Fambrough and fans show support for team

Don Fambrough's still a coach at heart. Sure, he's 86-years-old and hasn't been the head man at Kansas in over 25 years, but when he watched Kansas go through drills last week in preparation for Texas, he knew something was wrong.

"I came to practice and I thought I was at a funeral or something," Fambrough said. "Kids out there thought that everybody deserted them and nobody cared anything about them."

Just days earlier the athletic department had started an investigation on head coach Mark Mangino about his behavior towards his players. Fambrough has been at almost every practice since Mangino became the head coach in 2002. He said he has not witnessed the abuse claims that others have brought forward. No, Fambrough's anger is directed at the athletic department for starting an investigation before the end of the season.

"I'll tell you [the players] have been down in the dumps with all this commotion going on with what they started up on the hill," Fambrough said. "Anybody with any damn knowledge of football would tell everybody, 'If you got something to gripe about or are upset about, come see me after the season. Not with two games left.' That is the dumbest damn thing I have ever heard of and I don't give a damn who hears me say that."

So the day after Kansas' loss to Texas, Fambrough sprang into action.

"He showed up on my office on Sunday and he hasn't been in my office on a Sunday in eight years," Mangino said. "He opened the door and peaked in there and said, 'I got to tell you something, I am going to have some fans out here, I think they will come out, you don't mind if they look on at practice.'"

Mangino gave his approval and Fambrough went about trying to get the word out on the impromptu pep rally.

At the time, Mangino only thought a handful of people would come out. When he walked out of the gate on Wednesday night though, he saw an estimated crowd of about 200 cheering fans lined up on both sides along the walkway connecting the stadium to the football facility.

"It's the night before a holiday," Mangino said. "People are with their families and it is a little chilly out here and dark. So no, I didn't think this many people would come out here. I am surprised -a pleasant surprise."

Players high-fived fans and a few stopped to give away their gloves to the kids in attendance. Mangino went down the line of people and tried to shake everybody's hand. Safety Phillip Strozier didn't even know the event was planned before practice started.

"We just saw people lining up outside the gates so I didn't know what was going on," Strozier said. "It is something we need as a team to get a win on Saturday."

Several former players showed up as well to show support for their coach. One was Dan Coke, who played safety and running back for Kansas from 2000 to 2003. He now works as a minister in the area, and remembers the support Mangino showed him after his playing career.

"I don't know a great deal about all the allegations but my experience with coach is that I think he really does care about his players," Coke said. "I have a ton of stories that justifies that belief."

One of those stories happened several summers ago. Coke was organizing a mission trip to South Africa. He called Mangino asking for financial support. He remembers the enthusiasm in Mangino's voice. Mangino told Coke how much he respected former South African president Nelson Mandela, and how maybe Coke could one day influence people in the same way.

"That encouraged the heck out of me," Coke said.

One of the fans there was Marsha Hesany. She has fond memories of coming to the games with her father back in the 1960's. She remembers crying after Kansas lost the 1969 Orange Bowl. Hesany lives in Arizona now, and this Saturday's game will be the first time she has seen the team play in 15 years. She wanted to come out to the stadium on Wednesday to show support for Mangino.

"I love Mark Mangino," Hesany said. "He has brought football back to like it was when I was little."

In the end, Fambrough was one of the last people to leave. Earlier as the players walked off the field, several approached him and told him how much the fans being there meant to the guys on the team.

"The fans were here just to let the team know that they have their support and we are going to go down and kick the hell out of Missouri," Fambrough said. "I don't care if we play them at Arrowhead or on the moon or wherever, I guarantee that this football team is ready to play."