Mangino's fire drives Jayhawks
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BY CURT McKEEVER / Lincoln Journal Star
Let’s just get this out of the way: Mark Mangino is one of those guys who’s hard to miss. Not the fittest man you’ll ever meet.
You good with that? OK, let’s move on to the reason why he’s become larger than life in Lawrence, Kan.
In a place that has basketball on the brain, Mangino has pulled off something like a medical miracle. He’s gotten the folks to think about University of Kansas football beyond the month of October.
Sure, the locals may be accustomed to 8-0 starts, but not from the team that plays in Memorial Stadium.
And that’s exactly where the Jayhawks are today entering their game against Nebraska.
“There are so many different things, historically, about this program — Haven’t played well against this team, haven’t done this, haven’t done that,” Mangino said in a voice that tells you he’s sick of talking about it. “You know, it’s been a century of inconsistency here, and we’re trying to get that righted.”
It’s not that he hasn’t had some steady-as-she-goes seasons since coming to KU after being the offensive coordinator at Oklahoma. Twice in his first four years, Mangino steered Kansas to a bowl game. And last year’s team also was eligible for a bowl but didn’t get a bid.
But it’s extremely unlikely that you’d find anyone who could say they’ve seen the Jayhawks as ‘righted’ as they are now.
The last time KU made it eight games into a season without losing was 1909.
Its last major bowl appearance was the 1969 Orange Bowl.
The last time the Jayhawks had a better record than Nebraska when the teams played was 1974 (KU 4-1, NU 3-2).
You can only imagine how popular the Mark Mangino costume was in Lawrence on Wednesday night.
“I’ve just always liked Mark’s nature, just the person he is,” said Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops, who was an assistant under Bill Snyder at Kansas State when Mangino came to Manhattan as a graduate assistant.
Unknowingly, the two had grown up about 30 miles apart — Stoops in Youngstown, Ohio, and Mangino in New Castle, Pa.
Their backgrounds may have helped forge a tight relationship that continues today. But there’s a lot more to why Stoops, after getting the Oklahoma job in 1999, brought Mangino as his offensive coordinator.
“He’s just got great pride and passion for what he does. Those are the guys that I like to be around and next to,” Stoops said. “They’re not looking for excuses. They’re just looking for results, and they’re passionate about it. And they don’t hide their passion, which I appreciate, too.”
That noted, Stoops must have enjoyed it when Mangino, following a tough loss to Texas in 2004, contended that a late offensive pass-interference call against KU was influenced by the millions of dollars the Big 12 stood to gain by Texas getting a BCS bowl bid.
His comments drew a $5,000 fine.
In 2002, Mangino was banned from Lawrence High athletic events after cursing at a referee for not calling a late hit on his son.
And this year, after the opener against Central Michigan, Mangino became an popular subject on YouTube.com. A television camera caught his profanity-laced tongue-lashing of Raimond Pendleton after the Jayhawk had drawn an excessive celebration penalty for diving into the end zone on a 77-yard punt return.
“That kind of fire, I think, for the most part, probably serves his team fairly well,” Stoops said.
Sophomore quarterback Todd Reesing agrees, saying Mangino is “always in your face on game day.”
But it’s respect for the 51-year-old, not fear, that causes the players to listen.
“He could care less what people say about him. He just wants us focused and to compete every time,” Reesing said. “I think the guys really understand that.
“Every week ... a lot of it goes back to Coach’s mentality about being prepared. Just because we win. ... We’re working at it. Things aren’t changing now that we’re having success.”
After giving up 23 points total to outmatched opponents in its first four games, Kansas opened Big 12 play at rival K-State and came away with its first road victory against a ranked opponent in 12 years. It also snapped an eight-game losing streak to the Wildcats in Manhattan.
Today, the Jayhawks, who lead the conference in eight statistical categories, look to improve to 5-0 in the Big 12 for the first time.
Actually, they expect to be 5-0. And so when they get their first score today, you won’t see a repeat of last week’s Georgia-Florida game, when approximately 70 Bulldog players stormed the field with no fear of being penalized after their coach had challenged them to show some fire.
“It’s my job to motivate this football team. That’s what I get paid to do,” Mangino said. “But I don’t think that would be appropriate for our program.”
What he finds suitable keeps him out of the headlines.
“I’m kind of a firm believer in the system and a routine,” Mangino said. “I know you’ll chuckle when I tell you this, but we prepare for a nonconference game just like we would prepare for a top-flight team. We don’t do anything extraordinary here.
“I kind of picked that up a little bit when I was an assistant at Oklahoma with Bob. Everybody has all these traditions — who runs down the hill and punches rocks, and all that stuff. When I was at Oklahoma, their tradition was get in the locker room, put on your uniform, go out win the game, shower up and go home. I kind of feel like it’s how you coach and how you prepare your kids is the most important thing with these emotional factors.”
Already positioned to be the first coach to take Kansas to three bowl games, Mangino appears to have the Jayhawks in great shape for next season — and beyond.
Only five of the 27 players who have started this season are seniors. There’s just one on defense.
What’s more, Kansas signed Mangino, who’s one of just five NCAA Division I-A coaches who didn’t play college football, to a new five-year contract before last season.
Kansas athletic director Lew Perkins said one thing that helped sell him on making that commitment was a story that Mangino told him during the summer of 2006 about how much he liked his bunch.
“Those are the kinds of things you pick up on and see,” said Perkins, who considers last season to be the Jayhawks’ real breakout year, since four of their six losses were by a touchdown or less.
But could it be possible that Perkins was just giving him a snow job?
“Mark has had a game plan for four or five years now,” said Perkins. “He loves coaching, he works hard it.
“We’re having a lot of fun right now.”
Indeed, think of the last time the Kansas media relations department could hype a football game in November with this header:
“Eighth-Ranked Kansas Hosts Nebraska In Annual Homecoming Game.”
Try never.
Reach Curt McKeever at 473-7441 or cmckeever@journalstar.com.
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