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■ jji ^
Mitch Sherman
Huskers miss
golden moment
to see history
Absolutely nothing cones easy
for the Nebraska soccer team. Not
even watching television.
Moiday afternoon at 4:30 p.m.,
the Big 12 champion Comhuskers
gathered in the Hewit Center, ready
to learn of their seeding in the
NCAA Tournament, which begins
Sunday.
The selection show began at 5
pjiL, and the Huskers couldn’t find
it. First, they watched the Bill
Snyder Show and then the first five
minutes of FOX Sports News.
At this point, several NU play
ers, coaches and many of the 50
people who had gathered—excited
to hear ofNebraska’s position in its
first-ever NCAA Tournament —
became concerned.
They were missing the selection
show, which incidentally was not
televised.
“I’m just basically an idiot,” said
Jeff Griesch, Nebraska’s sports in
formation official in charge of co
ordinating the NCAA Tournament
festivities.
So off to the tiny HuskerVision
studios ran the Huskers to find the
show's direct satellite feed. Soon
they viewed a blue screen, the
. Weather Channel, a county board
meeting, the Prevue Channel, a
black screen, and best of all,
Speedvision, on which a land-speed
record may have been challenged.
Not exactly what the Huskers
were looking for.
But then again, little has gone
as expected this season for Ne
braska, the nation’s only unbeaten
and untied team, which earned the
second seed in the tournament’s
West Region Monday.
In September, the Huskers flew
directly into Hurricane Fran during
a road trip to North Carolina. But
NU left what Coach John Walker
called “a terrifying experience” with
a win over Duke, and the confidence
needed to conquer the Big 12.
In October, following a pair of
wins over Baylor and Texas Tech,
the team plane was forced to return
to Lubbock after encountering an
icy runway in Dallas. The team
spent an extra night in Texas.
And on Sunday evening, the
Huskers nearly missed their flight
out of St. Louis hours after defeat
ing Texas A&M 1-0 in the Big 12
Tournament championship game.
After returning a rental van,
Griesch sprinted the length of Lam
bert International Airport, delaying
the TWA flight and receiving an
brief cheer from the passengers on
board once he arrived out of breath.
So Monday’s nail-biting fiasco
was nothing new for this team,
which missed watching its moment
in the sunshine. All it can hope for
is another chance, possibly next
month at the Final Four in Santa
Clara, Calif.
If only thingscould be that easy.
Sherman Is a senior news-edi
torial major and the Daily Ne
braskan sports editor.
Scott Bruhn/DN
AHMAN GREEN rumbles for 70 yards in the third quarter Saturday as Eric Anderson trails. Green
ran for a season-high 161 yards in the 51-7 NU win over Missouri.
Green returns to form
us borne says
sophomore I-back is
close to 100 percent.
By David Wilson
Staff Reporter
Alter suffering from a severe
case of turf toe for more than a
month, Nebraska I-back Ahman
Green proved Saturday that he is
back and ready to lead Cornhuskers
into their final two regular-season
games.
In Nebraska’s 51-7 win over
Missouri Saturday, Green rushed 12
times for i61 yards, averaging 13.4
yards per attempt and scoring one
touchdown.
“It felt like I was back to where
I left off last year,” said Green, who
ran fa* more than 100 yards for only
the second time this season.
Though he suffered from fatigue
oaiuruay, urccn was near run
strength, NU Coach Tom Osborne
said Monday.
“He’s close (to 100 percent),”
Osborne said. “He ran better Satur
day than he had any time since tie
was hurt. He ought to be in pretty
good shape this week.”
A healthy Green will put the
Husker offense near full force for
the season’s stretch run, Osborne
said.
“I think right now we’re
healthier in the backfield than we
have been since the first or second
game of the season,” Osborne said.
Last year, Green averaged 7,7
yards per attempt and rushed for
1,086 yards — the most ever by a
freshman I-back at Nebraska.
With three games left this sea
son, Green has compiled 693 yards
on 123 attempts, an average of 5.6
yards.
For the first time in his career
Saturday, Green twice ran the ball
fof*more than 50 yards. The first
was a 56-yard touchdown run and
the second came in the third quar
ter, when he took an option pitch
70 yards before being caught from
behind by two MU defenders.
That run marked the longest of
r
By David Wilson
Staff Reporter
The Nebraska football team re
ceived its 10th verbal commitment
Sunday from Steve Altstadt, an of
fensive tackle from Fort Calhoun.
Altstadt, who accepted a Kan
sas State scholarship offer after at
tending die Wildcats’ football camp
last summer, went back on his word
after Nebraska offered him a chance
to become a Comhusker.
The 6-foot-6,270-pounder is the
sixth player and third offensive line
man from Nebraska to commit to
NU. Players cannot sign letters of
intent until Feb. 5.
Fort Calhoun Coach Bob Dzuris
said Nebraska coaches had Shown
interest in Altstadt all along, but
waited to offer him a scholarship
until they saw tape of him this sea
son.
Also a lineman on defense,
Altstadt finished second on the team
in tackles, helping Fort Calhoun to
+ *_:_=___
a o-J recora in uass L.-1 mis sea
son. __
“His technique is excellent,”
Dzuris said. “And when you con
sider his size, it’s exceptional. He
always maintains good leverage. He
really knows how to use his body.”
Dzuris said Altstadt was clocked
in 5.0 seconds over 40 yards at the
Kansas State camp and in 5.3 sec
onds electronically at the Nebraska
camp in June.
Despite his size, Dzuris said, the
transition from Class C-l high
school football to the Division-I
college level will require a major
adjustment for Altstadt.
“It’s a huge jump,” Dzuris said.
“His footwork and his speed will
help him, but he will be in awe for a
while. He’ll get his ass kicked a few
times — actually probably more
than a few times.”
Altstadt, who bench presses 325
pounds and squats 450, has quali
fied academically to play as a fresh
man.
-:-:-k
__■ \
M
He ran better Saturday than he had
any time since he was hurt. ”
Tom Osborne
NU football coach
Great’s career, but the run was not
typical Green, Osborne said.
Green, a 6-foot, 215-pound
sophomore from Omaha, said lim
ited playing time after his injury has
left him shat of breath in some situ
ations.
Green suffered the toe injury on
a early-third-quarter run against
Kansas State, and he did not play
the Huskers’ next gamp against
Baylor.
In the three games after his re
turn — not including Saturday —
Green averaged just 3.7 yards per
attempt, including just five yards on
nine carries against Oklahoma.
The injury could end up help
ing Green in the Huskers’ final three
games of the season, he said. No. 5
Nebraska (8-1 overall and 6-0 in the
Big 12) plays at Iowa State Satur
day before a regular-season finale
against sixth-ranked Colorado on
Nov. 29 in Lincoln.
* “Having an injury like that,”
Green said. “I got stronger mentally
and physically. Going into the final
couple games of the season, I’m
going to have a little bit more en
Huskers
vo face
Gophers
By Vince D’Adamo
StaffReporter
The Nebraska
achieved
qualifying for Uu
NCAA Tourna
ment, and now
the Comhuskers
want more.
Fifth-ranked
Nebraska
a third-year pr
gram, earned th
tournament’s
No. 6 seed and
the second seed
in the West Re
gion. Nebraska will play host to 18th
ranked Minnesota (13-6) Sunday at 1
pm. at the Abbott Sports Complex.
If Nebraska defeats Minnesota, the
nusKers win pray eiuicr Virginia viz
6-2) or Duke (9-9-3) on Nov. 24.
Third-ranked Portland is the West
Region's top seed.
Second-round game sites will not
be determined until after the first round.
However, attendance is a major factor
in determining the sites, and NU ranks
fourth nationally in attendance, aver
aging 882 fans per game.
“I’m glad we were able to get it,”
NU Coach John Walker said. “The
players have put in the wok.
“I didn't think we'd be at this stage
now. But I knew the program would
take off very quickly because of the
dedication tire university put behind it.”
In addition to Portland, North Caro
lina, Notre Dame and Connecticut
earned top seeds.
“We’ve come a long way in three
years,” said Kim Ratliff, the first se
nior in NU history. “It's been one of
our goals since the beginning.”
Minnesota, 3-5 against NCAA
Tournament teams, finished the regu
lar season with back-to-back losses,
failing to Northwestern 2-1 on Sunday.
Nebraska, which won the first-ever
Big 12 Tournament title over Texas
A&M 1-0 Sunday in overtime, is 4-0
against tournament teams, defeating
A&M twice, Duke and \hnderbilt.
“It’s an unbelievable feat,” said A1
Papik, NU's senior associate athletic
director, who is directly in charge of
Walker’s program. “I sure didn't think
we’d be in this position, but John
Walker did. When we recruited John
as our coach, he was very optimistic.”
Tickets for Sunday's game are
, available at the NU ticket office and
cost $6 for adults and $4 for students.