LARNED — IF IT AIN’T ROCKET SCIENCE, how come Wildcats head coach Bill Snyder and the Kansas State football coaches can’t decide on a quarterback?
Or at least figure out which quarterback to play at specific times?
Playing Daniel Sams in certain passing situations has cost the Wildcats two critical interceptions, and thus, two losses. Playing Jake Waters at the beginning of games when the ’Cats are most likely to want to run the football seems somehow misguided. I’ve got no problems with playing two quarterbacks, but the timing seems way off.
IF IT AIN’T ROCKET SCIENCE, how come Chiefs head coach Romeo Crennel and the rest of his Kansas City coaching staff of the past couple of years couldn’t see that a conservative game plan and an attacking defense added to no turnovers could make the Chiefs more productive? I know Andy Reid is a good coach but this ain’t rocket science!
IF IT AIN’T ROCKET SCIENCE, well, maybe it is. For Jayhawks head men’s basketball coach Bill Self to keep everyone happy on this Kansas roster may just require some rocket science! He’s got more talent than Dancing With The Stars and somebody is going to be unhappy. Like jilted lovers, some of them aren’t going to hang around!
IF IT AIN’T ROCKET SCIENCE, why hasn’t Longhorns head coach Mack Brown and his Texas football team beaten the Oklahoma Sooners more regularly? He’s always had an edge in the talent pool. Did he need a “chip on his shoulder” to get the edge back? Nothing like the threat of losing one’s job to get one to dig in.
IF IT AIN’T ROCKET SCIENCE, how come Major League Baseball doesn’t use state-of-the–art electronics for calling balls and strikes? One only has to view a little of the playoffs to realize that these umps aren’t getting any better at knowing a ball from a strike! Do they require these guys to actually read the rule book? Letters to the knees, gentlemen.
IF IT AIN’T ROCKET SCIENCE, how come we can’t have a true collegiate playoff in football? We’ve now morphed from a popularity contest (polls) to a four-team playoff. (Think popularity polls again in selecting the four teams even if Condoleeza Rice is on the committee).
IF IT AIN’T ROCKET SCIENCE, how come I can’t do a better job of picking winners and losers in these football games. Like I told you, Great Bend would beat Liberal. The rocket fuel got in my eyes in the Kansas State-Baylor, Larned-Hoisington and Kansas City-Oakland picks.

CHALK TALK — Speaking of picking winners and losers, here’s an easy one: Oklahoma over Kansas 42-15 ... As we said in August, the Oct. 18 date with Hays is the key game for the Great Bend Panthers. Comparative scores tell us nothing other than that the Western Athletic Conference is crazy this year. Most “experts” are picking Hays. Let’s go with the Panthers in an upset! ... Larned moves from the frying pan into the fire this week as Ulysses comes calling for the first district game. Hoisington ran the ball on the Indians. Ulysses runs it better. Ulysses 36-13 ... Kansas State has a bye this week. Hopefully that will give the coaches a chance to formulate some kind of an offensive identity for this football team. That problem doesn’t exist for the KU coaching staff. Their offense has an identity: WEAK! ... Former golfing great Lee Trevino, who was once struck by lightning while playing a round, on how other golfers might avoid a similar fate, “Hold up a one-iron and walk. Even God can’t hit a one-iron!”

Charles Tabler is a contributing writer from Larned