The Jayhawker

Jayhawk Zach Bradford is one of the top collegiate pole vaulters, and in 2021, he has the best mark in the nation for a collegiate at over 19 feet. Bradford’s background is unique – he grew up with a family of pole vaulters. His father was a pole vaulter. His brother was a pole vaulter. But Zach, being the competitive person he is, wanted to be the best Bradford. He is now gearing up for his most intense time of the year with the NCAA Championships and the Olympic Trials for the Tokyo games. He has big aspirations, especially after a successful spring season and a Big 12 championship under his belt.

Jayhawk volleyball coach Ray Bechard has always been a lifelong Jayhawk and has lived and worked in the state of Kansas his entire life. Interestingly, Bechard was never affiliated with volleyball until his principal made him take the job at Lewis High School in Lewis, Kansas, and he took to the sport. Bechard moved on to the community college level, and after extraordinary success, the Jayhawks came calling. His dream had come true. Bechard has taken the Jayhawks to new heights on the volleyball court, including a trip to the 2015 Final Four. His appreciation for his current post and the fact that he is coaching in Lawrence, and has for 23 years, is not lost on Bechard. He is one fortunate Jayhawk.

3,845 miles. From Kailua, Hawaii to Lawrence, Kansas. That’s how far former Jayhawk baseball player and current Director of Operations Wally Marciel traveled to play college baseball 10 years ago. He has never left. Marciel started a pipeline from the Aloha state to Lawrence, and the reason behind the move for him and other Hawaiaan players was pretty simple. It started with one person, coach Ritch Price. Price and Kansas baseball provide an atmosphere that Hawaiians value and cherish, and one that makes them travel across the globe to be a part of. Family.

Kansas head football coach Lance Leipold is a program builder, just look at his history. And although there’s no secret sauce to his successful career, there are some simple ingredients he believes helped lead to winning. That success has come at an unbelievable clip for Leipold, including winning six national championships at Division III Wisconsin-Whitewater. He also became the fastest coach in NCAA history to record 100 wins, no matter the level. Leipold then made the leap to Division I, where he turned a downtrodden Buffalo program into a consistent championship contender. His contagious, winning mindset is now in Lawrence, and he’s spreading his message throughout Jayhawk Nation: be relentless, have pride, and show commitment in all aspects of life.

Coming from Russia, former Kansas standout Sasha Kaun had no idea about sports in the United States, and his homeland, the idea of becoming a professional athlete was not one he ever thought about. Interestingly, Kaun came to the United States and a boarding school in Florida for academics, where basketball wasn’t even on his radar. Through hard work, Kaun figured out basketball enough to land a scholarship to the University of Kansas and a Jayhawk national championship in 2008. He then spent eight seasons in professional basketball, seven in Russia, and one NBA World Championship season with Cleveland. All along, he let his curiosity and hard work guide him, and it’s safe to say, he figured it out.

There’s a process to achieving greatness. And for Jayhawk women’s tennis coach Todd Chapman, he believes there are a few things that teams must have when it comes to winning. In his eight seasons in Lawrence, Chapman has transformed the women’s tennis program into a perennial Big 12 contender, and in 2019, he coached them to the Big 12 championship and Sweet 16. But championships don’t happen overnight and appear out of thin air. They take work. And process. And perseverance.