Falkenstien hopes he’s back in booth for KSU game

Kansas University broadcasting legend Max Falkenstien, who Thursday checked out of Lawrence Memorial Hospital, hopes to be back in the booth this football season.

The 81-year-old Falkenstien, in his 60th season working KU games, has been out of action since undergoing emergency intestinal surgery Sept. 7.

“He said he wants to go to Lubbock. Isobel (Max’s wife) told him in no uncertain terms he is not going to Lubbock,” KU associate athletic director Jim Marchiony said of the Jayhawks’ Oct. 1 game at Texas Tech.

“If it were up to Max, he’d definitely try to come back the next week (Oct. 8) against Kansas State,” Marchiony said. “He would love to go to K-State. I told him the microphone will be there when he is ready to come back. The biggest mistake he can make is rushing back. We all want him back, but not at the expense of his long-term health.”

Marchiony knows all about intestinal surgery. He had surgery last summer and was out of action several weeks.

“I’m amazed at how good he sounds and how quickly he’s out of the hospital,” Marchiony said. “He’s back to normal eating. From experience I told him to stay away from jalapeno peppers for a while.”

¢ Free event: KU is not planning to charge admission for Late Night in the Phog, set for Oct. 14 at Allen Fieldhouse.

“I doubt we will charge. We will more likely have baskets there for people who want to donate (to Hurricane Katrina relief),” Marchiony said.

The NCAA has declined a suggestion to add a third exhibition game for hurricane relief. Instead, the NCAA asked schools to raise money at kickoff scrimmages and/or the two exhibition games already allowed.

KU athletics has donated $10,000 to relief efforts and has been collecting money outside Memorial Stadium. Today, the athletic department has asked fans to each bring $1 to the 6 p.m. football game for hurricane relief.

No announcement yet has been made, but early indications are that doors may open for Late Night at 5:30 p.m., with the show to run from 6:30 to 9 p.m. ESPNU will televise the men’s portion of the show from 8 to 9 p.m.

¢ New floor progressing: The new maple-plywood fieldhouse floor has been sealed and coated. On Friday, workers were outlining the center circle, three-point lines and lanes. Soon, those will be painted, and the center Jayhawk will be stenciled, then painted. “It will be similar to big Jayhawk we had on the court the last two years,” Marchiony said. “The only difference is we will have the new KU (lettering) the university came up with, as opposed to the old lettering.”

¢ Aldrich update: KU coach Bill Self and assistant Joe Dooley watched a workout of 6-foot-11, 245-pound junior Cole Aldrich on Thursday in Bloomington, Minn. “It was cool to see those guys on the sideline watching me practice,” Aldrich told Shay Wildeboor of rivals.com. “I am looking forward to seeing Micah (Downs), Mario (Chalmers) and Julian (Wright) at Late Night.” Aldrich said there always was the chance he could give a verbal commitment, but he was not planning to end his recruiting after Late Night. He’s also being recruited by North Carolina and Minnesota.

¢ KU No. 24: Dick Vitale has tapped Kansas No. 24 in the country in his preseason top 25, which can be found on ESPN.com. “Coach Bill Self has a lot of young talent … can he blend it together to keep the fans happy in ‘Rock Chalk, Jayhawk’ land?'” Vitale said. Vitale has tapped Duke No. 1, Villanova 2, Texas 3, Michigan State 4 and Boston College 5.

¢ Muonelo’s recruitment: Obi Muonelo, a 6-5 senior guard from Edmond, Okla., isn’t planning to commit to a school after visiting Late Night in the Phog. “Probably around Christmas or New Year’s,” he told rivals.com. The country’s No. 18-rated player, Muonelo has KU, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma, Texas and Illinois on his list.

¢ Rules: This year’s experimental rules to be used in the two exhibition games: Three-point line will be extended to 20 feet, 9 inches; lane will be widened to 14 feet; a 3-foot restricted-area arc will be drawn from center of the basket.