This and that about the 47th annual Kansas relays:
Ed Elbel, as much a fixture at the Relays as Memorial Stadium, begins his umpteenth year as meet manager. Elbel, a professor emeritus of physical education, has been helping run the show for more than 40 years…
Usually during an Olympic year, all Relays’ races are run at metric distances. Not so this year. “The reason,” says meet director Bob Timmons, “is that nobody understands the times run at metric distances.”
The decathlon, however, is using metric distances because that’s the only way to keep score. The scoring chart is complicated enough as it is…
Ken Stadel finished fifth in the high school discus at 149-5 while competing for Quenemo High two years ago. Last year, Stadel came back as a Rice freshman and threw 177-2 for fourth in the university-college division.
Now Stadel, who threw 191-0 to win at the Texas Relays, as a shot at the KU Relays record of 189-8 set by Doug Knop…
Rice, incidentally, has another field performer from Kansas in javelin thrower Jim Pearce of Shawnee Mission North…
Bigley Back
Running for Eastern New Mexico’s distance medley team will be former Jayhawk Thorn Bigley who transferred last year. Bigley ran with KU’s distance medley outfit when it set the world record of 9:33.0 here three years ago. Bigley ran the three-quarters in 2:57.9.
Eastern New Mexico is coached by Bill Silverberg who still holds the Knasas steeplechase record at 8:50.8. That mark, however, figures to be endangered by KU junior Jon Callen who ran 8:51.6 last month…
In case you were wondering if there could possibly be any events that AREN’T being run at the Relays, there are. But there are just four — the 220, 440, 880 and shuttle hurdles relay…
Granted the shot put area at the stadium isn’t the greatest from a spectator standpoint. But there’s no place else for it and officials are going to ask for cooperation from fans surrounding the pit so that people in the stands can also view the action…
Kansas’ Sam Colson finished second in the javelin last season and has been pointing for a first place this time. But a slight shoulder injury makes his chances questionable…
The Jayhawks are putting their best runners — Mark Lutz, Tom Scavuzzo, Phil Stepp and Rick Jacques — in the sprint medley. Lutz and Stepp, however, are coming off leg injuries…
Best Press
The ’72 edition of the Relays is drawing the greatest press coverage in its history. Bert Nelson, editor of Track and Field News, will cover the meet for the first time. Track writers are expected from Chicago, Philadelphia and Washington too…
Maj. Larry Means, winner of the Masters Mile last year, won’t make it this time. He’s in Vietnam where he serves as media liaison officer with the 7th Air Force…
Every year they say this is the biggest and best Relays ever. This year it’s no publicity angle. It really is…
If you’re listening up there, save the rain for next week.
MEMPHIS, Tenn.Not that I’m trying to rush it or anything. After all, Kansas’ football season ended Monday night.
But, let’s face it. A lot of people are wondering who’s going to play quarterback for the Jayhawks next year now that Dave Jaynes is eligible for Pete Rozelle’s country club.
The answer is, of course, that there’s no answer. Only thing certain is that Scott McMichael will enter spring practice as the No. 1 candidate. That comes from the horse’s mouth. Don Fambrough himself.
“We think that with Scott,” Fambrough explained, “we’ll have a more balanced running and passing attack. You have to build your offense around your personnel and he’s big and strong and can run.”
Perhaps if you watched your television set closely Monday night, you saw McMichael wearing No. 10 on the sidelines. Scott was in a strange situation. He came ready to play, but he really didn’t want to.
“It was weird, all right.” McMichael admitted.
Broken Collarbone
One week into fall practice, McMichael went down in a scrimmage and came up holding his left arm. “I thought I had pulled a muscle or something,” the 6-3, 205-pounder recalled.
Instead, his left collarbone was broken and he was finished for at least six weeks. About a month ago, he was ready again, but the coaching staff decided to hold him out of competition as a red-shirt.
If he had played against North Carolina State, he would have lost his red-shirt status and would have entered next season as a junior.
“It’s been kind of frustrating, I guess,” conceded the Shawnee Mission West product. “But it’s turned out for the better, really. Now I get three more years.”
Hovering over McMichael, as you can imagine, will be the specter of Jaynes, a charismatic All-American who became the personification of the team during his senior year.
“Yeah, that’s come up a lot,” admits Scott. “Tough act to follow and all that, but I’m just going to go out and do the best I can.”
Solid Nucleus
With a solid nucleus coming back next yearespecially on defensewhatever runs the Jayhawks as signal-caller next year will have an able supporting cast. That’s something which couldn’t be said after KU’s 1969 Orange Bowl appearance.
Joining McMichael in the quarterback sweepstakes next spring will be Tom Krattli who, although only a freshman, has seen some duty as Jaynes’ backup this year and Todd Morgan, a guy many people have probably forgotten.
Morgan is the former Prep All-American from Shawnee Mission North. Todd was a halfback in those days, but he’s served all this fall as quarterback on the scout team while red-shirting.
Morgan is incredibly quick, but he’s also awfully small at 5-9, 161-pounds. During his freshman year, he was hurt most of the time.
Those are the three who will vie for the vacated QB post. Everyone will be listed as a sophomore.
“We’ll probably use more play action next year,” Fambrough says, “and we’ll probably use more sprint out passes. There’s no doubt our quarterbacks will run more in the spring.”
