A.D.'s Corner

(Note: This new feature will appear regularly here at kuathletics.com.)

Sept. 2, 2005

Dear Jayhawk fans,

<?xml:namespace prefix=”o” ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office”?>

The 2005-06 season for Kansas Athletics has begun. Following a busy summer in Lawrence, we are very excited to welcome more than 600 student-athletes to campus, including over 100 freshmen who are new to the Jayhawk family. Each year, the excitement these new faces bring with them reaffirms the pride we have to be associated with the Crimson and Blue.

Even as you read this, several of our teams have already begun play. In speaking to the media in the last few weeks, all of our coaches have talked about the importance our returning players place in forming team chemistry, teaching younger players the game and the Jayhawk way, and how optimistic each of them is about their team’s chances to compete at the highest level.

In anticipation of your visits to Memorial Stadium this Fall, let me talk about some of the changes we’ve made this year.

I know many of you still have questions about both the new seating and parking plans for season-ticket holders. This summer our “Select-a-Seat” program was a great success. We had thousands of Jayhawk fans flock to Memorial Stadium to find the perfect vantage point for game day. It is our hope that this program will make football games more exciting and enjoyable for our supporters. As you probably know, we are extending the “Select-a-Seat” program to men’s basketball this season.

Parking at the stadium is another change for this season. It’s really a good news/bad news situation. The good news is that our football team has generated so much excitement that we had more requests for parking spaces than ever before. (We have less than 2,000 surface spaces.) The bad news is that to accommodate the requests, many fans were assigned spots in our parking facility, just across Memorial Drive from the stadium. Some of you have been in the same parking lot for many seasons and were understandably disappointed to be moved. We know that being in the parking garage came as a surprise to many, and for not acknowledging that possibility as tickets were being renewed and purchased, we apologize. It was not our intent to mislead anyone; it is a simple matter of fans requesting many more spaces than they had in the past.

I know that all of this may have changed game-day routines to which many of our fans have come accustomed. I sincerely wish we could have accommodated everyone with uncovered parking spots. Thank you all for your understanding as we work to streamline the process for the future.

As you are also undoubtedly aware, we had some not-so-positive events make news this summer. Rest assured that we continue to work with our coaches and staff to make sure all our student-athletes understand the conduct we expect from them. We want to ensure that the many extraordinary achievements our athletes accomplish on the field and in the classroom are what make us newsworthy.

And, finally, let me reiterate my commitment to the University of Kansas and to you, our loyal fans and friends. I firmly believe we have the best fans and athletics programs anywhere. I will challenge all of you, as I have our coaches, staff and student-athletes, to live up to that standard and show the country every Jayhawk is committed to unparalleled excellence in all we do.

As always, if you have any comments, concerns or questions throughout the year, please do not hesitate to call or e-mail us at kuathletics@ku.edu. I hope you are excited as I am for the upcoming year. I look forward to seeing you at many of our games and to updating you regularly in this way on our progress, changes to our programs and news of our achievements.

Rock Chalk Jayhawk!

Sincerely,

<?xml:namespace prefix=”v” ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml”?>

Lew Perkins

Director of Athletics