LAWRENCE | A number of conclusions can be made when you look at Kerry Meier on his way to class Wednesday morning.</p><p>His blonde, shaggy hair gives him the appearance of a surfer dude, which isn&#8217;t really far off. Meier is laid-back, a product of his quiet upbringing in Pittsburg, Kan., and if he picked up a board, he would undoubtedly win a surfing competition within six months.</p><p>His necklace, adorned with the traditionally African color combination of green, red and yellow, screams free spirit. Meier has been known to play the bongo drums, and he lives off-campus with two friends from high school who don&#8217;t talk about football and help him relax by playing the guitar during the evenings.</p><p>But to stop there in the evaluation of Meier, Kansas&#8217; best wide receiver and second-best quarterback, would really be missing the point. Lower your eyes to his black T-shirt, see the four faces of the Beatles and the message above them: &#8220;Let It Be.&#8221; Hear his story, of heartache, of disappointment, of making something out of what was starting to look like nothing, and you&#8217;ll know why Kerry Meier had to have this shirt.</p><p>&#8220;I liked it because &#8230; let it be &#8230; it&#8217;s how you approach life,&#8221; Meier says. &#8220;Just let things be how they are. That&#8217;s just like I treat life and playing football.&#8221;</p><p>Meier has learned to live this way through his own experiences at KU and by watching the career of his brother, Dylan, at Kansas State. The brothers were supposed to be the unquestioned starters at the rival programs, but it didn&#8217;t happen for either one. Things have very rarely worked out as Kerry had planned at KU, so Meier has stopped planning.</p><p>&#8220;I just enjoy being relaxed and taking life easy,&#8221; Meier says, &#8220;letting life come to me instead of attacking life and being an uptight person.&#8221;</p><p>Meier could never have planned what is happening to him this fall. Despite practicing most of the time at quarterback, he is third nationally in receptions per game with 8.8. In the process, Meier has discovered that he was born with hands that would make most professional wide receivers jealous.</p><p>Meier, of course, acts as if it&#8217;s no big deal that he is on pace for triple-digit receptions as a novice receiver. Hey, he says, just focus on the ball and watch it all the way from the catch to the tuck.</p><p>It&#8217;s not too different from Meier&#8217;s philosophy on life these days: Receive each day with an open mind.</p><p>&#8220;Approaching the year,&#8221; Meier says, &#8220;I had goals in mind, but I was ready for whatever. Up to now, it&#8217;s still not what I imagined. But this is the most fun I&#8217;ve ever had in my entire life playing football.&#8221;</p><p>&#8226; &#8226; &#8226;</p><p>Dennis Meier wants to explain how different this fall is from the ones where he was watching one or two of his sons play quarterback.</p><p>At the South Florida game this year &#8212; a crushing 37-34 defeat for KU &#8212; Dennis was seated closely to Steve and Debi Reesing when Todd Reesing threw the interception that led to the Bulls&#8217; game-winning field goal.</p><p>&#8220;Todd played such a tremendous game there,&#8221; Dennis says. &#8220;Just one errant throw, and everything sinks. And I knew exactly how Steve felt. I told him, &#8216;God, you feel so bad for your children because they&#8217;re trying to make something happen and nothing&#8217;s ever perfect.&#8217; &#8221;</p><p>Dennis and Valerie, Kerry&#8217;s mother, lived with that stress from the moment Dylan started playing quarterback. Until this year. They don&#8217;t miss it, particularly Valerie, who takes everything to heart.