Jug Of News (05.28.12)

Welcome to our humble abode. Pull up a seat and grab a glass for a sip from today’s Jug of News. Hit the jump to learn how you can connect with JOS in different ways, a prize recruit picking K-State, Petra making us proud, and much more.

First, some business to discuss. We’ve been excited how quickly our presence on Twitter has exploded. Also, the response to our series of articles on conference expansion has been so amazing that we’ve created a special page to house them, for easier access. Alas, however, our presence on Facebook has not seen commensurate growth. You can remedy that by “liking” us there, and then sharing the page with all your friends.

On to the good stuff. Big news broke on Friday, regarding former Florida State LB Jeff Luc. Apparently, he has decided to come play for KSU, even though we currently do not have a scholarship available. I’m guessing that one of our local recruits will be asked to “take one for the team” and walk on for one season, with the promise of a scholarship for the 2013-14 school year.

Continuing on the football front, Sophomore offensive lineman B.J. Finney was named to the spring watchlist for the Rimington Trophy. He is one of only 50 linemen in the country so-honored.

Kellis Robinett has a great story on the deep bond between K-State athletics teams (particularly the football team) and the soldiers of Fort Riley. It’s well worth a read.

In Big 12 football news, TCU is looking less and less like a threat to win the Big 12 in their inaugural season. Head coach Gary Patterson–a native of Rozel, Kansas, and a K-State alum–announced the departure of star RB Ed Wesley from the program, citing “family reasons.” Given the drug scandal that rocked the TCU program (and the entire university) earlier this year, and the resulting attrition experienced by the football team, I can’t see how TCU finishes in the top four of the conference next season.

One minor story relating to conference expansion to share: Gene Sapakoff of the Post and Courier wrote a great column explaining how Clemson and FSU basically have little choice but to accept, should the Big 12 offer them a slot. As this blog reported quite some time ago, back channel discussions have been underway for awhile. This is a fait accompli, folks. Currently, the only question remaining is whether Notre Dame will join for all non-football sports, to get the Big 12 to 12.5 members. Teaser: we may have a story on that very issue dropping quite soon. Keep checking our “Conference Expansion” page to keep track of the Big 12 expansion issue.

Finally, Petra Niedermayerova capped off a brilliant season last Friday, making an appearance in the round of 16 at the NCAA’s national singles tournament. This was the first appearance by a K-Stater since 1998. Named an ITA All-American, Petra will finish the season ranked in the Top 25 of the ITA’s singles rankings.