Milch Sherman Barnes finds a new home as NU coach Minus the snow, ice and wind, Nelson Barnes thinks Nebraska might be the perfect place. The new Comhusker assistant football coach, in charge of the NU rush ends and Sam linebackers, offi cially began his on-field duties this week. Barnes immediately liked what he saw. “Up until this day,” Barnes said Monday, “I’ve been a little nervous about it. I had no idea how they struc ture their practices, and unless you come out here and see it, it’s really kind of hard to picture.” The former Texas and Kansas State assistant, who fills the position vacated by Tony Samuel, grows more accustomed to Lincoln each day. He’s been here for nearly two months, but still, the weather bothers him. - i ‘Tve adjusted,” he said, “and I’ve stopped complaining about it. Well, not exactly. “You think this is a nice day?” Barnes yelped Monday afternoon, the last staff member to leave the turf as a strong wind whipped through Memorial Stadium. “You hang out with me. I’ll show you a nice day.” Lincoln’s not exactly Austin, Texas, where the 38-year-old Barnes spent the last three seasons coaching the Longhorn defensive line. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. “These guys pay attention when you’re not talking to them,” Barnes said of his Nebraska pupils. “That’s scary. You know you’re going to be teaching guys who want to learn.” Coaching at NU excites Barnes, who beat the Huskers in his regular season finale at Texas last Decem ber. The native of Alvin, Texas, grew up a fan of UT football and cheered the Longhorns to national titles in 1969 and 1970, when Texas shared the crown with Nebraska. Other than what he saw on film and in person during his one-year stint at Kansas State in 1993, Barnes knew little about the Nebraska pro gram when he visited Lincoln for his interview in the midst of Nebraska’s harsh winter. “If you’ve grown up with this, he said, “you know it I didn’t know the history of it. You come here and you walk through the hallways, and you see the All-Americans and you see the tradition and the records. Needless to say, you are impressed.” Grant Wisdom, Barnes’ new star student, impresses the coach, too. But from Wisdom on down, Barnes said, the Huskers own the tools of which coaches dream. “You don’t have to prod them,” Barnes said. “You simply tell them. They’re not interested in any B.S., and you can see it in their eyes. There’s a difference. You can see it.” Now if jonly Barnes could get over that weather thing. Sherman is a senior news-edi torial nutjor and a Daily Nebras kan senior reporter. SANDRA NOETZEL has become one of the Huskers’ top tennis players in her first season after coming to Nebraska from Germany. ' : Nebraska’s No. 1 singl By Jay Saunders StaffReporter The Nebraska women’s tennis team is off to one of its best starts in school history, and a large part of that success has been because of No. 1 singles player Sandra Noetzel. Noetzel, a freshman from Hannover, Germany, has compiled a combined 21-8 record this year (in cluding doubles and singles matches) for the Comhuskers. . But her quality on-court play is not her main attribute, NU Coach Scott Jacobson said. “She is a humble leader, which is an extremely admirable quality,” Jacobson said. “She is probably the fin est talent that has played at our institu tion.” Noetzel is backing up Jacobson’s words on the court this season. An experienced freshman at age 20, she has played some of the top singles players in die country, coming out on top in 12 of her 16 matches. Noetzel has also teamed up with another Ger man native, Jennifer Thoste, to post a 9-4 record at No. 1 doubles. singles, bufrberdoubles skills are tre mendous,” Jacobson said. “In doubles, you need someone who will serve and volley and take chances. She is the; complete package.” Noetzel’s success has not been easy this season. In her native Germany, she plays on mostly clay courts, very dif ferent from the hard courts in the United States. The clay surface creates a much slower-paced match than the faster hard-court surfaces. “I had difficulties adjusting to the fast play,” Noetzel said. “It took a couple of months to get used to.” The hard courts have allowed Noetzel to apply pressure on opponents with her serve and with her record; it seems the pressure is .working for the ^afrrcotirts so I cm fhy. hard and ap rpfyjgessure” Noetj^said: “jify serve Please see NOETZEL on 10 • -v . ;* M ’ ^ I'-ty She is probably the finest talent that has played at our institution ” Scott Jacobson NU women’s tennis coach Rutgers job interests Nee tiusker coach expects to know his fate by Thursday. By Mitch Sherman Senior Reporter Danny Nee confirmed on Tues day that he is interested in the head coaching position at Rutgers Uni versity, and the 11-year Nebraska basketball coach recommended an NU replacement if he is hired by die New Brunswick, N J., school. Nee said he-met with Rutgers President Francis Lawrence and Scarlet Knights’ Athletic Director Fred Gruninger Monday in St. Louis for \Vi hours to discuss die coaching position. “I love Nebraska,” Nee said Tuesday on Sports Nightly, the ra dio call-in show on which he is paid to appear each week. “There’s ab solutely no question, and I love coaching at Nebraska. “But when you’re 51 years old, you know there’s only so many pages left, and you have to start thinking about where you're going to be in five years.” Gruninger originally ap proached the Cornhusker coach Fri day in Indianapolis, Nee said, and the two met again on Saturday to discuss a possible contract Nee flew home to Lincoln Sunday and .back to St Louis on Monday. “If they met all that I wanted contractually/’ Nee said, “I would be very serious about it The op portunity to go home... would be attractive.” Source dose to the situation say i Nee and Rider Coach Kevin Banhon appear to be the finalists for the spot which opened when Rutgers fired nine-year coach Bob; Wenzel March 6. If Nee leaves, he said he would strongly recommend that Athletic Director Bill Byrne hire NU Asso ciate Head Coach Jimmy Williams, a five-year member of Nee’s staff. “If the whole staffleaves Ne braska,” Nee said, “I think it would push Nebraska back three, five, six years. I want to see Nebraska do well, and if I’m not die coach, I wait to see Jimmy Williams be the coach | for at least one year.” Nee said he expects to know his ' fate by Thursday. While in contact With the Rutgers officials, Nee said he has implemented a “24-hour-hold” pe riod on recruiting. Nebraska has currendy received at least one verbal commitment, from Houston guard Rodney Will iams, and coaches are pursuing sev eral other players to fill five schol arships. NU game canceled From Staff Rep jrts The Nebraska baseball team’s con test with Division n Wayne State has been canceled. f Hie gamc^jchediiled to start at 5 p.m. at Buck'Bpb^' Field, was can celed because of%e Comhuskers’ l