Ne&askan SPORTS
Tuesday, August 31,1993 V. A k-/
Kitov Timpertey/DN
Nebraska quarterback Brook Berrlnaer
drops back to pass during a recent scrim
mage. Berringer, a sophomore from
Goodiend, Kan., enters the home open
er against North Texas on Saturday
locked in a battle with Tony Veland for
the No. 2 quarterback spot.
Veland, Berringer taking aim
at backup quarterback position
By Chris Hain
Staff Reporter
Nebraska quarterbacks Tony Veland and
Brook Berringer are waging a battle to be
Tommie Frazier’s backup.
And they’re not making the decision easy on
Comhusker coaches.
Both Veland and Berringer turned in good
passing performances Saturday, which didn’t
clear up the fight any.
While the coaches have Tommie Frazier
slated for starting duty in Saturday’s season
opener against North Texas, Veland said the
race for No. 2 quarterback was still tight.
“It’s a battle between me andBrook,” Veland
said.
Veland, a 6-1,200-pound sophomore from
Omaha, said he might be second or third right
now, but that he was aiming for No. 1.
“I’d like to be No. 1,” Veland said. “I’m just
going to try to do my best, and if that’s not good
enough to be No. 1, that’s no problem. I’ll just
have to work things out.”
Despite his improved play on Saturday,
Veland, who threw for 69 yards, one touch
down and one interception on 4-for-7 passing,
said he still had areas where he could improve.
“1 think I played all right (Saturday),” Veland
said. “I’m getting more confident in my pass
ing.
“I still need to reduce my mistakes, though.”
His most impressive drive was a four-play,
59-yard march in the second quarter that in
cluded passes of 13 and 14 yards and a 34-yard
touchdown pass to Clester Johnson.
“My passing was a little more accurate,”
Veland said. “I had a couple more completions
than the last couple of scrimmages.”
Berringer, a6-4,205-pound sophomore from
Goodland, Kan., completed 6 of 10 passes for
144 yards, including a 58-yard pass to David
Seizys, and a 54-yard touchdown pass to
Brendan Holbein.
Berringer said he was pleased with his per
formance right now.
“I matte a few mistakes. I did a few good
things,” Berringer said. “I think I played pretty
good.”
Berringer said the competition at quarter
back right now wasn’t a problem for him as long
as his play remained consistent.
“We have three guys that are good players,
- it
I’m just going to try to do my
best, and If that’s not good
enough to be No. 1, that’s no
problem. I’ll lust have to work
things out.
— Veland
Nebraska quarterback
-ft -
and it’s competitive right now,” Berringer said.
“I just think I need to keep doing what I’mdoing
and let the coaches decide what they want to
do."
Berringer said he hoped to prove himself in
Saturday’s game against North Texas.
"I just want to get in and get some playing
time and get a chance to show everybody what
I can do.”
Both Berringer and Veland anticipate plenty
of playing time in Saturday’s game.
See QBs on 8
Anderson hopes to recreate history
Injuries stymied linebacker
after stellar sophomore year
By Derek Samson
SMLBaeeaar
Linebacker Mike Anderson has
been looking into the past just as
much as into the future.
Anderson had a disappointing,
injury-riddled junior season after a
sophomore season in which he put
up impressive numbers.
“I just haven't played great like
I did when I was a sophomore,”
Anderson said. “I'm trying to get
back to where I was as a sopho
more.”
In his sophomore year, the 6
foot-2, 230-pound senior from
. Grand Island registered 80 tackles.
That number dropped to 36 when
Anderson, as a junior, suffered a
series of nagging knee injuries.
“1 never really thought about.
injuries until last year, ami then it
was one after another,” Anderson
said. “Both my knees hurt me prob
ably the worst and really made it
tough. It was especially tough
mentally.”
The thing Anderson said he re
membered most about his sopho
more season was the thrill of start
-44
I just haven't played
great like / did when t
was a sophomore. I'm
trying to get back to
where I was as a
sophomore.
Anderson
Nebraska linebacker
-tt -
ing for the Huskers.
“Just the rush of being out there
starting is incredible,” he said.
Anderson said his play wasn’t
where he wanted it to be heading
into the first game. —
“I feel I can do a lot better,” he
said. “I haven’t done anything great
out here. I just have to keep work
ing harder and hopefully things
wUl come around.”
Anderson was announced Aug.
24 as a candidate for the 1993
Butkus Award, an award present
ed annually to the nation’s out
See ANDERSON on 8
Kiley Timpertey/DN
Nebraska linebacker Mike Anderson grabs a defender’s facemask during a recent scrimmage.
Jayhawk decision to play Seminoles remains mystery
Gale Sayers knows all.
Sayers, an NFL Hall of Fame run
ning back and a Kansas alumnus, said
Kansas’ decision toplay Florida State
in the Kickoff Classic was a mistake.
His views proved correct as coach
Glen Mason’s JayhawkS were sound
ly defeated by the top-ranked Semi
noles, 42-0, Saturday in East
Rutherford, N J.
The Seminoles are the No. 1 team
in the nation and they’re everybody’s
favorite to win it all this year. It
clearly was a bad decision by Mason
and company to start the season off by
playing FSU.
AH along Mason had said the game
with the Seminoles would provide his
team with an “opportunity.”
The question is what kind of op
portunity Mason was talking about.
An opportunity to show the nation
that KU belongs in the same class as
Florida State? Couldn’t have been.
Not many teams belong in the same
class as the Seminoles.
Maybe Mason hoped to capitalize
on Seminole Coach Bobby Bowden’s
bad luck in his inability to win the
national championship.
That’s not it. Otherwise, Mason
would have beaten Nebraska by now.
Maybe the Jayhawks just want to
get as much game experience as they
can get before their grueling opener
against Western Carolina, a Division
I-AA team.
Then again maybe not.
Recruiting, that must have been it.
Mason used the trip to the Meadow
lands as a recruiting trip, trying to find
the next Mike Rozier running around
in New Jersey.
It did give the Jayhawks an oppor
tunity to give Seminole quarterback
and Heisman Trophy candidate
Charlie Ward an early jump in the
Heisman race.
Ward wasn't spectacular, but then
again, he only played a little over half
of the game.
Tim
Pearson
Everybody knew Florida State
would walk all over the Jayhawks,
except for Glen Mason and his team.
Bowden was confident of a win
over Kansas. He even said he would
never have played a Top 10 team in
the classic. But when Kansas was
mentioned as the opponent, Bowden
jumped at the chance to play a team
not even ranked in the Top 25.
Even Seminole players were con
fident of a win. They questioned why
they were playing Kansas, the third
place Big Eight team last year, when
the Seminoles had already beaten the
Big Eight’s top team, Nebraska, in the
Orange Bowl in January.
The Jayhawks were coming off an
8-4 record and an Aloha Bowl victory
over Brigham Young. They ended the
season ranked 22nd in the nation, so
the KickoffClassic organizers thought
a Florida State- Kansas match-up could
be an interesting game.
It wasn’t.
Kansas Coach Glen Mason was
being hailed as a savior in Lawrence
for turning the Kansas program into
the winner fans hadn’t seen for an
awfully long time.
But Florida State was the wrong
opponent for a team that’s trying to
binld a winner. Mason should have
stuck with Western Carolina, not Flor
ida State, in the opener.
The Jayhawk team lost All-Big
Eight quarterback Chip Hilleary, sec
ond-team conference tailback
Maurice Douglas, and four-year
letterman Monte Cozzens at fullback.
With a new quarterback, Fredrick
Thomas, they couldn’t have expected
to do much on offense against a de
fense like Florida State’s.
Maybe Mason will tell his players
to forget about the FSU disaster and
treat Western Carolina as its first op
ponent.
Maybe the Jayhawks will rebound
like they did last year after a 49-7 loss
to Nebraska;
Will the loss to the Seminoles send
the Jayhawks floundering into medi
ocrity once again — like Sayers said
— or will they recover?
We’ll have to wait and see. Last
season showed that Glen Mason had
his Kansas team on the right road.
This year, the drive to success may
not be so comfortable. Expect some
turbulence in the early part of the
season.
And fasten your seat belts. It could
be a long, bumpy ride in Lawrence.
Peanoa b i Mpbomn iiwMitorial
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