Kansas Jayhawks basketball is more than a sports legacy—it is the origin, the tradition, and the heartbeat of college basketball. From James Naismith and Phog Allen to Wilt Chamberlain, Danny Manning, and Bill Self, the story of Kansas basketball captures the spirit of March Madness, the power of the Rock Chalk chant, and the enduring influence of a true blueblood dynasty. Rock Chalk: Kansas Basketball and the Making of a Tradition is a sweeping cultural history of the Kansas Jayhawks, Allen Fieldhouse, and the chant that has defined college basketball for over a century. From James Naismith’s arrival in Lawrence and Phog Allen’s scientific approach to coaching, to the dynasties shaped by Wilt Chamberlain, Danny Manning, and Bill Self, the book captures the full scope of Kansas basketball’s legacy. This is not only the victories and championships; it is the story of how one program became the heart of March Madness, the blueblood tradition, and continuity in American sport. At its center lies the Rock Chalk chant, a sound born from the Kansas landscape and carried across oceans by alumni, soldiers, and fans. More than a cheer, it is a liturgy of memory, a communal inheritance that binds generations of Jayhawks. To walk into Allen Fieldhouse is to feel that chant rise like thunder and whisper like prairie grass, an echo that connects the living game to its past. In this cathedral of college basketball, every banner, every whistle, every voice carries weight. For Kansans, the chant is not entertainment; it is identity. For rivals, it is an omen. For the wider basketball world, it is proof that tradition cannot be manufactured, only lived. The narrative moves through eras of triumph and heartbreak, showing how Kansas basketball has endured wars, depressions, and cultural upheavals while remaining a constant in American life. Naismith’s moral emphasis, Allen’s scientific rigor, Roy Williams’s near misses, and Bill Self’s era of consistency all unfold as part of a single inheritance. The book explores rivalries with Missouri and Kansas State, confrontations that carried echoes of the Civil War and neighborly competition alike. It revisits the agony of 1957, the miracle of 1988, the shot of 2008, and the redemption of 2022, each moment etched into the collective memory of fans who treat the game as ritual. The reach of Kansas extends far beyond Lawrence. Through its coaching tree, the program seeded traditions at Kentucky, North Carolina, and beyond, shaping the very language of college basketball. Through its players, from Chamberlain’s dominance to Pierce’s NBA superstardom, the crimson and blue traveled into professional arenas and global consciousness. Through its rituals, Kansas became a diaspora, with Jayhawks gathering in bars, airports, and distant cities to chant together, proving that belonging travels wherever the game is played. In this way, Kansas became both intensely local and unmistakably universal—the soil of basketball and its global echo. Bill Johns tells this story with a literary historian’s eye, blending biography, cultural analysis, and narrative precision. He captures the paradox of Kansas tradition—victories that matter, defeats that linger, and continuity that outlasts both. He situates Kansas among its blueblood peers—Kentucky, North Carolina, Duke—while insisting on the singular claim that only Lawrence houses the grave of the game’s inventor and the cathedral where its chant endures. For readers seeking more than box scores, this book offers a story of sound and space, of ritual and memory, of how a program came to embody the heart of basketball. Rock Chalk: Kansas Basketball and the Making of a Tradition is a definitive history for fans, alumni, and anyone who believes that sport is never only about winning. Step inside Allen Fieldhouse, listen to the chant, and discover why Kansas basketball is not just a team, but a tradition that will always rise.