Jayhawks have some Hokie in them
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. | When Mark Mangino took over the Kansas program, he knew a good place to look for a blueprint of how to build something where there was literally nothing.
Blacksburg, Va.
“We went back and evaluated (Virginia) Tech’s program from the time coach (Frank) Beamer arrived,” Mangino said. “There are a lot of similarities between what we’re trying to do and what coach Beamer and his staff have accomplished.”
That’s the thing. Kansas still has more than a decade of work ahead of it to get where the Hokies are. Tonight’s Orange Bowl will be Virginia Tech’s 15th straight appearance in a bowl game. KU has been bowl eligible the last three years, but was not invited to a bowl game in 2006. When the Jayhawks look across the line of scrimmage at the Hokies, they can only hope they’ll be gazing into the future of their program.
When making comparisons, it could be argued that Virginia Tech came from even humbler beginnings. The Hokies weren’t even a member of a conference and stayed independent until 1991, when they joined the Big East. By the beginning of Beamer’s sixth season, some fans were calling for his ouster. Mangino experienced the same thing this offseason, heading into year six.
It would take only two years — eight total — for Virginia Tech to play in a major bowl game. The Hokies beat Texas 28-10 in the 1995 Sugar Bowl, announcing their arrival to the rest of the country.
Beamer has said several times this week that KU has the exact same opportunity against his team tonight.
“Back when we played Texas in ’95 in the Sugar Bowl, I really thought that game meant more to us than it did to Texas,” Beamer said. “We ended up beating them. We were kind of a new team on the block back then. Now Kansas, with the way they’ve come around, and we’ve been to a few bowls, we’ve got to be careful that it’s as important to us as it is to Kansas.”
The Jayhawks and Hokies share much in common. In Blacksburg, they carry a lunch pail as a symbol of their work ethic. In Lawrence, they talk about “sawin’ wood,” although Mangino hasn’t made the Jayhawks carry a saw onto the sideline as the Hokies do with their lunch pail — not yet, anyway.
Both teams are not built on blue-chip talent and have spent a lot of time emphasizing the importance of special teams as a key to beating programs with more talent.
“We’re kind of like Virginia Tech,” Kansas offensive tackle Cesar Rodriguez said. “(Beamer) doesn’t recruit those big-time stars. He doesn’t take all the guys everyone else wanted. He takes those middle-of-the-road guys. What they have at Virginia Tech, with the lunch pail, that’s awesome. It’s something you should go by. Don’t let any day go by when you don’t work.”
Beamer knows what hard work looks like, and he sees it in Mangino and the Kansas program.
“He deserves a lot of credit,” Beamer said. “Someone said how did they get so good so fast? It’s solid people. He’s a solid coach. They’re very disciplined. They play hard. They’re going to be good for a while. It all goes back to the direction that he took that Kansas team.”
Article Source: http://www.kansascity.com/sports/story/428266.html
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