|
Entering the seventh year of the Mark Mangino era, the Kansas football program has reached heights not many ever expected of it. While Mangino is happy with the team's success, he and his players are not content to rest on past accomplishments and are looking forward to continued progress. In the last five years, Mangino has guided the Jayhawks to four six-plus win seasons, three bowl games, and a BCS Bowl game victory. Kansas football placed itself on the national map during the 2007 season, which included a school-record 12 wins, a national ranking as high as second, and an Orange Bowl victory as part of a very special season in Lawrence. The KU football program earned unprecedented national recognition in 2007, as after being tabbed to finish fourth in the Big 12 North Division, the Jayhawks tied for the division co-championship with a 7-1 conference mark. KU found itself ranked second in the nation in late November, earned a BCS bowl berth, landed three players on All-America teams and saw Mangino rewarded as the consensus national coach of the year. KU led the nation in turnover margin and was the only school in the country to rank in the top five nationally in both scoring offense and scoring defense. The high-flying Jayhawks were one of the nation's most exciting teams, scoring more than 45 points a game in 2007 thanks to a wide-open offensive style of play. The team's physical defense also shut down some of the nation's best offenses last year and ranked fourth nationally in scoring defense and eighth in rushing defense. Records were set as Kansas football became the talk of the nation throughout the last half of the year. KU was placed on national television for each of its final nine games while the Border Showdown game with rival Missouri was the most-watched regular season college football game on ABC last year. All of this from Mangino, who inherited a program which had not posted a winning record in six years prior to his arrival. The hard-working former Kansas State and Oklahoma assistant coach steadily built the program as a first-time head coach. He stuck with what he knew was right and the dividends have paid off in wins, bowl games, national and conference honors, and players who represent the program in a manner which makes the University proud. The 2007 season not only saw 14 Jayhawks earn Big 12 Athletic All-Conference honors and three earn All-America accolades, but 14 earn Big 12 Academic All-Conference recognition. Two KU starters earned Academic All-America honors as the Jayhawks were recognized for their efforts on and off the field. After the season, four Kansas players were selected in the NFL draft, the most since an identical four were taken in 1996. Aqib Talib was a first-round draft pick, the only Big 12 player selected in the opening round and the first KU player picked in the first go-around since Dana Stubblefield in 1993. Excitement about the program is at an all-time high as the Jayhawks have drawn record season attendance numbers in each of the last three years. KU posted sellouts in each of its last two home games en route to averaging a school record 46,784 per game in 2007. Mangino's 37 victories at Kansas rank fourth all-time at the University and he has become the only coach to lead the Jayhawks to three bowl games. With three All-America selections in 2007, Mangino has seen five of his players earn Associated Press national honors. In addition, Aqib Talib was a finalist for the Bronko Nagurski Award and Anthony Collins was a finalist for the Outland Trophy in 2007. Off the field, 38 of his players have been named Academic All-Big 12 First Team with two earning All-America First or Second Team honors. During Mangion's tenure at KU, Jayhawks have set numerous individual school records, including the school's season passing and rushing leaders. Recent players also have been added to receiving, scoring, kicking, return and interception record lists among many others. Team records have fallen at a quick pace as well, as the Jayhawk offense and defense have proven to be among the nation's best as well as among the best in school history. In 2007, KU was among the national leaders in most statistical categories en route to producing a school-record 12 wins, a share of the Big 12 North Division title and its final highest national ranking since 1968. In 2006, he led the Jayhawks to bowl-eligibility for the second-straight year after the team posted a 6-6 overall record -- the first time since 1994-95 that the team was eligible to participate in a bowl contest in back-to-back years. Senior running back Jon Cornish set KU's single-season rushing record and Jayhawk fans flocked to Memorial Stadium in impressive numbers, highlighting Mangino's fifth year at the helm of the Kansas football program. On Nov. 25, Cornish became the school's rushing king after running for 126 yards on 15 carries against Missouri in the final game of the regular-season. In addition, a then school-record attendance of 51,821 at KU's game vs. Kansas State on Nov. 18 helped the team average 44,137 fans at Memorial Stadium during the 2006 season -- breaking the single-season attendance record for the second-straight year. Kansas ended the regular-season as one of the hottest teams in the Big 12, claiming victories in three of its final four games of the year, including a 39-20 rout of in-state rival Kansas State. KU's three-game win streak over Colorado, Iowa State and Kansas State marked the first time in school history that the Jayhawks had won three consecutive Big 12 games. Two KU players, Cornish and Talib, earned All-Big 12 First Team honors following the season. Cornish led the Big 12 with 1,457 rushing yards and averaged a school-record 5.8 yards per carry. Talib led the nation in passes defended with an average of 2.80 break-ups per game and tied for the Big 12 lead with six interceptions. During the 2005 season, Mangino led the Jayhawks to their first bowl victory since 1995 as the team defeated Houston 42-13 in the Fort Worth Bowl. By appearing in the 2005 bowl game, Mangino became the only coach in KU history to direct his team to a pair of bowl contests in a three-year span. Mangino's 2005 squad also posted a perfect 6-0 record at KU's Memorial Stadium - the team's first undefeated/untied season at home since 1951. In fact, KU fans backed Mangino and his team like never before. An average of 43,675 fans showed up per game - then an all-time Memorial Stadium record. He also guided the team to its first win over Nebraska since 1968, snapping a 36-game Cornhusker win streak. In addition, Mangino's club won its third consecutive game against border rival Missouri. He coached the 2005 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year in senior linebacker Nick Reid, who became the first Kansas player to ever earn the honor. Three of his athletes -- Reid, senior defensive end Charlton Keith and junior all-purpose player Charles Gordon, were each named All-Big 12 First Team following that season. In 2004, Mangino guided a relatively inexperienced club to a 4-7 record, despite a schedule that included six games against opponents that were ranked among the Top 25 during the 2004 season. Only two NCAA teams played more regular-season games against opponents ranked in the Top 25. For the first time since the 1989 season, Kansas was victorious against both of its biggest rivals -- Missouri and Kansas State. The Jayhawks snapped K-State's 11-game win-streak in the series by defeating the Wildcats 31-28 on Oct. 9 in Lawrence, and later tamed the Tigers 31-14 on Nov. 9 in Columbia, Mo. Mangino coached his first All-American at Kansas as sophomore cornerback Charles Gordon was named All-America Third Team by the Associated Press. After recruiting Gordon to Lawrence as a wide receiver, Mangino made the bold move to switch him to the defensive side of the ball where Gordon tied for the NCAA lead with seven interceptions and broke-up a Big 12-best 15 passes. It was easy for KU fans to see that Mangino's decision to bolster the defense was a wise move. As a team, the Jayhawks recorded 19 interceptions in 2004, the most since the 1987 club had 23. In addition, eight different Jayhawks had at least one interception, and Gordon's seven picks marked the third-best single-season total in school history and the most by one KU player since 1951. Furthermore, the revamped secondary allowed the Jayhawk rush defense to surrender an average of just 117.6 yards per game on the ground -- the third-best average in school history and the best since 1961. In 2003, Mangino led the Jayhawks to their first bowl appearance since 1995 when the team was selected to participate in the Mazda Tangerine Bowl. His 2003 team, which finished the season 6-7 overall, collected more victories than any KU squad since the 1995 Jayhawks ended the year with a 10-2 record. Mangino's exciting brand of offense set 12 different single-season school records including most points (384), most first downs (286), most touchdown passes (25) and most yards gained (5,479). A dynamic recruiter, Mangino has seen two of his signees named Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year during his tenure at KU -- quarterback Bill Whittemore in 2002 and center Joe Vaughn in 2003. Prior to his arrival in Lawrence, Mangino was one of the primary architects in the rebuilding process at both Oklahoma (1999-2001) and Kansas State (1991-98). As assistant head coach and offensive coordinator under Bob Stoops at OU, the Sooner staff took a program that was 5-6 in 1998 and carved out seasons of 7-5 (1999), 13-0 (2000) and 10-2 (2001). Mangino was the recipient of the 2000 Frank Broyles Award as the top assistant coach in college football in the second of his three seasons as assistant head coach/offensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Oklahoma. Throughout his career, Mangino has been associated with football programs which have experienced phenomenal success and has been a key ingredient in building that success during that time. He has been in a leadership role with teams that have qualified for bowl games in 12 of the last 15 years, including the 2000 season when the Sooners won the Big 12 Conference championship, finished ranked number one nationally and beat Florida State in the Orange Bowl to win the national title. During its run to the national championship in 2000, Mangino's Sooner offense ranked seventh nationally in scoring (39.0) and 13th in pass offense (294.7). In addition, OU averaged more than 427 yards per game in total offense for the second consecutive season. Under the influence of Mangino as offensive coordinator, the Sooners ranked second in the conference in pass offense at the conclusion of both the 2000 and 2001 seasons. During his three years on the Sooner staff, the OU offense scored 31 or more points in 26 of 37 games and produced 40 or more points 14 times. The Sooners averaged 34.1 points per game during those three seasons. At Kansas State, Mangino served as recruiting coordinator, running game coordinator and, in 1998, was appointed assistant head coach. The season prior to his arrival in Manhattan, the Wildcats posted a 5-6 record. Over the next eight seasons, K-State went 71-23-1 with six consecutive nine-plus win seasons and played in six straight bowl games. Overall, Kansas State and Oklahoma were a combined 101-30-1 and ranked in the top 25 nationally in eight of 11 seasons during Mangino's involvement on the coaching staffs. Prior to his stint at Kansas State, Mangino worked one season as head football coach at Ellwood City (Pa.) High School. He spent three seasons (1987-89) as offensive line coach and as offensive coordinator at Geneva (Pa.) College, where he helped that program to its three best seasons (combined 24-9) in modern school history. The 1987 Geneva squad reached the NAIA national semifinals. Mangino also coached two seasons (1985-86) at Youngstown State, including one under current Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel. He was an assistant coach at his alma mater, New Castle (Pa.) High School for four seasons. Mangino and his wife, Mary Jane, have a daughter, Samantha, a graduate of the University of Kansas, and a son, Tommy, who is a graduate assistant with the KU football program. Tommy and his wife Danielle, as well as Samantha and her husband, David Hardy, reside in Lawrence. Samantha and David are the parents of Mangino's granddaughter Gabriella. Both Coach Mangino and his wife Mary Jane are very involved in the community donating time and resources to a number of organizations. |
  |
|||||||||||||||
