Gill makes his debut

Kansas coach Turner Gill made his first Big 12 media days appearance as the head man on Wednesday morning, kicking off the final session of interviews in Irving, Texas.

Here are some of the highlights of his 15-minute press conference (more time with Gill and KU players Chris Harris, Brad Thorson and Jake Laptad to come):

* Gill said he did not get caught up in the conference realignment saga.

* Building relationships was the first thing Gill wanted the coaches and players to do. He put out a survey to each player and coach with 8-10 questions that explained who the players were, where they came from and who they were today. He had all of his players talk about the most influential person in their lives to show that they were more alike than maybe they knew. Every team meeting in spring practice, a player or coach stood up and talked about those things. "The biggest thing is, we gotta get to know each other," Gill said.

* Gill said Tom Osborne and John Wooden were some of his personal influences as far as football goes. Osborne was great with relating with people.

* KU guard Trevor Marrongelli would probably be starting at guard if the season started today. Gill likes his approach and work ethic.

* It was a great opportunity for Gill to have a chance to hire offensive coordinator Chuck Long. They had been in contact the last two years, off and on. Gill had asked if Long would want to coach with him at some point, and Long obviously jumped at the KU position when it was open. "I really love what he's all about as a man," Gill said. "I really tried to hire people that had a passion to develop young people. If they didn't have that quality, I wasn't interested in hiring those guys."

* On the QB situation: It's wide-open at this point in time. The leadership is going to be coming from other positions, possibly the offensive line in Brad Thorson and wide receivers in Johnathan Wilson.

* Gill said Kansas-K-State on Thursday night will be exciting for the whole state of Kansas.

* He hasn't spent a whole lot of time thinking about playing Nebraska or Nebraska leaving for the Big Ten. He says probably the day before the game, going on the field, he might have a reflection. "It's really not going to be about me," Gill said.

* Gill was surprised when KU AD Lew Perkins announced his retirement effective Sept. 4, 2011. He said he knew Perkins would retire eventually but not this soon.

* On KU chaos: "I focus on the things I can control. I am passionate about trying to develop young men." Gill said that is what he was put on this earth to do.