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Former Kansas City Chiefs player Jimmy Wilkerson dies at 43; high school honours late assistant coach with teary win

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Former Kansas City Chiefs player Jimmy Wilkerson dies at 43; high school honours late assistant coach with teary win


Former Kansas City Chiefs draft pick and longtime NFL defensive end Jimmy Wilkerson sadly passed away earlier this week on December 13 in Oklahoma City. He was 43 years old.

Longtime NFL player Jimmy Wilkerson, 43, passed away on December 13 in Oklahoma — a day before the final game of his son Maddox’s senior season. (Instagram (maddoxwilkerson45))

Before his unfortunate demise, Wilkerson was employed as an assistant coach at Carl Albert High School. According to The Oklahoman, the Titans were scheduled to have their final practice before the Saturday game. A few hours before the planned schedule, the former OU standout was at home when a call went out to paramedics for an emergency. Wilkerson, however, was reportedly no longer with us before the officials arrived. A heart attack is believed to be the cause of his untimely death.

Also read | Ex-Georgia football player Gleaton Jones, 21, dies after Dec 10 car crash

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More about the NFL star’s pro career. His son is also a football player

Throughout his NFL career, the Oklahoma athlete played with the Kansas City Chiefs from 2003-07. Eventually, he switched over to Tampa Bay for two seasons before joining the New Orleans Saints roster in 2010. His NFL path culminated with Seattle in 2011.

The late assistant coach’s son, senior tight-end Maddox Wilkerson, followed in his father’s footsteps, playing alongside his teammates for Carl Albert. With barely a day elapsed between his dad breathing his last breath and his school’s showdown against Guthrie, the #45 athlete (the same number his dad wore while playing at the collegiate level) still stepped up to the occasion and participated in the crucial match, which ultimately paved the way for a historic victory.

Jimmy Wilkerson’s memory honoured by historic Carl Albert victory

Despite reeling from the older Wilkerson’s death, the Carl Albert team defeated Guthrie 30-6 at the Class 5A state championship football game at the Chad Richison Stadium in Edmond, Oklahoma, on Saturday, December 14. It marked the school’s third consecutive Class 5A title and the program’s 19th overall. Nevertheless, the post-game visuals stung with the abject pain of loss.

With tears in his eyes, Carl Albert coach Mike Dunn praised the student-athletes for rising above the prevailing hardship, saying, “Proud of all of our guys. Different circumstances today. … I don’t know that we’ve ever dealt with adversity like that.”

Maddox’s mother, Jamie, reportedly offered him the option to sit out the game. Yet he did more than show up for the team. “We were trying really hard to get him in” the end zone, Dunn said of the young player. “But he’s made plays all year long, and so I know his dad would be proud of him.”

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He added, “You talk about hard. That kid dealt with a lot. … He’s a great kid, great family and he’s gonna have a bunch of coaches, we’ll never be his dad, but we’ll always be there for him.”

“Everybody earned this…but this one’s going home tonight with Maddox Wilkerson.”

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Maddox Wilkerson’s teammates stand by him

Carl Albert Captain Caden Davis said of the late NFL player, “You can’t replace a guy like Coach Wilkerson. He’s so selfless and gives everything he has to everybody.”

Alluding to the example set by Maddox, he added, “That guy is so tough. Maddox is such a strong guy.”

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Similarly, linebacker and OU signee Marcus James noted, “He came out and handled business like he was supposed to. … It was great for him to come out and be able to take the field and be able to play after a time like that.”

On Friday, the deceased NFL talent’s son paid a tribute to his father on Instagram. “You were the best dad and also my best friend,” he wrote on social media. “I love you so much, Dad. Life won’t ever be the same without you here by my side.”

According to social media receipts, Jimmy Wilkerson is survived by his wife, Jamie, and four kids, Tyson, Maddox, Jax, and Emilia.

On Friday, Maddox Wilkerson honoured his late father by posting a slideshow of their shared memories on Instagram.
On Friday, Maddox Wilkerson honoured his late father by posting a slideshow of their shared memories on Instagram.



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Preseason No. 1 Kansas Blows Another Lead In Baylor Loss

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Preseason No. 1 Kansas Blows Another Lead In Baylor Loss


At halftime Saturday, Kansas looked like the team many envisioned when it was selected first in the Associated Press preseason poll. The Jayhawks led Baylor by 19 points and were seemingly on their way to an easy road victory. But the Bears regrouped and pulled off a stunning 81-70 upset over KU even though they played without starting guard Jeremy Roach and lost star freshman VJ Edgecombe to an injury five minutes into the second half. The loss continued the Jayhawks’ maddening season that began with such high expectations.

“I really didn’t say much,” Kansas coach Bill Self told reporters on what he told his team after the loss. “I don’t think in situations like that there’s really a lot to be said, to be honest with you. Any type of pick ‘em up talk isn’t going to be heard, and there’s no reason to get on anybody, so I didn’t really say much.”

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Who could blame Self, a Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer with 825 career victories? The Jayhawks were up by as many as 21 points, making it the biggest blown lead in program history, which dates to the 1898-99 season. A week earlier, KU guard Dajuan Harris Jr. went to the free throw line with Jayhawks leading Houston by six points with 18 seconds remaining in overtime. But Harris Jr. missed both free throws, Houston made two 3-pointers to send the game to double overtime and the Cougars won, 92-86, completing an improbable comeback.

Kansas (15-6 overall and 6-4 in the Big 12 Conference) is now in a three-way tie for fifth in the conference. The Jayhawks are in no danger of missing the NCAA tournament, but they are sure to fall a few spots from their No. 11 ranking when the AP poll is released Monday afternoon.

“I honestly believe the oranges that we ate at halftime that Baylor provided was probably the reason why we sucked in the second half,” Self said.

Kidding aside, Self is no doubt frustrated with KU’s confounding performances, which are reminiscent of a year ago.

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The Jayhawks entered last season No. 1 in the AP poll and won 12 of their first 13 games. But they were inconsistent the rest of the season and finished 10-8 in the Big 12, tying for fifth. It was their worst conference finish since placing fifth in the 1999-2000 season.

KU lost by 20 points to Cincinnati in its Big 12 tournament opener and by 21 points to Gonzaga in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Kevin McCullar Jr., the Jayhawks’ leading scorer, missed both of those games with an injury.

This season, the Jayhawks won their first seven games, including victories over North Carolina, Michigan State and Duke. They then lost consecutive road games at Creighton by 13 points and at Missouri by nine points in mid-December. Their other losses were by one point to West Virginia on Dec. 31 and by 17 points at Iowa State on Jan. 15, as well as the collapses against Houston and Baylor.

Despite KU’s travails this season, they have a star in 7-foot-1 center Hunter Dickinson, who is averaging 16.4 points and 9.7 rebounds per game and is fourth in analyst Ken Pomeroy’s national Player of the Year standings. They also have two other returning starters in Harris Jr. (9.8 points and 5.9 assists per game) and forward KJ Adams Jr. (8.3 points and 4.7 rebounds per game) and a standout transfer in guard Zeke Mayo, who grew up in the same town as KU and is averaging 15 points and 4.5 rebounds per game in his first season after spending three years at South Dakota State.

The Jayhawks have additional talented players such as freshman forward Flory Bidunga and transfer guards Rylan Griffen (Alabama), AJ Storr (Wisconsin), Shakeel Moore (Mississippi State) and David Coit (Northern Illinois), but they each play less than 20 minutes per game and have been inconsistent.

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Still, the Jayhawks are No. 10 in KenPom’s ratings and the NCAA’s NET rankings, which the NCAA tournament’s selection committee uses in evaluating teams. Houston (No. 3 in both rankings), Iowa State (No. 7 in both rankings) and Texas Tech (No. 8 in the NET and 9 in KenPom) are the Big 12 teams ahead of KU. League foe Arizona is No. 11 in the NET and No. 12 in KenPom.

The Jayhawks return to action on Monday when they host Iowa State, which itself is coming off a surprising 19-point home loss against Kansas State. Asked if he was happy to have another game Monday, Self didn’t hesitate.

“No,” he said. “We’re going to postpone it until Tuesday. It’s a lot easier to play on a short break if you have momentum going into it and energy and all that stuff. We’re going to have to regroup obviously. By Monday, we’ll be happy we’re playing, but certainly that’s a tougher test for us today than it would be for Baylor if they were playing Monday.”

KU has other difficult games coming up, too, including finishing the regular season by hosting Texas Tech on March 1, playing at Houston on March 3 and hosting Arizona on March 8.

KenPom projects KU to win each of its remaining 10 games except at Houston, although four of those victories are expected to be decided by four points or fewer. The Jayhawks still have six weeks until the NCAA tournament field is announced and plenty of time to regroup from Saturday’s loss. They have one of the top college coaches of all-time in Self, as well. But the ways things are going now, advancing deep in the NCAAs seems like a tall task even for such a talented team.

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Demonstrators gathered Saturday in downtown Kansas City over immigration orders

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Demonstrators gathered Saturday in downtown Kansas City over immigration orders


KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Demonstrators lined Grand Boulevard Saturday night in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, chanting “immigrants are welcome here.”

Video by KSHB 41 crews showed demonstrators in front of the T-Mobile Center.

Demonstrators line Grand Boulevard in Kansas City, Missouri

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The section of Grand Boulevard is normally blocked off to vehicular traffic for safety of those enjoying the night at the Power and Light District.

The group says they arrived at 6 p.m. on Saturday evening, and were there for at least four hours.

“We came out just to protest, so our voices can be heard for our parents,” said Anaxin Flores, one of the protest’s organizers. She says her parents are originally from Mexico.

KSHB

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Anaxin says her family is scared, but putting “their faith in God.”

“So whatever happens, you know it’s for a reason,” Anaxin said. “We are doing this for our families, so they can be proud of us.”

Earlier Saturday, protesters gathered at Mill Creek Park off of Kansas City’s County Club Plaza in opposition to a proposed bill in Missourithat would incentivize residents to submit tips for people they believed were living in the country illegally or without permission.





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KU star Harris returning to lineup against Baylor

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KU star Harris returning to lineup against Baylor


Kansas point guard Dajuan Harris Jr. will play at Baylor on Saturday, coach Bill Self told ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

Harris will return to the lineup after his streak of 98 consecutive starts — the seventh longest in school history — was snapped when he missed the No. 11 Jayhawks’ 91-87 win Tuesday over UCF with an ankle injury.

After the victory, Self said the Jayhawks were “just trying to survive” without Harris. UCF nearly handed Kansas back-to-back losses at Allen Fieldhouse for the first time since Roy Williams was in his first season roaming the sideline nearly 36 years ago.

“I think it’s pretty evident how valuable Juan is after watching our ballhandling and getting us into offense and defense,” Self said.

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Harris didn’t play against the Knights after tweaking his ankle in practice.

He has scored 1,078 points with 786 assists, and he needs 19 to pass Jacque Vaughn for No. 2 on the career list behind Aaron Miles.

Harris’ 4,688 minutes played are second only to Danny Manning in school history. And the only player to appear in more games than Harris’ 159 for Kansas is Mitch Lightfoot, who played in 168. Harris could surpass that by the end of the regular season or in the Big 12 or NCAA tournaments.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.



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