Netjraskan
Sports
8 8Df
By Jeff Griesch
Senior Reporter
and Stephanie Borgmeyer
Staff Reporter
Nebraska basketball player Erick
Strickland’s decision on whether to play
Comhusker football apparently is still up in the
air.
Husker basketball coach Dannv Nee said
Thursday that Strickland—who told the Daily
Nebraskan Tuesday that he was considering
playing football—will remain solely a basket
ball player this year at Nebraska.
“Right now, Erick Strickland is going to
play basketball for Nebraska,” said Nee, who
met with Strickland Wednesday. “It is not like
he is going to go out and practice football
tomorrow.
However, Strickland watched part of Thurs
day’s football practice from the field, Nebraska
football coach Tom Osborne said.
But Osborne said he was not able to talk with
Strickland during practice.
r
-M
We want htm In our
program because we think
he can be a great
basketball player.
—Nee
Nebraska basketball coach
w w
Several attempts to reach Strickland to see if
he had made a final decision failed Thursday
night. Strickland’s father, Matthew Strickland
of Bellevue, said his son hadn’t given him a
final verdict.
Osborne said he tried to call Nee Thursday
regarding Strickland but was unable to reach
him.
“We would love to have Erick play for us but
I would do nothing to interfere with his basket
ball,” Osborne said. Nee said the Nebraska
basketball coaches would do everything possi
ble to help Strickland make the most informed
decision.
“We are going to research his options and
then evaluate whether plan A, B or C is best for
him,” Nee said. “I’ll be talking with coach
Osborne apd the football coaches, and I’ll be
talking with the baseball people and we’re
going to help him with his decision.
“We are going to do what is best for Erick
Strickland — period.”
Nee said he suggested to Strickland the
difficulties in playing all three sports while
going to school.
“I told him that it is pretty hard to play
basketball and football at the college level,” he
said. “And I think it would be impossible toplay
football, basketball and then play spring loot
bail and then go play baseball.”
His performance in all sports could suffer,
Nee said.
“He is really not giving any one of the sports
justice ” Nee said. “I am afraid that he may be
spreading himself too thin and diluting himself
-M
He knows he’s always
welcome on the football
field.
— Osborne
Nebraska football coach
IT
instead of concentrating on one of them and
then resting and giving himself a chance to
focus.”
Osborne agreed, noting that Strickland would
not be able to join the basketball team until
January—after the football team’s bowl game.
“I haven’t sat down and talked to him but
playing both football and basketball could be
rather difficult,” Osborne said. “He wouldn’t
be able to play basketball until the beginning of
See STRICKLAND on 11
Texas Tech team looking like formidable foe
I
I
Nebraska
Texas Tech
DEFENSE
LOLB 84 Donta Jones 6-2 210
DT 67 Kevin Ramaekers 6-4 290
NT 99 Terry Connealy 6-5 275
WILL 32 Ed Stewart
LCB 14 Barron Miles
RCB 6 John Reece
5-8
RCB 2 Verone McKinley 5-11 185
FS 19 Dewayne Bryant 6-0 195
P 28 Robert King 6-4 191
Game day
Saturday, 1 p.m.
TV: none
Radio: Nebraska Radio Network
KLIN 1400 orKFAB 1100
2 Damon
27 Abdul K
QB 15 Brook Berringer
or 9 Tony Veland
FB 40f ‘ ' ‘
6-4 205
6-2 200
6-0 220
LT 77 Lance Lundberg
RG 66r ‘
PK 13 Byron Bennett 6-1 180
FB 41 Bruce Htt
IB 4 Byron Morris 6-2 240
FL 11 Derrell Mitchell 5-9 187
SE 16 Uoyd Hill 6-2 187
Fff 58 Ronnie Seals
LT fW SIMM Potrirh
RG _ __ _
LG 78 Bingo Mancillas 6-2 284
C 50 Brad Elam 6-3 271
TE 83 Scott Aytor 6-4 241
PK 16 Jon Davis 5-11198
6-4 300
6-4 300
ON graphic
Osborne expecting tough
battle with Red Raiders
By Derek Samson
Staff Reporter
After an easy first week, Ne
braska doesn*t have to wait long for
its first test of the season, according
to Coach Tom Osborne.
The Comhuskers, after defeat
ing North Texas 76-14 in its opener
last Saturday, will face an explo
sive Texas Tech offense Saturday
in Memorial Stadium, Osborne
said.
‘Offensively, they are an out
standing team,” he said. “They’ll
be one of the top two or three
offensive teams we’ll play this
year.”
Texas Tech, which finished tied
for second in the Southwest Con
ference last season, returns nine
offensive starters, including quar
terback Robert Hall.
Hall completed 111 of219 pass
es for 1,645 yards and 10 touch
downs last season. Last week, while
leading the team to a 55-7 victory
over Pacific, Hall accounted for
327 of the team’s 530 yards. He had
305 yards through the air.
“Hall can escape the rush a lot,”
Osborne said. “He is a good quar
terback with a lot of mobility.”
Also returning for the Red Raid
Frazier still slowed
From Staff Reports
Nebraska coach Tom
Osborne said Thursday that quar
terback Tommie Frazier isn’t
quite in full swing goina into
Saturday’s game against Texas
Tech.
“He’s still not 100 percent
yet,” Osborne said after Thurs
day night’s practice. “He’s im
proving but he’s not quite where
we want to see him.
Osborne said Frazier proba
bly won’t start Saturday’s 1 p.m.
game against Texas Tech. And,
he said, he hasn’t decided if
sophomore Brook Berrinaer or
sophomore Tony Veland will
replace him.
“The game plans are set and
it doesn’t really matter who runs
them,” Osborne said. “All three
3uarterbacks know what they’re
oing."
I . . ..
ere is 1-back Byron “Bam” Moms
and split end Lloyd Hill.
Morris rushed for 1,279 yards
See TECH on 10
WiHiam Lauer/DN
Nebraska tight end Trumane Bell tries to break a tackle Saturday against North Texas. Bell
and the rest of the Comhuskers face Texas Tech Saturday at Memorial Stadium at 1 p.m.
Texas Tech I-back up for game
By Derek Samson
SUM Reporter
Just because Nebraska I-back
Calvin Jones will not play against
Texas Tech on Saturday does not
meanfanswon’tgettoseea 1,000
yard rusher in action.
Red Raider I-back Byron “Bam”
Morris had 74 more rushing
attempts than Jones, and he
outgained the Husker’s Heisman
candidate in 1992 by 32 vards.with
a total of 1,279 yards on 242 carries.
“If I need to rush for over 1,000
yards for us to be successful, I’m
going to do my best to do it,”
Morris said. “Whatever my role is
for this team. I'm going to play it.
“All I want to do is win ball
gomes.
Morris said putting up big
numbers might be more difficult
against the Nebraska defense.
“Nebraska is such a strong team;
it’s going to be hard to find holes in
their defense” he said. “We’re just
going to come in there and try to
play the best game we can.
'’Personally, it will be tough for
me running against a defense like
that, but ITm approaching it just
like any other game. We all have to
play our own roles and not think we
can pull off an upset single-handed.'’
Also returning to the Red Raider
offense are quarterback Robert Hall
and receiver Lloyd Hill.
Hall completed 111 of219 passes
for 1,645 yards last season, with 76
receptions and 1,261 yards going to
l he oi tense is coming together
pretty well,” Morris said. ,rWhat
doesn't «et the credit, but is the
reason wny we have agood offense
is our offensive line. Tney look real
good so far.”
Last week the offensive line
helped Texas Tech rout Pacific 55
7.
“We played a good game, but
that's behind us now,” Morris said.
“We have to be prepared for
Nebraska. That’s going to be so
much of a different atmosphere.
“It’s going to be a new
experience for all of us. Playing in
front of76,000 fans is something I
think we’re all looking forward
to.”
Morris said injuries to Jones,
quarterback Tommie Frazier and
linebacker Donta Jones had not
made Texas Tech any more
-4*
If I need to rush for
over 1,000 yards for
us to be successful,
I'm going to do my
best to do It.
— Morris
Texas Tech l-back
optimistic.
“Nebraska always has somebody
in a back-up position that is just as
good as a first-team guy,” he said.
“It’s not going to matter who is in
there for them. With their depth,
they’ll have the same things going
as they normally would."
Texas Tech, which tied for
second in the Southwestern
Conference with a 4-3 record last
season, will travel to Georgia after
taking on the Comhuskers.
Morris said the tough non
conference schedule should benefit
his team in the long run.