The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current, September 22, 1988, Page 17, Image 16

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    Sports
Ward WMIama/Dady Nebraskan
Tim Washburn left, and Troy Williams prepare for their
radio-show ‘Two-Minute Warning.’ We want the whole
thing to be spontaneous... like a one-on-one conver
sation,’ Wasnbum said.
Washburn s having some fun
interviewing jocks one-on-one
By Mike Reilley
Senior Editor
Tim Washburn admits he has
never been an overpowering one-on
one basketball player.
But it’s a whole different story
when he’s doing one-on-one inter
views.
Washburn, a junior broadcasting
major from Ashland, plays his favor
ite game of one-on-one every Tues
day night on “Two-Minute Warn
ing,” a radio sports talk show.
The hour-long program premiered
this week on KRNU (90.3 FM).
It starts at 10 p.m., and is aired
during KRNU’s specially program
ming hours.
Washburn spends the first 5Q
minutes of his show doing one-on
one interviews with Nebraska ath
letes and sports personalities. He
encourages listeners to call in with
questions during the interviews. He
was asked four questions, including
one from his aunt, on Tuesday night.
Washburn closes each show with a
10-minute sports commentary with
producer Troy Williams, also a junior
broadcasting major.
“We have some great opportuni
ties with this,” Williams said. “We
don’t write a script. We want the
See WASHBURN on 18
Griffin changes his attitude
during football game days
By Jeff Apel
Senior Reporter
A split personality overtakes
Nebraska defensive tackle Willie
Griffin each time he takes the foot
ball field.
Griffin scraps his friendly, out
going attitude and becomes a very
intense, competitive person each
time a game begins. He said he
prepares for his “360-degrce mood
change” by psyching himself up
mentally several hours before
game time.
“1 try to be pretty intense,” Grif
fin said. “When I’m out on the
field, there’s no laughing and gig
gling”
Griffin said he has been an out
going person ever since his child
hood. He said the only limes he
switches into his intense moods are
when he is playing or when he is
watching a football game on televi
sion and sees a hard hit
“Otherwise, I’m pretty mel
low,” Griffin said.
Nebraska defensive coordinator
Charlie McBride said Griffin’s at
titude makes the 6-foot-3, 285
pound senior a “pleasure to coach.”
He said Griffin is a “care- free guy. ”
“He’s fun to be around,”
McBride said. “He’s not a moody
# person — you can joke with him.”
McBride said Griffin’s easy
going attitude and his willingness
to learn helped him make the tran
sition from tight end to defensive
tackle to middle guard and then
back to defensive tackle.
Griffin played tight end during
his first season at Nebraska in 1984,
but switched to defensive tackle m
the spring of 1987. He moved to
middle guard during the fall of that
same year and then switched back
to defensive tackle last spring.
McBride said weight problems
forced Griffin to play three differ
ent positions in five years. He said
Nebraska coaches planned to leave
Griffin at the tight end position, but
were forced to move him when he
outgrew it
“Willie always has had a weight
problem,” McBride said. “When
he outgrew the tight end spot our
feeling was Ik? could contribute on
defense. To this point, he has been
our most productive lineman.’'
McBride said Griffin’s transi
tion from tight end to defensive
tackle were cased by his accom
plishments in hiah school. Griffin
was named the defensive lineman
of the year by The Los Angeles
Times and Pasadena Star-News
following his senior season at
~ See WILUE on 18
Sun Devils ho]
will melt Husl
By Mark Derowitsch
Senior Reporter
Arizona S late coach Larry Marmie
hopes the Sun Devils have enough of
one thing necessary to defeat a learn
as strong as Nebraska.
Experience.
The Sun Devils have 13 starters
returning from last year's 7-4-1 team,
and that could benefit Arizona State
in Saturday’s game.
“We have some carry over of play
ers,’' Marmie said during his weekly
press luncheon. “It’s not like we’re
jumping into something this program
has never done before. We have a
measuring stick and hopefully the
experience will be a big factor for us.”
Arizona Stale comes into the game
with a 2-0 record after posting victo
ries over Illinois and Colorado Slate.
Marmie said the team is exactly
where he expected them to be at this
point in the season.
“We’re 2-0 and that’s what our
coaching staff was hoping we’d be
going into the Nebraska game, unde
feated with some momentum,”
rviarmie saia. we need to play nara
each week regardless of who we play
in order for us to win. With Nebraska,
we have to step it up a notch on both
sides of the ball.”
Last year, the Comhuskers left
Tempe, Ariz., with a 35-28 win over
the Sun Devils. Marmie, in his first
year as coach after succeeding John
Cooper, said last year’s game will aid
his team.
“In some instances last year, we
felt we were in the right defense and
(Nebraska quarterback Steve Taylor)
made exceptional plays,” he said.
‘‘We played well enough to win, but
we just didn’t stop them when we had
to.
Taylor rushed for 122 yards and
passed for another 69 yards to lead
Nebraska against the Sun Devils.
But Marmie said Arizona State has
an explosive quarterback of its own in
Daniel Ford.
Ford started 10 games for the Sun
Devils last season and completed 128
of 257 passed for 1,756 yards. Ford, a
6-foot-2 senior from Tulsa, Okla.,
threw for 272 yards against Air Force
in the Freedom Bowl.
Against Nebraska, Ford com
pleted 15 of 34 passes for 200 yards,
including a 2-yard, 3rd-quarter touch
pe experience
ter strength
down strike to split end Chns Garrett.
But Ford also threw three intercep
tions against the Huskers.
So far this season. Ford has com
pleted 32 of 49 passes for 386 yards
and three touchdowns. He’s averag
ing 12.1 yards per completion and 193
yards per game.
Ford, who threw for more than
3.200 yards in high school, went to
Minnesota in 1984, where he played
in eight games for the Gophers. He
transferred to Arizona State in 1985.
After a redshirt season, lie was the Sun
Devils’ back-up in 1986, when Ari
zona State was the Pacific Ten Con
ference champions.
At tailback, a pair of sophomores
lead the Sun Devils rushing attack.
David Winsley, a 5-5 junior, has
rushed for a team-leading 54 yards in
Arizona State’s first two games. He’s
averaging 8.6 yards per play of total
offense, and lias scored one touch
down.
Last year, Winsley gained 232
yards and averaged 4.6 yards per
carry.
Vic Cahoon is listed ahead of
Winsley on the depth chart going into
the game against Nebraska.
Cahoon has rushed 27 times for 84
yards this season. But Cahoon is
averaging 72.5 yards of total offense
a game for the Sun Devils.
On defense, the Sun Devils return
only one starter on the line. Saute
Sapolu, a defensive end, is back after
tallying 36 tackles last season. He’s
recorded two tackles so far this sea
son.
The linebackers are inexperi
enced, but sophomore Drew Metcalf
and junior Mark Tingstad lead the
team in tackles with 27 and 23, re
spectively.
In the secondary, devil back
Nathan LaDuke was named The
Sporting News 1987 Freshman De
fensive Back of the Year. LaDuke has
recorded 12 tackles this season and
also intercepted a pass.
---,
5oug barroN/DaUy N*bri»
Nebraska defensive tackle Willie Griffin pursues Utah State
Quarterback Brent Snyder during the Cornhuskers’ 63-13 win
against the Aggies in Memorial Stadium Sept. 3.