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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 9, 1989)
Kansas State coach down, but not out By Cory Golden Suff Reporter Last Monday, Kansas State’s athletic de partment was marketing videos of its football team's come-from-behind win last week that broke a 30-game winless and 16-game losing streak. Saturday, the team was throttled 58-7 by Nebraska. . „ *’We got whipped every way you can get whipped/ first-year coach Bill Snyder said aftefthe game. Snyder had an explanation as to why the Cqrnhoskess moved the ball without problems, including440 yards of total offense m the first half alone. “The reason Nebraska moved the football as well as diey did - and at will - was number one, Nebraska’s a great offensive football team with great talent, and number two, because wo made &n awful lot of mistakes," Snyder said. Snyder said that while it would take a couple of hours" to explain an die problems Kansas Suue'sdcfense had, it wodki he impor tant for his team to examine the game films anyway. • "I told oar football team just a few minutes ago as much as you’d like to say, ‘Get this one behind you right now. Forget about it, it's ever. It's a bad dream. It's a nightmare,' you still have to ap back and find out why," Snyder said. "Why does it happen?" "We've got to understand what we could have done to prevent some ofthethings that did happen. We made thekind of mistakes that will not only get you beat by Nebraska, but by any ' football team in the United States." Throne thing Snyder arid theWildcats had on their side was r positive attitude. "We're not a good enough team to heat Nebraska, but w^<SdnrtbeKevt that," he said. / "I don't think our players for a moment doubted that we could come up here and win this football game, and to me, that's a real compliment to these kids." Snyder said the team's reaction to the loss could lead die team in only two directions. He said he thought the team would regroup and go OIL *'‘If this is a football team tint truly believes all the things we’ve been talking about-about not giving up, about learning bow to play hard, about not mating mistakes -dien the true test is right here/* Snyder said. Kansas State offensive lineman Chad Faulkner said having inexperienced people, including freshmen, on the field because of injuries also hurt the Wildcats. "Not to make excuses, but we had some people that bed never played against a team of Nebraska's caliber before," Faulkner said. "They kind of came into the same wide-eved like that’s going to happen if he hits me/ and this and that/* Erik Harper, a three-year letterman for Kansas State, was hardly wide-eyed, tail said he didn’t want to take anything away from the Huskers' performance. *’You have to give them a lot of credit They came out and they played ball today,” he said. Michael Smith, one of the heroes of Kansas State’s 20-17 victory over North Texas, sat in the comer answering questions quietly with a face that showed no emotion at alh Smith, who wits chosen as the Big Eight’s offensive Player of the Week after he caught four passes on the game-winning drive for the Wildcats, said he was disappointed not only with his own performance, but with the game in • general. , “We came in here believing we could win/’ Smith said. “Now we have to take this loss and see if we can learn from it.” Promotion makes NU basketball program go to the dogs fluuthe tin will i sales, whicti ffcw cline. Bus, Nee wants the courtskJe area id be anything but lifeless. The purpose is to get students to bark, bite, scratch, snarl, howl ahd growl at “strays” that wander into the Bob Devaney Sports Center - now the home of the Nebraska Pit Bulls. Nee wants opposing teams to come into the sports center tenier fied. Ticket applications for 13 games continue to be sold this week on a first-come, first-served basit, with T sfcirte bearing the “Dead Dog Alley” logo given to thorn who apply. So all you animals oufmere, buy now. Don’t be left out DooH worry, b*ra^f^^iciCr4^Ssof pS giree - printed they have been vac cinates for rabies. As a precautionary measure to protect the opposition’s' players, a system has been set up similar to the one used to combat last spring’s measles outbreak. Lists erf students who have applied for tickets and are not known to be adequately vaccinated will on billboards n hydrants. Free *hr* personal visits throughout the cam-, pus, increasing student awareness of the spirit behind “Dead Deg Alley.” And Nee can promote with confi~. dence. Nebraska has talent this year and should be good. Following last year’s It’s an excuse to get ouL Get crazy. Get rowdy. Get wild. Get a T-fchtrt. Maybe even get some media and/ or national exposure bccau«* nf group’s oddity. So, proud. DonH pass up maybe be on television or be frontpage of the newspaper. “Dead Dm Alley” the Huskers, plus give stuik ing they have a role on the And as for future ginun not make it ajea psychological? Leta ncri'Ski randomly evw ^ - ■_i_._- -_' Nebraska junior varsity quarterback proves his worth in Air Force match Mh went down with a leg injury. “It was JefFs him to go in." Thorell said. “It was a situation where-we were in a hurry-up offense and Jeff is a very capable quarter back." . . Lindquist said fee put all the pres-, suresof a lack of experience behind turn when he entered the game in the third quarter. That strategy paid off. as he completed all seven of his pass attempts while leading a Nebraska rally mat fell Short when the Huskers failed to convert their second on-side kick of the game. Lindquist admitted the loss was disappointing. He said the setback was a result of mental breakdowns in the third quarter, in which Air Force outscored Nebraska 144). “Wc played pretty good, except for the thsrd quarter,’' Lindquist said. * * We had a good fourth quarter, but it was pretty disappointing to almost Lindqui st and Tborcll said Ne bnaka’s rally was fueled by a hurry up offense which confuted the Air Force defense They odd the hurry up offense, which preserves time by not using a huddle, left the Hosker receivers wide open. “The hurry-up offense did hurt Air Force." Thotell said. “They didn’t have time to make defensive changes. SO some of our receivers We open." Lindauift spotted the free receiv er;, as he drilled a 51-yard touch down pass to wmgbock Brian Moore that cut Air Force s advantage to four points with 10 seconds left That play was set ap when Nebraska linebacker Matt Penland recovered an > co-side kick at the Air Force 49. But that was as close as the Husk ers could got. as their ensuiwgdn-shte tvj was recovered by the Falcons’ Dun Johnson. Thorell said time proved to be Nebraska’s biggest enemy. "If we would have had another five minutes,*’ he said, "I think we could have won it" Nebraska had taken a 7-0 lead with 10:55 remaining in the first quarter when Cornwell scored on al yard ran. The Huskers increased their lead when Calliea scored on a 9-yard ran, but Air Force used an 18-yfed touchdown catch from wide receiver Clarence Hopkins, a touclidown by quarterback Rob Perez and a scoring jaunt by lineman Chris Cozzi to take a 24-14 lead early in die third quarter. Cozzi’s touchdown was set up when the Falcons used a trick play that was developed by Nebraska. The play - which is tended the "fum bferuski" - requires the lineman to pick up an intendenai fumble and ramble toward the end zone. The play was used by the Huskers in the 1984 Orange Bowl, when of fensive lineiuan Dean Steinkuhler picked up the loose ball and scored. It also was employed in 1979, when offensive lineman Randy Schle usener ran it against Oklahoma and gained 15 yards. Thorell said the fumbieruski set off a tough set of series for the Ne braska defense. . The play occurred with 2:33 remaining in the first half, and Air Force scored on i pair of drives in the third quarter. Thorell said his team’s defensive problems were the result of break downs. He said Air Force burned Nebraska by having its bnOkfield ran post patterns which gained big chunks of yardage. "That hurt us," Thorell said. Thorell said Nebraska tried to recover from its diird-quwter woes and touchdowns by Hopkins and quarterback Derrick Bapdrs, but ran mb (aftMlmi I I fc-| *a^11 « —■ IB *■» ill ■ NUDrMKE rUnnirsy QCCN 900 WIIKorSOIl ytHOpS III IW CjSai Hwld. out or time. The Huskers used a pair* of touchdown runs by fullbeck Brian Diudavy and Lindquist's peas to Moore to pull within four. Thoifell also said the loss was dis appointing. The setback dropped Nebraska to 1-1-1, while Air race improved to 2-1 1. “It was disappointing in that we were a good enough team to win,’’ , ThuiT.il said, “but we gave up too many big plays defensively. Nebraska's next game is Oct. 20, when the Huakers face lows Central . junior ceUtfe of Fort Dodge, Iowa, cl Memorial Stadium. Thorell and Lindquist said they aren't worried about any type of let* . down against the Tritons. “That game is • long ways off/’ Lindquist said, “so we should be ready/*