Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 11, 1992)
Best NU team ever not true, coach says By Nick Hytrek Senior Reporter For now, Nebraska football coach Tom Osborne would like to sec talk about this year’s team being the best ever at Nebraska wait for a while. “That’s very premature,”Osborne said. “We’ve played two excellent games.” After Nebraska dominated Big Eight foes Colorado and Kansas in back-to-back games, talk surfaced that this year’s edition ofthc Cornhuskers might be the best Nebraska has ever fielded. But Osborne said that little of that talk was heard alter the Huskcrs beat Missouri three weeks ago. “I think that after the Missouri game very lew people would have said (we were the best ever) and we had the same cast of characters down there,” he said. But the Huskers were belter than when they beat the Tigers 34-24, Osborne said. “I ihink wc have improved,” he said. “I ihink we’re a heller team now than w hen we played Missouri. But to say that this is the best or one of the very best Nebraska teams would be very premature because we’ve got three, hopefully four games left. “After the season’s over I’ll tell you how- I feel about it.” Although he wouldn’t say that this was the best Husker team ever, Osborne said there were positions on this year’s team that would rank among the best in school history. “Th is is one of our belter offensive lines,” he said. “I wouldn’t say it’s the best, but it’s got a chance to be the best.” Derek Brown and Calvin Jones help make this season’s offensive back field one of Nebraska’s el itc units, Osborne said. “At running back, when you throw Lance Lewis into the mix, those three guys arc certainly very comparable to the very best we’ve had. At quarter back we’re green but (Tommie Fra/icr’s) a good athlete,” Osborne said. Osborne also cited the defense and said the kicking teams had done a good job. “The kicking game is good,” he said. “(Mike) Stigge’s one ofihc best punters we’ve ever had. (Byron) Bennett’s done a good job kicking off. The coverage teams have really been good.” But it’s not like this year’s Husker team had become good all of a sud den, Osborne said. “I fell g(X)d about our team alter the Washington game when nobtxly was saying it’s a very gtxxl football team,” he said. “I thought wc played pretty well out there.” ■ I11______—-:-:— Thater ready for UCLA challenge f By Derek Samson Staff Reporter With the Big Eight-Pac 10 Vol leyball Challenge coming up this weekend, Stephanie Thaler is as confident as ever about her team’s chances. “Every weekend from here on out is so important,” said Thaler, Nebraska’s All-American middle blocker. “Now it’s pretty much a battle to sec who can stick with it to the end.” The challenge, which will be played at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles, will pit the Comhuskcrs against top-ranked and undefeated UCLA on Saturday and against No. 10 USC on Friday. The ijCLA-Ncbraska match will also pair two of the country’s best players in Thatcr and Bruin outside hitter Natalie Williams, a two-time ■ NCAA Player of the Ycar. Thatcr said she wasn’t looking to make the match into a show down between her and Williams. “I’m not focusing on that atall,” Thatcr said. “I’m just concentrat ing on what I have to do to help the team be successful.” The tournament will also be the first match between UCLA and Nebraska since last season, when the Bruins won a four-game match in the Bob Dcvancy Sports Center. Last season, 11,032 fans — the most ever to attend a collegiate volleyball match — watched in Lincoln. Thatcr said shccxpecled a simi lar turnout in Los Angeles. “I’m sure they will have a big crowd there, but I don’t think that will affccl us at all,” she said. “We have probably the toughest place to play, leading the nation in atten dance, so a big crowd won’t affccl us.” Despite last year’s loss to the Bruins, Thaler said there was no revenge factor necessary for the Huskers to prepare. “There is none (revenge) at all,” Thaler said. “They arc a great team and deserve all the credit they have (gotten). I’m just glad to say I had the opportunity to play them.” Thaler said every match was big lor ihc 18-2 Huskcrs, starling with this weekend. Just two weeksdown the road is the Big Eight Tourna ment, followed by the NCAA Tour nament. “This is the best part of the season,” Thaler said. “Our tough est games arc coming up and it’s especially exciting since this is my last month.” Nebraska’s gradual improve ment is one reason Thaler and her teammates arc fired up for the week end. “We’re doing real well right now and we keep improving,” she said. “Any time you play well against a top team, it will help your confidence.” \ wm> i t i Shaun Sartin/DN Nebraska fans attempt to tear down the goal posts in Memorial Stadium following the Cornhuskers’49-7 win over Kansas on Saturday. Postgame celebration skids to halt by ueren bam son Staff Reporter__ Although the Kansas game re sembled the Nebraska football team’s lhrashingofColorado,lhcComhuskcr fans’ postgamc celebration did not. Fans >vho stormed the field alter Nebraska’s 49-7 victory over Kansas were in for a surprise when they tried tearing down the goal posts as they did the week before. This time the goal posts were greased down. The precaution saved the univer sity anywhere from S4,(XX) to $5,(XX), one UNL official said. urcasing me goaiposis nau oeen mentioned by a number of people, but I was the one who went through with it,” said Butch Hug, athletic events manager. “There (weren’t) as many people as the week before, but still enough to cause destruction.” Crowd control was a problem again, with oranges being tossed on the turf. A beer can was also thrown onto the playing surface by a student. Nebraska athletic director Bob Devancy said he wasn’t pleased with the Ians’ conduct, especially when Nebraska coach Tom Osborne had to use a referee’s microphone to repri mand the crowd. Tom Osborne got on the micro phone and lold the fans to quit throw ing things and that made it somewhat belter, but he shouldn’t have to do that,” Dcvancy said. Ken Caublc, chief of the UNL Police Department, said the crowd was much better behaved at the Kan sas game than it was against Colo rado. “Colorado was probably one of the worst and unruly crowds I’ve ever seen,” Caublc said. “A lot of people think it is just the students causing the trouble, but we have had plenty of trouble with other non-students and older people.” Caublc said rushing the I icld should not be something done after a win over a good Big Eight team. “It’s not like we just snapped a 50 game losing streak,” Caublc said. Hug echoed those sentiments. “I didn’lunderstand itagainst Colo rado either,” Hug said. “I can’t figure out what the purpose of that kind of destruction and vandalism is.” Some students may be creating a bad name for Nebraska students and fans in general, Dcvancy and Hug said. ‘‘There is a certain group of slu See GOALPOSTS on 7 » -m Modern sports re-energized by ly/us revival There’s a possibility of Pittsburgh playing Dallas in the Super Bowl. Alabama isagain acollcgiatc foot ball power, and the running game is being hailed at Nebraska. Members of two of baseball’s great est dynasties — the New York Yan kees and Cincinnati’s “Big Red Ma - chine” — have been all over the news, each landing managing jobs last week. Did I miss a lime warp to the 1970s? Not that I mind. For me, some of sports’ best memories come from that decade. They were the years that formu lated a lot of opinions that I still hold. For example, listening to Denny Matthews and Fred Whitccall Kansas l Cily Royals games on radio convinced me lhal the Royals were ihc most overrated, lucky team in the history of the sport. And even though Kansas Cily hasn’t seen a glimpse of a divi sion title in the last couple of years, my opinion hasn’t changed. Those same years also forged a hatred for the Stcclcrs that still hasn’t died. What’s worse than a Cowboys fan suffering through a close loss to Terry Bradshaw and Lynn Swann in the Super Bowl? Suffering through it twice. Dallas has started 8-1 this season and the Cowboys arc Arguably the best team in football. Maybe, just maybe my ’70s dream will come true this season and Dallas will finally get its shot at Super Bowl revenge. I Lwv John v£T Adkisson . _ Let’s pul that thought on hold until January. For me, not every ’70s football memory has to do with the silver and blue. There were great Husker running backs that will forever be linked with the decade. Guys like Rick Borns and l.M. Hipp and the traditional Okla homa shootout made me look forward to Thanksgiving season for reasons other than the traditional grade school parly. Maybe that’s why, amid all the calling for an “Air Nebraska” the fans and the media have all been a part of, it’s neat to see the 1992 Nebraska team run over opponents with the best ground attack in the country. A look at this week’s Top Ten shows that Alabama, Michigan, Ne braska and Notre Dame—four schools that embody strong coaching histo ries and reck of tradition — arc again at the pinnacle of college football. Thai’s not a knock on newfound superpowers like Florida Slate and Colorado. Instead, it’s a salute to pro grams who have stood the lest of time and weathered the glare of the spot light. Just as college football teams have achieved greatness, so have the base ball players that used to fill my time between sitcoms such as “One Day at ^a Time” and “Alice.” Tony Perez was hired as Cincinnati’s manager last week, and Lou Pinicllalook the jobasskipperof the Seattle Mariners. It’s eerie when old, lal managers that you don’t rec ognize turn into old, lal players that you do recognize. But at least former greats arc rec ognizable. When my kids ask me about the playing days of their team’s manager, now I ’ll be able to give them some sort of an answer. In a way, this whole ’70s revival thing isn’t much more of a phenom See ADKISSONon 7