Player gets high marks on field, in class
By Cory Golden
Staff Reporter
Nebraska center Jake Young earns
high marks on the football field, and
carries them ever to the classroom.
Young, an All-America selection
who has a 3.38
grade point aver
age in finance,
said there is more
to life than foot
ball. He said al
though he places
football high on
his .list of priori
ties, grades are
mote important
Young
That s the main reason you come
to school," Young said, "academics
and then football.
Young said he likes to excel in the
classroom. He said the stereotype of
huge, moronic football players isn’t a
valid one.
Young cited former Husker safety
Maik Blazek, who won the National
Football Foundation/Hall of Fame
post-graduate scholarship as a senior
last season. He also cited quarterback
GerryGdowskitwhohasa3.7 grade
point average in business administra
tion.
“Most everybody does well in the
classroom," Young said. “Being an
athlete, you have to keep at least a 2.0
to play, so there’s more pressure to do
well."
Young’s accomplishments don’t
end in the classroom. He could be
come the third center to play for
Coach Tom Osborne to be a two-time
All-America selection, and is a legiti
mate candidate for the Lombardi
award, which is presented annually to
college football’s best lineman.
Young said he isn’t worried about
individual honors.
“I just want the team to win the
Big Eight,” he said.
Young, who was recruited by the
Huskers as an all-state offensive
guard from Midland, Texas, has
overcome obstacles en route to be
coming one of the finest linemen in
school history.
Less than a week after arriving on
campus, he began practicing with the
varsity. He saw playing time as a
reserve guard during his first year and
was the first true freshman offensive
lineman to earn a letter since fresh
man eligibility was restored in 1972.
Young moved from guard to cen
ter in the spring of his freshman year,
and faced the first in a line of injuries.
He broke his leg and was forced to sit
out most of spnng practice.
After recovering, Young returned
and earned second-team All-Big
Eight honors. He became the first true
sophomore to start on the line since
two-time All-America selection Rik
Bonness in 1973.
Young’s junior year, he suffered a
knee strain three days before the
Kickoff Classic against Texas A&M,
but took over the starting role in the
Huskers’ third game against UCLA.
Last year, Young became the
ninth Nebraska center to earn All
America honors. .
Young said he enjoys his life in the
trenches.
“You kina ot roil witn tnc
punches,” he said.
“You have to do your job, and
everyone else has to do their job, if
the loam is going to be successful.”
Success for the team is what
Young wants, not individual acco
a<Oiice the season ends, he would
like to play professional football if he
is given the chance, he said.
If the National Football League
doesn’t come calling after gradu
ation, Young said, he plans on going
on to law school and using his degree
in finance as a basis to center on
corporate law.
Whatever comes,” Young said.
“If I have the opportunity (to play pro
football), it’d be great. If not, I’ll just
continue from there.”
fenc Qfgory/pny mwiimn
Nebraska defensive tackle Brian Brown prepares to crunch Kansas State quarterback Chris
Cobb.
Coach: NU is unbeaten, untested
By Chuck Green
Senior Reporter
After five games, Nebraska coach
Tom Osborne still is having trouble
assessing his football team.
The Comhuskers, ranked No. 4 in
The Associated Press poll this week,
are undefeated but untested, he said.
“It’s hard to say how good of a
football team we are at this point,
because we haven’t faced a great
football team yet,” Osborne said at
his weekly media luncheon. “We’ve
played some teams that have been
better than what we were giving them
credit for being, but nobody we’ve
faced is near top-20 caliber.”
Because of Nebraska’s non-con
ference schedule and its first Big
Eight game, a 58-7 win against Kan
sas State last Saturday, Osborne said
the Huskers are “still a bit in the
potential stage.”
Nebraska’s statistics, which in
clude a No. 2 national ranking in total
rushing, behind Air Force, may or
may not be indicative of Nebraska’s
talent this season, Osborne said.
“It’s hard to compare our statis
tics with other teams, because again,
you have to look at the schedule, he
said.
One weakness the Huskers must
overcome, Osborne said, is the kick
ing game, particularly the kickoff
return statistics.
“That’s the big disparity between
us and Colorado, and some of the
better teams in the country,’’ he said.
But defensively, he said, Ne
braska is in ‘ ‘good shape,” especially
in the outside linebacker corps.
“We have one of the quicker
teams we’ve ever had,” Osborne
said. “(Mike) Croel is playing great
football, David White and Travis Hill
are playing pretty well. We’ll be in
especially good shape if Jeff Mills
comes back this weekend.”
Mills suffered a lower back strain
against Kansas State last weekend.
Osborne said the duration of that type
of injury is hard to predict, and that it
could last for “two or three days, or
two or three weeks.
“It’s just a ‘wait and sec’ type of
deal,” Osborne said.
Offensively, Osborne said, the
line “has more punch” this season
than last year, and other players have
played well.
“Bryan Carpenter is playing as
well as any fullback we’ve had ir
years," he said, “and Jon Bostick has
given us a shot in the arm at spli
end."
Nebraska’s injury situation is
improving, Osborne said. Wingback
Nate Turner and center Jake Younj
were expected to practice Tuesday
he said, and I-back Ken Clark, whc
has been slowed by a strained kne<
“is healthier than he’s been al
year.”
Notes:
• Osborne said the Big Eighi
Conference teams seem to be at t
stronger level this season than ir
years past. But, he said, the surge ir
talent is “no different than any othei
league" in the country.
r‘I can’t think of any conference
that is strong from top to bottom,’ ’ he
said. “But at the end of the year, the
Big Eight could theoretically have
three teams in the top 10, or close U
See OSBORNE on 7
Emotionally charged Buffs
to spoil Nebraska fans’ fun
Nebraska’s 1990 Orange Bowl
hopes may have ended Saturday,
Sept. 24. they may even have been
out the window before that
Late that night, after the Com
huskers had disposed of Minnesota
48-0 in Minneapolis, former Colo
rado quarterback Sal Aunese died.
His death was far from unex
pected. Aunese was diagnosed last
spring as having stomach cancer,
which later spread to one of his lungs.
He lived several months past what
doctors originally had predicted.
Aunese’s bout with cancer offered
a lesson everyone can ponder. The
21-year-old was healthy, motivated
and full of life. He was an All-Amer
ica selection in high school and later
earned honorable mention All-Big
Eight honors as a sophomore quarter
back for the Buffaloes.
The lesson is an obvious one:
Cancer can strike anyone at any time.
But Aunese showed that motivation,
determination and a little hope can
extend lives.
In the world of college football, it
also can win national championships.
Colorado, which is ranked No. 3 in
the Associated Press poll this week,
\\as 17 starters back this season from
last year’s team, which lost to Ne
braska and Oklahoma by a total of 10
points. The Buffaloes are coached by
Bill McCartney, the Big Eight mir
acle worker of the 1980s. He has done
lot Colorado’s program what Bob
Devaney did for Nebraska’s in the
early 1960s.
At this point, Colorado very well
may be the best college team in the
country. No lie.
Aunese’s death, as unfortunate as
it was, could be the one last boost
Colorado needs for the “big time.’’
Two weeks ago, before tne Wash
ington game, Colorado’s 60-man
travel squad gathered at the middle of
the field before kickoff. As more than
69,000 fans looked on, the Buffs
kneeled at the center of the field,
bowed their heads and pointed their
index fingers into the overcast sky,
paying tribute to theif fallen team
mate.
See GREEN on 8
Team attempts to maintain
momentum built this year
Da iran Fowler
Senior Reporter
The Nebraska volleyball team has
reached a critical stage in its season.
Nebraska assistant coach John
Cook said the next two weeks are
important toward maintaining the
momentum that the Comhuskers
i have built in their first 12 matches.
Nebraska, which is unbeaten and
i ranked fifth in both national polls,
i plays five matches in the next two
weeks. The Huskcrs will face Kansas,
Colorado, Hawaii and Iowa State.
Nebraska will play top-ranked Ha
waii in a pair of single matches Oct.
20 and 21 at the NU Coliseum.
Nebraska plays Big Eight foe
1 Kansas tonightat 7 p.m. in Lawrence,
Kan.
Cook said Nebraska should defeat
Kansas.
“I think our feeling right now is if
we just take care of our side of the net,
i we’ll be fine,” he said. ‘‘I think our
1 preparations will be more for our
1 team.”
Nebraska has won all 40 matches
against the Jayhawks, who finished
last season with a 5-24 record.
Cook said Nebraska’s practices
have been focused on eliminating
service errors and on the Huskers’
1 defensive ball control. Nebraska has
committed 158 serving errors this
' season.
Code said Nebraska also is work
ing on cutting back its receiving er
rors. The Huskers have had 69 receiv
ing errors this year.
“We’re trying to get our serve
receiving patterns worked out and
sometimes when a you start working
on something you first take a step
back instead of a step forward," he
said.
Nebraska, which only has been
stretched to a fifth game twice this
season, is hitting .312 and averaging
17.84 kills per match.
Freshman Eifeen Shannon leads
the Huskers with 193 kills for a .318
hitting percentage. Janet Kruse has
192 kills, hitting .347. Oris Hall has
109 kills, hitting .223.
Setter Val Novak has 628 assists
and leads the team in service aces
with 31.
After Kansas, Nebraska will re
turn home for a match Saturday with
Colorado, and than have four days to
prepare for Hawaii.
Nebraska beat Colorado earlier
this season by scores of 15-13, 15-4
and 15-10. Colorado employs an of
fensive style that is patterned after the
U.S. men’s Olympic team.
Cook said the Lady Buffs gave
Nebraska a few problems in the two
teams’ first meeting.
“We will not take Colorado
See JAYHAWKS on 8
