He’s a 6-foot-3 two-guard who just guided Team Breakdown to the title at the just-concluded Reebok Summer Championships in Las Vegas. He’s electric, described as fearless, and he’s supposedly interested in Kansas State.
This is Kenny Boynton, a Pompano Beach, Fla., native who attends American Heritage High School in Plantation, Fla.
Nothing remotely self-congratulatory about this post, but after yet another of my unexcused absences – in your minds, anyway – this blog has resumed its regularly scheduled programming.
Not much to report, though.
- A series of text messages with Kansas State sports information director Kenny Lannou revealed the following tidbits:
From the Kansas State sports information office:
The battle of Wildcats will be the final game of the first day of the tournament at the Orleans Arena and is set for 11 p.m. CST on ESPNU. The winner of the contest will play
Fans wishing to place their order can stop by the Athletic Ticket Office in Bramlage Coliseum, call 800.221.CATS or visit the website at www.k-statesports.com.
All-session tickets are also available through the Orleans Arena with two-day packages priced at $94, $115, $136 and $168. These tickets are available immediately through the arena’s ticket office by calling 702.284.7777 or on the web at www.orleansarena.com.
Led by former Texas A&M coach Billy Gillispie,
K-State leads the all-times series with both
The first two rounds of the tournament will be staged on campus sites.
The balance of
Yesterday’s Davey O’Brien watch list — and the omission of Kansas State quarterback Josh Freeman — got me thinking, which is always a good thing.
Does the Big 12 have the best collection of experienced quarterbacks among the BCS conferences?
The criteria, it was reasoned, would be how many veteran quarterbacks returned in each league that accounted for 2,000 total yards of offense, which kept West Virginia’s Pat White in the conversation as the Mountaineer lefty threw for 1,724 and ran for 1,335.
Anyway, the statistics supported the theory:
Maybe my source(s) need to talk to some more people.
The 2008 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award watch list was released today, and Kansas State’s Josh Freeman isn’t listed among the 31 names. Oh, the usual suspects are there, such as Missouri’s Chase Daniel, Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford and Texas Tech’s Graham Harrell. They threw Kansas quarterback Todd Reesing in there, but then they must have reached a cap or limit. Maybe they could only give the Big 12 five slots.
Whatever the logic, the last spot went to Texas’ Colt McCoy. Yikes.
So I’ve gotten a lot of mileage out of the fact that the Kansas State football coach told a captive Scott City Catbackers audience that his junior quarterback, Josh Freeman, is regarded by NFL personnel types as a possible No. 1 choice in the NFL Draft – whenever he chooses to come out.
I found it ludicrous, telling Prince as much afterwards. His response? That’s what he was told, based on Freeman’s size, arm strength and his sophomore season production.
Still, I didn’t believe. Until today.
But not how you think.
You’ve seen the footage by now – if not, here’s the video – of the former Kansas State star and Miami Heat rookie being denied entry into a Miami nightclub.
He’s only 19. Everyone else in his party, including Kansas alum and fellow Heat rookie Mario Chalmers, was legal.
Reached this morning for response, his mother, Fatima Smith, laughed.
“My poor baby,” she said.
Kansas coach Mark Mangino is earning $2.3 million per year, which is more than three times what Ron Prince currently earns at Kansas State.
Does it matter? No question.
What’s going to be done about it? Well, that’s up to Bob Krause and Prince.
Krause told me in June that discussions regarding an extension and raise for Prince had been ongoing since July 2007 — mere months after Prince guided K-State to a 7-6 record in his first year, which included a victory against Texas and an appearance in the Texas Bowl.
And virtually every other mere mortal in EA’s much-anticipated annual college football video game. By sheer numbers, that’s not true – there are several quarterbacks rated higher than Kansas State’s alleged No. 1 pro prospect, including Kansas’ Todd Reesing (92), Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford (94), Texas Tech’s Graham Harrell (96) and Missouri’s Chase Daniel (97) – but in terms of impact, it’s hard to believe he’s not one of the most dynamic players in ’09.
Well, that’s my opinion, anyway. Then again, I only finished one game after dorking out and picking up the game at midnight from a sketchy GameStop on Broadway.
But here are my findings based on the Wildcats’ somewhat thorough 41-27 thrashing of the Jayhawks – at the Bill, of course:
Thomas, a 6-2, 310-pound nose tackle from Muskogee High in Okla., has committed to Kansas State, the fifth Wildcats’ pledge for the Class of 2009.
He battled a deep thigh bruise last season, but remained on the field. He held no other offers, but Thomas said Tuesday by phone that Oklahoma State, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas and Purdue were “talking to me.”