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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 6, 1997)
Lincoln duo chooses to remain close to home Swiney, Kollmorgen chose NU after successful high school careers with Rockets and Knights. BtSamMcKewon Staff Reporter With the stroke of a pen, two Lincoln high school football standouts officially became Ne braska football players Wednesday morning. Lincoln Southeast offensive lineman Kyle Kollmorgen and Lincoln Northeast wide re ceiver/defensive back Erwin Swiney both signed a national letter of intent to play for the Comhuskers next fall. * “It’s a dream to play football there,” Swiney said. “It feels good to play with the best.” Swiney, a 6-foot, 175-pOunder moved from Dallas, Texas, to Lincoln two years ago. Upon arriving in Lincoln, he flourished in the Rock ets’ system. He finished his All-State senior season with 25 catches for 635 yards and six touchdowns. His 25.4 yards per catch average is the highest of any Husker recruit. Swiney picked NU early in the recruiting process before his high school season began. “In my situation,” Swiney said, “picking Nebraska was the best decision for me. It feds like home.” Swiney said he talked with two of the Husk ers’ younger wide receivers — freshmen John Gibson and J.R. Edwards—so he knows what it takes to play in the Nebraska program. “You have to go up there and work hard,” Swiney said. “If I go up there and do that I I __ 7r'7 ? i Matt Waite/DN ERWN SMHEY slim Mi Mtar at Meat HMassUay at Hatthaad Hl|h Scheal as Ms eMher KYLE KOLLMORGEH si|saS with HU Gayle shews her approvals Swhiey was ooe of two players frooi Lincoln to siyn with Nebraska. Wednesday. think I’ll be all right.” Lincoln Northeast Coach Mark King said he has no doubts that Swiney. will be a success wearing a Husker uniform. “He’s the best athlete we’ve had here in a long time,” King said. “He’s going to go to Nebraska and do real well there.” Kollmorgen, a 6-4, 270-pound offensive lineman, followed a similar path toward becom ing a Husker. A member of the SuperPrep All Midwest team, Kollmorgen helped the Knights to a 9-3 record and a berth in the Class A state football semifinals. He said he narrowed his list to NU and Kan sas State before choosing the Huskers. While he was interested in the Wildcats, Kollmorgen said the KSU coaching staff didn’t exactly re turn the favor. “When I went downjhere, Coach (Bill) Snyder hadn’t really seen how 1 had performed in the Nebraska football camp,” Kollmorgen said. “I got the impression that Nebraska re ally wanted me more.” With a lot of hard work ahead of him, Kollmorgen said, he is optimistic about seeing playing time for a national power. “It’s a great opportunity all-around,” Kollmorgen said. “I get to work on a lot of things and leam a lot at the same time. “I just want to go in and do to the best of my ability. How I’ll compare with everybody else down there, we’ll find out.” Both players look forward to the prospect of playing for the Big 12 Conference and a na tional title. “It’ll feel good,” Swiney said. “Everybody wants to play for a national title.” Recruiting class pleases Osborne SIGNEES from page 9 lesser-known players. “We’ve got a huge logistics prob lem,” he said. “To try to filter all the information is very difficult. Just iden tifying the players is the first thing, and then we’ve got to get them here.” It also doesn’t hurt to have a brother in the program. Comerback Dion Booker followed < his brother Michael — an NU senior last season — to Lincoln; tight end ; Tracey Wistrom will join older brother Grant at Nebraska next fall; and line backer Mark Vedral follows in the i footsteps of Jon, a senior last fall, and i Mike, who lettered at NU from 1990 through 1992. 'i In addition, linebacker Jamie Bur row signed with the Huskers 22 years ifler his father, Jim, left Nebraska. Before hitting the recruiting trail, Osborne said, Husker coaches pegged ;omerback and I-back as areas of leed. Despite losing junior-college star Kevin Brooks to South Carolina last month, Nebraska still picked up hree comerbacks—Booker, Harrison md Joe Walker, who signed last year ivith Baylor but did not qualify aca demically. At the I-back spot, NU failed to sign top targets Jamal Lewis and Davis Minor, but Osborne said Buckhalter, a 6-foot-2, 210-pounder, anks among the top five backs in the lation. Osborne said he also sees great potential for I-back Dan White, who x)mmitted to NU last month while in he state for a recruiting trip to the University of Nebraska at Omaha. In the next few months, the coach said he would also like to finalize col lege plans for up to 20 walk-ons. “That’s almost like having another five to eight scholarship players,” Osborne said. “We unabashedly do that. It’s been one way that we’ve been able to survive against the Florida schools.” As many as 17 players already tiave informed Husker coaches of plans to walk on next fall, Osborne said. “If we didn’t have the walk-ons come here,” he said, “I think it wouldn’t be long before we became a second-rate program. They’re very, very important to us.” . Football Signees The following players have eigned to play football at Nebraska next fall. Name ro*. nu m. nofneiown NU signs versatile players i PEttit from page 9 -side hitter/middle blocker is one of the top athletes in the country, Pettit said. “Angie’s very strong and just a great athlete,” Pettit said. “She has great technical skills and could play any position.” Oxley was named an honorable mention All-American by Volley ball Magazine following her senior season, and she led Class B Ogallala to state runner-up finishes in 1994 and 1995. Despite the strength of NU’s three scholarship athletes, its best recruit might possibly be a walk on. Behrends from Class D-l Chappell High School surprised the college volleyball world when she turned down offers from several nationally prominent programs to play for the Huskers without a scholarship. NU offered Behrends a schol arship early in the recruiting sea son, but the 6-foot outside hitter turned it down, opting instead to visit other interested schools before making a decision. Unfortunately for Behrends, by the time she made up her mind in October, the Huskers had offered all of their available scholarships, forcing her to walk on. “Volleyball Monthly featured her as the national runner-up to player of the year,” Pettit said. “That’s not just hype either. She’s that level of player. She knows we wanted her from day one. She prob ably hits the ball as hard as any higjh school player in the country.” A four-time Gass D-l all-state selection, Behrends set the Gass D 1 state record for career kills (1,643) and single season kills (525). Pettit said NU’s current players were instrumental in helping sign members of this year’s class. All four recruits have participated in camps with nine ofNebraska’s cur rent players. “We’re attracting a lot of kids who know each other,” Pettit said. “The program attracts like-minded people. We’ve gotten high achiev ers who are familiar with us.” Not coincidentally, each mem ber of the class is from the Mid west, a trend that pleases Pettit. “We have tremendous loyalty from our state and great relation ships with surrounding states,” Pettit said. “I’m not sure that there’s anywhere else in the coun try that has that kind of relation ship going right now.” Crouch anxious to play for NU GROUCH from page 9 decision and you get stressed out.” But Crouch wasn’t the only one hounded in the recruiting process. Mustang Coach Fred Petito—who also coached Iowa State quarterback Todd Doxzon — said he dealt with calls from many reporters about Crouch’s decision. “It was interesting,” Petito said. Crouch said his early commitment took pressure off his final season. “I think it led me to have a better senior season,” Crouch said. Last fall, Crouch was hampered by an ankle injury, W he still ran for 1,300 yards and threw for 600. De spite missing three games, Crouch was named the USA Today Nebraska Player of the year while also earning Super Prep All-American honors. His early decision, he said, didn’t affect his play last fall. “It ran through my head a little bit,” Crouch said. “But I couldn’t re ally think about that too much. That’s for me to think about right now. Now that I’m done playing for Millard North.” Crouch said he is comfortable run ning the Mustangs option-based “wingbone” offense, which he said is similar to Nebraska’s offense. “We’re option based, and we do a lot of play-pass,” Crouch said. “I think 66 It feels great knowing I’m going to be a Husker.” Eric Crouch NU quarterback that’s the main reason they’re simi lar. The style of option that we run is similar to option-type schemes that Nebraska would do.” NU Coach Tom Osborne said he is impressed with Crouch’s abilities at quarterback. “Eric Crouch is one of the better option quarterbacks we’ve come across in many years,” Osborne said. “He handled the option very well.” Crouch didn't have the opportunity to pass a lot in the Mustangs’ style of offense, but Osborne was confident in Crouch’s ability to throw the ball. “We think he can throw it,” Osborne said. “We saw him in our football camp. He’s got a very good arm. I think he is a good passer.” Crouch made his official visit to NU the weekend of Jan. 21, where he was introduced to Husker quarterback Scott Frost. At quarterback, the Huskers return Frost, a senior-to-be next season, along with junior Monte Christo, and sophomores Frankie London and Jeff Perino. Freshman Bobby Newcombe, who also signed a letter of intent Wednesday, will also be given a chance to play. Crouch said he will not redshirt next fall if he is among the top three quarterbacks on the depth chart before the season starts. After his graduation in May, Crouch said he plans to work out with the Huskers four times a week. “Hopefully I’ll.be working with the first team,” Crouch said. “That would be nice.” Petito was confident that his former signal caller would do well in I Lincoln. “This is an accumulation of three or four years of hard work,” Petito said. “He’s got tremendous ability, and he has great work habits.”