Sports
Wednesday, September 21, 1994 Page 7
Osborne explains why
Pacific is on schedule
By Mitch Sherman
Senior Reporter
Nebraska football coach Tom Osborne didn't
expect to spend 30 minutes on Tuesday after
noon defending the football program’s sched
ule-making decisions.
But at his weekly press conference, Osborne
fielded numerous questions about the
Cornhuskers' upcoming opponent, the Univer
sity of Pacific, from Stockton. Calif.
Specifically, he was asked to explain why the
Huskers are playing theTigcrs, a team from the
Big West Conference that finished 3-8 last year.
Pacific. 2-1 after a 27-7 victory over South
west Texas State on Saturday, is filling in for
Utah State on the Huskers’ schedule. Osborne
said.
After Chuck Shelton was fired as head coach
of Utah State after the 1991 season, the Aggies
dropped Nebraska from their schedule for this
year. The best replacement the Huskers could
find in the short period of time was Pacific,
which, ironically, is coached by Shelton.
“I have always had a great deal of respect for
Chuck Shelton," Osborne said. “We played him
when he was at Utah State, and I thought he got
the most out of his players. He has always had
his team well-organized and well-prepared.”
Shelton, who was 26-39-1 from 1986 to
1991 at Utah Slate, played the Huskers three
times during his tenure. Nebraska won the three
games by an average score of 59-17.
“The measure of a coach is not really his
record,” Osborne said. “It’s more a matter of
what he did with the situation. Chuck has had
difficult situations. He has done a great job. 1
think. He will get as much out of these guys as
he can. We won’t be able to just line up and find
some obvious weaknesses.”
See PACIFIC on 8
_
~gn Pacific was California's first chartered
university and has 4,000 students.
—^ This season they are 2-1 with victories
over UC Davis (24-7) and SW Texas State (27-7). h
Their single loss was to Minnesota (33-7), their
only t-A opponent so far this season.
Role reversal enhances softball player’s perspective
I_-—*
Damon Lee/DN
Nebraska softball player Tobin Echo-Hawk waits for action at third base on Sunday during tho
Husker Fall Classic championship game against Northern Iowa. During the summer, Echo-Hawk
experienced another side of tho game when she coached a team In Colorado.
By Tfvor Parks _
Staff Reporter
This summer Nebraska softball
player Tobin Echo-Hawk got to
experience what it was like to give
orders.
The Cornhuskcrs’ third
baseman. Echo-Hawk returned to
her home state of Colorado to help
coach a team on which she used to
play.
Echo-Hawk was an assistant
coach for the BV Comets 18-and
under girls' softball team, a team on
which she had played for seven
years.
On the field last season, Echo
Hawk was an All-Big Eight selec
tion and set a Big Eight record for
best batting average in a season —
.439.
But coaching gave Echo-Hawk
a different perspective of the game.
“It makes you love the game
more,” she said. “You just have to
watch and can’t do anything ...you
learn how important the fundamen
tals are.”
Echo-Hawk said the team trav
eled to Tennessee, Georgia. Wash
ington, Texas and California and
finished seventh in the American
Softball Association.
“We had a pretty good team.”
Echo-Hawk said.
On the team, the junior from
Louisville, Colo., got a chance to
coach one of her Huskcr teammates,
freshman catcher and Fort Collins.
Colo., native Jenny Smith.
Echo-Hawk said it was a chal
lenge keeping her feelings for Smith
in check.
“It was hard to separate coach
and friend.” Echo-Hawk said. “But
it worked out pretty good.”
Husker coach Rhonda Revel Ic
saidall Huskcr players who coached
during the summer gained a great
advantage on thcsoAball diamond.
“That makes them better ball
players,” Rcvelle said.
Echo-Hawk said she rcAccted
her former coach, Jerry Hall, whom
she has known since her playing
days with the Comets.
“At first I was a little tentative.”
Echo-Hawk said. “AAcr I got into
the swi ng of thi ngs, I was more I ike
Jerry.”
Echo-Hawk said she really en
joyed her first coaching experience
—so much so that she said she was
looking forward to continuing her
coaching career once her playing
days at Nebraska were over.
“That is definitely something I
want to do aficr I graduate.” Echo
Hawk said. “Eithercollege or high
school, it really doesn't matter.”
Huskers should ram Buffaloes on championship charge
It’s still almost six weeks away, but
sooner or later, someone is going to
start talking about it. So why not start
now?
Mark the date Oct. 29 on your
calendar today. On that Saturday in
Lincoln, two trains are going to col
lide, and in the process, the Big Eight
champion will be crowned.
Just a word of caution here. Read
on at your own risk. This column
addresses future events, and if you
subscribe to the Nebraska football
coaches’ theory of never overlooking
an opponent (or five opponents), your
perception of the season could be dam
aged. Who knows? Maybe Pacific will
beat Nebraska on Saturday.
OK, back to business.
If you witnessed Colorado’s brutal
slaying of Big 10 and Rose Bowl
champion Wisconsin on Saturday, you
saw a great, maybe remarkable, per
formance by Buffalo signal-caller
Kordell Stewart — not to mention a
dominant show by the rest of the Buf
faloes.
Stewart, in his last year at Colo
rado, looks like he’s on a mission.
A mission with a destination point
in Lincoln during late October. You
see, Stewart and his teammates have
revenge in mind.
But Nebraska coach Tom Osborne
isn’t counting on seeing the Buffalo
team of the past, based on Colorado’s
play thus far.
“Colorado was pretty well in con
trol throughout the first half,’’ he said.
“I was impressed with Colorado’s
performance both offensively and de
fensively.”
Osborne went on to call the Buffs a
legitimate contender for the national
title.
However, since the Buffs began
emphasizing the passing game two
years ago, Colorado quarterbacks
Stewart and Koy Detmer have been
mere pretenders rather than contend
ers.
The quarterback duo completed 20
of 62 passes against Nebraska.
They’ve been intercepted six times,
they’ve been sacked nine times, and
most importantly, they’ve been
outscored 73-24.
I n those same two games, Nebraska
Mitch
Sherman
quarterback Tommie Frazier has
thrown for 222 yards and three touch
downs while rushing for 155 yards.
The important thing is that Frazier is
2-0.
Now you’re thinking, what does
any of that have to do with this year?
At first glance, not a whole lot, but
there are a couple of major points to
address.
In the last two seasons, it didn’t
matter who Colorado beat or how bad ly
they did it. When it came time to play
their “designated rival,” the Buffs
didn’t quite have what it took to stack
up with the Huskers.
Literally, they didn’t stack up,
which brings me to reason No. I why
Colorado still may not have what it
takes to play with Nebraska.
The Buffaloes’ play in the trenches
has been below average compared to
the play of the Huskers in the last
couple of meetings. Colorado’s highly
touted linemen have been blown off
the ball at times. They have been vul
nerable to the sack, and the Buffs have
run for less than 200 yards total in
their last two games against Nebraska.
Against Wisconsin, Colorado
dominated the line of scrimmage, even
while playing without defensive tackle
Shannon Clavelle, who had 11 tackles
against Nebraska last year in Boulder.
Whether Colorado can stack up in the
trenches will go a long way toward
deciding whether the Buffs can end
their losing ways.
Reason No. 2 why Colorado —
despite its hot start — still isn’t in the
Huskers’ league: poise at the quarter
back spot.
Stewart has felt the heat of the
Nebraska pass rush, and he has bailed
out. On the other side of the line,
Frazier has calmly dismantled the
Buffs.
If this season has been an accurate
indication, Stewart could be a differ
ent type of player as a senior. He has
been so impressive early that he should
be a leading candidate for the Heisman.
That’s right. Stewart for Heisman.
Not Frazier, because Heisman voters
look at statistics rather than a player’s
value to his team. Frazier, who has a
19-1 regular season record, has sepa
rated himself from Stewart by estab
lishing himself as a true winner.
Time and time again, Frazier has
risen from the ground to lead Ne
braska to victory.
Stewart, on the other hand, hasn’t
shown such poise. While driving for
the winning touchdown last year
against Nebraska with his team down
by four, he threw an interception. Until
Kordell can complete that pass, Colo
rado won’t beat Nebraska — espe
cially playing in Memorial Stadium,
where the Huskers should have a 21
game winning streak on Oct. 29.
In 5 1/2 weeks, we will find out
whether Stewart can take the heat.
Until then ... bring on Pacific.
Sherman Is a sophomore news-editorial
major and a Daily Nebraskan senior re
porter and columnist.
