Saturday’s senior sendoff figures to be special for KU football

By Matt Tait     Nov 14, 2014

Kansas linebacker Ben Heeney celebrates with fans after the Jayhawks' 13-10 win over Louisiana Tech on a walk-off fieldgoal from kicker Matthew Wyman, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013 at Memorial Stadium.

As you all surely know by now, Saturday will mark the final home football game in the careers of several Jayhawks. And while the task at hand seems daunting — TCU enters ranked No. 5 in the nation and favored by 28 points — there are plenty of ways Saturday will be memorable for these guys, win or lose.

In all, there will be a total of 20 seniors honored before Saturday’s 2 p.m. kickoff with No. 5 TCU.

According to a KU spokes person, tight end Scott Baron is graduating and not returning for a fifth year of eligibility; senior running back Brandon Bourbon, who missed the season with a knee injury, will take part in the senior day activities, but senior running back Taylor Cox, who missed the season with an Achillles’ injury, will not. Senior safety Jaccare Givens also will not take part in the Senior Day activities.

The aforementioned notes are the result of a personal decision for each player and are not related to Bourbon and Cox’s pending eligibility. That has not been determined yet.

Here’s a quick look at the seniors who will be honored on Saturday along with a few seniors who KU is pushing for postseason honors:

Kansas tight end Jimmay Mundine (41) makes a grab near the goal line during Kansas' game against TCU Saturday, Sept. 15, 2012 at Memorial Stadium.

**2014 Kansas Football Seniors being honored Saturday**

No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr. Exp. Hometown (High School/Previous School)
**83 Scott Baron** TE 6-2 ½ 236 Jr. SQ Santa Ana, Calif. (Orange Lutheran HS)
**25 Brandon Bourbon** RB 6-1 ½ 225 Sr. 3L Potosi, Mo. (Potosi HS)
**43 Ed Fink** TE/FB 6-2 ½ 235 Sr. 1L Belleville, Ill. (Althoff HS)
**63 Ngalu Fusimalohi** OL 6-2 315 Sr. 1L Daly City, Calif. (Jefferson HS/CC of San Francisco)
**8 Nick Harwell** WR 6-1 193 Sr. TR Missouri City, Texas (Elkins HS/Miami (Ohio)
**31 Ben Heeney** LB 6-0 230 Sr. 3L Hutchinson, Kan. (Hutchinson HS)
**99 Tedarian Johnson** DL 6-2 290 Sr. 1L Jackson, Miss. (Murrah HS/Hinds CC)
**61 Pat Lewandowski** OL 6-5 ½ 290 Sr. 3L Overland Park, Kan. (Blue Valley West HS)
**19 Justin McCay** WR 6-2 210 Sr. 1L Kansas City, Mo. (Bishop Miege HS/Oklahoma)
**12 Dexter McDonald** CB 6-1 ½ 205 Sr. 2L Kansas City, Mo. (Rockhurst HS/Butler CC)
**41 Jimmay Mundine** TE 6-2 240 Sr. 3L Denison, Texas (Denison HS)
**16 Trevor Pardula** P/K 6-5 212 Sr. 1L San Jose, Calif. (Leigh HS/De Anza College)
**3 Tony Pierson** WR 5-10 ½ 175 Sr. 3L East St. Louis, Ill. (East St. Louis HS)
**55 Michael Reynolds** BUCK 6-1 240 Sr. 2L Wichita, Kan. (Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS)
**33 Cassius Sendish** S 6-0 195 Sr. 1L Waldorf, Md. (North Point HS/Arizona Western CC)
**24 JaCorey Shepherd** CB 5-11 195 Sr. 3L Mesquite, Texas (Mesquite Horn HS)
**27 Victor Simmons** BUCK 6-1 ½ 225 Sr. 3L Olathe, Kan. (Olathe North HS)
**85 Trent Smiley** TE 6-4 240 Sr. 2L Frisco, Texas (Wakeland HS)
**65 Mike Smithburg** OL 6-3 305 Sr. 1L Fairfield, Iowa (Fairfield HS/Iowa Western CC)
**98 Keon Stowers** DL 6-3 297 Sr. 2L Rock Hill, S.C. (Northwestern HS/Georgia Military College)

LINEBACKER BEN HEENEY
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• As of Sunday, Nov. 9, Heeney led the FBS and Big 12 in solo tackles (8.0 per game) and ranks first in the conference and eighth in the NCAA in total tackles (11.2 per game), en route to 101 stops through nine games in 2014.

• Heeney has led the Jayhawks in tackles in seven of their nine games on the year, posting double-digit efforts in six of those contests.

Kansas University's Trevor Pardula, a 6-foot-5, 209-pound punter from San Jose, California kicks at TCU on Saturday October 12, 2013.

• Heeney led all FBS players on Saturday, Oct. 18 with a career-best 21 tackles in KU’s game at Texas Tech. Heeney’s 21 tackles are the most by any player in the Big 12 in 2014 and are the second most by any player in the NCAA this season. Among Heeney’s 21 stops, were 17 solo tackles – just three short of the FBS record of 20 in a game.

• His 17 solo stops vs. Tech were the second most in Big 12 history and are the most in the NCAA in a single game since Tyler Matakevich of Temple recorded 19 solos agains Idaho on Sept. 28, 2013.

TIGHT END JIMMAY MUNDINE
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• Ranks first in the Big 12 and eighth in the NCAA in receiving yards by a tight end with 400 yards on 33 receptions.

• His 33 receptions rank tied for third among ‘Power 5’ tight ends, while his 400 receiving yards are the fourth-best.

• Has recorded five or more grabs in four games with 24 of his 33 receptions resulting in a first down.

*2014 SEASON HIGHS*
**RECEPTIONS:** 7, at Texas Tech
**RECEIVING YARDS:** 88, vs. Oklahoma State
**TOUCHDOWN CATCHES:** 1 (2x), last vs. Iowa State
**LONGEST RECEPTION:** 35, vs. Texas

PUNTER TREVOR PARDULA
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• Leads the Big 12 Conference and ranks 13th in the NCAA in punting average at 44.8 yards per punt.

• Has recorded 24 punts of 50 yards or more, including two of 70 yards or more in one game.Has dropped 33.3 percent of his punts inside the 20-yard line, while 13 of his punts have been fair caught.

• Has dropped 33.3 percent of his punts inside the 20-yard line, while 13 of his punts have been fair caught.

*2014 SEASON HIGHS*
**PUNTS:** 14, at West Virginia
**NET PUNT YARDAGE:** 621, at West Virginia
**LONGEST PUNT:** 72, at Duke
**PUNTS INSIDE THE 20:** 4, two times, last vs. CMU

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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.