Self and Crew Surprise Students on Campus
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Per the usual, the Underground at Wescoe was busy with the lunch crowd on Thursday afternoon. Awaiting students at the end of the register was a not-so-usual surprise as Kansas men’s basketball head coach Bill Self and his staff stopped in to buy lunch.
Exhibition play awaits Kansas, who unofficially opens the season against Washburn on Nov. 3, and the coaching staff had a little fun with the team’s day off. A little after the noon hour, the group walked from their offices inside Allen Fieldhouse and made its way through campus to Wescoe Hall, where the Underground is located.
“We came up and hung out with the students – I don’t get a chance to do that very often,” Self said. “We were able to buy many meals for students as they went through the line to pay, so that was fun. It was a good day. It’s always great to interact with the kids. Since we had a day off today, it was a good way to relax a little over lunch.”
Students did double-takes as Self walked by on campus, second-guessing themselves as to what they just saw. As word spread through texts, social media and plain-old word of mouth, the Underground’s crowd grew in a hurry.
“We were down at Summerfield and saw someone’s tweet about it, so we hauled up here to see if he was still here,” KU student Meghan Hyatt said. “It just made my day.”
Those who were already posted up to eat were excited about their right place-right time luck and took advantage of their chance to say hello.
“It was like a dream come true. This was so awesome,” KU student Matt Pospich said. “I love Bill and I love everything he’s done for the school. I’m still shaking. I knew he would be cool in person.”
For approximately an hour, Self and his staff bought lunches, posed for photos, talked basketball with the lines of students waiting. When the crowd died down, they sat down to lunch themselves before pausing for more pics on the way out.
“This place was packed when we came in here,” Self said. “When the students camp out (in Allen Fieldhouse), it’s amazing to me that I’ll go down to talk to them, but they never really talk to me. But I come up here and all of them wanted to talk so that was good. It was fun to hang out with them.”
UP NEXT
No. 5 Kansas will open exhibition play against Washburn on Monday, Nov. 3. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. and will air on the Jayhawk IMG Television Network.
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