Bill Young doesn’t mince words when talking about Kansas University’s football defense.
“Cornerback and defensive line were our team’s most glaring weaknesses last year,” said Young, Kansas’ third-year defensive coordinator.
When the Jayhawks begin spring drills with a closed practice today, coaches will try to fill holes left by three senior starters on that defensive line as well as upgrade the secondary.
KU must replace senior tackles Cory Kipp, Sid Bachmann and end Reggie Curry. Also, junior tackles Chuck Jones, Phil Tuihalamaka and sophomore end Monroe Weekley left the program.
Kansas signed Texan James McClinton — the nation’s 28th-rated tackle prospect — last month, but the high school senior won’t be on campus until summer.
“We’re excited about him,” Young said. “He’s a heck of a player. He’s a freshman, and you just don’t know until he gets on campus. That’s a critical position for us, and we need some help. We have a big need there.”
KU’s base defense under Young has been a 4-3 alignment — two tackles and two ends up front with three linebackers — but KU enters spring with just three true tackles.
When Kansas has its first open practice Monday, fans shouldn’t be surprised to see the Jayhawks experimenting with a 3-4 — two ends, a tackle and four linebackers.
“We feel the strength of our defense was our linebackers,” said Young, whose defense utilized a 3-4 last season in its nickel package. “We’ll mix that in, depending on down and distance. We’ll see how it develops and evolves.”
Tackle Tim Allen made 23 tackles, including six for losses, in 13 games as a sophomore reserve. Travis Watkins was limited to five tackles in two games as a junior after suffering a broken foot during the preseason. It was the second straight season the co-captain was hindered by a foot injury.
Watkins’ health could be critical to KU’s 2004 season.
“We have to see him in a game,” Young said. “He’s had a tough career. We’ve been here a long time, and he hasn’t played that much.”
KU’s other tackle prospect is Chris Brandt, a 6-foot-2, 280-pound red-shirt freshman walk-on from Oklahoma who spent the 2003 season on the scout team.
Kyle Knighton could see time at tackle and end as a sophomore.
The Jayhawks have more options at end. David McMillan led KU’s linemen with 31 tackles, including six for losses, as a junior. He also returned an interception and a fumble for touchdowns.
Tyler (Texas) Junior College transfer Jermail Ashley (6-5, 250) will be a candidate to replace Curry at the other end.
“We want him to step in and really push to be a starter,” Young said. “He brings a lot of size and athleticism to the position. In our offseason program, he’s done a really good job.
“Our whole philosophy on junior-college players is to bring them in to be starters. If not, they’re not as good as we thought they were.”
Two other recruits — Anthony Collins (6-6, 250) of Beaumont, Texas, and Charlton Keith (6-5, 230) of Minnesota-West Community College — will join the mix in the fall.
John McCoy, a member of last year’s junior-college class, also should get a look after seeing limited playing time as a junior.
KU won’t have to worry about numbers at linebacker. Starters Gabriel Toomey, Nick Reid and Banks Floodman were among KU’s top four tacklers as sophomores.
Young, however, said the returning starters shouldn’t take their jobs for granted.
“You open everything up in the spring,” he said, “and it makes everybody better.”
Kevin Kane and Brandon Perkins — both regulars as sophomore reserves — also return. Perkins played linebacker and also was a rush end in KU’s nickel package, recording a team-high seven sacks.
Backups Greg Tyree, Darren Rus and Clark McCracken also return, and KU’s already-deep linebacker corps will add freshman Bruce Ringwood and junior Zach Mims — who took red-shirt seasons last fall — during spring drills and freshmen Joe Mortensen and Mike Rivera in the fall.
With that much depth behind the line and so little up front, the 3-4 defense will get a long look.
“We’re doing a lot of research,” Young said. “We’ve visited a lot of schools and watched a lot of film. We want to put our players in the best situation to have success.”
Two other semester transfers are expected to bolster the defense in the secondary. Ashley’s Tyler teammate, Theo Baines (5-11, 190), is expected to compete for a starting job at cornerback, and San Bernadino Community College transfer Rodney Harris (6-0, 185) will get a look a corner and safety.
How much those newcomers play could impact the future of Charles Gordon, who led KU with 57 receptions as a red-shirt freshman but split time between receiver and corner late in the season in an effort to help a struggling defense.
Another position to watch is free safety, where Rodney Fowler is expected to push Jonathan Lamb. Lamb started every game as a red-shirt freshman last season, but Fowler came up with two big interceptions in the regular-season finale against Iowa State.
“If you’ve been in the program a year, there should be a jump in your play,” Young said of Fowler, who was a sophomore transfer last season. “He came on late in the year and really improved.”
While Young’s defense took its share of criticism, the Jayhawks actually were improved over 2002. In 12 regular-season games in 2003, KU opponents ran five more plays than in 2002 but gained 1,215 fewer yards and scored 111 fewer points than the year before.
Young hopes KU can make another leap forward — perhaps a big one — in 2004. It starts with spring drills.
“We’re going to work as hard as we can on basic fundamentals,” Young said.
KU’s first open practice is scheduled for 3:15 p.m. Monday on the practice field behind Anschutz Pavilion. Kansas, which finished 6-7, will play its spring game at 3 p.m. April 18 at Memorial Stadium.
