, KU will play at Iowa State (Oct. 30), at Nebraska (Nov. 13) and vs. Missouri at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City (Nov. 27).

More schedule breakdown after the jump....

KU will meet North Dakota State for the first time on the football field. NDSU was 6-5 as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference in 2008. The Bison played one game against a Football Bowl Series opponent last year, narrowly losing at Wyoming 16-13.

NDSU was 1-3 vs. ranked Football Championship Series schools in 2008.

Kansas and Georgia Tech have met just once. The Yellow Jackets edged KU 20-14 in the 1948 Orange Bowl, KU's first-ever bowl appearance.

Kansas most recently played an Atlantic Coast opponent in the 2008 Orange Bowl, when the Jayhawks defeated Virginia Tech 24-21. KU is slated to play ACC opponent Duke in Lawrence this fall.

Georgia Tech posted a 9-4 overall record last season, which included a 5-3 ACC record and a loss to LSU in the Chick-fil-A-Bowl. Kansas will make a trip to Georgia Tech on Sept. 17, 2011.

KU and Southern Mississippi will play in Lawrence in 2009 before meeting in Hattiesburg in 2010. The 2009 matchup, which will be televised nationally on FSN on Sept. 26 at 11 a.m. Central Time, will be the first between the two schools.

KU will close the non-conference portion of the 2010 campaign hosting New Mexico State. The Jayhawks and Aggies - from the Western Athletic Conference - have each won one game in the series.

NMSU posted a 42-29 win in 1988 before Kansas registered a 54-14 victory in 1991. Both previous games were played in Lawrence. KU has not played a WAC team since beating Louisiana Tech 34-14 in 2005.

The Big 12 rotation changes in 2010 as Kansas will face South Division opponents Baylor, Texas A&M and Oklahoma State for the first time since 2007. That year the Jayhawks swept that trio en route to a 12-1 overall record and 7-1 mark in Big 12 play.

2010 Kansas Football Schedule

Sept. 4 NORTH DAKOTA STATE

Sept. 11 GEORGIA TECH

Sept. 18 at Southern Mississippi

Sept. 25 NEW MEXICO STATE

Oct. 2 *at Baylor

Oct. 16 *KANSAS STATE

Oct. 23 *TEXAS A&M

Oct. 30 *at Iowa State

Nov. 6 *COLORADO

Nov. 13 *at Nebraska

Nov. 20 *OKLAHOMA STATE

Nov. 27 *vs. Missouri (at Kansas City)

Home games in ALL CAPS

* - Big 12 Conference game

Jayhawk Baseball 2009 MLB draft preview

Denverjhawk — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 13:55:05 -0000

This draft preview comes courtesy of Bkmhoxx, thanks a ton for the insight bkm and to everyone else enjoy!!

The Ritch Price era at Kansas has brought us many highlights throughout the recent years. Most of which have not happened very often for Kansas baseball fans. One of those is fielding a team with good talent and a chance to move on to the next level and play professional baseball. In the recent past, we have seen 2-3 players get that opportunity at the end of each college season. Two years ago we had two players land in the top 10 rounds and last year we had a whopping 6 players total that ended up hearing their names called or signing a professional contract.

This year will be no different. I'd expect 4-5 players to be drafted (possibly as many as 8). I will attempt to breakdown where these Jayhawks may fit into the 2009 MLB draft. The draft will be televised in prime time this year for the first time. It will be Tuesday night (June 9th) at 5pm for rounds 1-3 only. Wednesday, June 10th at 11am will be rounds 4-30 and on Thursday, June 11th (11am) for rounds 31-50. No Jayhawks will be drafted on Tuesday night but i would expect several to be drafted on Wednesday at some point. Each players breakdowns are as followed:

Full breakdown after the jump...

LHP) JR. Schaeffer Hall, 6'2, 200 (4.18, 92.2 ip, 104 hits, 10 bb, 65 k, 9HR)

This is what i wrote about Hall in my season preview:
Hall will be the Friday starter to begin the season. He is a control pitcher that throws 3 pitches for strikes. He has a good breaking pitch and a great change up. He has been drafted twice and definitely has the capability to fulfill this role as staff ace, but he will need to be very tough on Friday nights or someone else may push him for this spot.

I think Schaeffer will be the first Jayhawk taken on Wednesday afternoon. He was drafted out of HS in the 28th round by the Texas Rangers and after his freshman year of Junior College in the 23rd round by the Cleveland Indians. Hall has been on the radar of MLB scouts for several years. He is the rare and perfect example of a pitcher with very little velocity but with 3 solid pitches (a plus changeup), great command and great control. Coach Price likes to compare him to the ageless wonder for the Phillies, Jamie Moyer. Hall gives up slightly more than 1 hit/inning, doesnt get many strikeouts but he walks almost no one and keeps the ball down inducing a ton of ground ball outs and weak hits. Hitters rarely get a good look at a bad pitch and rarely make good contact with his pitches. Hall also has decent size and is a lefty. After throwing his no-hitter in the first game of the season, and flirting with a couple others, along with beating some of the top teams in the nation and going up against some of the top pitchers in this draft, Shaeffer should get picked somewhere between rounds 10-18. I would expect Shaeffer to sign a contract and begin his professional career as I'm not sure his stock can get much higher than it is right now.

RHP) SO. Brett Bochy, 6'2, 190 (4.34, 37.1 ip, 34 hits, 16 bb, 54 K, 4 HR)

This is what i wrote about Bochy in my season preview:
Son of long time MLB manager Bruce Bochy (now with SF Giants). Brett is pitching very good right now and could prove to be a much needed asset out of the bullpen.

I think Bochy has a chance to be the 2nd or 3rd Jayhawk taken on Wednesday. Bochy is a red shirt sophomore so he is draft eligible because of his age. He had a very strong year out of the pen and has great bloodlines. Bochy kept his hits under one per inning, showed good poise and command and also showed that he could be a shut down pitcher with 54 K's in only 37 innings. He has the size to add more velocity and shows potential to be a nice bullpen piece. He throws a good breaking ball and a nice slider and really attacks the hitters. Bochy should get drafted in rounds 17-25. It will all depend on his talks with MLB teams in pre-draft conversations. If he is a strong commit to coming back to school next year, then he could slide or go undrafted completely. There is a decent chance that Bochy too could sign a contract and begin his professional career. This will depend a bit on what team drafts him, how much he is offered and how much he likes college. I think we have a chance at losing Bochy early but I could also see him returning next year.

SS) JR. David Narodowski, 5'10, 193 (.354, 19 doubles, 8 HR, 43 RBI, 33 bb, 46 K, 6 SB)
This was my preseason preview of Nardo:
David is flat-out "show time" on defense. He has amazing lateral speed with a good arm and he runs through the ball when he fields it. I have seen this kid get to some balls that just aren't reachable by very many players. So he's all defense right? Wrong. This kid can hit the ball. He hits to all fields and has a shocking amount of power for a guy his size. He was a great find for this coaching staff to get this kid to transfer to Kansas. I would expect him to really surprise the Big 12 this year.

Narodowski "Nardo" has really helped himself in this year's post season. He showed a lot more power and tore through the Big 12 tournament and the NCAA regional in North Carolina. He showed an amazing skill set on defense this year (a few too many silly errors here and there). I could see him moved to 2b at the next level because he doesnt really posses a cannon of an arm. Offensively, he shows plenty of power with his 19 doubles and 8 homeruns. He strikes out a little bit much but he also walks quite a bit. He has decent speed as well and already works, looks and acts like a professional athlete. With Nardo's post-season success and power showing, I think he really moved himself up the draft charts. I would expect Nardo to be selected in rounds 20-30 and I have this feeling that he will sign and unfortunately be done with his Jayhawk career.

C) SR. Buck Afenir, 6'1, 205 (.333, 12 doubles, 10 hr, 63 rbi, 18 bb, 50 k)
This is what i wrote for his preview:
Buck was All Big 12 Honorable Mention last year and should rack up stronger awards again this year. Afenir is a team leader, hard worker and a clutch hitter. He has a strong arm behind the plate but still needs to improve his accuracy and release quickness. With the bat, he needs to improve his pitch recognition and draw more walks. He does posses some decent power however and is a threat for opposing pitchers. I think Buck should be able to raise his average to the .270 range this year and really be a leader for this young Jayhawk team.

Afenir is a bit of a wild-card in this draft. Seniors dont hold much bargaining power and therefore usually fall to much later in the draft and sign much cheaper contracts as a whole. Buck however is at a premium position, showed much improvement defensively and throwing out runners, showed much more ability to hit and get on base to go along with his already decent power. He still strikes out too much and his walks are too low but his average shows positive signs at a difficult position. Buck has shown to be a good leader and work well with a pitching staff. He has shown durability and toughness along with being able to block pitches. He is a clutch hitter but lacks quickness and swings at the occasional bad pitch. The teams that think Buck can stay at catcher and continue to improve his plate discipline will be looking at Buck towards the middle of this draft. The question will be, when does one of those teams actually pull the trigger and draft him? My guesstimate would be in rounds 25-35 but i really hope someone takes a chance on him a bit earlier.

RHP) SR. Paul Smyth, 6', 215 (5.40, 30 ip, 34 hits, 10 bb, 19 k, 6 HR)
My season preview for Smyth:
Smyth should be in line to get many accolades this season and be on many lists for many more. Smyth is a strike-thrower with a cutter in the 90-92 range. He also has a decent slider to go along with it. He has an odd arm angle that is difficult for most batters to hit. Smyth will have a chance to be one of the dominant pitchers in the league this year and if this young pitching staff can get the ball into his hands, I will expect great things from him.

Smyth ran into the injury bug a little bit this year and i think it really caused him to struggle throughout the middle portion of the season. He did show decent signs of progress at the end of the year however. He was in line to be one of the first Jayhawks taken this year but his lack of strikeouts and the injury will move him down quite a bit. Smyth has a cut fastball in the 88-92 range with a decent off speed pitch and a decent slider. His cutter gets a lot of movement and is very tough for right-handers to hit. With his arm angle and his potential upside, he is definitely worth a team taking a chance on. It will all depend on if his injury potential scares any teams away. I'd guess Smyth to go in rounds 30-40.

1B) SR, Preston Land, 6'3, 236 (.222, 8 doubles, 3 hr, 21 rbi, 24 bb, 69 k)
My season preview for Preston:
Land will get his last chance to do what everyone thinks he is capable of doing. He will truly need to start off the season strong as he will be pushed by a big time recruit in Zac Elgie. Scouts love Preston and want him to succeed as he did as a freshman. He packs so much raw power and has a great pro body. He also has decent speed and a good arm and plays good defense. He just needs to get out of that funk he has when the bat is in his hands. If he doesn't show any signs of change, then I would expect Elgie to begin stealing more and more starts away from Land as the season progresses.

Land consistently took steps backward each year since his amazing freshman campaign. His averages went way down, his power disappeared, he walked less and he struck out way too often. That said, if you see him swing the bat and play defense, he will make any scout drool. He is full of power potential and athleticism. He can dig out the worst thrown balls to first with great ease and when he does hit the ball, wow! It would not surprise me at all to see Preston get picked in the late rounds of this draft or even do what John Allman did last year and sign a free agent contract after the draft is over. It also wouldnt surprise me if Preston doesnt get any looks whatsoever, but I just think some organization out there may take a chance on Land and see if they can help him correct his offensive struggles. Sometimes a change of scenery is a good thing. Preston would be in rounds 45-50 or a free agent.

Brian Heere and Robby Price would shock me if selected this year but if either of them can work out a deal to go in the top 10 rounds then i could see a slight chance that one of them might sign. Both seem to be prototypical college ballplayers that would want to play as much college ball as possible and to continue their education. Robby has his Senior season and playing his last year for his father to look forward to and Heere im quite sure will strive to get his degree before testing any professional baseball opportunities.

Also keep an eye on Tanner Poppe. He should be sporting a Jayhawk uniform next year but will be one of the top tier players in this draft and has a chance to be picked in the first 3-5 rounds. Poppe was listed in BA's top 200 (#185). Hes a monster at 6'5, 220 and he can throw some gas. Also recruited by Oklahoma for football but he signed with Kansas. He is a very solid commit and likely will not sign but some teams out there will take a chance and throw some money at him anyways. He may get some very nice cash offered to him in the form of an above slot bonus because the kid has some of the best projectability in this class. He is very smart and his mom is a Jayhawk so I'd expect to see him here next spring.

Enjoy the draft everyone!
Aman Reaka
BKMHOXX

Rock Chalk Talk get's Tobenized!!!

Denverjhawk — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 01:03:53 -0000

Toben Opurum

View full size photo uploaded June 8, 2009

School is out, the students are gone and soon the dog days of summer will be upon us. Living in Colorado I don't miss the heat and humidity that make up a Midwest summer day but at the same time I have a healthy appreciation and understanding that this is when football players are grinding it out day after day preparing themselves both mentally and physically for the season to come.

One such player that will arrive in Lawrence this Wednesday is one of those we all came to know during the recruiting process, Plano Texas running back Toben Opurum. Toben recently wrapped up his final semester of high school, is packed and ready to go and looking forward to his first taste of a BCS Division 1 program. I had one last precollege opportunity to speak with Toben about what he's been up to over the past few months, how he's becomming familiar with the program and what his thoughts and hopes are for the fast approaching 2009 season.

Obviously I would have preferred to do this as an audio section much like we did around signing day but I had to get this one while I could and I think Toben had some good things to say. One thing I will throw out to the RCT readers relates to a somewhat joking comment I made during the interview when I called him Thunder Toben due to his size and the possible power he'll bring to the backfield. I guess my question would be, any other nickname ideas from the peanut gallery? Throw your thoughts in the comments and without further ado on to the interview.

Full Interview Transcript After the Jump...

Denver

Toben, to start off how have you spent your time over the last few months preparing yourself for your arrival in Lawrence?

Toben

Basically my preparation began the day I got my workout plan from Coach Dawson. I put myself through the workout and then it got even more hectic after I received my first DVD to begin learning signals.

So right now, I'm still working out and trying to figure out route combinations and mentally prepare myself for the change I will experience.

Denver

From strength and conditioning standpoint are you pretty confident that the program Coach Dawson runs you through has put you in a position to be physically prepared for the jump?

Toben

Definitely, he knows what he's talking about

I've even called him a couple times to get specific instructions on certain workouts and he has helped instruct me to the fullest.

Denver

What about from a mental standpoint, what has been the most challenging part of getting a grasp of the offense so far?

Toben

Route combinations by far. I understand the signals, I understand the running plays, I understand the blocking schemes for the most part, but it's difficult to get a grasp on what route I'm supposed to be running in our offense. I learn better when doing things though, rather than watching it.

Denver

Understandable, you know once I think I read that Dezmon Briscoe used NCAA Football to get used to the routes. Any truth to that method?

Toben

Actually I believe it was Madden 09 and I completely believe it. On my visit I played him in Madden and he stomped me. It was bad.

Denver

Nice, I imagine games can get pretty intense with him from the sound of it.

Toben

Well I wouldn't know he blew by me pretty easily and I thought I was good.

Denver

Fair enough, moving on to the running back situation at Kansas, it's been fairly well documented this spring that besides Jake Sharp it's pretty much wide open. Have you gotten any further indication from the staff in terms of where they see you ideally fitting in this season if all goes well.

Toben

They've told me that I have an obvious size advantage on Jake Sharp and they basically want to use me as a compliment to his running style. Also with that he'll be able to get some rest and not have to try and overwork himself.

Denver

Is your expectation or at least your hope to be the #2 guy going into the season?

Toben

I'm not going to tell you what I expect without having ever stepped onto a Division 1 football field, but my hope is to be the #2 going into the season and if the opportunity to start is there I would hope to take it and run with it.

Denver

So how about other guys coming in with you, have you had a chance to talk more with any of them or even current players already up at KU?

Toben

I've spoken to (Chris) Omigie a bit. Dexter (Linton) and I speak about once a week.

I just called Randall (Dent) yesterday and Jordan Webb and I text every now and then.

Jordan has been real helpful, just informing on how things are up there and what to expect and what not.

Denver

I imagine it's been helpful since he's been up there a semester already.

Toben

Oh definitely. He's pretty much gotten a feel for everything.

Denver

So here's a loaded question for you. If you had to pick one incoming recruit, besides yourself of course, that you think can be an immediate impact who would it be? And no PC answers on this one.

Toben

Immediate impact, I'd say Omigie if it weren't for our fully loaded receiver depth.

Otherwise, Quinton Woods. He is huge, and being a Juco player definitely helps you prepare a bit more to be an immediate impact.

Denver

So what about you, have you bulked up at all in the spring?

Toben

I look bigger but have maintained the same weight, if that makes sense.

Denver

Makes sense, feeling stronger and more powerful maybe then?

Toben

Likely

Denver

Hope so, we need Thunder Toben in the backfield

Toben

You plan on calling me that? (laughs)

Denver

Maybe...I'll keep you posted. Well, thanks again for all your help and giving us a little bit of time here at RCT I know you're one player we are all very interested in seeing develop.

Toben

No problem, anytime.

Toben also added a few quick things after our interview was over that I thought were worth mentioning. He will be rooming with Randall Dent who as we all know is another incoming freshman at defensive end.

He also said to keep an eye on Davyon Henry who is a CB/S prospect for the 2010 class that Kansas has offered and is recruiting from his school. Toben thinks he could be a great pickup for the Jayhawks and with his size of 6'3" 195 as a Junior in high school he could develop into a solid player anywhere from safety, corner or even as an outside linebacker against the spread offense.

Recruiting related as well he mentioned that David Beaty was pretty heavily recruiting several guys from Dexter Linton and Christian Matthews school. Likely candidates there are Montra Nelson (WR) who is currently an OSU commit, Donovan Vestal (DE), and Diamonte Wheeler (DT).

Lastly he didn't remember much but does recall playing against recent commit Jacoby Walker in the state playoffs two years ago down in Texas. Obviously it doesn't mean much but it seems like a lot of these guys know of each other and play against each other and I think it shows how this pipeline that the staff has worked to develop has the potential to be very much a self perpetuating deal.

Small Wonder

Denverjhawk — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 17:18:41 -0000

Small Wonder

Let the hype begin...well, being honest though Todd will likely fly fairly under the radar this year considering all three Heisman finalist QB's return but it is nice to see a little pub for Todd early on.

Geneo Grissom the Newest Jayhawk

Denverjhawk — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 13:58:26 -0000

It appears the Kansas Jayhawk football staff has landed their fourth commitment of the 2010 class as the Jayhawkslant is reporting that Hutchinson High defensive end Geneo Grissom has pulled the trigger with a verbal.

Grissom is considered a strongside defensive end prospect with a big frame standing 6'4" inching toward 6'5", weighing in around 230.

Geneo is a 3 Star recruit as rated by rivals and at this point I have had a couple of very brief conversations with him and will work on getting some sort of an interview similar to what we did last summer with guys like Tyrone Sellers, Kevin Young, Jordan Webb etc. I will say though that I do know he is involved in power lifting in the state and considers himself somewhat of a workout warrior. He's made some major strides in his strength, agility and conditioning in recent years and believes he has a lot of upside and potential to really develop.

A Kansas kid who wants to be a Jayhawk is always welcome and while we may have missed on a couple of local guys early Geneo is the kind of local player the Jayhawks need to be landing early commitments from and keeping in state. A pass rush is huge in football and defensive end is a major part of that so adding solid depth and competition at this spot is always welcome. Glad to have you aboard Mr. Grissom and look forward to seeing you in the crimson and blue.

Also just a quick little FYI on recruiting nuggets here at RCT. I can't and won't claim to be a recruiting expert but I do my best to bring you some interviews, info on camps as well as thoughts from recruits and commitments when I can through what contacts I have. I will say though that with some new obligations at home, places like the Slant and The Shiver do a great job of keeping on top of things and at this point have far more "ins" than I. So I'll relay any news from them over here for discussion as well while giving full credit to those guys for breaking the story kind of like what the KC Star, KUSports and all those guys do. I'm not trying to report it as my own in any way but we've got a fun group over here and it's nice to throw this stuff out there and get everyones thoughts. So when it's mine you'll know and when it's coming from elsewhere you'll know that too. Thanks to all for reading, commenting and it's starting to really feel like football season.