2012 Kansas Jayhawks

[celticdb15]

Charlie Weis giving some of his former recruits a chance to shine in the Big 12!

Ragone to Kansas now official

April, 17, 2012Apr 17
2:00
PM ET

By Matt Fortuna | ESPN.com

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Mike Ragone is the latest Notre Dame player who hopes a happy ending to his college football career can be found in Kansas.

The Jayhawks announced Tuesday that the tight end will join the program, making Ragone the third former Irish player to re-unite with Kansas coach Charlie Weis, the man who recruited them all while coaching at Notre Dame.

Kansas announced on Friday that linebacker Anthony McDonald would join the program after graduating from Notre Dame next month, once again following in the footsteps of new quarterback Dayne Crist. The two had played together at Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, Calif.

Ragone, meanwhile, has already graduated from Notre Dame and has been granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA. The 6-foot-4, 262-pound tight end tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during Notre Dame's Week 2 loss at Michigan, this after already suffering two major knee injuries since 2007. The first one cost Ragone his senior year at Camden Catholic (N.J.) High School. He was ESPN's No. 2 tight end from the 2007 recruiting class.

In 37 games with the Irish, Ragone caught 11 passes for 109 yards.

 

[Riddlewire]

Brandon Bourbon didn't get a single carry in the Kansas Spring Game.
I assume by that that he has been moved to the Battering Ram position.

And Josh Smith, possessor of the third best highlight reel I've ever seen, has left the team.

 

[FootballDad]

Brandon Bourbon didn't get a single carry in the Kansas Spring Game.
I assume by that that he has been moved to the Battering Ram position.

And Josh Smith, possessor of the third best highlight reel I've ever seen, has left the team.

As has been noted here before, Bourbon made a mistake in choosing Kansas, moreso after Mangino (who originally recruited him) was let go and the afrocentric Turner Gill regime came to town. He originally committed to Stanford, which would have been a much better fit.

As for Smith, I'm glad he left KU. Hopefully he goes to a small school, wins the starting RB position and plays full-time every game. At least that way he gets the final pleasure of ending his college days actually playing the game he loves.

 

[Highlander]

KU Linebacker, Huldon Tharp, Returning Healthy, Hungry

Hmmm, he was was a freshman All-American under Mangino, then, after Gill's "blackout" on D, he disappeared...now it's looking like he may start again...interesting quote by Campo, his DC...


Not the 6-foot, 225-pound linebacker from Mulvane, who earned freshman All-America honors under Mark Mangino in 2009, red-shirted one year, played a year under Turner Gill and now has two seasons remaining with Charlie Weis.

He started seven games and had 59 tackles for Mangino as a freshman then had to red-shirt his true sophomore season and play sparingly last season following foot surgery — now is in the process of trying to impress Weis, defensive coordinator Campo and linebackers coach Cross.

....

Campo sees some good things in Tharp, who had a career-high 13 tackles against Nebraska in 2009.

“I can’t speak to what happened before. I know he was a pretty good player his first year out (of high school),â€￾ Campo said. “I think obviously he feels better, is more healthy. Something happened where he didn’t get much playing time, whether it was injury or whatever. If he stays healthy, he’s a good football player.â€￾



http://www2.kusports.com/news/2012/...uldon-tharp-returning-healthy-hungr/?football

 

[Highlander]

With Weis replacing Gill, the Jayhawks will start 9 Whites according to their official depth chart. Adding insult to injury for Brandon Bourbon, he has now been switched to the position of 2nd string "Human Battering Ram" a.k.a, FB, behind another afflete, where, I'm sure, his 4.4/40 speed will be best utilized. At least the Defense (with two White starters) isn't pure coal like it was under Gill in a state with an 87.4% White population, although still racist and inexcusable. I do think this will improve somewhat in the years to come under Weis with maybe 3-4 Whites playing on Defense.

OFFENSE
QB - Dayne Crist
WR - Kale Pick
TE - Mike Ragone
LT - Tanner Hawkinson
LG - Duane Zlatnik
C - Trevor Marrongelli
RT - Gavin Howard

DEFENSE
MLB - Ben Heeney
WLB - Huldon Tharp