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Rodgers'
future
v.
by Gary Seacrest
Johnny Rodgers' future as a Nebraska football player
remains in doubt after the Ail-American flanker was arrested
on an open charge Saturday night and freed on $150 bond.
Cass County Att. James F. Begley said Rodgers, 20-year
old UNL junior, was under investigation for possession of
marijuana. The county attorney said a decision would be made
Thursday, when Rodgers is scheduled to appear in Cass
County court in Plattsmouth, on whatever, if any, charge will
be filed.
Rodgers said Tuesday that if he is convicted he probably
wouldn't play next season. But the football star maintains he
is innocent of any wrongdoing and said, "They have no
evidence to charge me with possession of marijuana."
In a prepared statement Head Coach Bob Devaney said,
"We plan no action in regard to Johnny Rodgers at this time
because the matter still rests with the civil authorities and the
courts. Any statement or action on our part at this time would
be premature."
Last June, Rodgers was placed on a two-year probation
after pleading guilty to larceny from a person. After court
probation was announced, Devaney decided to let Rodgers
play during the 1971 season. However, the Husker coach put
Rodgers on a two-year probation as a football participant
Begley said Rodgers was arrested about 6 p.m. Saturday by
the Nebraska State Patrol on Interstate 80 near Greenwood.
The county attorney said Rodgers was a passenger in a car
driven by another man, who was identified as John H.Grant,
20, of Omaha. The car was stopped by the patrol for an
alleged speeding violation.
The county attorney said he was awaiting a state laboratory
report on the "type and quantity of substance" found in the
car.
Rodgers has not participated in spring practice this year
while recovering from surgery on his thumb.
R & I rocketeers will
nob nifty new nets
the endless hours spent by UNL tennis buffs waiting for an
open tennis court will soon be a thing of the past.
Sixteen new tennis courts, located south of the
Harper-Schramm-Smith dormitory complex and east of the
Cather-Pound complex, are expected to be completed and
ready for play in three weeks, according to University officials.
The 16 new courts, along with the six present courts
south of the Men's Physical Education Building, will give
students a total of 22 tennis courts to choose from.
This week workers are surfacing the Harper-Schramm-Smith
tennis courts and next week, if good weather continues, will
begin surfacing the Cather-Pound courts.
An artificial putting green, located south of
Harper-Schramm-Smith, is expected to be ready by the start of
the first summer session. New handball courts, located across
from Cather-Pound, are completed and are ready for student
use.
The new sports facilities are part of a $328,994 recreation
project, which has been financed by student fres and revenue
bonds for residence hall construction earmarked for recreation
facilities.
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Norm Platte Junior College
sprint standout Karl Webb has
signed a national letter of
intent to attend UNL.
Webb, a triple gold medal
winner in the 1970 Nebraska
state high school meet, was
national junior college 220
champion last season. In the
national junior college finals
last year, he won the 220 in
:21.4, placed third in the 100
(:9.6) and finished fifth in the
triple jump (46-9).
Kansas scored a 6-3 tennis
victory over Nebraska Monday
on the UNL courts.
The Husker tennis
players take a 6-6 season
record to the Air Force
Academy for a dual Friday,
then travel to Boulder for a
triangular on Saturday with
New Mexico and Colorado.
The Nebraska crew's
eight-man boat finished fourth
Saturday in the Springfield
(III.) Invitational Collegiate
Rowing Regatta.
"This was one of our better
races," said Peter Zandbergen,
UNL crew member. "It was a
surprise that we defeated two
crews-Minnesota and Notre
Dame-that have a tradition of
fine oarsmen."
Fairbury's Tom Siegal is one
of the latest high school
football players to. sign a
national letter of intent to
attend UNL.
The 6-2, 205-pound Siegal
has been a football, basketball
and track standout at Fairbury.
As of Tuesday 41 athletes had
signed football letters of intent
to play for the Huskers.
UNL's women's Softball
team will play two home games
this week on the field behind
the Women's Physical
Education Building.
The Nebraska women host
Concordia Wednesday at 5
p.m. and Kearney Thursday at
4:30 p.m. The UNL team also
travels to Kearney for an 11
a.m. game Saturday.
The Nebraska soccer club
beat Io wa State 4-3 Sunday in
Boulder, Colo., to capture
seventh place in the Big Eight
soccer club tournament.
Colorado beat Kansas 4-1 to
win first place in the
tournament.
The UNL hockey dub will
meet for the last time this year
Wednesday at 7 pjn. in the
Nebraska Union.
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More tennis courts on the way . . .workmen surface the new tennis courts
south of Harper-Schramm-Smith dormitory complex.
Gymnasts end
season, prepare
for next year
The 1971-72 gymnastics season is over, but
the work goes on for coach Francis Allen's
Cornhuskers.
That goes double for NCAA qualifiers
Hoppy Batten and Larry Evertnann. Batten, a
two-event Big Eight champion, and Evermann,
who finished third for the second stra'ght year
on the pommel horse at the recent Big Eight
meet, are working four to five days a
week standard practice in a sport which
requires tremendous concentration and physical
conditioning.
Batten had the best season for a Husker
gymnast in years. He averaged 9.0 (10 is
perfect) in floor exercise, 8.97 in vaulting and
9.2 on the high bar; won Big Eight titles in the
high bar and vaulting events; and just missed
the national finals finishing seventh in vaulting
and eighth on the high bar.
"I was satisfied with my routines at the
nationals," Batten said of his performances at
THE DAILY NEB RASKAN
the April meet at Iowa State. "I did the best I
could like I had all year, but I missed by
two-tenths of a point in both events. That's a
close range, but still a wide range in that
competition."
Batten, a Lincoln junior, said going to the
NCAA meet was a tremendous experience. "I
saw the best gymnasts in the nation and I
learned a lot from watching them. I'm looking
forward to Berkeley (site of next year's meet),
I'll tell you that. All my events will be just as
tough next year, but I hope to win or finish in
the top three in both events (high bar and
vaulting) next year."
Evermann, who finished 10th on the
pommel horse in the recent NCAA meet, said his
second trip to the nationals was about like the
first except that he was a lot more confident.
"It (the NCAA meet) was the big one. of
course, but I still knew what I had to do." he
said. "I didn't place like I'd have liked to have,
but the competition was fantastic."
The junior from Lincoln averaged 8.48 on
the season, but anticipates scoring in the low
9$ next year. His goal for next year: "Nothing
less than first in the Big Eight."
Summing up the 1971-1972 season,
Allen said he was very impressed with the way
the Huskers worked. "Out of all the states,
Nebraska has one of the poorest high school
gymnastics programs," he said. "The fact that
these guys can come from that kind of system
and do as well as they have tells me something
about how hard they've worked."
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 26, 1972
PAGE 16
