Husker offense played poorly during
crackdown on Rebels, Osborne says
By Jeff A pel
Senior Reporter
There wasn’t a legalized gambling
line on Saturday’s matchup between
Nebraska and the University of Nc
vada-Las Vegas, but Cornhusker
coach Tom Osborne still considered
the game a great risk.
Osborne said he's glad to get by
UNLV because Nebraska got caught
up in media talk during its 48-6 vic
tory against the Rebels at Memorial
Stadium. He said the Huskers let the
media’s pre-season prediction that
UNLV would finish last in the Big
West Conference affect them.
‘ This is so hard. No matter how
conscious you arc as a player you
absorb some of those things,”
Osborne said. ‘‘That happens in foot
ball.”
Osborne said UNLV didn’t get the
respect it deserved entering the con
test. Nevada law prohibits legalized
gambling lines from being set on
games in which schools from within
the state are participating, while local
oddsmakers declined to set a line.
‘i would like to congratulate
UNLV,” Osborne said. “I think
UNLV had a few players that really
came to play.”
Osborne said the hype and penal
ties allowed the Rebels to battle
Nebraska to a 7-0 deficit at the end of
the 1st quarter. The Huskers were
called lor eight penalties for 60 yards.
'We had so many penalties that it
made it really hard to score,”Osborne
said. “Still, wc need lo play better on
offense. I thought our defense played
reasonably well. I didn’t think offen
sively we played very well.’’
Nebraska running back Ken Clark
said the Huskers were disappointed
by their offensive output. He said
Nebraska, which has been outscorcd
48-30 in the 1st quarter this season,
needs to sustain early drives.
7 would like to
congratulate
UNLV. I think UNLV
had a few players
that really came
to play—’
—Osborne
Clark said the Huskers arc confi
dent they can turn the lst-quartcr
woes around. He said the team’s prob
lems can be attributed lo a lack of
concentration.
“I think it’s just a matter of every
body gelling ready lo go,” he said.
“We’ve got to start getting something
out of the 1st quarter.”
Nebraska fullback Tyreese Knox
said the H uskers need to set the tone of
the game early if they are going to turn
around their early scoring problems.
“I think sometimes guys arc stand
ing around lackadaisical,” he said.
“We have to make the game go our
way.”
Nebraska look a 7-0 lead with 2:06
remaining in ihc I si quarter when
Clark capped off a five-play, 44-yard
drive with a 2-yard scoring plunge.
The drive was set up when quarter
back Steve Taylor gained 20 yards on
a draw play and Clark drove to the 2
yard line on an 11-yard run.
The Huskers increased their lead
to 14-0 early in the 2nd quarter when
corncrback Cartier Walker scooped
up a punt blocked by outside line
backer Mike Croel and rambled 34
yards for a touchdown.
Croel said it “felt good” to block
the punt by UNLV’s Tony Rhynes
<*ven though there is danger in per
forming such a task.
“You have to be careful,” Croel
said. “The ball can go too low and hurt
you.”
Walker said he got lucky during
the blocked punt because the ball
bounced right into his hands. He then
outran five defenders to the end /.one.
Walker said the touchdown left
him with a special feeling.
“I fell like a kid in a candy store,”
he said.
Nebraska increased its lead to 20
0 midway through the 2nd quarter
when running back Terry Rodgers
look a pitch from Taylor and raced 20
yards for the end /one. The extra point
by Husker kicker Gregg Barrios was
blocked.
The Huskers then used a pair of
SeeUNLV on U)
Butch Ireland/Daily Nebraskan
Nebraska defensive back Tahaun Lewis battles UNLV wide
receiver Keenan McCardell for a pass in the second half of
the Cornhuskers’ 48-6 win against the Rebels Saturday at
Memorial Stadium. McCardell caught the pass, but offsetting
penalties nullified the catch.
Osborne displeased with 42-point victory
By Nick Hodge
Stall Reporter
A 48-6 victory against the Univer
sity of Nevada-Las Vegas didn’t
please Cornhusker coach Torn
Osborne.
Osborne said Sunday he was not
happy with the overall performance
of the Nebraska offense in the Husk
ers 42-poinl victory against the Reb
els Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
He said the offense did not perform
well even though it played better in
the second half than it did early in the
game.
“I was certainly not pleased with
the first half and probably not pleased
overall offensively,” Osborne said.
Osborne said many offensive
troubles were the results of inade
quate blocking.
“1 think we blocked more poorly in
this game than we have all year,” he
said.
Nebraska rolled up 201 yards of
total offense while taking a 20-0 lead
at halftime. Of those, 119 yards came
from returns, including a 34-yard
touchdown return by cornerback
Cartier Walker on a blocked punt.
Osborne said the high number of
return yards lends to have a negative
impact on the offense’s total yards.
‘‘Usually, when there’s quite a lot
of return yards, it cuts down your total
offense,” he said. “The blocked punt
for a touchdown meant the offense
had one less possession. So in some
ways, the return yardage may have
reflected in a little bit lower total
offense.’’
Osborne said UNLV’s defense
also caused some of Nebraska’s of
fensive problems. He said the Rebels’
defense played well and had better
athletic ability than what it had shown
in previous games.
Osborne said Nebraska’s defense
didn’t play its best game of the season
even though it did play reasonably
well.
The Husker defense limited the
Rebels to 51 yards of total offense in
the second half and benefited from a
fumble rccoveiy by defensive tackle
Willie Griffin at the Rebel 6-yard
line. Husker I-back Ken Clark scored
three plays later to give Nebraska a
28-0 lead.
Osborne said he w as disappointed
because neither the offense nor the
defense appeared ready to play. He
said partol lhc problem was the image
the public and media gave the players
regarding the competition level of
UNLV. The Rebels were picked to
finish last in the Big West Conference
this season.
“In fairness l<> the players, it's very
hard to he real intense when you’ve
been inundated all week w nil the idea
that it won’t be any kind of a game at
all,” Osborne said.
Osborne said he was pleased Nc
Osborne said ihe UNLV coaching
staff should feel good about the Reb
els’ effort.
“When you lose you still feel bad,
but at least you can be proud of the
way you played,” he said.
7 think we blocked more poorly in this
game than we have all year'
—Osborne
. •• '• * ..X' • . •• .. . .. . .>v>
braska won the game despite the
offense’s poor and inconsistent exe
cution, but said he is concerned about
the remainder of the season.
“The good part was that we were a
good enough team to win handily, but
I don’t feel real comfortable about the
future,” Osborne said.
Osborne said some UNLV players
indicated to him after the game that
they played well against the Huskers.
“I think they fell like they had
given a good effort and done all they
could,” he said. “They have some
good athletes.”
Sweep displeases
Coach Wolforth
By Mike Kluck
Staff Reporter
Nebraska’s double-header softball
sweep of the University of Nebraska
at Omaha was a team effort, Corn
husker coach Ron Wolforth said.
The Huskcrs, 7-1, defeated UNO
7-2 and 4-2 Friday night at the Ne
braska Softball Complex, but the
games wentdifferently than Wolforth
wanted.
‘‘We slunk,” Wolforth said. ‘‘If we
would have played a Division I lop 20
team we would have been embar
rassed. .
“I don’t think that I did a good
enough job of preparing them. I think
that is the key. I don’t think I was
lough enough and firm enough on our
preparation and I won't make that
mistake again.”
Wolforth’s statement was echoed
by senior left fielder Jancllc Frcsc.
Frcsc had four hits and five runs bat
ted in during the two games, but
wasn’t happy.
“I myself was definitely not satis
fied with a4-2 win and a 7-2 win over
UNO,” Frese said. “Sure we did some
See SWEEP on 10
Nebraska’s Jill Rishel successfully steals second bsse as UNO’s Lynn Zealand fields the throw Friday at the Nebraska
Softball Complex. The Comhuskers swept a double-header against the Mavericks 7-2 and 4-2.