From the sidelines
It's mid-August and that can mean only two things — my birthday and college football are just around the corner.
OK, while no one really cares about the former, the latter is important to people, especially the ones in this area who bleed crimson and blue or purple and silver.
Since moving to Kansas in 1996 all I've ever heard is how KU is a basketball school and K-State is a football school.
Well, let me tell you something, K-State might be a basketball school this year. However, that's a whole 'nother column.
Football season is what's upon us, and while I'm not the kind of guy who follows football in the off-season, and I don't know a darn thing about any of the recruits, I still love to follow the game.
I also still love to see if my Jayhawks can knock off the Wildcats.
Although KU has defeated K-State two of the past three years (both victories were at home), I'm not so sure if it will happen this time around.
Head coach Mark Mangino had turned the 'Hawks around a little bit in his five years with one bowl victory, but his overall record is only two games better than the previous five years.
And while K-State has been down recently, it seems to be on the rise again. Fans are buying into Ron Prince and his hard-nosed system, and if the players do, the team could regain its powerhouse status.
As a Jayhawk fan you don't really hope for powerhouse status or championships — it's the truth. You hope for a bowl appearance (even if it is the target.com Cheetos Bowl), and to beat K-State and/or Missouri.
That's it.
That will change if success continues for a long time, but even if it does, beating K-State and Missouri will still be toward the top of the KU to-do list.
But, one thing both KU and K-State agree on is beating MU. And when they step on the field together Oct. 6 in Manhattan they'll both agree to kick each others' butts.
I'm just hoping the Jayhawks can play well and knock of the 'Cats on the gridiron. If not, basketball season could get interesting.
