Jayhawk Junk

For all of you KU basketball fans out there, I wanted to share some fun info about our hardwood heroes that I found interesting and thought maybe everyone else would also enjoy. The KU Alumni Association recently sent out a special basketball edition of their email newsletter, and there was one article in particular from which I learned a great deal! It was a compilation of silly facts about each of the players, and as a die-hard Jayhawk fan, I was embarrassed to say that I didn't know a lot of these things! So get to know your Jayhawks! I had never heard the nicknames Ron Ron and D-Block, didn't know Kaun's first name wasn't really Sasha, had no idea so many of the kids came from basketball families, and was pleased to find out that a couple of the boys read scripture as a pre-game ritual!

On a related note, I have another link that I received from a couple of different friends that is kind of fun for us college sports junkies. Apparently EA Sports is having a "Mascot Challenge" to determine which college mascot should go on the front cover of the Wii version of their NCAA Football 2009 game. Although the website doesn't actually mention the winner of the challenge being featured on the Wii game (at least that I could find), the KU website verified that this is the ultimate purpose of the contest. Tomorrow (Friday) is the last day to vote, so check out this page and then click on the "vote now" button to the right. That will take you to the page where you can pick the Big 12 conference and vote for our own adorable Big Jay, unless you're one of my Husker or Wildcat friends who'll undoubtedly be voting for someone else. :P

No matter who you vote for, you have to admit that the Jayhawk (especially the Wii version) is the cutest of all the Big 12 mascots. Colorado's mascot Chip has the face of a bumblebee, Iowa State's Cy has an evil looking sneer, and let's face it: the blank stare on Truman the Tiger's face makes him look mentally challenged, which of course, he is. Herbie the Husker and Pistol Pete both have creepy huge human heads, while Hook'em from Texas is creepy because he has a scrawny body with people clothes when animals should go naked. Of course the ultimate in creepiness is Willie the Wildcat, who somehow gets away with being half man, half beast. His scary cat face deliberately placed on a human body completely creeps me out. Clearly, you should place your vote for the happy, friendly Jayhawk, who is currently in 6th place in the polls. At least help him jump over Herbie in the standings!

By the way, why are Texas Tech, Baylor, OU and A&M not represented in this poll? Do they not have costumed mascots or something? How is it that I've never noticed this before?