Sports
NU deserves recognition, Piatkowski says
Big Eight writers and broadcasters
conducted a preseason basketball
poll, ranking the league's eight teams.
The results of the poll:
1. Kansas
2. Oklahoma
3. Iowa State
4. Missouri
5. Nebraska
6. Oklahoma State
7. Kansas Stat
8. Colorado
m " ^ a a
By Jeff Singer
Senior Reporter_
It’s taken a few years, but the Ne
braska men’s basketball team is fi
nally receiving recognition as one of
the top teams in the country.
Butdon'task the Big Eight’s news
media to agree.
The Cornhuskers have four start
ers returning from last year’s team
that finished 19-1 Oand earned a trip to
the NCAA championship tournament.
Nebraska also has a recruiting class
that has received recognition as being
among the nation’s best as well as
being one of the top classes in school
history.
Bui all of this didn’t seem to im
press a select group of conference
media. Kansas, Oklahoma, Iowa State
and Missouri were all chosen to finish
above the Huskers.
“In a way it’s a slap in the face to
us,” said Nebraska forward Eric
Piatkowski, one of 25 finalists for the
John Wooden award, given annually
to the nation’s best collegiate basket
ball player.
“We think we’re better than a fifth
place team,” Piatkowski said.
“They’ve overlooked us in the past.”
In addition to Piatkowski, center
Derrick Chandler, forward Bruce
Chubick and guard Jamar Johnson
make up the four starters that return
from last year’s team that made school
history by playing in the NCAATour
namcnt in consecutive years for the
first time ever.
Nebraska assistant coach Gary
Bargen said polls that underestimate
the Buskers could be used for inspira
tional purposes.
“If it’s less than where we might
think we’ll finish, then we can use it
as a motivational tool,” Bargen said.
Publications such as Sport Maga
zine have been more impressed with
the Buskers than the Big Eight media.
Sport listed Nebraska at No. 11
among its “Sweet 16” picks, and
Piaikowski said the Huskersdeserved
the national recognition.
“I think we’re the type of basket
ball team to be in the Sweet 16,”
Piatkowski said. “People like Sport
Magazine have looked into it and see
what we’ve got coming in.”
Bargen said Sport’s high rating
was a credit to Nebraska’s annual
improvement.
*
“It’s definitely a compliment that
people are recognizing that we’re re
cruiting good players and building a
good program,” Bargen said.
t razier wins
starting spot
against Buffs
By Nick Hytrek
Senior Reporter
Freshman quarterback Tommie Frazier will
start Saturday’s Ncbraska-Colorado game,
Comhuskcr coach Tom Osborne said Monday.
“We will start Frazier ihis«wcck,” Osborne
said. “We had a chance to talk with the quarter
backs and go over their grades.”
Senior M ike Grant, who played one scries in
the Missouri game, will back up Frazier, Osborne
said.
“Grant had three or four plays and did well
and is a guy wc have to count on to be ready to
play,” Osborne said.
Frazier made his first career start last Satur
day against Missouri, and led a fourth-quarter
drive to secure a 34-24 Nebraska victory.
Nebraska quarterbacks coach Turner Gill,
who as a sophomore made his first start during
the Big Eight season* gave Frazier some words
of encouragement when it was decided that
Frazier would start against Missouri.
"I just told him to relax and play, because he
has the talent and he has the ability, and try not
to overthink on some things,” Gill said.
Frazier said Gill’s advice helped.
“He just told me to go out there and play
within myself and don’t try to do too much
because wc have loo much talent on this team
right now for me to go out and do too much,”
Frazier said.
For Missouri fans, Frazier did do loo much.
The first true freshman to start at quarter
back forCoach Tom Osborne, Frazier responded
by completing 9 of 20 passes for 154 yards,
rushing for 77 and scoring three touchdowns.
The last of those scores, a 5-yard run with 2:09
left in the game, clinched the win.
To make things easier for Frazier, thecoachcs
kept the game plan simple, Gill said.
“Wc tried to call some plays where he
wouldn’t have to audible a whole lot, but he
didn’t have to audible a whole lot,” Gill said.
“He did some good jobs in those type of things.”
After the game, Gill was left with a favor
able impression of Frazier’s ability.
“As you saw, he has great athleticism,” Gill
said. “He showed tremendous poise out there.
I think he’s going to be a very good quarter
back.”
And hopefully, Frazier said, Saturday was
just the beginning of a successful career as a
Husker.
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Nebraska l-back Calvin Jones runs in last Saturday s Cornhusker win over Missouri. Jones is the I6th-leading
rusher in the country, averaging 108 yards per game.
Injuries harm Buffalo offensive
By Jeff Griesch
Staff Reporter__
Despite Colorado’s 54-7 pummelling of
Kansas State Saturday, Buffalo football
coach Bill McCartney said he was con
cerned about his team’s progress as they
approached Saturday’s showdown in Lin
coln against Nebraska.
“It is true that we are playing belter, but
I don’t know if we arc playing as good as we
have to play to beat Nebraska,” McCartney
said during the Big Eight coaches’ telecon
ference on Monday.
McCartney’s main concern is with the
Buffalo’s execution on offense. Key Colo
rado players have suffered injuries during
the season, including three starters on the
offensive line.
“We are not where we want to be w ith the
things we want to be doing offensively and
that showed up against Oklahoma,”
McCartney said. “We have lost three of our
lop guards and we arc starting a freshman
center, so we arc just not asserting ourselves
up front like we need to.”
Buffalo starting quarterback KordcII
Stewart continues to be slowed by ankle and
wrist injuries.
Nebraska I-back Calvin Jones and the
rest of the Huskers realize that an ailing
Buffalo team will still give the Huskers all
they can handle.
“They arc going lo come out and give
Nebraska everything they have,” Jones said.
“The next two weeks arc going to be crucial
for us, and we arc going to have to focus
harder than we have ever done before.”
It was also announced Monday that the
Huskers’ Nov. 7 game against 18lh-rankcd
Kansas will be televised nationally by ESPN
starting at 6:30 p.m.
Kansas coach Glen Mason said he was
optimistic about his team’s chances against
the Huskers with the later starling time.
“We haven’t been very successful play
ing Nebraska in the light of day, so we will ^
try something different,” Mason said.
Finicky fans may forget Frazier’s flawless performance
The biggest mistake Tommie
Frazier made Saturday against Mis
souri is that he didn’t make a mistake.
To the casual observer, Tommie
Frazier’s performance against Mis
souri was flawless, perfect.
The freshman quarterback threw
for 157 yards, ran for 77 and scored
three touchdowns— the last of which
scaled Nebraska’s 34-24 win.
He threw no interceptions. He
fumbled only one snap. He was in
control from start to finish.
Too bad, Tommie.
You sec, the best thing for Frazier
would have been to throw an intercep
tion or two. He could have fumbled.
He could have done something, any
thing to make him appear human.
But he didn’t. There were no
Cornhusker turnovers.
Game films probably will show
that Fra/icr made a few minor mis
takes. But those are mistakes only a
coach can recognize. Things like
audibling into or out of the wrong
play.
But fansdon’t notice those types of
things. To them, Frazier was perfect.
He made some big plays and stayed
calm under pressure.
But because Missouri was his first
start, Frazier will always be remem
bered for that performance.
Should Frazier happen to throw an
interception on the potential winning
drive in the fourth quarter against
Colorado this week, the same Husker
fans who demanded that Frazier
should be starting will be screaming
for Mike Grant to replace him.
It won’t matter if Frazier throws
for 250 yards, runs for another KM)
and scores five touchdowns. It won’t
matter if that’s the only interception
he throws the whole game. It won’t
matter if Frazier has Nebraska in a
position to win the game, and Colo
rado wins anyway.
But that’s the way Nebraska fans
arc.
Remember Steve Taylor? He had
the same misfortune of playing per
fectly in his first start
Against Florida Slate in 1986,Tay
lor, then a sophomore, led the Husk
ers to a 34-17 win. Taylor ripped the
Seminole defense by completing 10
of 16 passes for 130 yards and two
touchdowns. He also ran for 139 and
scored two more touchdowns.
After that one game, Husker fans
had Taylor penciled in for the Heisman
Trophy and All-American honors.
But none of that ever happened.
Sure, Taylor wasa good, maybe great,
quarterback. A look in the Husker
record book will attest to that. But
fans expected that kind of perfor
mance every game. And when they
didn’t get it, Taylor heard the boos.
Maybe it’s too soon to say what
will happen in Frazier’s ease. He’s
been named the starter for the Colo
rado game. Even if it’s the last game
he starts this season, it’s probably not
loo lar-fctchcd to say Frazier will be
Nebraska’s starling quarterback in
future seasons. But when he takes the
field, no matter who the Huskers arc
playing, everyone will remember a
sunny October day in Columbia, Mo.,
when Frazier led the Huskers to vic
tory.
But alter that first interception in a
crucial situation, Frazier won’t be a
hero anymore. He will hear the fans
calling for Grant, Tony Vcland, Ben
Rutz or whoever is backing him up.
Welcome to Nebraska, Tommie.
Hytrek is a senior news-editorial major
and a Daily Nebraskan senior sports reporter.
