Jayhawks’ Big 12 mastery a marvel
LAWRENCE, Kan. — There are few better than Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown to put into perspective the streak of conference championships put together by Kansas, one that could stretch to 13 in a row with a victory over TCU tonight.
Brown coached the Jayhawks for five years in the mid- 1980s, leading them to the national title in 1988. And he gave current Kansas Coach Bill Self his big break as an assistant in 1985.
Before his arrival in Lawrence, Brown spent two years coaching UCLA. It was under his watch the Bruins’ own record streak of 13 consecutive conference titles ended in 1980.
“What Bill has done is beyond belief to me,” Brown said. “And it’s just amazing, when you wear that jersey, what it means to these kids.”
The Kansas streak is hard to put into perspective because it has few comparisons.
The two most recent schools to come close have been UNLV, which had a 10year run snapped in 1992, and Gonzaga, which won 11 consecutive from 2001- 2011. But the Runnin’ Rebels played in the Big West in a far different era, while the Bulldogs have dominated the West Coast Conference.
Neither league would be confused for the Big 12, either in talent or depth.
Maybe a better barometer is the ACC, where North Carolina’s best streak has been six consecutive and Duke’s best run has been five. But the Blue Devils haven’t won a regular- season title since 2010, and the Tar Heels have managed only seven since the Jayhawks began their run. The best streak in the Big Ten was Ohio State’s five consecutive in the 1960s.
Part of what makes Kansas’ streak so incredible is that sustained excellence is harder today than ever before, and certainly harder than when UCLA was riding its streak.
In those days, schools had more scholarships at their disposal, so they could sock away talented young players to replenish each year. There were also no one- and- dones, so those players typically were
part of three or four championship teams before finishing their careers.
These days, someone like Andrew Wiggins might be part of one team before chasing NBA riches.
“It’s like being at North Carolina and UCLA, which I was so fortunate to be at,” Brown said, “in that every time they play a game, it’s the biggest game of the year.”
Some try to minimize the streak by arguing Kansas has managed just one national title, in 2008, and one other Final Four trip during the run. They point out that the Big 12 tends to flame out during the NCAA Tournament, although Oklahoma made a Final Four run just last year.
Still, the Big 12 has been first or second in conference RPI four consecutive years.
All of which leaves some people scratching their heads and asking, “Why hasn’t one of the most remarkable streaks in college sports received more recognition?”
“I don’t know,” Kansas Athletic Director Sheahon Zenger said. “Maybe we have such information overload in our society today, from politics to world finances and economics to athletics of all kind, so sometimes we in the Midwest keep our candle under a bush a little too much. And maybe the folks on the coasts don’t hear about it as much as they should.”