After weeks of painful losses,
Cyclones need their time off
AMES, Iowa (AP)—If ever a football team
needed an operi date, it’s Iowa State this week.
Stung by four straight losses, injuries and
off-thc-field distractions, the Cyclones need
time to regroup. Coach Jim Walden says that’s
just what they’ll try to do before returning to
action Oct. 16 at Kansas.
“We’ve got some things we need to correct
offensively, Walden said. “We may have to do
some rearranging. Maybe we’re doing too much
of the same thing. We’ve got to expand.
“That’s what an open date allows you —
time to reflect, time to get well and time to get
better.”
A 24-7 loss to Oklahoma on Saturday left
Iowa State 1-4 — the Cyclones’ worst start
since they lost four of the first five games in
1987, Walden’s first season as coach.
While the loss itself didn’t upset Walden,
two incidents in the game left him downright
angry.
One was a fumble on a double reverse when
Iowa State was leading 7-0 in the first quarter.
Wide receiver Mickal Horacek muffed the
handoff from running back James McMillion
and Oklahoma recovered.
“You’re never going to rise above medioc
rity unless you can at least learn to run a reverse
without fumbling it,” Walden said.
“It was a big play. It had a major influence
on the results of this game irregardless of the
score. It was a horrendous play, terribly execut
ed by two pretty good athletes.”
Walden also got mad after Ty Stewart m issed
a 28-yard field goal attempt in the third quarter
with Iowa State trailing 17-7. He screamed at
Stewart on the sidelines, then told reporters he
felt he had good reason to be angry.
“You don’t patronize kickers,” he said. “ You
try to bite their face off if you can because they
have a job to do and they’ve got to go out there
and do it. If you don’t want to get in those kinds
of situations, go some place else.”
On his TV show, Walden said he was mad
because of the way Stewart kicked the ball, not
because he missed the kick. “It never got to
the goal post,” Walden said. “If he had hit the
ball and knocked the goal post down, I wouldn’t
have said a word to him. I would have said,
'Hey, that’s the way to drive that ball, like
i you’re mad at it.’
“But when it just goes flutter, flutter, flute,
flute and doesn’ t even get to the goal and you’re
kicking a 28-yarder, those things stick in our
mind. __
Connealy
Continued from Page 7
worked real well,” he said. “Having this new
defense for this year is just a blast. There is so
much more attack there and less reading to do.”
Connealy said the new formation should
showcase the defense’s quickness as the season
progresses.
“We have a little more speed on this year’s
defense than last,” he said. “We have a lot of
great athletes on the defense, and the overall
team strength is its speed. Once we get all
cylinders clicking, we should be as tough,
maybe tougher, than last year.”
In 1992, Connealy collected 47 tackles while
sharing time at the nose tackle position with
David Noonan.
“I’m still trying to improve on every part of
my game,” he said. “1 don’t really have any
individual goals this year. AH my goals are the
team goals, so if we accomplish those, then I’m
happy.”
Connealy said he would be most pleased if
the Huskers didn’t suffer a letdown against
Oklahoma State or any other Big Eight team
this season.
“You have to expect to be (undefeated), and
there are going to be some rough spots that
you’ll iron out along the way,” he said. “The
main thing is for us to respect everybody.
“Each game will get more important the
further along the season gets. I don’t think we
will ever be looking past anyone after Iowa
State. That’s always a constant reminder to take
it game by game/’
Jay Calderon/DN
Head to head
Nebraska soccer dub member Penelope DeGreif, right, battles for
control of the ball Saturday against a Kansas soccer dub player
Saturday at Whittier fields. Nebraska won the match. The women’s team
played host to a tournament this weekend, which included Kansas,
Colorado State and the University of Nebraska at Omaha soccer clubs.
Sooners
Continued from Page 7
the Sooners play in their annual show
down against Texas in Dallas.
The NCAA sanctions probably
showed their biggest impact last sea
son,Gibbs said. He said the recruiting
limits placed on the Oklahoma pro
gram were felt when the Sooners fin
ished the year at 5-4-1 — their worst
record since going 3-7 in 1965. The
Sooners suffered losses to Southern
California, Texas, Kansas and Ne
braska and tied Colorado and Oklaho
ma State.
Afier last season, it was rumored
that if Gibbs couldn’t make Oklaho
ma competitive again in the Big Eight
— the Sooners had made five Orange
Bowl appearances in the 1980s under
Barry Switzer—he might not be back
in 1994.
“As a coach, you don’t really con
cern yourself with those comments,”
he said. “(The Oklahoma administra
tors) understand we’ve tried to bring
success and respectability back to the
program, and for the most part, I think
we have done that.”
Ex-Husker defensive back
cleared of rape charges
ATLANTA(AP)—Rapecharg
es against Atlanta Falcons’ defen
sive oack Bruce Pickens have been
dropped.
Pickens was arrested Tuesday
after a 26-year-old Brimingham,
Ala., woman filed a complaint say
ing Pickens assaulted her at his
apartment Sept. 17.
She withdrew the charges in
Atlanta Municipal Court, police <
said.
When the charges were made,
Pickens, a former Nebraska
:omerback who completed his eli
gibility in 1990, told authorities
;arly last week that his innocence
would be proven.
Cross country finishes leave .
members in position to advance
By Tony West
Staff Reportar
A1 though the Nebraska cross coun
try teams fulfilled coach Jav Dirksen’s
hopes for the Minnesota Invitational
on Saturday, Dirksen believes his
teams can improve.
The women finished second be
hind North Carolina State and the
Husker men placed eighth. Big Eight
rival Iowa State took the top honor in
the men’s division.
Dirksen said he had hoped for a top
10 finish for the men and a top five
finish for the women at the meet in
Minneapolis, Minn.
Dirksen said he was pleased with
the performances on both the men’s
and women’s sides. He said he would
have liked to see some of his runners
break out of the pjack.
As expected, Dirksen said, the lead
ers of the teams, David ItefTa and
Theresa Stelling, have been running
out in front. ItelTa finished 10th over
all Saturday with a 24:52. Stelling
finished second overall with a 17:37
time to lead the Huskers.
The rest of the team members are
running in the middle of the pack, he
said.
The Nebraska women ’ s second fin
isher placed just 23 seconds ahead of
the seventh finisher. The Nebraska
men’ssecond finisher and fifth finish
er were 25 seconds apart.
Dirksen said he now hoped a few of
those runners could run closer to Ne
braska’s leaders.
“I’m hoping we can get some men
and women to break out,” Dirksen
said. “We have to get people to move
up to our front runners.”
Six Husker women placed in the
top 30 Saturday.
“I think as a group, we improved
tremendously,” he said. “I think we’re
— II
By the end of the
season, we might be
a Big Eight contend
er.
—Dirksen
NU cross country coach
-ff —
coming along.”
Some of Nebraska’s runners will
travel to compete in an invitational at
Northwest Missouri State Saturday.
The other Nebraska runners will have
to wait until the Oct. 9 competition in
Eugene, Ore.
“This is really going to be a fun
year to watch and see what we can
do," Dirksen said. “Overall, I think
the men are improving. By the end of
the season, we might be a Big Eight
contender.”
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Childs hurts foot
From Staff Reports
Nebraska I-back Clinton Childs
sprained his ankle in a non-contact
drill during Sunday’s two-hour prac
tice at Memorial Stadium.
Nebraska coach Tom Osborne said
he doubted that Childs would be able
to play this Thursday night against
Oklahoma State.
Osborne said linebacker Mike
Anderson missed practice w ith a throat
infection.
Quarterback Tommie Frazier and
wingback Abdul Muhammad both
returned to practice after colliding
during Thursday’s practice.
Frazier practiced well, Osborne
said. But Muhammad’s ankle was a
“little gimpy,” he said.
Nebraska will practice in full pads
Monday and then in sweats on Tues
day.