New Kansas forward Jack Whitman already has made a name for himself with his signature mustache. (AP photo)

So now that we know who Jack Whitman is, — a 6-foot-9, 235-pound transfer forward — where he comes from — Lexington, Ky., by way of William & Mary — and what his goals are at Kansas — to come in and contribute to the rotation while developing and testing himself as a player — we can get into the most important part of this whole deal.

The ‘stache.

Surely, by now, you’ve all seen the pictures we’ve run, or others floating around the Internet of Whitman sporting a pretty healthy mustache during his junior season at William & Mary.

Good for him. Hey, if a guy can pull it off, he kind of has to do it. At least once in his life.

I talked to Whitman yesterday specifically about the ‘stache and got a little bit of information about its origins and what his future plans are for the look.

For one, Whitman told me that the mustache has not been a permanent thing in his life and the current edition residing on his upper lip is not quite as intense as the one you saw in the photos.

“I’ve got a little something there now,” he said, “but nothing quite like I had last season.”

So where did the beast come from and what inspired the look? Whitman said it just kind of happened organically because he’s always been a fan of playing around with different facial hair looks and after messing around with a mustache it kind of took on a life of its own.

He said he really had it going good during the middle of last season and he wasn’t exactly sure if he’d go to that level again or not.

Judging by reaction from KU fans, he might want to. People exploded yesterday, on Twitter and message boards alike, with chatter about the ‘stache and Whitman, who has yet to even suit up for the Jayhawks already has paved the way to becoming a cult hero.

Most of you surely remember T.J. Whatley and his solid mustache. The walk-on from Arkansas did not play much during his KU days, but he was a fan favorite and always seemed to be remembered for the mustache.

Who knows if the same path will hold true for Whitman — he may play more than Whatley did; he may not keep the ‘stache — but there’s no doubt that the whole thing definitely has his attention.

“I had it a little bit last season, middle of the year, and, obviously, I played with it when we played at Duke so that got a lot of attention,” Whitman said. “Who knows what’s going to happen. I might have to bring it back. We’ll see.”