Tuesday's KU football practice was open to the media for the first time this spring. by Matt Tait

Tuesday marked the first practice of the spring that was open to the media and instead of the usual 20 minutes of stretching and warm-ups, KU coach Charlie Weis opened the door and pulled back the curtain for the entire hour-and-40-minute session.

A good chunk near the end was spent on special teams, but, with this team, even that was an area worth watching.

With that in mind, here's the first (and maybe only) edition of “What Caught My Eye” from spring drills. Grab a chair and get comfortable.

• New year, new leaders. In addition to the bounce in their step and hope in the air (none of that was there during the final few weeks of the 2012 season), it's always interesting to see what a new team looks like during spring drills. Who steps up and leads. Who is most vocal? Who leads by example? All of that and more is easy to spot during an open practice. But the easiest way to find out who the leaders are is to watch the stretching lines. Usually the guys closest to coach Holsopple are the biggest leaders and, on Tuesday at least, that seemed to hold true. The first line included quarterback Jake Heaps, linebacker Ben Heeney and running back James Sims. A couple of surprises on the first line included Keba Agostinho, Randall Dent, Dexter Linton, Jacorey Shepherd and Ron Doherty. A few of those guys are seniors, but a few are not. Nothing earth-shattering there but it was the first thing that jumped out.

• The Coach Weis song of the day seems to be back, at least for now, and today, the practice DJ stacked a Bruce Springsteen song on top of a Bon Jovi song. Talk about buttering up the head coach.

• Darius Willis, who now wears No. 52, looks substantially bigger than I ever remember him being. Willis, whom Weis said recently is pushing Heeney for first-string reps at middle linebacker, looks mobile, physical and ready for a bigger role again. In short, he's everything I thought he would be when he first arrived from Buffalo.

• One of my favorite drills of the day was a drill in which five receivers ran different routes on the same play, with each one receiving a ball at the same moment. The drill was made possible by the fact that all three KU quarterbacks — Heaps, Michael Cummings and Blake Jablonski — along with QB coach Ron Powlus and one of the managers dropped back and threw to a designated guy. While this unfolded for nearly 10 minutes, Coach Weis sat in a golf cart in the end zone and coached both the receivers and the quarterbacks. The way the receivers and running backs ran routes at different depths reminded me of the fountains at the Belagio in Las Vegas dancing to the music.

• Speaking of routes, I thought it was very cool to see the different ways Tony Pierson was used. I don't think for a second that we saw even one-fifth of what KU will ask of Pierson this season, but what we did see was the dynamic junior speed back running routes all over the field. Short. Long. Seam. Post. Corner. If he and Heaps can develop some chemistry, he'll be a nightmare for opposing defenses this fall.

KU running back Tony Pierson takes a handoff from Charlie Weis Jr., during Tuesday's practice at Memorial Stadium. by Matt Tait

• Another dude we've heard about who truly has gotten bigger is red-shirt freshman tight end Jordan Smith. The guy's lower body looks like a tank. Didn't watch him a ton in route-running and pass-catching drills, but he's bulked up, no question about it.

• We didn't get to see much of the offensive or defensive lines during live action, so I'll stick with the linebackers and secondary. The first string looked like this: Courtney Arnick, Heeney and Jake Love at linebacker, with Shepherd and Cassius Sendish at corner and Greg Allen and Dexter Linton at safety. When the team went to its nickel package, Dexter McDonald checked in at nickel back. When they went dime, Allen, Linton, Shepherd, McDonald, Sendish, Tevin Shaw, Willis and Heeney were all out there.

• Remember that talk of accountability that we heard from these guys at the start of spring drills? It's legit. I heard more guys calling out other guys today than I can remember all year last year. Nothing major and nothing nasty. Just guys yelling at other guys after a dropped pass or for jogging instead of sprinting. No bad blood, no whining, just players responding to a little push from another teammate. Pretty cool to see, really.

• One of the most exciting sessions of the day was the one-on-ones, where wideouts or running backs lined up against a defensive backs and ran routes. Overall, the offense seemed to get the better of the defense during this one. By my count, the offensive player got the best of the defense 19 out of 31 times. That included nine of the first 10, though, so the DBs made a decent comeback late in the drill.

• Got my first look at new defensive backs coach Scott Vestal in action. He's intense. The guy really has a motor and he has a set of lungs to match. Really like his style and passion.

• We saw some pretty extensive special teams work and, of all the return men, Tre' Parmalee and JaCorey Shepherd stood out as the most impressive. Both had multiple long returns and looked incredibly shifty no matter where they were on the field.

• Speaking of special teams, it was cool to see the punting and kickoff drills because that gave us a good look at new kicker Trevor Pardula. I know it was just one practice, but I'd be shocked if Pardula didn't have both jobs locked up already. He's solid and consistent on kickoffs — something that even teammates paid attention to and responded with, 'We need that,' — and he can really boom his punts. On a couple of occasions, Pardula's punts inspired Weis to say the following: “Woo Hoo Hoo Hoo.” Huge upgrade.

• As for field goal kicking, it appears there's still some work to be done there. Pardula was decent and veteran Ron Doherty had his moments, but nobody stood out the way Pardula did in the other aspects of the kicking game. That's not all bad news. Remember, Hutch Juco walk-on Michael Mesh is still coming this summer and he should have a good shot of winning the job.

• Pardula did deliver when it counted, connecting on a 38 yarder to close practice. Had he missed it, the team would have run. Instead, they celebrated. Want another sign of progress? Last year, this was the drill that Weis had his team do over again because it didn't celebrate the made kick properly. No such problem Tuesday.

KU's offensive linemen take instructions from offensive line coach Tim Grunhard during Wednesday night's practice at Memorial Stadium. by Matt Tait

Seeing how Wednesday night’s KU football practice was the last one I’ll be at until next spring — that’s if KU coach Charlie Weis is kind enough to let us observe again — I figured I’d spend my time watching the one position that I think could be the most key for KU entering next season: The offensive line.

I’ve watched plenty of Jake Heaps to know he can play; we know the running backs are good and all returning; we know the receivers need help (but that’ll come from guys who aren’t here yet) and we know the defense will need to and try to upgrade speed across the board as it continues its attempt to try to keep up in the track meet Big 12.

What we don’t know yet is what the offensive line will look like without Tanner Hawkinson, Trevor Marrongelli and Duane Zlatnik, all seniors who will graduate in the offseason.

There are more than a few guys on the current roster who could factor into things next season and, the likelihood also still exists that Weis and crew will look to add a couple of impact players at that position in the offseason as well.

Quickly, here’s what caught my eye during offensive line drills tonight:

• Aslam Sterling, Gavin Howard and Randall Dent all will be back and all have legit starting experience. I'm assuming all three will improve tremendously in the offseason and could enter spring ball as potential starters.

• Red-shirt freshman Luke Luhrsen looks like he could become a starter. He’s big, athletic and strong and has improved throughout 2012, even reaching the point where he landed on the two-deep at left guard. With continued work in the offseason, he could be a candidate to start at guard in 2013.

• Sophomore Pat Lewandowski is a guy you should not forget about. The guy’s a beast with a ton of potential who probably just needs a little more time to get comfortable at his new position. Remember, he’s another one of those guys who played multiple positions — on defense — before moving to the O-Line under the current coaching staff. I like his footwork and mindset. I don’t know if he’s starter material, but I like him.

• Red-shirt freshman Damon Martin has to be another guy you put on this list. Through hard work and improvement, he became a starter this season for a game or two, only to fall off the depth chart as quickly as he elevated onto it. This is a big offseason for Martin.

• Finally, don’t forget about Riley Spencer, the fourth-year junior who missed most of the season with an injury but has great size, decent experience and, if healthy, could be in the mix at either tackle spot.

• One other note that I thought was fun to see Wednesday night was wide receiver Connor Embree wearing the No. 1 jersey with the scout team. That means Embree is playing the role of West Virginia’s Tavon Austin, a burner whom Weis thinks is as good a player as there is in the conference. I’m sure it’s been fun for Embree to play that role, especially in light of the fact that his father, Jon, was just fired as the head coach at Colorado.

That’s it, folks. Back to preparing stories for this weekend’s WVU game and the KU volleyball team’s run to the NCAA Tournament.

Thanks for your contributions and participation with this blog throughout the past eight months. We’ll be back at it again, bigger and better, next season.

The KU running backs run through a drill at the start of Tuesday's practice at Memorial Stadium. by Matt Tait

It was a dark and cold evening at the latest Kansas University football practice, but you never would have known it from watching what went down on the field.

From players bouncing around with energy and excitement to coaches screaming and smiling, it looked like just another week on the KU practice field for the Jayhawks, who began final preparations for this week’s match-up with West Virginia.

At this point, there’s not a whole lot new that’s going on out there. But it’s worth noting that the energy shown today was equal to what we saw during practices back in September and October.

KU coach Charlie Weis was asked earlier in the day if he thought it would be tough to get his guys fired up for one more game and his answer painted a clear picture:

“I don’t think the offseason’s even in their mind yet. You think they’re looking forward to spending extra time with (strength coach Scott) Holsopple? They’re not there yet. They’re happy we’re still playing. Maybe it’s the lesser of two evils, but I think they’re really looking forward to having one more shot.”

With that in mind, Here’s a quick look at a couple of things that caught my eye at Tuesday’s practice.

• KU’s running backs continue to work as hard as anyone on the roster and, while they’re doing it, they also have as much fun as anyone. Credit running backs coach Reggie Mitchell for some of that. At the start of individual drills, the KU RBs were on the ball and ready to work. So much so in fact, that they surprised Mitchell. “We even started before the clock,” Mitchell said with excitement. “I love it.”

• Speaking of the running backs, I noticed that KU senior D.J. Beshears, who has played wide receiver, running back, defensive back and returner during his KU career, was working with the backs. Maybe Beshears will be KU’s answer to WVU’s Tavon Austin. For more on him, check tomorrow’s paper.

• The first-team offensive line, which has been a revolving door at times during the season, shaped up like this on Tuesday: RT Aslam Sterling, RG Randall Dent, C Trevor Marrongelli, LG Duane Zlatnik, LT Tanner Hawkinson. Hard to believe that Hawkinson, is going through his final week of practice at KU.

• Finally, the season may be winding down and many on that field may be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel, but the focus seemed squarely on the task at hand, with several coaches shouting several colorful things designed to pump the Jayhawks up for their 1:30 p.m. meeting with the Mountaineers on Saturday at WVU.

Senior wide receiver Daymond Patterson runs through a drill during the early portion of Wednesday's practice at Memorial Stadium. by Matt Tait

As I stood there and watched tonight’s practice with just one other member of the media and two members of KU’s sports information staff, it occurred to me that we now have just two practice reports remaining in the 2012 season.

The Jayhawks are off next week and then I’ll be back out there Tuesday and Wednesday of the week leading up to the season finale against West Virginia. That’s it.

I know I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to go up to practice twice a week and get an up-close and personal look at the Jayhawks. As you all know, I haven’t been privy to watching the gameplans get installed and schemes be tweaked, but I still think you can — and I have — learn a lot from just being around these guys and watching them work.

You can see who’s serious about their craft, who’s a natural athlete and who has to work hard every single second to get the most out of their abilities.

What’s more, I’ve been able to observe the lingering effects of an injury or two with my own eyes, something that I think is way better than just taking the word of the coaching staff for it.

Why am I getting into all this now? I guess I’m just taking the long route toward a thank you to KU coach Charlie Weis. He doesn’t have to let us in, and many coaches don’t. But I know I’ve gotten a ton out of it and, more importantly, I’ve heard a lot of feedback from readers about how much they enjoyed these brief practice reports. I know we’ve got two left, but I’m definitely looking forward to getting out there again next season, music or no music.

As for what caught my eye today, here’s a quick look:

• For the first time in a while, senior wide receiver D.J. Beshears was in full uniform going through practice with his teammates. Beshears did have to be taped up at the beginning of individual drills, but it looks like he’ll be out there for his Senior Day. That’s good news. He, like many of his teammates, didn’t have the best season, but he’s given a lot to this program during the past four years and he certainly deserves to run out onto the field one more time and to be honored by the home fans.

• Running backs coach Reggie Mitchell deserves a ton of credit for what he’s been able to get out of James Sims and Tony Pierson during the past couple of years.... but apparently the KU assistant thinks there’s more to pull. Mitchell was riding Sims and Pierson throughout the start of practice Wednesday — mostly with a smile — begging Sims to use a stiff arm “just one time,” and dogging Pierson for running out of bounds whenever he can. Both KU backs have had terrific seasons, so I’m sure Mitchell’s ribbing was merely in good fun, but it gave me a little insight into how these coaches think and operate. They could have Collin Klein, Manti Te’o and Matt Barkley on the roster, but you can bet that wouldn’t stop any of them, position coaches, GAs or Weis, from getting after a guy when it was needed. That’s how you develop players and it’s good to see that even KU’s best players are continuing to be pushed by the coaching staff.

• We all know that Tyler Patmon had a pretty rough week last week against Texas Tech, but you’d never know it from watching him at practice. I know we’ve talked about this a lot this season, about how these guys really have been able to put the past behind them and move on to the next week with good energy, and Patmon is just the latest example that I saw.

• Off topic a little bit, I’m really interested to see what kind of crowd turns up Saturday at 6 p.m., when KU takes on Iowa State at Memorial Stadium. Weis has made it a point this week to push for a great crowd and, overall, I think there are still a ton of people backing this team, even with its 1-9 record and basketball season under way. To me, that’s as much a sign of the progress that has been made this year as anything.

KU's talented crop of running backs runs through blocking drills during Tuesday's practice at Memorial Stadium. by Matt Tait

There’s no better sign that the end of the season is approaching than the image of bright lights standing tall above a Kansas University football practice.

That was the scene Tuesday, where the Jayhawks began preparations for Saturday’s 6 p.m. Senior Day showdown with Iowa State at Memorial Stadium.

For the first time I can remember this season, there was not one specific thing that I went to practice hoping to learn more about.

No Tony Pierson injury. No wondering if Daymond Patterson would be out there. No closer look at that week’s starting quarterback or the first string guys on the offensive line.

It was a little weird, to be honest. And it was made even weirder by the continued absence of music during the early portion of KU’s practice.

With all that said, I still did notice a few things. It’s hard being out there without having something catch your eye. But none of it seemed all that earth-shattering.

We know Michael Cummings is starting at quarterback — although KU coach Charlie Weis said senior Dayne Crist may play some because it's Senior Day — and we know what he can do. We know Pierson is healthy again — boy, do we — and even though he had a small wrap on his left elbow, we know that probably won’t be there on Saturday and, therefore, the elbow probably won’t hinder him in any way.

So while I could tell you about watching senior Duane Zlatnik get nearly all of the reps with the first team again — remember, red-shirt freshman Damon Martin didn’t even make the trip to Lubbock, Texas, last week — or how there were more NFL scouts in attendance today than there had been in quite some time, yet another sign that the season is ending and the chance to get a look at some of KU’s potential future pros is dwindling, I’ll stick with the one thing that caught my eye the most.

Not surprisingly it was the running backs.

But it wasn’t the running backs in the way you might think. I wasn’t awed by Pierson or James Sims running the ball or making cuts. I was awed by the way these guys — all of them — work on blocking.

They don’t let up, they hit the sled, the bag or each other as if they were playing a live game, and they do it over and over until running backs coach Reggie Mitchell or Weis says stop.

It’s impressive. Because don’t you think if there was one group that deserved the chance to take it a little easier during practice that it would be the running backs? Me, too. But that’s kind of the point. Even as impressive and important as they have been, they’re not treated any differently than anyone else.

When you play for Charlie Weis you do three things or you don’t play: You work hard, you play team football and you bring extreme focus to everything you do.

No position illustrates this better — in practice or in games — than KU’s running backs. They truly have been one of the things that has made covering a 1-9 team that has struggled to keep up with the rest of the Big 12 an absolute joy week in and week out.

We’ll get back to our regular look at practice tomorrow, but I thought this was worth getting into.

Until then....

Wednesday's KU football practice was moved indoors to better prepare for warm temperatures expected in Lubbock this weekend. by Matt Tait

Another quiet one at Kansas football practice today, as the Jayhawks ran through this afternoon’s drills without the aid of music to entertain them.

The more I think about it, the more I’m wondering if the no-music policy for this week lines up with KU coach Charlie Weis mentioning on Tuesday that he’s not in the best mood right now.

I know some of you think that the music is just Bon Jovi or Springsteen, but the majority of the tunes that blare are songs that the players would like and not having them could make it tough to get going. Just a hypothesis.... I love that word!

Anyway, here’s a quick look at what caught my eye during Wednesday’s practice. As has happened in the past, because there were just two members of the media present, Coach Weis allowed us to observe (but not necessarily write about) three extra periods today. Great stuff that will come in handy for future coverage and questions.

• Practice was moved indoors to Anschutz today in an effort to better simulate the conditions that the Jayhawks will face this weekend in Lubbock, Texas. The heat was cranked up and it definitely was warm inside. The forecast calls for sunny and 78 for Saturday’s game, but I also noticed that high winds are expected. This isn’t ground-breaking stuff, but I do like how Coach Weis tries to prepare for particular situations in this manner.

• There were several players who caught my eye throughout the extended time today, but one guy who continues to look better and better every time I see him is cornerback JaCorey Shepherd. With just three games remaining, it wouldn’t surprise me if the coaches started working Shepherd into the defensive gameplan more and more. Might as well get him those reps and see what you've got.

• I know I’ve mentioned this with regard to the senior transfers, but I think it’s important to point out that KU’s longtime seniors, guys like Greg Brown and Daymond Patterson and Bradley McDougald and Lubbock Smith and Toben Opurum — and several others — continue to work like they’re playing for an 8-1 team and not a 1-8 team. Some of them have pro futures to consider and that, of course, keeps them motivated. But I think another big factor is pride. These guys have been through a ton and they’ve been quality players and people every step of the way. They’re not about to change that now. That’s just one of the reasons to point to when thinking about how big a win in the final three games of the season would be. If these guys get one — and that’s definitely a big if — they’ll celebrate it like nothing before. And, you know what, they’ll deserve to.

KU senior D.J. Beshears (in the end zone, not in uniform) returned to the practice field Tuesday. by Matt Tait

For the first time in all of my trips to KU’s football practices this season, we had one without a Bruce Springsteen or Bon Jovi song.

Not sure if that was out of respect for Election Day, some statement of support for the folks back east impacted by Superstorm Sandy or if someone on Charlie Weis’ staff simply forgot to charge the iPod. Either way, it was really weird and it offered a chance to hear just about every word yelled or screamed from all four corners of Memorial Stadium.

Running backs coach Reggie Mitchell was in a particularly entertaining mood today. Not sure if it was because he was angry or because he was feeling good, but Reggie was loving his role as the guy beating the running backs with the bag as they ran through individual drills.

“Makes me feel better,” he kept saying, while calling his shot about what type of swing he was going to take at each back.

Pretty funny stuff. If there’s one group and position coach who can feel really good about what they’ve done this season, it’s Reggie and the running backs.

Here’s a quick look at what else caught my eye from a chilly Memorial Stadium on Election Night.

• Senior wide receiver D.J. Beshears was back out on the field but did not fully practice. He went through warm-ups — looked great running — and did all of the stretching, but he was not wearing pads. He also was no longer wearing a sling, which should be taken as a good sign that his shoulder is healing. At this point, it seems like the best-case-scenario and something for which Beshears is likely hoping for is for him to be able to play against Iowa State on Nov. 17, which also would be his senior day. We’ll see.

• I spent a little more time watching the QBs — mostly to keep a closer eye on BYU transfer Jake Heaps — and while I liked what I saw from Heaps, both in terms of the way he threw the ball and the way his feet moved, it’s worth pointing out that it’s hard to tell much during individual drills. Still, it looked to me like Heaps has the best (read: quickest) feet of the bunch, with Michael Cummings a close second. Turner Baty’s probably third, though his footwork is a little choppier, with Dayne Crist fourth and Blake Jablonski fifth. That should tell you all you need to know about why Cummings is the guy they’re sticking with and also should get you excited for the future... Just not too excited, OK?

• One more quick injury update, Toben Opurum, who missed a lot of last Saturday’s loss to Baylor, also was a full-go for practice. Weis said Sunday night that Opurum was in much better shape this Sunday than he was last (after suffering an injury vs. Texas) so look for Toben to be out there a little more this weekend.

KU's offensive line runs through a tough workout with O-Line coach Tim Grunhard at the start of Wednesday's practice. by Matt Tait

Although Downtown Lawrence was packed with Trick-or-Treaters on my evening drive back from KU football practice, there were none to be found around the grounds at Kansas University’s Memorial Stadium.

Good thing, too.

KU’s coaches kicked things off with a little extra juice today at practice, yelling a little louder, pushing a little harder and cracking the whip with a little more intensity.

The most notable area, at least from where I stood, where the coaches had a little extra fire was in the corner with the offensive linemen, where O-Line coach Tim Grunhard roared through the opening part of practice with his group.

The first team looked to be made up of Tanner Hawkinson at left tackle, Damon Martin at left guard, Trevor Marrongelli at center, Randall Dent at right guard and Aslam Sterling at right tackle. No surprise there.

Regardless of whether it was the first unit or the second unit, though, Grunhard put them to work.

“Throw your hands and play some football,” he said as they worked on point-of-attack drills.

“What good is it here if you’re not gonna do it in the game,” he added after a round of particularly explosive blocking.

It’s clear that even though the Jayhawks have done well in the run game lately, Grunhard expects them to do even better and he’s leaning on his offensive linemen to make that happen.

While Grunhard’s demeanor would’ve made for a pretty scary Halloween costume in itself, there was a small touch of today’s holiday at practice. The Jayhawks kicked things off by listening to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” during warm-ups.

Here’s a quick look at a few other things that caught my eye.

• Since I spent most of my time around the O-Line today, I took an extra long look at Sterling, whom KU coach Charlie Weis said earlier this week has reshaped his body as much as anyone on the team during the past several months. It shows. Sterling looks much quicker on his feet now and much trimmer. Losing the 30-40 pounds also has allowed him to be more explosive at the snap. Hopes are high for Sterling, especially for next season, and I think these final four games will be as big for him as any player on the roster.

• Senior defensive end Toben Opurum and red-shirt freshman linebacker Jake Love both were at practice Wednesday, good news for the Jayhawks who lost both starters on the same play late in the loss against Texas. Weis said earlier this week that he expected those two, along with wide receiver Daymond Patterson, would be available this weekend at Baylor, and it looks as if things are on track for that to hold true.

• Finally, the Coach Weis song of the day was “Badlands” by Bruce Springsteen.

KU's running backs work on blocking drills during Wednesday's practice at Memorial Stadium. KU will play host to Texas at 11 a.m. Saturday and the Longhorns have the lowest-rated rushing defense in the Big 12. by Matt Tait

Well, it looked for a while like KU wide receiver Daymond Patterson was set to go through a full practice on Wednesday, but it was not to be.

Patterson, a senior who missed last week’s game against Oklahoma because of a head injury, appears to still be dealing with the effects and, evidently, has not yet been cleared by doctors to return to practice.

For the second day in a row, Patterson ran through warm-ups and stretching, but when it came time to go to individual drills, he was sent to the exercise bike. It’s not as if Patterson isn’t trying to get back out there. At one point, as he stood in line to begin receiving drills, strength coach — and former Patterson teammate — Justin Springer pulled him out of line and walked him down to head trainer Murphy Grant to see if he had been cleared.

Evidently, Grant told them that he was not because Patterson quickly removed his helmet and hit the bike.

I’ve said all week that it’s probably a 50-50 deal with Patterson this week, but it’s definitely clear that the more time he misses the less likely it becomes that he will play against Texas at 11 a.m. Saturday.

At least it does look like Patterson is closer to a full return. We’ll see Saturday. My official guess here is that he’ll miss one more week.

Here’s a quick look at a couple of other things that caught my eye during Wednesday’s practice:

• Offensive lineman Damon Martin, who received extended playing time last week at OU and was praised earlier this week by KU coach Charlie Weis, was in fact working some with the first team offensive line. Weis opened up the spot at left guard, listing both starter Duane Zlatnik and Martin as first-team possibilities. We weren’t out there long enough to get a real look at how Martin has handled the mini-promotion, but confidence can play a big role in things like this and it looked, to me, like Martin was carrying himself with the confidence of a guy who believes he’s a starter. We’ll see how it plays out on Saturday. Unseating Zlatnik would be no small feat.

• I noticed that senior defensive end Josh Williams jumped out front and led stretches with the three captains today (Crist, Opurum and Hawkinson). I’m not sure if that’s new or not or if it’s an indication that Williams will be the fourth captain this weekend, but it did make me think of something. I know people had hoped that Williams would be this disruptive force and dominant pass rusher and that many are somewhat bummed out by his stats through seven games — 16 tackles, 1 for-loss, 1 pass break-up, 2 QB hurries, 2 fumble recoveries and 1 forced fumble. But I’m a firm believer that Williams’ presence has been a good thing for this defense. Not only has he been pencilled in — and performed — as a starter each week, but he’s also helped the younger guys understand what it means to work hard and helped them learn to take nothing for granted. Would it be better if Williams had six sacks right now? Of course. But I still think he proved to be a nice pick-up. I feel the same way about all of those fifth-year guys.

• Finally, the Coach Weis song of the day was “Runaway” by Bon Jovi.

The Jayhawks had a little extra pep in their step during Tuesday's practice at Memorial Stadium. KU plays host to Texas at 11 a.m. Saturday. by Matt Tait

Short and sweet for today’s practice recap.

Let’s get right to it:

• First off, I noticed that senior wide receiver Daymond Patterson went through warm-ups and stretching — and looked pretty comfortable doing it — but once the individual drills began, Patterson jumped on the exercise bike. KU coach Charlie Weis said earlier today that Patterson was still questionable with a head injury and his status for this weekend’s game against Texas would not be determined for a few days. I took today’s progress as a good sign considering the fact that Patterson was not on the field at all last week during the portions of practice that were open to the media and, of course, he did not play against OU.

• Although he has fallen into the role of back-up quarterback, senior Dayne Crist continues to take his job as team captain seriously. Crist looked energized and focused during today’s practice and often was seen jumping to his usual spot at the front of the line to lead off drills. Based on what I’ve heard and learned about Crist in the short time I’ve known him, this isn’t a surprise in any way. The guy’s a competitor and he wants to be out there, but he’s also a team player and, more than anything, he wants the team to win. Props to him for handling this whole deal with a good attitude.

• Weis said during today’s news conference that defensive coordinator Dave Campo told him that last Sunday’s practice was as good a practice as he’s been through during his entire time at KU. The reason? Lots and lots of individual attention and emphasis on guys getting better. It seems Campo picked up where he left off, as I noticed an extra bounce in his step while working with the safeties and cornerbacks. Campo always has a lot of energy, but what I saw today was even more detailed than normal. He was talking about little things like proper footwork, stepping the right way with the right foot and getting in and out of breaks faster and quicker. When guys messed up, he jumped on them. These coaches aren’t messing around. They’re working these guys hard and they believe in their abilities as coaches. I’m not at all surprised by that either, but, at 1-6, you never know how that’s gonna hold up.

• Having said all of that, I still noticed great attitudes from the Jayhawks themselves. Most guys were out there busting their butts and having fun while doing it. Sometimes we get so focused on a team’s record or their failures but we forget what all goes into each week. These guys have struggled through a lot of down times during this season as well as the past couple of seasons, and I think it’s a real testament to each one of them as well as the team’s leaders — coaches and players — that they still show up to work every day ready to get better and have fun. I know that may come off as a little cheesy, but it’s an important part of this whole rebuilding process and one of the reasons that I still think this team has another win in them this season.

• Finally, the Coach Weis song of the day was “Roll of the Dice” by Bruce Springsteen.