Back to work

The police sirens howled through the neighborhood streets, and the Kansas University football team’s buses were flanked by flashing red-and-blue lights on the way to practice Friday.

Such an entrance is expected when President Bush is arriving somewhere. But this was just the Jayhawks, heading to Barry University in Miami Shores, Fla., for their first team practice in Florida before next week’s Orange Bowl against Virginia Tech.

The police escort got KU there on time, and the Jayhawks practiced for a couple of hours on a nice bermuda pitch that’s normally home to Barry University’s soccer team.

The Jayhawks appeared in good spirits and doing fine from a health standpoint. The four banged-up starters from the Nov. 24 game against Missouri – offensive tackle Anthony Collins, defensive tackle James McClinton, safety Patrick Resby and cornerback Kendrick Harper – all were present and showing no ill effects.

Extreme makeover

Apparently, Kansas University linebacker Joe Mortensen has spent the month of December working on his beauty.

The normally clean-shaven Mortensen showed up on the practice field Friday with a mohawk and a grizzly beard, looking strikingly like Mr. T.

In town

One day after KU’s arrival, Virginia Tech’s football team arrived at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Friday afternoon. The Hokies’ team hotel is in Hollywood.

One of the first things VT coach Frank Beamer planned to do Friday was hold a meeting to set ground rules for the players. The Hokies won’t practice in Florida until today.

“We start out early in the week with a 2 a.m. curfew, and then it comes down each night of the week,” Beamer said. “We want them to have fun, but we also want to make sure we do things right down here, also.”

VT back suspended

The Roanoke (Va.) Times is reporting that Virginia Tech starting running back Branden Ore will be suspended for the first quarter of the Orange Bowl for showing up late to a recent practice.

“I’m not putting up with that kind of stuff,” VT running-backs coach Billy Hite told the paper. “In order for us to win ball games, we can’t have guys showing up at practice whenever they want to.”

Ore has 876 rushing yards and eight touchdowns this season. Sophomore Kenny Lewis Jr. will start in Ore’s place, Hite told the Times.

New commit

Kansas received another in-state pledge when Wichita North defensive tackle Darius Parish called the KU coaching staff and gave his oral commitment Friday.

Parish, a 6-foot-3, 325-pounder, was a one-time commitment to Nebraska. But the coaching change caused Parish to open his recruitment, and he eventually picked Kansas over Wisconsin and Oklahoma State.