Kansas football notebook: King impressing; Semke solid

By Matt Tait     Aug 20, 2015

He was unable to scrimmage over the weekend because of his late arrival, but University of Miami (Florida) transfer Corey King, a 6-foot-1, 295-pound defensive tackle, has pleased his new coaches during his first couple of days in pads.

“When you watch him in drills, you see he really explodes out, and he’s got good feet,” Kansas University D-line coach Calvin Thibodeaux said.

Added KU head coach David Beaty: “I’m very impressed with him. We’re just trying to get him in shape to play in a tempo-type defense. It’s not normal for a lot of people, but he’s getting there, and he’s a tough dude. I like him a lot.”

Despite having to play catch-up in conditioning, Thibodeaux said he did not anticipate King having any trouble being ready by the Sept. 5 season opener.

“It ain’t like he’s far off,” Thibodeaux said. “(Guys are) ahead of him, but when he hits the sled it makes a different noise.”

Beaty said the D-tackle position had been better than he expected at this point and singled out Kapil Fletcher, Daniel Wise and Jacky Dezir for strong play.

Thibodeaux went a step farther when talking about Wise, who has added roughly 15 pounds since the spring.

“If I was ranking my inside guys right now, based on what I’ve seen, Daniel Wise would be the No. 1 guy,” Thibodeaux said.

Ford focus

Beaty was asked Wednesday where juco transfer Deondre Ford figured into the quarterback race that also includes junior Montell Cozart and true freshmen Carter Stanley and Ryan Willis.

“He’s just one of the QBs right now, really,” he said. “… He’s getting the same amount of reps as the rest of those guys. He’s doing some good things, but he’s also learning the system.”

Semke still sizzling

He came out of nowhere to play an important role on the KU defensive line last season, and he has not given up any ground since.

Senior defensive end T.J. Semke, 6-2, 248 from Lee’s Summit (Mo.) North High, continues to operate as a player coaches cannot keep off the field.

“He doesn’t look like the rest of those guys,” Beaty said. “But he certainly plays hard, and I love his motor. He’s gonna find a way to get to ya. I gotta wear his (butt) out every day because he’s touching the quarterback, and I want him to stay away from him.”

Added Thibodeaux: “He’s earned everything he’s gotten here, and he’s done a great job.”

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.