Commentary: Angry Young bodes poorly for Jayhawks

By Jim Vertuno - Associated Press Sports Writer     Nov 10, 2005

? Look out, Kansas University. Vince Young is mad.

Mad that the Jayhawks nearly embarrassed Texas a year ago. Mad that KU coach Mark Mangino “disrespected” the Longhorns after the game.

This is the last thing the Jayhawks need.

Just about any chance the second-ranked Longhorns might come out flat Saturday seemed to fly out the window when Young told reporters, “I’m really ticked off right now.”

No one was more upset after last year’s 27-23 Texas victory than Mangino, whose postgame tirade over a questionable penalty against Kansas all but accused Big 12 Conference game officials of helping Texas get into a Bowl Championship Series game, which benefited the league financially by several million dollars.

“You know what this is all about, don’t you? BCS. That’s what made a difference today in the game,” Mangino said. “That’s what made the difference in a call in front of their bench. Dollar signs.”

Mangino backed off the comments within hours after the game and said he regretted making them. But the damage was done: The Big 12 slapped him with a $5,000 fine.

And there were other things Mangino said after the game that still irk Young.

“Normally, I give credit to our opponents, but I’m not going to do that today because our kids outplayed them and should have won the game, deserved to win, and it just didn’t work out,” Mangino said.

Mangino’s quotes were resurrected this week when Texas coach Mack Brown reminded the Longhorns of the tough fight they had last year in Lawrence.

Now just how much Brown fueled this latest fire is open to debate.

Brown says he always talks to his team about the previous matchup with a particular opponent and that Mangino’s comments simply “were out there.”

Sounds reasonable. But maybe it was a bit of gamesmanship from a coach trying to keep his team razor-sharp after a run of big victories. Young said he was unaware of Mangino’s comments last year when the KU coach made them.

Whatever, or whoever, rekindled this fire surely got Young steaming mad.

“The challenge to me is how they disrespected us last year, saying how they outcoached us and outplayed us,” Young said. “I’m going to make sure that I tell the guys this whole week what they said.”

Mangino brushed off Young’s comments this week.

“If you’re the best team in America and you’re looking for motivation, maybe we have a chance Saturday,” said Mangino, who also called Young “the best player in college football.”

Young’s comments did seem out of character for a player who has been so calm under pressure during his career. Could it be that by trying to make Mangino eat his words Young is setting himself up for a bad game?

Not likely. Some of Young’s best games have come when he’s got something to prove.

Last year, it was at Texas Tech after two straight sub-par games against Oklahoma and Missouri. Young answered the questions of whether he should be benched with 158 yards rushing and four touchdowns.

This season, Ohio State said its goal was to knock him out of the Heisman Trophy race. Young hit Limas Sweed for the winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter, and suddenly the most dangerous running quarterback in college football could throw.

And if Young is mad, expect the entire Longhorns team to be fired up Saturday. The Longhorns feed off the emotions of their leader.

But it won’t just be Mangino who will be the target. The Longhorns also will try to pound the ball against the Jayhawks’ defense, which is ranked No. 1 in the country against the run.

And if any more motivation was needed, there’s that little thing called the Big 12 South. Win Saturday, and Texas locks up the division title and a berth in the league championship game Dec. 3.

So look out, Kansas. Vince Young is mad.

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