“Coach,” the fan told him, “I think your team has done the unthinkable.”

It was a simple compliment. But it stuck with KU’s sixth-year coach, perhaps jolting him with even more pride than he already has.

“I think that guy’s right,” Mangino said. “Nobody would have even given this a thought.”

The thought of the Jayhawks playing in the Orange Bowl indeed goes against much of what Kansas football has stood for in the last century.

Nick Krug

But when Kansas (11-1) and Virginia Tech (11-2) meet at 7 p.m. today at Dolphin Stadium, it will be a new peak in the program’s ascension toward consistent success in the cut-throat world of college football.

Tonight’s result is important, yes. But a vibe glows off of Mangino that hints at a tremendous sense of accomplishment just by his team earning an invitation to the Orange Bowl.

All it takes is a trip down memory lane.

“The prevailing thought when I came here was that we’re not very good,” Mangino said about his hiring before the 2002 season. “I listened to it. Our assistant coaches listened to it, and our players did.

“I told our players, ‘Don’t buy into it. You can be as good as you want to be. It may take three years, five years, six years, 10 years. We’ll have a chance to play and have our day.’ And our day is coming (today).”

Nick Krug

Don’t blame Mangino for the excitement. The coach acquired a disaster of a football program six years ago. The facilities were sub-par, the talent was terrible and the discipline was unacceptable. The community support was directed toward the men’s basketball office down the hall.

The challenges were new to Mangino. He was on Kansas State’s staff during the football program’s heyday. He went to Oklahoma, where football is king, and helped the Sooners win a national championship.

He never needed it before, but patience became crucial as he and his supporting cast slowly went to work.

“There were days that I was frustrated and said this ought to be better,” Mangino said. “: We got to a point where we realized, hey, you know, here’s what you can do. You can pout and complain about it or you can roll up your sleeves and say ‘Listen, I’ll prove everybody wrong.'”

Now, this. KU’s football team has made the 13-0 basketball team second fiddle. All 17,500 tickets allotted to Kansas for today’s game were bought, despite costs making last-minute travel plans for South Florida a struggle.

“Some asked, ‘How did they get so good so fast?'” Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer said. “It’s solid people. He’s a solid coach.

“They’re going to be good for a while. I don’t think there’s any question.”

That’s fine, but it’s also a long way away. While beating Virginia Tech remains top priority, it seems the month between the Orange Bowl invitation and tonight’s game allowed enough time to reflect on how Kansas got here.

The program arrived as a result of hard work, lots of patience and – for the players – a ton of faith.

“Faith,” Mangino says, “is believing in something you can’t see.”

Tonight 72,000 fans at Dolphin Stadium – plus millions more on national television – will see it all.

That’s why Mangino doesn’t need to wait for a victory to get anything out of the 2008 Orange Bowl.

He already has.

“As I say all the time, don’t worry. Good, bad, whatever goes wrong,” Mangino said. “Any time you get knocked off course, things aren’t going well, don’t pout, don’t feel bad for yourself.

“Just keep sawing wood. It will happen. And it has.”