_Sports
Big game sparks NU-OU war of words
By Tim Hartmann
Senior Reporter
On Saturday 365 days worth of
questions will be answered in three
hours on the football field.
At 2:30 p.m., 9-0, No. 1-ranked
Nebraska and Oklahoma, 10-0 and
ranked No. 2, will play in Memorial
Stadium. The game will be televised
nationally by CBS.
At stake is the No. 1 ranking in the
country, the Big EightChampionship,
a trip to the Orange Bowl and a victory
in the war of the words.
“It’s kind of been like ever since
that game last year (a 20-17 Oklahoma
victory it’s been 360 days worth of
talking so far,” Oklahoma linebacker
Dante Jones said. “At the end of the
week, the talking is going to stop. It
comes down to whoever plays best.”
On Oklahoma’s bulletin board are
several quotes from Nebraska players,
including this one from quarterback
Steve Taylor: “The flat-out truth is,
Oklahoma can’t play with us. They
arc not good enough. Let me tell you,
it m ight not even be close. And I mean
that.”
Taylor said the quote is accurate.
“I did say that,” Taylor said. “I
don’t regret it. That’s the way I feel. I
don’t want people to take it out of
context and think that I’m being too
arrogant or too cocky, but I feel that
we’re a much better team than Okla
homa is.”
Oklahoma senior halfback Patrick
Collins said Taylor is wrong.
“We know we arc the better team
and so do they,” Collins said.
Nebraska defensive end Broderick
T homas said Oklahoma players arc
threatening Taylor. He sa;d the Soon
ers will pay for that on the field.
“They’re sending death threats to
Steve,” Thomas said. “It’s going to be
fun. We’re going to see who’s a man
and who’s not.”
Other questions to be answered
Saturday include: Can Oklahoma,
which leads the country in total de
fense, stop Nebraska, the nation’s
total offense leader? Can Nebraska,
the second-best team in the nation in
stopping the run, contain Oklahoma’s
wishbone? The Sooners lead the na
tion in rushing with an average of
429.8 yards a game.
Thomas said the Huskers have the
top defense in the country. He said the
only reason the Sooners arc ahead of
them in total defense is because they
have played an easier schedule.
“We’re just waiting on Saturday,
and we’ll show them the best team in
America,” Thomas said.
Oklahoma will be without starting
quarterback Jamelle Holieway, who
tore the anterior cruciate ligament in
his knee. Fullback Lydell Carr is
doubtful for the game because of a
knee strain.
Nebraska coach Tom Osborne said
the most important question Saturday
might be how Holicway’s replace
ment, freshman Charles Thompson,
performs.
Thompson has rushed for 605
yards on 105 carries this season. He
also has completed 11 of 28 passes for
207 yards and seven touchdowns.
Nebraska wingback Dana Brinson
is questionable because of a back
spasm. Husker defensive tackle Neil
Smith has been slowed by a sprained
ankle, but is expected to play.
Osborne said Oklahoma is a pow
erful team. He said he was impressed
by the Sooners’ defense, which has
given up an average of 7.5 points and
205.4 total yards per game.
“You’ve got to be somewhat con
cerned about moving the ball,"
Osborne said. “1 think that will be a
big factor in the ball game— whether
or not we’re able to crack their dc
fen sc at all.”
Oklahoma coach Barry Switzer
sai Nebraska, which has averaged
43.0 points per game this season, is
also an excellent team.
“It is a typical Tom Osborne
coached team,” Switzer said. “Steve
Taylor has had a great season, and his
ability to throw makes the running
game even more dangerous. Defen
sively they may be faster than in the
past, and they arc, as always, a physi
cal, dominating unit. I think whoever
wins the fourth quarter will probably
win the game.”
Switzer said his team is looking
forward to the game, which has been
dubbed “The Game of the Century
II.” The original “Game of the Cen
tury” was a 35-31 Nebraska victory
over Oklahoma in 1971.
“I think we all look forward to
being a part of a game like this,
Switzer said. “That’s why our players
come to Oklahoma.”
Husker quarterback recalls 71 game;
predicts Nebraska victory over OU
By Mark Derowitsch
Senior Reporter
It was hailed as “The Game of the
Century.” On Thanksgiving Day,
1971, No. 1-ranked Nebraska de
feated No. 2-ranked Oklahoma 35
31 to gi vc the Cornhuskersan Orange
Bowl berth.
Then-Ncbraska quarterback Jerry
Tagge led the Huskers to the victory
by engineering a
74-yard drive late
in 1 he fourth quarter
• at Owen Field in
Norman, Okla.
Tagge said his
first memory of the
Ncbraska-Okla
homa game is a Tagge
first-quarter punt return by Johnny
Rodgers. Rodgers gave the Huskers a
7-0 lead when he returned a punt 72
yards for a touchdown.
“It was the beginning of the game
and it was an exciting play,” Tagge
said.
Tagge, now sales manager at
Business Interiors and Design, Inc.,
in Omaha, said Nebraska was a fast
starting team.
“We came out very cold,” Tagge
said. “But that day, we just kept
getting better as the game pro
gressed. By the fourth quarter, our
confidence was very strong.”
The Sooners rallied to a 31-28
lead with 7:10 left in the game. But
Nebraska running back Jeff Kinney
capped what proved to be the game’s
wmningdrivc when he scored on a2
yard run w ith 1:38 remaining.
Tagge said the Huskers had been
confident of their chances of beating
Oklahoma.
“It was a big game, but we thought
we had the talent to win,”Tagge said.
“In a game of that magnitude, where
the game’s played at is thrown out.”
The win gave Nebraska the right
to face Alabama in the 1972 Orange
Bowl. Tagge said the Huskers did not
lake Alabama lightly.
“At that point in lime, we had one
more thing to prove,” Tagge said.
“But we didn’t think Alabama w'asas
strong as Oklahoma was.”
Tagge said he remembers the
media hype surrounding the Okla
homa game.
“It’s come to a point where Ne
braska-Oklahoma is the game,”
Tagge said. “The total preparation is:
‘Can we beat Oklahoma?’
“When we started out, it wasn’t
bad. But it got bigger and bigger.”
But the hype was fun, he said,
because “The Game of the Century”
ended in the Huskers’ first national
championship.
Tagge said the 1987 Nebraska
Okluhoma game is similar to 1971 ’s
because the teams arc ranked No. 1
and 2.
“It kind of matches it stride for
stride,” Tagge said. “It was set up so
perfectly, but the injuries to (Sooner
fullback Lydell) Carr and (quarter
back Janiclle) Holieway has taken
some of the sting out of it. But this
game is for the national champion
ship.”
Tagge said it’s hard to compare
this year’s team with the one in 1971.
“During our time, we were a very
good team,” Tagge said. “We had a
lot of'weapons on offense. But the
ability of the athletes now is differ
ent.”
Tagge said he thinks the Huskers
will defeat Oklahoma 35-15 Satur
day.
Thomas says he knows who will win
By Tim Hartmann
Senior Reporter
Since Tom Osborne became Ne
braska football coach in 1973, Okla
homa has defeated the Cornhuskers
11 of 15 times the two teams have
played.
Eight of the games in the series
have been decided by a touchdown or
less, with Oklahoma winning five of
those contests. They include:
• In 1979 Nebraska led the Soon
ers 7-3 at halftime, but ended up
losing 17-14.
• In 1980 Nebraska was ahead 17
14 in the fourth quarter, but lost 21-17
when Buster Rhymes scored on a 1
yard touchdown run with 56 seconds
left.
• Last season the Huskcrs were
ahead 17-7 in the fourth quarter, but
ended up losing when Oklahoma
scored three times in the final 11
- minutes to win 20-17.
It might seem Oklahoma has a
magical hold on Nebraska, but defen
sivc end Broderick Thomas said
there will be no fourth-quarter hero
ics by Oklahoma this year.
The No. 1 -ranked Huskcrs will
face No. 2-rankcd Oklahoma in a
nationally televised game Saturday
at 2:30 p.m. at Memorial Stadium.
“Houdini is not around in our
house,” Thomas said. “There’s not
going to be any fourth-quarter magic
around here next week.
“We’re going to take care of busi
ness.”
Nebraska enters the game as a
four-point favorite, but Thomas said
there is “no comparison” between the
two teams.
Thomas said Oklahoma is good,
but Nebraska is a step beyond that.
The Huskers have the best defense in
'Houdini is not
around in our house.
There's not going to
be any fourth-quar
ter magic around
here next week.
We're going to take
care of business.'
—Thomas
the country along with a potent of
fense, he said.
Thomas has played in two Okla
homa-Nebraska games, and the
Huskers lost both. The Sooners de
feated Nebraska 20-17 last season
when Tim Lasher kicked a 31-yard
field goal with six seconds remain
mg. Oklahoma defeated the Huskers
27-7 in 1985.
Thomas said he plans to end
Oklahoma’s winning streak this sea
son.
“I don’t think about losing be
cause it’s not going to happen,”
Thomas said. “You only think about
those things when it’s a possibility.”
Oklahoma embarrassed Nebraska
the last two seasons, Thomas said,
and that has caused him to focus on
this game. He said he has been so
anxious to play the Sooncrs that he
could barely cat this week.
Thomas said he is looking forward
to facing Oklahoma All-America
tight end Keith Jackson.
Jackson said earlier this week that
Thomas has a “big mouth” and
should “shut up.” He also said he
blocks tougher defensive ends in
practice.
“I really think he meant that as a
joke," Thomas said. “He doesn’t
really mean that. 1 think he’d rather
go against two of his defensive ends
rather than go against me.
“He’ll be here Saturday,and we’ll
sec who does the shutting up.”
Thomas has 54 tackles this sea
son, w hich is second on the team to
linebacker Steve Porch’s 58. Thomas
also has five quarterback sacks, two
See THOMAS on 7
wDrasKa s Keie Manning oatties Czechoslovakia s Jan
Svoboda, as Jeff Rekewegand Vlastimll Havlik look on.
Nebraska lost the exhibition game 69-66.
Czechs victory spoiled
as cash, clothes taken
By Kent Endacott
Stiff Reporter
Thieves broke into the Czecho
slovakia Nationals’ locker room
while the team was defeating the
Nebraska basketball team 69-66
Thursday night in an exhibition
game at the Bob Devancy Sports
Center.
Lt. Ken Cauble of the Univer
sity of Ncbraska-Lincoln Police
said two warm-up suits,a warm-up
jacket and an estimated $200 in
cash were stolen.
The game was also marred its
Nebraska struggled from the field
by hitting 25 of 77 shots.
Nebraska basketball coach
Danny Nee said he was disap
pointed with his team’s play.
“We’re raw material right now
and it’s gonna take a while to blend
them together,” Nee said.
Czech coach Pavel Petcra said
the Huskers were the worst U.S.
college team he has faced in his 10
leam American tour.
“They play very tough on de
fense,” Pctera said. “Offensively,
they arc the poorest because they
have no outside shooting and only
an inside game. It is very hard for
a team like that to play against a
zone defense when they only go
inside.”
“These kids have the ability,
but to put the chemistry together is
difficult,” Nee said. “We’re just an
inexperienced basketball team.”
Peter Manning led both teams
with 19 points and eight rebounds.
