My thanks to Mike for Mauling the Daily Mauling for me while i mauled my vacation.

The Rock Chalkboard

Liam Jones, Jacob Borcila remain 'dead even' in KU's kicker competition | KUsports.com
With less than two week until the season opener, the Jayhawks have yet to settle on a starting kicker. Similar to the signal caller competition, the battle to be KU’s kicker is between two players.

KU volleyball tops Wichita State in exhibition play | KUsports.com
The Kansas volleyball team earned a 3-2 victory over Wichita State inside Wichita's Koch Arena in the Jayhawks’ lone exhibition match of the 2019 season on Saturday.

'Years of hard work' pay off for KU D-lineman and former walk-on Sam Burt | KUsports.com
“But then once I unrolled it, reading the paper and just seeing the paper, years of hard work felt acknowledged,” said Burt, who found out in that unusual manner that he would be receiving a scholarship. “It made me feel like I was being recognized for the things that I did and the things that I did mattered.”

A look at Thomas MacVittie's role in KU's offensive rebuild
At the team’s media day on Friday, Miles said MacVittie and senior Carter Stanley were in a “close” race to be the starter. Miles also identified Manny Miles and Torry Locklin as distant options. Over the past eight months, offensive coordinator Les Koenning has worked with MacVittie and the rest of the quarterbacks to build an offense that can be successful in one of the most high-scoring conferences in college football.

Sam Burt scholarship reveal special to Les Miles, Kwahn Drake
Last Wednesday, the KU football team surprised Sam Burt, junior defensive tackle, with a scholarship. The reveal, captured on video by KU football, led to a team celebration where players swarmed the 6-4, 293-pound Burt and congratulated him on the news.

KU's David McCormack recalls tough workouts with Andrea Hudy
"Dave needs to work on mobility — create tension and hold the tension — because right now he’s kind of getting knocked around a little bit because he gets knocked off balance," Hudy told Phog.net. “I think after having conversations with Dave he feels as though he’s getting better, but we do have a lot more to work with for sure.”

Bits O Chalk

Sources -- Howard OK'd to talk with Lakers, others
The Memphis Grizzlies have granted Dwight Howard's representatives permission to speak with other teams that might be interested in the veteran center, league sources told ESPN.

Bears, Browns attracting most Super Bowl bets
"It's been kind of overwhelming, the support [for the Bears]," said Alan Berg, the senior oddsmaker for Caesars Sportsbook. "Every time the Bears go to the playoffs, the following year, the money just pours in. Everybody gets optimistic."

Braves' Acuna pulled after not running out single
Acuna, an All-Star outfielder for the NL East leaders, was pulled before the fifth inning after failing to run out a drive off the right field wall in the third. The ball bounced off the wall for a long single. Acuna likely would have had an easy double if he had hustled from home plate.

Raiders GM - Time for AB to be 'all-in, or all-out'
"You all know that AB is not here today, right?" Mayock told a group of beat reporters as practice began Sunday afternoon. "So, here's the bottom line: He's upset about the helmet issue. We have supported that, we appreciate that. But at this point, we've pretty much exhausted all avenues of relief.

Jets' Gase blames self for Williamson's torn ACL
New York Jets coach Adam Gase took the blame for Avery Williamson's season-ending knee injury, second-guessing his decision of playing the starting linebacker for as long as he did Thursday night against the Atlanta Falcons.

Eraser Dust

No Joke: Trump Really Does Want To Buy Greenland : NPR
"It's just something we've talked about," he said. "Denmark essentially owns it. We're very good allies with Denmark. We've protected Denmark like we protect large portions of the world, so the concept came up."

Drug bust: Nearly 4 tons of marijuana found in shipment of jalapeño peppers in San Diego - CBS News
Officials say they seized $2.3 million worth of marijuana mixed in with a shipment of jalapeño peppers at a Southern California port. A Customs and Border Protection K-9 unit alerted officers to a shipment of peppers Thursday at the Otay Mesa cargo facility in San Diego.

Daily Inter Lake - Law Roundup, Woman breaks the bank over man
Kalispell Police Department responded to a call about a woman screaming for help who was allegedly being pushed by a man. The man calimed she jumped in front of his truck trying to keep him from leaving. He alleged she had thrown a piggy bank at him earlier. The woman and their son were purportedly supposed to be “gone from his home.”

Mike Sonko, Nairobi governor, revealed a politician's affair at his funeral, and set up hotline to out deadbeat lawmaker dads - CNN
The governor of Nairobi has ignited an explosive debate amongst Kenyans over the issue of children born out of wedlock to powerful politicians and their lovers

The 1619 Project (PDF)
In August of 1619, a ship appeared on this horizon, near Point Comfort, a coastal port in the British colony of Virginia. It carried more than 20 enslaved Africans, who were sold to the colonists. America was not yet America, but this was the moment it began. No aspect of the country that would be formed here has been untouched by the 250 years of slavery that followed. On the 400th anniversary of this fateful moment, it is finally time to tell our story truthfully.

Song of the Day