Biere earns top tight end spot

True freshman Tim Biere this week replaced sophomore Bradley Dedeaux as Kansas' No. 1 tight end, Kansas University offensive coordinator Ed Warinner said.

Biere, one of three tight ends in the Jayhawks' most recent recruiting class, impressed coach Mark Mangino during preseason workouts, and eventually passed both Dedeaux and quarterback-turned-tight-end A.J. Steward on the depth chart.

"Tim's doing well," Mangino said. "He'll get playing time this week, and he has a lot of ability. He's young, but ... he's got good football aptitude, he has good feel out there on the field for a freshman."

Starting RB for South Florida game unclear

Mangino, who said earlier in the week that Jocques Crawford and Angus Quigley would battle for the role of the Jayhawks' primary running back this season, offered little insight into the situation heading into Friday's game.

Asked which back had performed better in this week's practice, Mangino said, "It's hard on the practice field to separate yourself. You separate yourself on the game field; that's where that takes place."

Thorson eligible to play for Jayhawks

Transfer center Brad Thorson has been ruled eligible to play for Kansas this season and competed on special teams in the Jayhawks' 29-0 victory over visiting Louisiana Tech last weekend.

Thorson, a 6-foot-3, 290-pound sophomore who was reportedly asked to leave the University of Wisconsin last spring following an incident in which a teammate was sidelined with a knee injury, was the Badgers' No. 2 center before transferring to Kansas this season.