The Jayhawker

He’s been to back-to-back Final Fours, and has seen his jersey retired at both the college and professional levels. He was a first-round draft pick, and a McDonald’s All-American. So what does it all come back to for Nick Collison? Consistency. Whether he was consistently great during his time at Kansas, or a consistent leader for the Oklahoma City Thunder, Collison brought the same passion, energy and work ethic every day. A standout from the beginning, Collison averaged double figures in all four seasons in Lawrence. He was the 2003 Big 12 Player of the Year, and closed his career as the conference’s all-time leading scorer. But he’s best remembered by Kansas fans as the guy who—along with Kirk Hinrich—led the Jayhawks to Final Four appearances in 2002 and 2003. How’d he have so much success at the college level? And how did a guy who averaged 6 points and 5 rebounds have a 14-year NBA career? For the guy known as Mr. Thunder, it all starts at the beginning.

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Katie McClure was born to score goals. So it’s no surprise she was drafted by the Washington Spirit of the National Women’s Soccer League after a record-setting Kansas career. A Wichita native, McClure has always craved competition—it’s how she grew up as the daughter of a former pro baseball player with three older siblings. And that competitive fire has led to her coming up big when it matters most: Her 18 game-winning goals are the most in Jayhawk history. As a senior, she helped lead the Jayhawks to their first-ever Big 12 Tournament title, and a second-round hat trick in the NCAA Tournament propelled KU to the Sweet 16. What led to Katie McClure becoming one of the best players in Jayhawk program history? And how has her success in college put her in position to live out a life-long dream of playing at the highest level?

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Danny Manning is considered by many to be the greatest Jayhawk of them all. It makes sense: He was a two-time All-American, a Wooden Award winner, a national champion, and his jersey hangs in the rafters at Allen Fieldhouse. And every part of Manning’s basketball life comes back to Kansas. His family moved to Lawrence when his father was hired as an assistant coach. He starred as a Jayhawk en route to becoming the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft. And when he decided to transition into coaching, he started at Kansas with the help of Bill Self. But his journey hasn't always been easy. Manning and his teammates fell short in the 1986 Final Four and the following season’s Sweet 16. And despite being a two-time NBA All-Star, there were the multiple injuries that led to him becoming the first player to return from reconstructive surgeries on both knees. But he just keeps fighting. He keeps finding success. And he keeps remembering the role that Kansas has played through it all.

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He’s the dean of Big 12 baseball coaches and the most successful coach in Kansas program history. And Ritch Price is just as fired up about Jayhawk Baseball as he was when he took the job in the summer of 2002. Price is responsible for the Jayhawks’ lone Big 12 Tournament championship and three of the school’s five all-time NCAA Regional appearances. But it hasn’t been easy. When Price took over the program, facilities and support were lacking. How was he able to convince fans to invest in Jayhawk baseball, and how did Roy Williams play a role in helping the program grow? Price has built KU baseball into a family. That shouldn’t be surprising, considering his dad played with Ted Williams and his three sons all played for him, with one eventually joining his staff. In many ways, Ritch Price is the patriarch of Kansas baseball.

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She’s a two-time player of the year, a league’s founding member and a champion. This is how Tamecka Dixon helped guide the Kansas women to their first ever Sweet 16 appearance, and became one of the first players in the WNBA. A New Jersey native, Dixon came to Kansas in 1993. And after adjusting to the college game as a freshman, her career took off. She averaged double figures as a sophomore before leading Kansas to back-to-back conference titles in the Big Eight and Big 12. As luck would have it, the end of her time as a Jayhawk coincided with the birth of the WNBA, where she would become a three-time All-Star, winning two championships with the Los Angeles Sparks as part of a 13-year professional career. 

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DJ Eliot didn’t plan on being a coach. For a guy with his reputation and who’s learned from some the best in the business, that’s pretty eye-opening. So how did an injury lead to him beginning his coaching career? Once he got into coaching, Eliot would start on a coaching journey that would take him across the country. As a GA at Miami, he helped with a defense that played for a national title. At Florida State, he would work with Jimbo Fisher and Mark Stoops, who he then followed to Kentucky to help build a program. And after a two-year stint at Colorado under Mike MacIntyre, Eliot would get a phone call that brought him to Lawrence. Coaching is a road with many twists and turns, and Eliot is glad his journey has landed him at Kansas. It’s a place that’s embraced his family as he faces one of his toughest challenges yet: Coaching his daughter in her fight against pediatric cancer.

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He’s regarded as one of the brightest up-and-coming offensive minds in football. But if it seems that Brent Dearmon was a bit of an unknown to college football fans prior to the 2019 season…well, he was. So how did the Kansas offensive coordinator end up here? The son of a football coach, Dearmon fell in love with the game at an early age. After a record-setting playing career at NAIA Bethel College, Dearmon went into coaching at the high school level in Alabama. It was there where Auburn coach Gus Malzahn took notice, and added Dearmon to his staff as an offensive analyst. Dearmon would then spend four years as the OC at Arkansas Tech before returning to his alma mater as the head coach. But after one season of producing the country’s highest-scoring offense, why did he decide to take a leap of faith and join the Jayhawks as an analyst? And how has that leap now paid off?

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When Les Miles added Josh Eargle as an offensive assistant, the Jayhawk family didn’t just add a young, up-and-coming coach to its staff. It added a family that’s been through more than most can imagine, and one that brings hope and inspiration with them wherever they go. Kristen Eargle never expected to be where she is … instead envisioning a long and successful sportscasting career. And after marrying Josh—and adding the title of “coach’s wife” to sportscaster—life was pretty good. Everything changed, though, when Kristen gave birth to the couple’s second daughter, Landrey. Born six weeks premature, Landrey was diagnosed with what was later found to be a rare gene mutation. It’s been a challenge for the Eargles, but Kristen and family wouldn’t have it any other way. This is their story.

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Sometimes, dreams change. For Mark Turgeon, the goal of making it to the NBA wasn’t going to become a reality. So, how did his coach at Kansas, Hall of Famer Larry Brown, help him develop a new dream? Turgeon was a solid player at KU, a team captain, and he became the first Jayhawk to play in four straight NCAA Tournaments. But his future in basketball wasn’t going to be playing at the next level. He would take his coach’s advice, joining the Kansas staff immediately after graduating. And he would stay on as an assistant to Roy Williams. Along the way, he’d spend time learning from guys like Bill Self, John Calipari and Gregg Popovich. Turgeon would eventually land a few assistant and head coaching jobs before settling in at Maryland, where’s he’s found success. So how did a kid from Topeka re-route his dream to end up becoming one of the nation’s top coaches? And how did Kansas play a starring role in shaping Mark Turgeon’s life and career?

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Brian Hanni's classic call of KU's win over WVU on February 13, 2017!

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