They were both running backs at Ellison High School in Killeen, Texas, and both decided to play football for Kansas University.
But that’s where the similarities stop between Reggie Duncan and former Jayhawk David Winbush.
Listed as 5-foot-9, 215 pounds, Duncan is a compact, powerful running back who likes to grind it out between the tackles, but has the speed to take it outside.
“I like to run north-south,” Duncan said. “The fastest way to get anywhere is a straight line.”
Winbush, who ended his career at Kansas sixth on the all-time rushing list with 2,608 yards, depended on his small 5-7 frame and 4.41 40-yard dash speed to elude defenders .
“David was a finesse player and Reggie is more physical,” KU coach Terry Allen said. “Their body types and running style are very much different.”
But because of where he comes from, Duncan knows he will be compared to Winbush.
“People always say this and that about us,” Duncan said. “It’s something that I’ve gotten used to.”
Something new Duncan will be getting used to is playing time.
He was red-shirted during the 1999 season. Last season he totaled 54 carries for 207 yards and two touchdowns as a back-up to his former high school teammate. He ran for a career-high 96 yards on 11 attempts against Nebraska.
Duncan will probably get more than 11 attempts every game this season as KU’s top running back. Allen said he is impressed with Duncan’s speed and power.
“If he gets in a crease he can take it the distance,” he said. “He can physically make people miss. He has a lot of things that we lost when Moran (Norris) went down last year.”
But Duncan plays the accolades down.
“There’s no pressure from the team on me,” he said. “I put the pressure on myself to do well. We’ve been waiting for this since the Iowa State game last season. We have a lot of doubters out there. People picked us to finish 2-9. There is a lot more talent than that on this team.”
He said he expects the Jayhawks to show people what they are all about in the first two weeks of the season.
“Southwest Missouri State is the first thing on my mind,” Duncan said. “But UCLA is right there. That’s going to be the game where we show people what we can do.”
One place Duncan has been proving himself since high school is the weight room. During the offseason he recorded a team-best 635-pound squat and can bench press more than 400 pounds.
“God just blessed me with very strong legs,” he said. “All through high school I had the best squat lifts.”
When he wasn’t setting records in the weight room at Ellison, Duncan was having his way on the field. He ran for more than 3,700 yards and 26 touchdowns in his junior and senior seasons.
Duncan might have finished with more than 5,000 yards on the ground, but a running back by the name of Winbush who led all running backs in Texas with 2,564 yards rushing in 1996 was getting most of the carries during Duncan’s freshman and sophomore years.
Up coming: Today marks the final day of two-a-days without pads. The Jayhawks will dress in full pads for the first time Tuesday morning.
