Mark Mangino talked about focusing on the task at hand, keeping it simple and sawing wood, reciting something of a lullaby for Kansas fans worried that the 2008 Jayhawks would need to order new helmets for inflated heads after a 12-1 season.</p><p>Mangino may have reaped many benefits from a football season previously thought impossible in Lawrence &#8212; a $2.3 million contract extension among them &#8212; but he at least sounded like the same master motivator on Tuesday at Big 12 media days.</p><p>For the second season in a row, Mangino will point to his team&#8217;s schedule for motivation. In 2007, the Jayhawks rallied against criticism that they were feasting on cupcakes to move up in the polls. In 2008, with Big 12 South powers Oklahoma, Texas and Texas Tech back on the slate, they have the schedule to launch themselves into the national spotlight for good.</p><p>&#8220;We want to be able to play against all the best teams in our league,&#8221; Mangino said. &#8220;And be able to beat them. That&#8217;s the test for our program. We will never truly get over the hump in my eyes until we&#8217;re able to defeat those teams as well.&#8221;</p><p>The best teachers are always coming up with new tests for their pupils, and Mangino has issued a big one to his Jayhawks, who could have grown fat and happy after beating Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl.</p><p>KU gets Texas Tech and Texas at Memorial Stadium and travels to Oklahoma. The Jayhawks are 0-6 against those three schools under Mangino, but haven&#8217;t played them since 2005.</p><p>&#8220;It forces us not to be complacent,&#8221; KU safety Darrell Stuckey said, &#8220;seeing our schedule changed so much. Anytime you have a team where they go 12-1 and play the same exact teams the next year, you could see them becoming complacent. &#8216;Oh, we beat them last year.&#8217; Seeing our schedule in the South has changed, it gives us new goals, a new challenge, opens our eyes and makes us see we still have a lot further to go.&#8221;</p><p>The Jayhawks didn&#8217;t have much further to go last season. They were one win over Missouri away from being ranked No. 1 and playing for a berth in the BCS championship game.</p><p>But the sting of losing two first-team All-Americans (cornerback Aqib Talib and left tackle Anthony Collins), a second-team All-American (defensive tackle James McClinton) and three productive seniors on offense (running back Brandon McAnderson, wide receiver Marcus Henry and tight end Derek Fine) has tempered expectations a bit.</p><p>Weirdly enough, the Jayhawks don&#8217;t view their current situation much differently from last July, when Mangino was on the hot seat and quarterback Todd Reesing had never started a game.</p><p>&#8220;Last year, we weren&#8217;t sure what we were going to do,&#8221; KU linebacker Mike Rivera said. &#8220;We knew we were a good team, we knew we were really competitive, but we didn&#8217;t expect to go 12-1. I think we&#8217;re in the same boat this year.&#8221;</p><p>Surely, the boat has gotten a little bigger.</p><p>&#8220;I think now we have a lot of confidence in ourselves,&#8221; Reesing said. &#8220;Not that we lacked confidence before, but we really expect to be on the big stage now.&#8221;</p><p>To get there in 2008, the Jayhawks won&#8217;t get many free passes. They travel to South Florida for a Friday night, prime-time clash on Sept. 12 and also play at Nebraska to go along with the trip to Norman, Okla.</p><p>&#8220;Expectations are very high for our program in Lawrence, in the state of Kansas and around the country,&#8221; Mangino said. &#8220;We&#8217;re extremely excited about that. We embrace those expectations.&#8221;</p><p>KU jumped out to an 11-0 record in 2007, rolling off four Big 12 road wins.</p><p>&#8220;We talk about the schedule,&#8221; Mangino said. &#8220;Yes, it is tougher. Everybody talked about last year&#8217;s schedule. And just think for a minute that Kansas&#8217; football coach has been asked about his 2007 schedule not being tough enough in a year where they defeated Nebraska, Texas A&amp;M, Colorado and Virginia Tech.</p><p>&#8220;Times have changed, haven&#8217;t they?&#8221;