Kansas University football coach Mark Mangino is using any stage to praise one of his best.

Monday, it was the Big 12 coaches’ conference call, a chance for Mangino to speak up and let the Midwest media know just how good sophomore Charles Gordon is — if they weren’t already aware.

“I really think Charles Gordon is a young man that’s truly one of the top players in the country,” Mangino said in his opening statement.

The love is well-warranted. Gordon played perhaps his best game as a Jayhawk on Saturday against Colorado, recording two acrobatic interceptions, nearly picking off another, sacking CU quarterback Joel Klatt, recovering a fumble, catching a pass in traffic for a 22-yard gain and returning a punt for 22 yards.

Mangino doesn’t announce the coaching staff’s pick for defensive player of the week until today, but betting the bank on Gordon wouldn’t be foolish.

For the season, Gordon’s six interceptions give him two more than anybody else in the Big 12 Conference. But KU’s guarantee of a ninth straight losing season might hamper his chances at postseason awards, and Mangino thinks that would be a shame.

“I would think that people that cover the Big 12 on a daily basis and the coaches who coach against him would notice him, and he’d at least get the recognition he deserves in this part of the country,” Mangino said. “The rest of the country wouldn’t know. That’s too bad for them. They don’t know what they’re missing.”

While a few of Gordon’s picks this season have been ill-advised or inaccurate passes by opposing quarterbacks, Saturday’s pair of interceptions simply were phenomenal. Both were acrobatic, leaping catches on well-thrown passes by Klatt, who finished with 153 yards passing and one touchdown.

Gordon nearly had a third pick in similar fashion during the fourth quarter, too, cutting in front of a route and making a diving grab on a line-drive pass near the sideline. But Gordon fell on the ball and it squirted out of his grasp, knocking the wind out of him at the same time.

Gordon’s play at cornerback certainly wasn’t expected while Mangino was recruiting him out of southern California. Mangino saw a playmaking wide receiver on film, but with KU’s defense struggling to contain opponents last year, the Jayhawks felt a change was necessary.

6Sports video: Walk-on Nielson does well when Swanson taken out 6Sports video: Fourth-string quarterback will start against Buffs Hear Mark: Nov. 8 Big 12 coaches teleconference Hear Brown: Nov. 8 Big 12 coaches teleconference ‘Hawks Football Forecaster — Week 10

“We realized he had very good feet and hips. He’s extremely athletic and very intelligent,” Mangino said. “He could absorb things really quickly.”

Mangino reiterated he felt the defense played well enough to win in Saturday’s 30-21 loss to Colorado, but the big plays weren’t frequent enough for the offense to catch up. Of Colorado’s four touchdowns, one was a punt return, and one was a fumble recovery taken to the house.

With games left against Texas and Colorado, Mangino insists the Jayhawks aren’t ready to call it a season.

“This ballclub has a tremendous attitude,” Mangino said. “They have two games left, and they would like to make their mark on this season.”

• KU-MU time set: Kansas’ regular-season finale against Missouri will kickoff at 1 p.m. on Nov. 20 from Faurot Field in Columbia, Mo. It will not be televised.

KU’s game with Texas on Saturday will be televised at on Fox Sports Net, and will start at 11 a.m.