Engelbert numb to pains of last season
Robin T rimarchi/DN
Nebraska middle guard Pal Engelbert loosens up before practice Wednes
day. The senior co-captain has returned to full-strength after being ham
pered with a neck injury most of last season.
Apple Rep Day
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pm. on Wednesday Sept 25th. Representatives from Apple will be
available all day giving Macintosh demonstrations and answering any
questions you may have about Apple computer products.
For more information contact:
The CRC Computer Shop
University Bookstore
Lower Level Nebraska Union
472-5785
^Hours: 8am-5pm_^
i ■
By Todd Cooper
Senior Reporter
When Nebraska middle guard Pat Engelbert
lines up against Washington on Saturday, he
won’t feel the pain of last year.
Neither the doubt from last year’s losses nor
the pain from a neck injury last season will
enter his mind.
Just more than one year ago, shortly after
the Comhuskers’ 1990 season opener, Engelbert
was in the middle ofa pile-up and his neck was
jammed.
“I was caught in the bottom of a pile in
practice during the week after the Baylor game,”
the senior from Columbus said. “My neck
jammed and the pain shot down into my right
shoulder.
“It got to the point where if I hit it just right,
it felt like my shoulder was going to explode.”
Trainers determined that Engelbert had
damaged nerve endings in his neck.
“Any extensive movement would send a
painful shock down his arm,” assistant trainer
Jerry Weber said. “That he was able to play the
whole season with that pain shows how tough
Pat really is.”
Defensive coordinator Charlie McBride said
he didn’t realize how much pain Engelbert was
going through.
“Pat never complained,” McBride said. “In
fact, he never complains about anything.
“Pat’s the kind of guy that’s very competi
tive on the inside and very quiet on the out
side.”
But Engelbert said he felt the pain he was
masking.
“For a while I was worried,” Engelbert said.
“It was hard to lift a milk jug, which is about
four or five pounds.
“I could get it off the table but when I tried
to get it to shoulder height, I couldn’t do it.”
More than anything, Engelbert said, that
shoulder weakness affected his pass rushing
throughout the season.
“I had to use uppercuts instead of some of
your more basic moves, which weren’t nearly
as effective,” Engelbert said. “I had to hit
people just the right way so I started being a
little cautious.
“It became psychological.”
But the physical pain had its moments,
Engelbert said.
“There were limes where I’d go a week
without any pain,” Engelbert said.
It would return at the most inopportune
time, Engelbert said.
“I remember it was the last play of practice
— in fact, we were redoing the last play —
when I slipped and a guy kneed me on the
head,” Engelbert said. “It felt like my shoulder
was going to burst.”
McBride said Engelbert was at most 75
percent healthy last year.
“He started to come around by the Georgia
Tech game,” McBride said. “He had just a
great — probably his best — performance of
the year against them.
“He was one of our few highlights.”
Engelbert had six solo tackles, including
four behind the line of scrimmage for 21 yards
in losses. One of those was a quarterback sack.
McBride said Engelbert carried that momen
tum into this season.
Engelbert worked daily, rehabilitating his
shoulder, which he said was healthy by the end
of the summer.
“He came in in good shape this year,” McBride
said.
And he was ready to revenge last year’s
losses.
If he could, Engelbert said he’d replay those
three losses, to Colorado, 27-12, Oklahoma,
45-10, and Georgia Tech, 45-21.
“As a whole, I wish we could play the
Colorado and Oklahoma games over,” Engelbert
said. “The Colorado game was a game we
should have won, and the Oklahoma game —
that was just a bombardment.
“We didn’t respond to the call.”
Engelbert, who had a nine-yard sack and
two other tackles against Colorado State last
week, said the Huskers will answer the bell this
week.
“I think we’re playing pretty well right
now,” Engelbert said. “The attitude is good,
the enthusiasm is good.
“I guess I feel as good as I can feel.”
And that’s a heck of a lot belter than when he
entered Nebraska’s three big games last year,
he said.
Barring any more injuries, McBride antici
pates great things from Engelbert, not only
Saturday night, but down the road too.
— “There’s not a better nose (guard) in the B ig _
Eight than Pat,” McBride said. “There’s all this
talk about this (Joel) Steed guy from Colorado.
“But when you add the tackles up at the end
of the year, the guy who’s going to be around
the ball the most is Pat Engelbert.”
Huskers stay with tough toes
By John Adkisson
Staff Reporter
The Nebraska volleyball team can’t quit
tangling with the Top 10.
A week after losing at home to third-ranked
UCLA, the 7-1 fifth-ranked Comhuskers will
take to the road to play No. 9 Brigham Young
and No. 10 New Mexico in the BYU/Mizuno
Challenge at Provo, Utah, this weekend.
In BYU, Nebraska will see a team which
Husker Coach Terry Pettit calls “top-level.”
The Cougars lost two matches to Nebraska last
year, but were able to take a game from the
Huskers in the NU Coliseum.
“They serve tough, and they’re going to be
tough to beat on their home floor,” Pettit said.
Cougar Coach Elaine Michaelis said she
isn’t looking forward to playing Nebraska coming
off of the loss to UCLA.
“I don’t like it one bit,” she said. “I would
expect Nebraska to be extra-sharp after losing
that match.”
Two All-Americans from last season, Ne
braska’s Janet Kruse and BYU’s Tea Niem
inen, will not be on the court. Nieminen is out
for the season with a knee injury, and Kruse is
“day-to-day,” according to Pettit.
Pettit said 3-2 New Mexico is “a ball control
team with dynamic players.” The Saturday
meeting will be the first-ever between the two
schools.
As for the Huskcrs, Pettit said he saw sev
eral positives from his team despite the four
game loss to UCLA.
“In that match, I saw that we have the
potential to be an excellent blocking team,”
Pettit said. “And (sophomore) Nikki Strieker
was able to set a match like that in front of a
large crowd. She got better as the match went
on.”
Teams looking to repeat sweep
By Benji Greenberg
Staff Reporter__
Both the Nebraska men’s and women’s cross
counuy teams will be trying to keep their
winning streaks going Saturday in the Woody
Greeno/Nebraska Invitational.
Both teams won team titles at the Doane
Invitational last week and Coach Jay Dirksen
likes his teams’ chances of repealing this week.
“This weekend will give our whole team
some form of competition," Dirksen said. “It’s
a big field and it will be good to get a meet
under our belts before the Minnesota Invita
tional in two weeks."
The women’s learn, ranked 18th in the na
tion, will be led by senior team captain and All
American LisaGraham and two-lime returning
junior All-American Fran tenBensel.
“Our women’s team is strong, with the top
seven returning runners from last year and
some outstanding newcomers who should help
us,” Dirksen said. “We’re experienced and we
should do well in the conference and national*;
at the end of the year.”
The men will be without senior captain Pat
Day because of injury, and will look to sopho
more David Iteffa to lead a young, but talented
team, Dirksen said.
Student basketball ticket sales to start
From Staff Reports
UNL students may purchase tickets next
week for the upcoming men's basketball sea
son, according to Comhusker athletic ticket
manager Joe Selig.
Tickets may be purchased from 8:30 a.m. to
4 p m., Monday through Friday, at the Athletic
Ticket Office, 117 South Stadium.
The cost of a student ticket is $35 and spouse
tickets are S70. A student ticket does not in
clude the four home games played over Chrisl
mas Break. However, tickets for those games
will be on sale at a later date with special
student rates. 1
