NelSaskan Pfe
Wednesday, November 30,1988
Fake winners
get recognized
Picture yourself dolled up in
Sunday duds, eating an under
sized, overpriced scrap of beef.
Sound like a banquet? It’s
the mythical College Football
Awards Banquet, featuring rec
ognition for dubious distinction
and outstanding achievement
And the winners are...
Hayden Fry. The coach of
our wretched neighbors to the
East wins the “Fit to be Tied”
Award.
Three times this year, Fry
and the Hawkeyes seized tie
from the jaws of victory and
defeat
If tying is like kissin’ your
sis, then three tics is like puck
ering up for Phyllis Diller’s
luscious lips.
Tics slink—whether they’re
knit tics, silk lies or tics that
cripple a college football game.
Knute Rocknc never said,
“Tic one for the Gippcr.” And
L.A. Raiders’ owner Al Davis
never says, “Just tic, baby.”
But rest assured, Fry has
hushed critics by prov ing that he
can tic the big one.
The “Rags to Riches” Award
goes to Lawrence (some call
him Larry) Pete and Willie
(some call him Bill) Griffin.
Both have been targets of
name-calling. Pete was first
called lazy. And when he tem
porarily checked in his pads, he
was called a quitter.
Griffin has been called over
weight, a regular all-you-can
eal lor $4.95 Duffel kind of guy.
But against Oklahoma on
Nov. 19, the 580-pound duo was
simply outstanding, combining
for 13 unassisted slops.
It was fitting that Okla
homa’s last flicker of hope was
doused with a sack by the lik
able twosome. ‘The Larry and
Bill” show was tops.
The “Grasping the Obvious”
Award goes to Barry Switzer,
coach of the Oklahoma Soon
ers.
After watching a game
plagued by spiumg skies and
chilling temps, Switzer said
Nebraska would need more
titan seven points to beat Miami
in the Orange Bowl.
No foolin’ Barry? Never
would 1 have thunk it. And for
what’s it worth, the Soooers
will need more than three points
to beat Clemson in the Florida
Citrus Bowl.
The “Hard Luck” Award
goes to the Colorado Buffa
loes.
Colorado finished 8-3, but
lost two games — to Nebraska
and Oklahoma — by a total of
10 points.
Thai’s good football. The
Buffs have athletes and a moti
vator. All they need is a follow
ing that will help them lure the
bowl bids they deserve.
The “Unsung Heroes”
Award is to be divided between
Lorenzo Hicks and Kent
Wells.
Both went into the Okla
homa game without recogni
tion. If they were actors, they
could have co-starred in
“Nobody’s All-Americans.”
See THOMAS onlo
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Nebraska center Rich King, a 7-foot-2 sophomore from Omaha, posts up Creighton’s Chad
Gallagher during Saturday s 86-77 Cornhusker win against the Bluejays last Saturday night at
the Bob Devaney Sports Center. King scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds in tne 23
minutes he played.
King to copy his OU namesake
By Jeff Apel
Senior Reporter
There are two routes Nebraska
center Rich King could take in his
quest for the National Basketball
Association, but he would Sooner
take one than the other.
King said he wants to fulfill a
short-lived dream and cam a spot on
an NBA roster by following in the
footsteps of Oklahoma center Stacey
King. Stacey King overcame aca
demic problems as a freshman and a
mediocre sophomore season to cam
pre-season All-America honors.
Rich King said his namesake’s
story is an inspiration. He said it
shows that anyone can accomplish
what they want if they work hard.
“It’s a good role model,” King
said. “It shows if you work hard and
push yourself, the possibilities are
unlimited.”
King said the key to Stacey King’s
improvement was a dedicated work
ethic in the off season. He said Stacey
King worked hard between his sopho
more and junior seasons, when his
scoring average jumped from seven
to 22.3 points per game.
King said he hopes the work he
completed last summer pays off in
similar fashion. He said he spent
countless hours in the weight room to
add bulk to his 7-foot-2, 235-pound
frame and also worked on his inside
game.
King said his devotion already is
paying immediate dividends. He
came off the bench Saturday to score
10 points in Nebraska’s season-open
ing, 86-77 victory against Creighton
in Lincoln and also averaged 20.3
points and 8.4 rebounds during the
Comhuskers eight-game trip to Aus
tralia last spring.
“I’ve got a lot of conf idence now
when I step on the floor,” King said. “I
know I’m a good player.”
King said the source of his confi
dence is his off-season devotion and
his freshman season. He said he
learned not to be intimidated during
his first season at Nebraska, when he
made the Big Eight’s all-freshman
team by averaging 4.7 points and 2.9
rebounds per game.
King said there is no comparison
between his altitude as a freshman
and his present attitude.
‘‘It’s a big difference. All I’m
worried about now is stepping out on
ihe floor,” he said. “I know all the
unknowns.”
King said he has trouble evaluat
ing his freshman season because he
did not know what to expect of him
self. He said he thought he was doing
all right while he was in the midst of
his first season at Nebraska, but now
realizes his freshman year was
plagued by inconsistency.
King wants to use the inconsistent
play and the subsequent lough times
he encountered last season to his
advantage.
“I think it helps everyone to be
down on their luck once in a while,”
he said. “The key is using those tough
limes to your advantage. I want to use
my first year to my advantage.”
King said he accepts his role this
season as a backup to junior center
Richard van Poelgeest. He said he has
an advantage coming off the bench
because he can see what type of de
fense and what type of center oppos
ing team’s possess.
King and van Poelgeest said the
competition between themselves and
redshirl freshman Kelly Lively
makes Nebraska a better team.
Van Poelgeest said he is ready to
face anyone after battling King in
practice.
“He’s got a big body,” van Poel
geest said. “Every lime a guy faces
someone 7-foot-2, it makes it seem
easier when they face someone else.”
Nebraska basketball coach Danny
Nee said van Poelgeest has used his
experience to edge King for the start
ing center job. He said King should
not be satisfied with his backup role.
“I don’t want him to be,” Nee said.
“I think everyone should work to be a
starter.”
King said that not having a starting
role will not detour him from fulfill
ing his dream of playing in the NBA.
He said he began dreaming about
professional basketball when he was a
6-3 post player in 8th grade. The
dream became even greater when he
grew from 6-8 to 7-1 between his
sophomore and junior seasons at
Omaha Burke High School, he said.
King said he has never had a prob
lem with coordination. He said the
main obstacle he has encountered
throughout his career has been with
strength.
“It just takes me longer to gain
strength than other people,” King
said.
Nee gears up
for glamour game
By Mark Derowitsch
Senior Reporter
Nebraska coach Danny Nee may
hope all Comhusker basketball oppo
nents are successful, but that doesn’t
mean he’ll be cheering for Michigan
State Wednesday.
The reason for not wanting Michi
gan State to do well this week is
obvious — the Spartans play Ne
braska at the Bob Devaney Sports
Center. Tip-off for the game is set for
7:35 p.m.
“Games like this arc the glamour
games on our schedule,” Nee said.
“And then when you get down to the
end of the year, people look at who
you played and what the scores were
and who you beat.
“I want Creighton (which the
Huskers downed 86-77 Saturday at
the Sports Center) to win 30 games.
After the outcome of Michigan Stale,
you want them to be successful as
possible because that pushes up your
power rating.”
Nee said that’s the reason Ne
braska plays “name” teams.
“That’s the whole idea of booking
the game with Michigan State,” he
said.
Ncc said he wants his team to play
well whether it wins or not.
“I feel (the Spartans) got a program
that’s on the upswing,” Nee said.
“They’ve done a lot of recruiting. 1
know they’re hurt without (Mike)
Peplowski, a big 6-foot-ll kid. We
really need to take care of our side of
the ball. I can’t look at them and pick
on something.”
Ncc said the Huskers, 1-0, must
stop two Spartans, guard Steve Smith
and center Matt Steigenga, to win the
game.
Smith, a 6-6 junior scored 22
points, while Steigenga added 15 as
the Spartans crushed Furman 98-68 in
their season-opener Monday night in
East Lansing, Mich.
“Matt Steigenga is one of the top
freshmen in the country,” Nee said.
“And Smith is really a big lime guard.
He’ll remind you a lilde bit of (Los
Angeles Lakers guard) Magic
Johnson.”
Nee said Nebraska must also
worry about the Spartans’ offense.
Michigan State averaged almost 70
points per game last season in posting
a 10-18 record.
“They really arc offensive
minded,” he said. “They get up and
down the floor and play multiple
defenses. It should be a good game.
“I know (Michigan State coach)
Jud Hcathcotc and coming in from the
Big Ten, they’re going to be an ath
letic team with good athletes — very
rugged.”
But Nee said the Huskers are ca
pable of playing good defense, espe
cially guard Eric Johnson.
Johnson, a 6-2 senior from
Brooklyn, N.Y., scored 31 points
against Creighton.
“I think he really gels underrated
about his defense,” Nee said. “I think
he’s a big-time defensive stopper. I
think he gets on people with his long
arms.”
NOTES:
• A special four-game ticket pack
age during the semester break isavail
able for the Nebraska men’s basket
ball games. The package, which costs
$22, includes floor seating for games
Dec. 23 against Drake, Jan. 5 vs. Sam
Houston State, Jan. 9 against Okla
homa and Jan. 12 against Northern
Illinois.
• Hcathcotc, who has a 197-149
record in 12 years as coach of Michi
gan State, led the Spartans to a na
tional championship in 1978 in a
game against Indiana State that first
featured the Magic Johnson-Lam
Bird matchup.
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