Jake Sharp

Colonel_Reb

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I can't wait to see this video either, dwid.
 

Freethinker

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As always, great video! I really look forward to a break-out senior year for Jake.
 

Gi-15

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from rotoworld.com

Jocques Crawford-RB-JayhawksApr. 11 - 11:45 pm et

Kansas running back Jocques Crawford has been suspended from the team for repeated violations of team policy. "I'll be honest with you, I don't know his status, whether he'll be back or not," coach Mark Mangino said.
It sounds highly likely that Crawford won't be with the team this fall.</font>

Source: The Topeka Capital Journal
 

ToughJ.Riggins

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This is great news on Crawford! Crawford was hyped by Marxist Rivals big-time despite his former serious criminal activity and academic issues. A Rivals.com "reporter" also said Crawford was likely to win the starting RB job over Sharp last year once Crawford was offered by Kansas.

Not surprising that Crawford continues to not follow rules (I predicted the guy hadn't changed from his boastful attitude in Kansas pre-season interviews predicting he would be Kansas's starting RB before long).

Crawford and a friend forced a 15 year old girl to perform oral on them when they were 17 and were originally charged with sexual assault on a minor, but charges were dropped to just simple assault. He was going to go to Texas Tech, but the scholarship was pulled for that reason along with academic issues.

Rivals.com is an absolutely EVIL enterprise. They ranked Crawford higher than Sam McGuffie last year as an all-purpose back Juco transfer. This was despite Sam having "MUCH" better highlights and athletic measurements that were head and shoulders above Crawford. Crawford had a pretty impressive Jr. college resume, but with all the baggage he carries this just shows how far Rivals will go to emasculate the white athlete and promote any black (even ones who are truly detriments to society). Crawford ran for 3.7 YPC in Kansas offense last year and didn't look very good, but got much less hate from fans than McGuffie did when he was starting for Michigan. This was despite McGuffie showing signs of vast potential at mid season before injuries hit him.

I am just reporting the whole story here so lurkers can learn everything about Rivals Marxist agenda. This is great news for Jake Sharp!Edited by: ToughJ.Riggins
 

backrow

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draftdaddy.com (who else!) links an article about Jake

Jake Sharp had just started playing football as a fifth-grader when he brought the newspaper article to his father.

In the photo, Salina Central running back Parker Wallace was hurdling a Liberal defender in the state championship game.

"Dad,"Â Jake said, "do you think I could do that?"Â

Rick Sharp didn't hesitate.

"I don't think there'd be any problem with that, if you just set your mind to it and go do it."Â

Jake couldn't hold back his excitement.

"That's the coolest thing in the world,"Â the young Jake said. "That's what I want to do."Â

Understanding Jake Sharp

So who exactly is Jake Sharp, the person, when he's not Jake Sharp, the Kansas University senior running back?

Well, for starters, his nickname in high school was "Looking Sharp."Â His freshman year, he kept telling his friends that one day a big story was going to be written about him in the paper, and the headline would read, "Looking Sharp."Â

Sure enough, on the preview story for the state title game his senior year â€" as Jake's Salina Central squad prepared to take on Blue Valley in the Class 5A championship game â€" his prediction came true: The headline was exactly as he foretold.

But his best friend from high school, David Diener, admits that getting a true read on Sharp is harder than it seems. Jake is a people person â€" someone who always has liked being the center of attention.

But, then again, he's a loner.

"Unless you knew Jake,"Â David says, "you'd think he was a little weird."Â

There were times in high school when David was with friends, and someone would wonder where Jake was. They'd call him, and Jake would tell them thanks for the invitation, but on that day, he just wanted to hang out at his place.

Jake claims it's an inherited trait from his father. He likes being around people, but doesn't necessarily like big crowds. He's more than happy being on his own.

He also likes to set aside some of the day for "my time,"Â a term his girlfriend has grown to hate.

But David says there's something else you need to know about Jake: He was always trying to show that he was tops in everything he did. That could be backyards hoops, sprints, go-karts or paintball.

"He definitely wants to prove to everybody that he's the best athlete around,"Â David Diener says. "It's been that way since I've ever known him."Â

KU wide receiver Kerry Meier might deal with Jake's competitiveness the most. The two have the same major (sports management) and nearly identical schedules, and Jake constantly bugs him: "How'd you do on the test?"Â

"If I'm not the best, it drives me insane,"Â Jake says. "That's always been the way I am."Â

His high school friends knew it for sure.

Whenever the back started to get a big head, someone would yell out four words â€" "Six carries, three yards" Ã¢â‚¬" Jake's rushing total during a sub-state game his sophomore year.

Jake being Jake, the words always got to him.

"It's a joke,"Â Jake says, "but it drove me nuts."Â

Chip on his shoulder?

Maybe that's where the stigma came from. Perhaps it is his constant drive to be the best that has somehow warped into the perception that he is a "mad-at-the-world running back."Â

Jake Sharp doesn't seem angry.

He sits in a chair a few feet away, wearing a white T-shirt, with his long, blond hair making him look more like a happy-go-lucky college kid than a football player with a Kansas-sized chip on his shoulder.

But isn't he the latter?

Everyone seems to say it: "Jake Sharp runs angry."Â

Is it true? Does he run hard just to stick it to his doubters?

"Who told you that?"Â he says with a warm smile, leaning forward in his chair while rubbing his hands together.

Turns out, this answer isn't so easy, either.

He admits he has been fortunate. He came from a good family. He spent lots of time fishing and weight lifting with his dad growing up. His mom babied the tar out of him.

But there's something else there. The 5-foot-10, 190-pounder hasn't reached this point by listening to those who have praised him.

He got here by listening to those voices who told him he couldn't.

Early doubters

The doubters didn't start just before Jake Sharp headed off to KU. They started before his freshman year at Salina Central High.

Jake grew up in the country between Salina and the small town of Bennington. His family's house was in both districts, so he could choose between going to 5A Salina Central and 2A Bennington.

He chose Salina Central. And he never forgot the negative words â€" words, he says, stick with him to this day.

"Yeah,"Â he says with a grin, "I guess I have a chip."Â

Sometimes, he says, his anger affects his running.

He was most guilty in high school when facing crosstown rival Salina South.

"T'd off at the world, I guess,"Â Jake says. "I'd run terrible. I'd put my head down, and I'd just bulldoze into people."Â

Jake Sharp's high school coach, Marvin Diener, noticed. Jake says he had to sit in on film sessions where the coach compared his running against Salina South to other games earlier in the season.

Against South, Jake's whole body was rigid when he ran.

In short, he was running like a fullback.

It's a problem Sharp admits he still sometimes fights today.

"You're just thinking about picking a guy out and trying to give him a blow,"Â he says. "That's something I always have to work on. I just have to work on calming down, being calm and enjoying the game instead of just pressing the game."Â

Leaving his mark

Marvin Diener is on the telephone, and he has a ton of stories to tell about Jake Sharp.

The first time he saw Jake at his son, David's, fifth-grade football tryouts, the then-Salina Central football coach was pulled aside by his pastor: "Coach, man, you've got to come see this kid."Â

It was Marvin's first look at Jake. And, already, Jake was one of the fastest he'd seen at that level.

"Even then, just the way he moved, how hard he played,"Â Marvin says, "you knew right away that this kid was really something special."Â

During Jake's freshman year, Marvin remembers the first day he watched Jake practice.

When the lightning-quick back went in for reps, he remembers everyone stopped what they were doing just to see him run.

"He wanted to score every time he touched the ball,"Â Marvin says, "and he tried very hard to do it."Â

But there was always more to Jake. He was likeable. Others wanted him to succeed.

And he worked as hard as anyone.

He loved the gym so much in high school that he spent the night of his senior prom working out.

And he has earned quite a reputation for his workout prowess at KU. He was honored earlier this year as one of Bruce Feldman's "Workout Warriors"Â in an ESPN the Magazine article.

"If you're doing extra stuff after the workouts here, like me and Kerry Meier do every day, that's saying something,"Â Jake says. "You really want it."Â

Though the work is serious, Jake makes sure to keep the mood light with his teammates around. Sometimes, in the weight room, he throws chalk up in the air like LeBron James. Other times, he jams out on his air guitar to rock music.

"Honestly, I would almost say I enjoy lifting weights and fitness and sculpting the body more than I like sports,"Â Jake says. "That's hilarious, but it's true."Â

‘Is he that good ... ?'

During the Salina Central senior scrimmage, Jake Sharp was nearly untackleable, breaking off long run after long run.

A dejected David Diener came to the sideline and found his father. He had to ask him a serious question.

"Is he that good,"Â the linebacker said, "or are we that bad?"Â

Marvin still remembers his response.

"Dave,"Â the coach said to his son, "that kid's pretty good."Â

Marvin laughs at the memory.

But he saves his best Jake Sharp story for last.

Saving his best

Jake Sharp took the handoff, fourth-and-one, everyone in the stadium knowing he was getting the ball.

The Salina Central tailback already had scored four times and had run for more than 250 yards in the 2005 5A state championship game at Welch Stadium in Emporia.

He had helped the Mustangs to the brink of a state title, as Central led Blue Valley, 29-21, with five minutes left.

But two plays earlier, Sharp had hobbled back to the huddle favoring his right knee, and now, facing fourth down on Central's 14-yard line, Sharp had the ball in his hands again.

He had been known to go over the top of piles for the first down, and this would have been a perfect time, perhaps for his own Parker Wallace moment.

Blue Valley's linebackers planned on a leap, though, coming over the top of the line in hopes of meeting Jake for a collision.

Jake wasn't fooled, abandoning any thoughts of a jump before jerking himself to the right.

"He was on one leg,"Â Marvin says, "and makes a great cut at the line of scrimmage."Â

Though there wasn't much there, Jake wiggled through a small seam and fell forward. He gained two yards.

No measurement was needed. Salina Central had its first down.

The next play called for Jake to block an oncoming defender. He tried, but immediately his knee buckled under him.

Though he didn't want to leave the game, Jake was helped off the field and didn't return.

Five minutes later, after a punt and a defensive stand, Salina Central won its sixth state championship.

Jake finished with 265 rushing yards, but Marvin Diener will tell you those two yards were the most memorable.

Jake had been hurting. His coach could see that much.

But Marvin wouldn't know just how much pain his running back was in until after the game.

"I knew Jake could get one yard,"Â Marvin says, "but he did it on a torn MCL."Â

And immediately it's obvious why the memory stands out in Marvin's mind.

This play, more than any other, encapsulated Jake Sharp, the running back.

And also Jake Sharp, the person.

"We've had a lot of great, competitive players,"Â Marvin says, "but there are none that are more competitive."Â


EDIT: out of 18 comments below the article, 16 are positive!Edited by: backrow
 

white lightning

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Jake Sharp, Toby Gerhart, and Sam McGuffie are my 3 favorite college players. Sharp has turned me into a Kansas fan. He is so fast, so elusive and also very powerful for a compact guy. Jake has to get a chance to play on Sundays. He is a star!
 

Colonel_Reb

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I hope all three of them have outstanding seasons. Thanks for the article backrow!
 

celticdb15

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BEST news this offseason!! Jake tear it up!!



Kansas <A style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 2px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: -2px; : http://s.adbrite.com/mb/s/green-double-underline-006600.gif repeat-x 50% bottom; COLOR: #006600; CURSOR: pointer; TEXT-DECORATION: none" id=AdBriteInlineAd_running name=AdBriteInlineAd_running target=_top keyword="running" display="inline">running</A> back Jocques Crawford has left the team and will transfer to a lower-division school.


DD.Comment: Crawford was the JUCO Offensive Player of the Year in 2007, so he arrived at Kansas with a lot fanfare.
 

Colonel_Reb

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Great news! Go Jake go!
 

backrow

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draftdaddy.com: Several Kansas Jayhawks have run eye-popping 40 times, including vastly underrated senior tailback Jake Sharp.

here's a great article about KU and Jake, linked by draftdaddy.com of course.

from the article:

* Speed Kills: Ed Warinner was quoted by ESPN stating that running back Jake Sharp ran a 40-yard dash in the 4.2-second range. As for Jake's take?

"I don't remember the exact numbers, but some of the strength coaches had me in the 4.2s, while a few of the coaches had me in the low 4.3s,"Â￾ Sharp said. "So I think we rounded it to a 4.3-flat or something like that."Â￾

Cornerback Daymond Patterson said Sharp's 40 was the fastest one he'd ever seen.

"It seemed like he was 10 yards down the field before he even started,"Â￾ Patterson said. "I don't think people around country realize and respect Jake for how fast he really is."Â￾

wow, now that's pretty fast!
Edited by: backrow
 

Colonel_Reb

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Great find, back. Thanks for posting it! Jake is indeed fast and I hope he runs all over the Big 12 this season!
 

Jimmy Chitwood

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i wish Jake ran track in the spring/summer. in my opinion, far too few White speedsters pursue the sprints. it would only enhance their speed.

under the previous coaching staff the Razorback football team openly encouraged its players to run with the track team, if they're actually fast that is. of course, most of them weren't, despite the hype.

White players like Sharp and Jared Hawkins and Hunter Furr and so on would be well served to run the sprints, in my opinion, becausein addition to the speed benefits it would also discredit any naysayers who dismiss their athleticism.

anyone remember Tim Dwight? i suspect he got his shot in the NFL (as limited as it was) solely because of his speed and the fact it couldn't be dismissed because of his track peformance.Edited by: Jimmy Chitwood
 

whiteathlete33

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Jimmy Chitwood said:
i wish Jake ran track in the spring/summer. in my opinion, far too few White speedsters pursue the sprints. it would only enhance their speed.
<div> </div>
<div>under the previous coaching staff the Razorback football team openly encouraged its players to run with the track team, if they're actually fast that is. of course, most of them weren't, despite the hype.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>White players like Sharp and Jared Hawkins and Hunter Furr and so on would be well served to run the sprints, in my opinion, because in addition to the speed benefits it would also discredit any naysayers who dismiss their athleticism. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>anyone remember Tim Dwight? i suspect he got his shot in the NFL (as limited as it was) solely because of his speed and the fact it couldn't be dismissed because of his track peformance.</div>

Yes Tim Dwight was extremely fast. I believe he ran something like 10.4 in the 100 but I may be wrong. He ran much slower at the combine in the 4.6 40 range. He was probably one of the top 5 fastest players in the league at the time.
 

Jimmy Chitwood

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it looks like Sharp is finally getting some positive pub!

Kansas' Sharp outlasts all doubters.

<H1>Kansas' Sharp outlasts all doubters</H1>
<DIV =byline_creditline>
<H4>


LAWRENCE | The last man standing in the Kansas backfield is talking about motivation.


"I'm motivated by all sorts of things,"Â￾ Jake Sharp says.


First and foremost, there are the doubters. They have always been there. They're the ones who assumed that Sharp could never be an every-down back, that junior college transfer Jocques Crawford would slide right into the starting tailback role last season. They're the ones who saw Sharp's numbers through four games â€" 26 carries for 86 yards â€" and assumed he was done.


That intuition was only confirmed by the first half of the Big 12 opener at Iowa State, when Sharp carried the ball one time. But, with the Jayhawks trailing 20-0, KU coach Mark Mangino had no choice but to give Sharp another chance. Thirty minutes later, the Jayhawks had won a thriller, 35-33, behind 186 total yards and two touchdowns from Sharp.


From there, Sharp kept hammering away at the doubters. He had 31 carries against Colorado. He breezed past Oklahoma defenders for 103 yards. He found the end zone four times against Kansas State. Now, entering his senior season, he has nobody to answer to but himself. Crawford has transferred, Angus Quigley has moved to linebacker, and Sharp's 354 career carries are 354 more than his closest competitor.


The KU running game is his and his alone, which has only introduced a new source of motivation.


"I feel like, more than ever, the team is counting on me to produce, and I like that,"Â￾ Sharp says. "I'll do anything not to let people down, especially my teammates."Â￾


Sharp's load will increase on the field and off of it. He is a captain now, entrusted with the responsibility to lead. After three years of trying to prove that he belongs at this level, that meant a lot to the country boy from Salina, Kan.


"The way I was raised, if you have people counting on you, you're going to do absolutely everything you can not to let them down,"Â￾ Sharp says. "I try to see myself as an unselfish guy. Having teammates that look up to you, when times get tough out there, I can't be like, ‘Let's not do this. This is getting hard.' I gotta pick guys up. I have to show them that it's not that hard."Â￾


Sharp spent the offseason working out with fellow senior captain Kerry Meier, who admitted that he followed Sharp's lead.


"A lot of times it gets tough in the offseason, it gets repetitive, you kind of don't want to do it,"Â￾ Meier says. "When I wasn't feeling good, he was pushing me. He kept reminding me it was all going to be worth it."Â￾


For Sharp, the work has certainly been worth it.


"He's definitely earned where he is right now,"Â￾ Meier says.


Meier says that Sharp wants to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his career. KU offensive coordinator Ed Warinner believes Sharp is well-equipped to do it.


"He's better right now than he was last year in my opinion,"Â￾ Warinner says. "He's just gotten better at all the different things we've asked him to do. In our offense, the running back has to be multitalented. In all areas, he's improved greatly."Â￾


Of course, Sharp will need a breather every so often. Three running backs â€" sophomore Rell Lewis, junior transfer Daniel Porter and true freshman Toben Opurum â€" will battle for the backup role.


Looking over his shoulder and seeing all of that inexperience behind him, will Sharp still be able to hear the doubters?


"I think that chip on his shoulder is even bigger this year,"Â￾ Meier says. "He's definitely hungry to go out and prove a lot of things wrong."Â￾
</H4>
 

celticdb15

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ToughJ.Riggins

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Sharp had 16 runs for 104 yards (6.5 YPC) today and had 3 TDs (two rushing and one receiving). If he keeps playing like this Sharp will run himself into the draft whether the Luginbill's and other CaucasianRivals like it or not. Yes, Powerback Opurum did get 16 carries as well, but I'm not worried. Sharp is clearly the guy and this will just keep his legs fresh.

We already know Sharp will dazzle them at the NFL Combine if invited and he's not a small school player. Yes, he's small- they can't make him a fullback, but he's not that small. What will be the caste's excuse for excluding Sharp from being drafted. Nothing! The only question is if he goes to a team that will be fair to him and doesn't have an Adrian Peterson or DeAngelo Williams already in front of him.
 

Mike

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Opurum' carries all came after the game was in hand. Mangino just trying to get him some PT, is all.
 

Jimmy Chitwood

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it's still in the first quarter against Duke, and Jake Sharp is on the sidelines ... he hasn't played in the last two series for Kansas.

all the announcers, and apparently Sharp, are VERY confused as to why he isn't in the game. Sharp is receiving no attention from the training staff, and is pacing on the sidelines like he has no idea why he's not out there.

stay tuned for more info.
 

Jimmy Chitwood

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it's now the third series in a row with no Jake Sharp ... and not surprisingly, the KU running game has become non-existent.
 
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