Melvin Council Jr. sported a new look for Saturday’s senior day game vs. K-State
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Melvin Council invited coach Bill Self on court; Self obliged with playful barks.
- Council posted 17 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds in KU’s 104-85 win.
- Senior starters played together; KU’s 104 points set Sunflower Showdown record.
Wearing a bright-red headband over his new braided hairstyle, Melvin Council Jr., with microphone in hand, stood at center court surrounded by his Kansas basketball teammates who supported him during his senior day speech Saturday afternoon at Allen Fieldhouse.
The 6-foot-4, 180-pound, 23-year-old Council — he scored 17 points, dished 10 assists and grabbed eight rebounds in the Jayhawks’ 104-85 rout of Kansas State — had the crowd’s full attention in saying he “wanted to thank the whole coaching staff, especially my dad, Bill Self.”
“Coach Self, come here please. Come here coach,” Council added in waving KU’s 23rd-year head coach onto the court to join Council and his 15 teammates.
Self, who strolled onto the playing surface as Council led the “Rock Chalk Jayhawk” chant, said to Council, “You want me to talk?”
“No, bark,” was the answer offered by the St. Bonaventure transfer, known for his motto, “If you’re not a dog, you’re dog food.”
KU’s Hall of Fame coach complied, screeching, “Ruff, ruff ruff,” in a high-pitched voice followed by a more aggressive bark. Council then concluded his 3-minute, 13-second speech by kneeling and kissing the center-court Jayhawk, a fitting end to the speech portion of the afternoon.
Council’s words of wisdom followed those of fellow seniors Gee Ngala (no points), Jayden Dawson, (three points), Tre White (23 points, 11 rebounds), Wilder Evers (five points) and Justin Cross (no points, one rebound).
So how did Council possibly talk Self into barking after the Jayhawks improved to 22-9 overall and 12-6 in Big 12 play? K-State fell to 12-19, 3-15.
“We had a lunch with seven people — me, Tre, DP (Darryn Peterson, 27 points, five rebounds, four assists), B.T. (Bryson Tiller), Elmarko (Jackson) and Jamari (McDowell, as well as Self). The guys were joking around, calling coach my dad and stuff like that. So I asked him, ‘If you are my dad, can you bark for the last home game?’ He said, ‘You want me to do it for real?’ I said, ‘Yeah, yeah.’”
Truth be known, Self would accommodate just about any reasonable request of Rochester, New York native Council, who Self has called one of his favorite players of all time.
“I don’t know. He didn’t convince me of that,” Self scoffed, disputing Council’s explanation in his postgame interview with media members. “You guys heard the first bark I put out there, which reminds me as much of Melvin as the second one.
“But you know what? We all have a friend that you wish you were more like that. They just don’t give a (care) and they just go say or do whatever and live. We all get hung up in political correctness. I know I do as a coach. Isn’t it refreshing to see somebody that, ‘Hey, whatever people think, they think. I just want to go enjoy it and have fun.’ And I think that’s what makes him different, in my opinion.”
Council also explained his wearing a headband for the first time in a game or practice all season.
He said his hair was braided for the first time all year “before the game. I don’t have any hang time (in back) like Tre (who also has braided hair). His doesn’t hang, so I had to cover it up and I went with the headband. And I’m going to start going with the headband,” Council added of wearing it in the postseason.
Self reluctantly agreed to let Council wear the headband.
“I’m not big on guys doing things different than they do in practice every day,” Self said. “But he’s a little bit different, so I wasn’t going to keep him from doing it. But I did tell him he better play his (butt) off.”
Council, who reiterated to media on Saturday that his teammate and friend, freshman guard Peterson, “is Batman. I’m Robin,” explained his decision to bring Peterson and his other teammates out on the court with him for his senior speech.
“(I wanted to do) something special. And you know, I was crying when I saw Tre and the speeches before (mine). And I looked at D.P. like, ‘You’ve got to come out there with me.’ He said, ‘You really want me to?’ I said, ‘Yes.’ I did it with them there. Why not do it with them?” Council asked.
Council, who met the media after the game with teammates Peterson and White, had the two Jayhawks laughing when he told media he appreciated everything about KU including “two extra things, the showers and the hot tub (in KU locker room area).”
Asked if he was serious, Council said: “Yeah. The showers here are tall. Wagner and St. Bonaventure (two of his previous stops), those showers weren’t tall.”
Regular starters Council and White started the Sunflower Showdown with fellow seniors Dawson, Evers and Cross. Ngala was the first sub.
Dawson, Evers, Cross and Ngala all were on the bench with 16:27 left in the first half, KU up 5-4.
“I thought they did great,” Self said of the senior starters plus sub Ngala. “Wilder got a great wide open look to start the game. Justin Cross got a great offensive rebound and I think he walked right after that. I actually thought they did fantastic. And to be honest with you, I was a little nervous. That was kind of a makeshift lineup out there, but I thought they did great.”
The seniors all returned to the game in the late going, thanks to the lopsided score. KU’s 104 points were most scored by any team in the long history of the Sunflower Showdown. KU had scored 103 points in a 103-68 win over KSU in the 2001-02 season.
“Crazy. It was amazing. We’ve got the best fans in the country,” Council said after KU’s 43rd straight win on senior day. “I mean it was good, but shoutout to Kansas State. We just had to get this win to get back in the Big 12 talk, double bye (for Big 12 tournament) and all that stuff.”
This story was originally published March 7, 2026 at 6:52 PM.
