Kansas University’s last snippet of practice time open to the public this preseason actually was an all-out scrimmage – with mixed results.
KU opened the last portion of practice for fans as part of fan-appreciation day and used the time to suit up and play 11-on-11 with tackling Wednesday at Memorial Stadium. Only the quarterbacks were off-limits.
The intensity was high throughout, as Clark Green could attest. After running the ball on the left side for a small gain, Green was walloped in the open field and was slow walking off. He later returned and scored on a 16-yard run up the gut.
All eyes were on the quarterbacks, though, and what the 1,500 fans saw wasn’t overly impressive. Front-runner Adam Barmann, scrambling to his left, had a nice completion to Mark Simmons throwing across his body. But he also missed his target a few times with open receivers.
Kerry Meier appeared to struggle with making quick decisions, and Brian Luke threw a pass intercepted by Charles Gordon midway through the scrimmage. Jason Swanson did not get any snaps.
The offensive highlights were Green’s run, a one-yard Jon Cornish touchdown run and a 46-yard field goal booted by Kyle Tucker. Tucker and Scott Webb split field-goal duties.
Afterward, Mangino and the five team captains – Gordon, Nick Reid, Kevin Kane, Banks Floodman and David Ochoa – briefly addressed the crowd before signing autographs and posing for pictures with fans.
“Come Sept. 3, we’ll be ready to play,” Gordon told the crowd, “and we’ll give you a lot to cheer about.”
Practices for the rest of the season will be closed, but Jayhawks coach Mark Mangino hinted Wednesday that the work being done would be rewarded on Saturdays this fall.
“We’re going to win a bunch of games this season,” Mangino told the crowd. “We’re going to sneak up on a few : and we’re going to win the ones we should.”