Receiver Ross: Allen ‘good man’

By Joel Mathis     Nov 5, 2001

Five Kansas University football players sat together near the back of John Hadl Auditorium during the athletics department’s announcement of Terry Allen’s firing as head coach Sunday afternoon.

Marcus Rogers, with his head cocked to the left, stared at the floor as his former coach addressed the media. Harrison Hill, Nate Dwyer and Roger Ross watched the press conference stone-faced and glassy-eyed, as if unsure of what to do next.

David Winbush, whose eligibility ended last year but was a member of Allen’s first recruiting class in 1997, slouched in his seat while Allen talked about how tough of a business college football is.

When Allen and his wife, Lynn, stood and left the auditorium the five joined others in applause for the dismissed coach.

Even though they clapped for Allen, they said his firing was inevitable because of the lack of progress Kansas made during Allen’s five years.

“The Big 12 Conference, competition-wise, has jumped since 1997,” Winbush said. “Back then Oklahoma wasn’t a competitor. Back then Iowa State wasn’t doing things. Things change and he didn’t catch up like everybody else did.”

Hill said there was some speculation from players that Allen would be fired mid-season, but didn’t know for sure until Allen met with the team Sunday afternoon.

“In the past week there have been a lot of rumors that something was going to happen,” said Hill, a receiver who also was a member of Allen’s first recruiting class. “Everybody has been talking about it and the media has been asking questions. I don’t know if it was a shock. I think we felt it would happen sometime. I didn’t know it would happen (Sunday).”

Despite Allen’s recent appearance as a lame-duck, Ross said Allen never lost any respect from the team.

“Coach Allen never had any disrespect from anyone,” said Ross, a senior receiver who was recruited by Allen two years ago at Garden City Community College. “He’s a good man.”

Allen made such an impact on Ross that he said he was going to dedicate the rest of the season to his former coach.

“I hope most of the team does the same thing, too,” he said. “He’s the one that got me to come here and has been by my side.”

But Allen won’t be there for the rest of the season, something that Winbush said will affect the team.

“It’s going to be dramatic change, it’s going to be different,” he said. “I might even go out to practice Tuesday just to see how the atmosphere is, how different it will be not hearing his voice out there.”

The voice Winbush will hear is that of former defensive coordinator and now interim head coach Tom Hayes.

Hayes admitted he didn’t know many of the offensive players very well and Ross and Hill said just as much about him.

“Coach Allen and coach Hayes are totally different people,” Ross said. “From hearing him at practice I know coach Hayes brings a lot more discipline on the field. If somebody messes up they don’t get another chance.”

Coaching changes are made all the time in college football, whether it’s a new head coach or an assistant coach, but a coaching switch in midseason is different. There is no transition period.

“There’s definitely going to be an adjustment” Hill said. “None of us have ever been through this before when a head coach is gone in the middle of a season, so it’s definitely going to be different. But we’ve got to move forward because as much as we love coach Allen and respect him, we still have to play for this university.”

Kansas will travel to fifth-ranked Texas on Saturday and will return to Lawrence for home games against Iowa State and Wyoming.

The Jayhawks’ 51-7 loss to No. 2 Nebraska on Saturday ended any chance of going to a bowl, but now Kansas has a new reason to play, Dwyer said.

“This gives us something new to play for: the future of the program,” said the senior defensive lineman. “We have three games left and absolutely nothing to lose and everything to gain.”

Especially one head coach.

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