Football

Ginn making strides

DAVIE, Fla. -- Twice Ted Ginn Jr. left the New York Jets stumbling and lunging, grasping at and gasping for air.

With moves like that, maybe he can shake his reputation yet.

Ginn scored on consecutive kickoff returns of 100 and 101 yards, an unprecedented feat that took a total of 31 seconds. He's that fast. His many detractors might call him the fastest draft bust in Miami Dolphins history.

"He takes a lot of flak," teammate Justin Smiley said. "He deserves more respect than he gets."

Dolphins fans began booing Ginn the day he was drafted in 2007, and they've yet to stop. But he won at least a temporary reprieve last week when he helped Miami beat the Jets 30-25.

Ginn became the first player to have two scores of 100 yards or more in the same game, and the first in 42 years to have two touchdown returns in the same quarter. He had 299 yards on kickoff returns, second-highest total in NFL history.

"Wasn't that marvelous?" offensive coordinator Dan Henning said. "There can be no better human story than what happened last week around here and what Teddy was able to come up with. For him to do that is a great story."

Give Ginn credit for resisting any temptation to tell his critics, "Nyah, nyah, nyah."

Basketball

Kansas the team to beat

LAWRENCE, Kan. -- Kansas, as you may have heard, is loaded, the best team in the country.

Deep, talented, full of current and future stars, the Jayhawks have the kind of team that would make it tough for the best player at some schools to crack the bench.

Just don't hand over the national championship trophy. Not yet.

For all the preseason hype, including predictions of a second title in three years, top-ranked Kansas still has to actually go out and do it. The Jayhawks, like everyone else, have their share of questions on everything from maturity to chemistry -- enough to keep those reservations to Indianapolis on hold.

Senior Sherron Collins is one of the most dynamic players in college basketball, a bulldog of a guard with a knack for getting to the rim. Cole Aldrich is arguably the nation's best true center, a shot-blocking rebounder who can take over games scoring or without even taking a shot.

They'll be complemented by a talented returning cast, with the top nine scorers back from a team that reached the NCAA's round of 16.

The recruiting class is probably the best Bill Self has had in six years in Lawrence. It's headed by Xavier Henry, who could be the first one-and-done player in Kansas history, and also includes his brother, C.J., speedy point guard Elijah Johnson and 6-foot-10 forward Thomas Robinson.

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