Bill Whittemore can do just about anything his coaches ask  except slide.

Kansas University’s junior quarterback is as dangerous a runner as he is a passer. The Fort Scott Community College transfer has passed for 1,020 yards and is KU’s leading rusher with 374 yards through six football games.

When the Nashville, Tenn., product does run, he’s as likely to run over a defender as he is to slide or run out of bounds. One Baylor defender learned that the hard way Saturday in Waco, Texas, when KU’s quarterback flattened him during the Jayhawks 35-32 loss.

“I’ve never enjoyed sliding,” Whittemore said of the tactic many quarterbacks employ to avoid hits. “I’ll probably have to learn pretty quick that I need to. Everybody keeps telling me that. That’s never been my nature. I’ve always enjoyed going to get that extra yard.”

The Jayhawks can’t afford to lose Whittemore, who ranks fourth in the Big 12 Conference in total offense.

“I get up woozy every once in a while, no doubt,” Whittemore said with a smile Tuesday at the team’s weekly news conference. “But nothing too serious.”

That’s probably not what coach Mark Mangino wants to hear.

“You love the fact that your quarterback is that kind of competitor who can lower his pads and knock somebody backward carrying the ball,” Mangino said. “On the other hand, we don’t want to make a living doing that because he can do some other things really well.”

Whittemore came off the bench in the season opener at Iowa State in relief of Zach Dyer. Since then he has run for at least one touchdown in four of the five games he has started, including five in the last two games, and ranks seventh in the conference in scoring. He has also thrown five TD passes.

KU (2-4, 0-2 Big 12) will need its most potent weapon in the second half of the season. The schedule starts getting even tougher Saturday when Colorado (3-2, 1-0) visits Memorial Stadium.

“You tell your quarterback to be smart,” Mangino said. “There’s times you have to put your pads down and get that extra yard or two, depending on the situation. Bill’s an intelligent guy. He knows when to hook slide, but he’s a competitive guy. He’s so proud, he doesn’t want to go down.”

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Players of Week: Mangino announced KU’s players of the week from the Baylor game. Freshman linebacker Nick Reid earned defensive honors after leading KU with 10 tackles, including a sack. Whittemore earned offensive honors. Punter Curtis Ansel was special teams player of the week after averaging 48.7 yards on seven attempts, including an 83-yarder.

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Red shirts: Reid is one of six true freshmen who have played so far. Mangino said it was unlikely than any other true freshmen would play in the remaining six games.

“Unless we suffered some really critical injuries, I wouldn’t do that to a young man halfway through the season,” Mangino said. “The kids that are red-shirting are looking forward to competing for jobs in the spring.”

Half the freshmen who have played are linebackers. KU lost starting linebacker Banks Floodman and backup Nick Clapp to injuries early in the season. Reid, the team’s fifth-leading tackler, took over Floodman’s position, while fellow freshmen Kevin Kane and Brandon Perkins have added depth as backups.

Freshman receiver Mark Simmons has caught 16 passes for 135 yards and a touchdown.

Two other true freshmen  running back Jon Cornish and defensive end Kyle Knighton  played early in the season, but both have been sidelined by injuries and are likely seek medical red-shirts.

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Beck backer: Mangino expressed confidence in sophomore kicker Johnny Beck, who missed four consecutive field-goal attempts in the last two games.

“We need to work on his mechanics, and we are,” Mangino said. “We’re filming him and studying mechanics with him. He’ll be fine.”

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CU soon: KU defeated Colorado the last two times the Buffaloes visited Lawrence, posting a 23-15 victory in 2000 and a 33-17 victory in 1998.

“I think our players realize that and know that, maybe even more than I do,” Mangino said.

Mangino hasn’t coached against CU since 1999, when he was an assistant coach at Oklahoma. The Sooners did not face Colorado the last two years.

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Heisman stop: The Heisman Tour, a season-long event making stops at college campuses across the nation with games and giveaways, will make its fifth stop beginning at 11 a.m. Saturday at Memorial Stadium prior to the Colorado game, which kicks off at 1 p.m.