The Rock Chalkboard

Track & Field - Jayhawk men crack top-10 of USTFCCCA rankings
For the first time in program history, the Kansas men's track & field squad ranks among the top-10 teams in the nation as the weekly NCAA DI rankings were announced Monday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). The Jayhawks have been ranked no lower than 17th during the 2017 outdoor season and, prior to Monday, peaked at No. 11 on two occasions.

KU basketball announces date for 2021 Late Night in the Phog
KU basketball has officially announced the date for the 2021 iteration of Late Night in the Phog, the men's and women's basketball season tipoff event. This year, Late Night will take place on Friday, Oct. 1, at Allen Fieldhouse.

'Changed my life': Behind Will Boatner's path to Kansas football
Will Boatner knew it was a big deal when he landed his Kansas football PWO opportunity. The 2021 long snapper out of Glenwood School in Alabama didn't quite have the recruitment he was expecting, but it finished with a Power Five opportunity he was more than pleased to accept.

Bits o Chalk

Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert wins 3rd career NBA Defensive Player of Year award
Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert reclaimed the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year award Wednesday night, becoming the fourth player to be named the league's top defender at least three times in his career.

USA Basketball sets plan for Olympic camps in Las Vegas
USA Basketball will open its men's training camp, led by coach Gregg Popovich, in Las Vegas on July 6. The Olympic men's teams from Australia, Nigeria, Argentina and reigning Basketball World Cup champion Spain will also be spending some time in Las Vegas; Argentina will start its training camp there this month.

Bo Schembechler's son says his father knew about University of Michigan doctor's abuse
A son of legendary Michigan football coach Bo Schembechler said he told his father that former team doctor Robert Anderson molested him during a physical exam in the 1960s and that the revered coach ignored the complaint and went out of his way to make sure Anderson kept his role with the team.

Denver Nuggets' Michael Malone on blowout Game 2 loss - 'We quit tonight'
Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone believed his team "quit" in Wednesday night's 123-98 loss to the host Phoenix Suns in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals.

Eraser Dust

Boris and Biden: A diplomatic odd couple faces pressure to define the US-UK relationship - CNNPolitics
Biden rode into the White House last year on a record that spanned nearly 50 years in public service. And while the President ran as an antidote to then-President Donald Trump, Johnson has often been compared to the 45th President for his populist message and often brash comments. The similarities between Trump and Johnson aren't lost on Biden, who on the 2020 campaign trail once called Johnson a "physical and emotional clone" of Trump.

Outside Mississippi's only abortion clinic, a Black activist ensures women are not alone
Asia Brown doesn't expect subtlety from the protesters who congregate outside the Jackson Women's Health Organization, always with the same goal in mind — to stop those heading inside from having abortions.

Which Groups Are Still Dying of Covid in the U.S.? - The New York Times
More than half of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and it’s the remaining unvaccinated population that is driving the lingering deaths, experts say.

Kyrsten Sinema gets her make-or-break moment with Republicans - POLITICO
Throughout Joe Biden's weeks of infrastructure talks with Sen. Shelley Moore Capito about infrastructure, he was also hearing from another bipartisan broker holding her own quiet talks with Republicans: Sen. Kyrsten Sinema.

Wealthy Americans pay less than their fair share of income taxes
“The tax law is not designed for the wage worker,” said Eric Pierre, an Austin, Texas-based certified public accountant and owner at Pierre Accounting.

Is Burger King secretly upselling you?
It all started when Glen Tharp went to order a delicious combo meal from a Houston Burger King. “The girl automatically said, ‘Medium or large?’” Tharp told local news source Click 2 Houston. “So I said, ‘I only want a number 6.’ And she said, ‘medium or large’ with a higher tone.” Of course, Tharp could have just asked for a small—but, as he told Click 2, by failing to mention the small option, Tharp thinks Burger King is “tricking” customers into upsizing their order.