page 12
daily nebraskan
Wednesday, September 23, 1981
Sports evolution is professor's manuscript theme
By Cindy Gardner
The evolution of American sports from informal colo
nial folk games to the age of spectator-centered football
Saturdays, is the theme of a manuscript recently com
pleted by UNL History Prof. Benjamin Rader.
Rader's book, American Sports from the Age of Folk
Games to the Age of the Spectator, deals with sports in
terms of social and economic factors. Rader reports that
this is a somewhat new approach.
There's not any book actually like this on the mar
ket," he said. "Interest in sports history from this angle is
relatively new among scholars."
When the book is published next March by Prentice
and Hall of Englewood Cliffs, N.J., it will culminate six
years of work. Rader began the book in 1976 after being
unable to find a satisfactory text for his history of sports
class. -
"Most of the existing literature was of two types,"
Rader said. 'The first type was written by the sportswriter
or athlete. This usually dealt with the dramatic aspect
great performances and biographies. There was no attempt
at interpretation."
The second category Rader mentioned were books writ
ten by physical educators. These books, Rader said, tend
ed to treat sports and physical education together. Neither
approach was what he was looking for.
Rader took two semesters and all his summers off to
research the project. Information about the colonial peri
od was found mostly in legislation, journals and memoirs.
Research on the 19th century was aided by the advent of
newspapers, periodicals and books dealing with sports, Ra
der said.
"Of course, in the 20th century there's the advantage
of having the indexed New York Times. I also went through
every Sports Illustrated since the thing was first published.
I suppose I went through three or four years a day," Ra
der said.
Once people realized Rader was working on the manu
script, they began to come to him with obscure sources.
Rader submitted his first draft to experts in different
areas who told him of even more sources. All of this re
search challenged Radet's own ideas about history.
"The book required an immense amount of reading in
social history as well as in sports. It caused me to rethink
much of what I thought I knew about American history,"
he said.
The book is aimed at a national market, but Rader said
no one knows how well a book like this will sell.
"Much of it," he said, "depends on if we can get a re
view. They say if you get a review in the New York Times,
youH at least break even."
American Sports from the Age of Folk Games to the
Age of the Spectator is Rader's second book. His first
work, The Academic Mind and Reform, was published by
the University of Kentucky Press in 1966.
Rader's current project is illustrated by Daily Nebras
kan Art Director Dave Luebke.
Solich says freshmen to face
team as tough as Ellsworth
By Kevin Warneke
The Nebraska junior varsity football
team hosts Waldorf Junior College Friday
and Coach Frank Solich does not foresee
an easy game.
Solich said although he doesn't know
much about Waldorf, they are big, have
good execution, and, basically, play a lot
like Ellsworth Junior College played.
Solich noted that Waldorf defeated Ells
worth 15 to 12 which is comparable to
Nebraska's 14 to 9 defeat of Ellsworth.
The Husker squad will have two new
starters for this game. Andy Allen will start
in the place of Mike Hager at split end and
Dave Dietz is replacing Todd Frain at tight
end. Stanley Wade and Pat Connor are list
ed as questionable for Friday's game due to
illness or injury.
"We've added new plays, both running
and passing, to get ready for Friday's
game," Solich said. "We're also working
hard on our passing game which has been
below par so far.
Solich said a good performance is need
ed from the quarterbacks, because the
offense is running an option type of attack.
He added that good blocking by the tight
ends and wingbacks will be needed to make
the option work.
Since we don't have that great of speed
and can't rely on the big play, we need to
have good execution and not make any
mental mistakes on offense in order to
win " Solich said. "We also have to be
steadily consistent.
"If we play well all four quarters and
not let up, we should win the game,"
Solich said. "But it won't be a runaway by
any means."
Solich added that right now he doesn't
expect any new freshmen to move up to
the varsity ranks.
Kickoff. time for Friday's game at
Memorial Stadium is 1:30 p.m.
New diamond for spring
UNL Women's Athletic birector June
Davis said she hopes the women's Softball
field behind Mabel Lee hall will be
completed in time for the spring season in
March.
Davis said the new field will mean a lot
to the women's softball program.
"It's going to be wonderful. It's been a
tremendous hardship (playing off-campus).
It's difficult to establish a spectator follow
ing without the proper facilities," she said.
Davis said the field will be "very good."
"Everything has been done with a lot of
research," she said.
UNL officials evaluated the softball
fields at other universities to see which
ones were best.
This field will have proper drainage,
dugouts, batting cages, concession stands,
washrooms, and a storage area. A score
board has also been donated, she said.
In the past, the women's softball team
has played at Ballard and Mahoney fields.
Davis said it has been a problem for the
team. She said she felt since softball was so
popular in Lincoln, more people would
come to the games played at better fields.
"It's right in the middle of campus. 1
envision lots of fans," Davis said.
Grass for the field has been planted and
as soon as it has grown to the acceptable
length the fences will go up, she said.
3TC
, m v ., : ..... - - i
rrri d? 0 ' x rs, its?
eh ' , Jpv- W W7-
;,:;r: rpmmm r;Vsi- f yJ s:i
. i- "'Vi r vt v ,
i ' , - V ; ' iiAiiii
Photo by Kent Morgan Olsen
Scott Strasberger (96), defensive end for the UNL junior varsity, and noseguard Ken
Shead (63) dose in on a Wyoming player in a game played earlier this season. The
Husker junior varsity will be in action again Friday, hosting Waldorf Jr. College.
Cross country coach says Huskers to improve
By Pat Beecham
With only one senior among the top seven runners,
Nebraska's men's cross country team will head into
its season with an inexperienced group, but Assistant
Coach Mark Fluitt is going into the season with an opti
mistic attitude.
"We have a young team," Fluitt said, "but we're
looking better than we have in the past. We're young
Craig receives top honors
Nebraska football I-back Roger Craig was named
national football back of the week by Sports Illus
trated for his performance in the Nebraska -Florida
State game. Craig gained 234 yards in UNL's 34-14
win against the Seminoles. His performance ranks
him third on the Husker all-time charts behind Rick
Berns who picked up 255 yards in the 1978 Missouri
game and I.M. Hipp who gained 254 yards against
Indiana in 1977.
Craig was also named offensive player of the
week by the Big Eight Conference. Defensive end
Tony Felici was Nebraska's nominee for defensive
honors.
and well improve. Right now we still have a little ways
to go, but the guys came back in good shape from the
summer and I think we'll be competitive."
Nebraska went 2-2 in duals last year and finished
third in a triangular meet with Iowa State and Kansas
State. Hie Huskers will also be trying to improve on an
eighth place finish in the conference from last year, a
goal which Fluitt feels is well within reach for the young
team.
"We're young, but we want to win," Fluitt said, "I'd
like to finish in the top four in the conference, which is
very realistic. I'm looking forward to the season."
Fluitt said he has been impressed with the running
of two freshmen and a sophomore in workouts so far.
Freshmen Tom Hoffman and Jerry Guinan, two of the
Huskers' top seven runners, have been looking good,
Fluitt said.
He said sophomore Kirk Woltman, also one of the
Huskers top runners, has been a "welcome surprise."
The Huskers have been working out since the first
week of school trying to build up stamina.,
according to Fluitt.
"We've been doing a lot of distance and road work,
working mainly on volume," he said. "We're trying
to give the guys a base to work from, trying to build up
some endurance."
Part of the reason Fluitt is looking for an improvement
in the Huskers is the experience they have compared to
teams of other years.
"In the past we had a lot of middle distance runners,"
Fluitt said. "Cross country is long distance. Usually if
you're good in the long distances in track, you can be
good in cross country."
Along with Woltman, Hoffman and Guinan, sopho
mores Marc Adam, Dave Cudmore and Mark Gokie, and
senior Ron Mowmaster will make up the Huskers' top
seven runners.
The rest of the squad includes senior Todd Hornung,
sophomore Jeff Fagan and freshmen Matt Joeckel, Mark
Guby, Mark Rooney and Reynold Middleton.
Aitnough Colorado has dominated the Big Eight
cross country for the last four or five years, Fluitt said
Iowa State is the team to beat this year. He said Iowa
State's seven man "foreign continent" made up of runners
from Belgium and Kenya will be tough to beat.
Although Fluitt is optimistic about this year, he said
it is also a year to build on.
"Working with young kids, I guess you could call
it a rebuilding year," Fluitt said. "In a few years, I think
we can be one of the top two teams (in the conference),"
Nebraska will open up its season Saturday, Sept, 26
against Kansas State in Manhattan, Kan.