Jayhawks top receiver is reluctant, resilient

Even now, even after the accolades and the Sports Illustrated cover and the unlikely emergence as one of the Big 12's top receivers, Kerry Meier sometimes lets his mind drift to a single pass thrown 17 months ago.

It was a Saturday morning in August, one of the final days of practice leading up to the University of Kansas football team's 2007 season, and Meier was locked in a quarterback battle with sophomore Todd Reesing. Meier was leading a drive during a scrimmage, a receiver broke free, and there was an opportunity to provide coaches one more reason why he was the right choice to lead Kansas.

The pass didn't go where it was supposed to. Overthrown.

A year and a half later, Meier still thinks about that pass. Maybe, he admits, it had nothing to do with his subsequent demotion from starting quarterback of the Kansas Jayhawks and unlikely rebirth as something else altogether.

But maybe it did.

A family of athletes

The home in which Meier grew up, in the small Kansas town of Pittsburg, was less "traditional household" than breeding ground for athletic prowess. Meier's oldest brother, Shad, would go on to star at Kansas State and later catch passes for the NFL's Tennessee Titans. Dylan started at quarterback for Kansas State and later played professionally overseas, and Adam played defensive back at Pittsburg State.

So when Meier developed into one of the nation's top-ranked prep quarterbacks, it didn't really surprise too many in Pittsburg. When he started and helped the Jayhawks to a 6-6 record as a redshirt freshman, that wasn't too big a shock, either.

And entering his sophomore season in 2007, there was no reason to believe he wouldn't be back under center.

When Kansas coach Mark Mangino called Meier into his office late in '07 training camp and informed him Reesing would be the team's quarterback, it caught the incumbent off guard.

"It was definitely tough," Meier said. "Growing up, I was always on the field, I was always playing, I was always starting.''

Catching his break

A couple of weeks into the 2007 season, as Meier was adjusting to his role as a backup, offensive coordinator Ed Warinner approached him about trying a few plays at receiver.

It struck Meier as an offer made out of pity, but the chance to take the field was much-appreciated -- never mind that he'd never once played receiver.

His indoctrination into the position began with a few trick plays here and there, a few snaps during games.

Coaches began to realize they had talent at their disposal, and Meier recorded his first multicatch game against Baylor in the team's sixth game and his first touchdown reception three games later against Nebraska. And following Kansas' 45-7 defeat of Iowa State, a victory that propelled the Jayhawks to 11-0 and into the national title picture, it was Meier who was splashed across the cover of Sports Illustrated, above the headline "Dream Season."

He burst from the gates in '08, catching at least seven passes in each of the team's first six games and becoming a fan favorite, a living, breathing symbol of Mangino's much-referenced "team-before-player" ideals.

"It's kind of tough to put it," Meier said, "but maybe this is how the man above is laying it out for me."

Ongoing transition

For the most part, he has found peace with his role. This season he spent time ranked among the top three nationally in receptions per game. He ended the year as a Big 12 honorable-mention selection.

More than a few whispers have begun circulating about Meier's ability to play receiver at the next level. Many have looked at his size and his speed and his hands -- especially his hands -- and figured that an NFL team would be crazy not to take a chance on the 6-3, 220-pounder.

"The way he's going," Mangino said, "he's going to make some money someday playing receiver."

And yet, when he is asked if it has all turned out for the best, he hmm's and ahh's his way through a response, not quite able to bring himself to say yes.

"I've definitely grown into liking it," he said. "Almost to a love."

Almost? Even after the Sports Illustrated cover?

He rises from his chair, and before departing for an afternoon practice, where he'll prepare to play what figures to be a large role in Kansas' Dec. 31 Insight Bowl matchup with Minnesota, he smiles.

"It's an ongoing process."