Husker ground game
suffers from injuries
BACKS from page 31
better backs around this year.”
Green will start the season at
215 pounds, about 10-12 pounds
lighter than at the start of the
1996 season. Coach Tom Osborne
said Green has had a good work
ethic in the off-season.
“A year ago we had him on the
Ambassador’s program; that’s a
program where we send two or
three athletes around the country
and around the state primarily
and they meet with donors and
people,” Osborne said. “But also
you do a lot of riding around in
automobiles and you eat a lot.
Ahman was one of those guys a
year ago.
“He really wasn’t in very good
shape when he reported for prac
tice. And I don’t think he ever
really quite got into the flow of
things. He was a little bit heavier
and just wasn’t as well-condi
tioned.”
Green said he dropped the
extra weight rapidly and gained a
cf An nf nntnlrnAoc f K of ka 1 ncf o
year ago. Green holds the second
fastest 40-yard dash time in
school history, a 4.34 second
effort. He also is tied for the best
10-yard dash time with 1.45 sec
onds.
Starting in front of Green will
be fullback Joel Makovicka.
Makovicka steps into the starting
role with the departure of Brian
Schuster. The walk-on junior
from Brainard rushed 23 times
for 119 yards last season and had
one start, against Kansas.
After Green and Makovicka,
the NU backfield gets a little
thin. Backup I-back Sims is one
of the fastest Huskers on the
team, consistently running a 4.4
40-yard dash time.
“Jay Sims, he’s always the
same,” Osborne said. “He’s a
good player at I-back.”
The backup fullback, Billy
Legate, is also a walk-on who’s
progressed over winter and sum
mer conditioning. Legate’s made
a name for himself as a special
team player, mainly a headhunter
on kickoffs. He led the team in
tackles by an offensive player
with five last season. He was also
a first-team Academic All-Bigl2
member for the 1996 season. Josh
Cobb is listed third on the depth
chart at fullback. He played in
eight games last season and
gained 43 yards on 12 carries
before missing the last three
games of the season.
DeAngelo Evans, the No. 2 I
back, has been sidelined all
spring and for the beginning of
fall workouts with a nagging
groin injury. He had surgery for it
this summer and is starting to jog
on it, Solich said.
“He has no pain at all,” Solich
said. “He could play early in the
season.”
Definitely ahead of schedule
is fourth string I-back Dan
Alexander. Alexander unknow
ingly tore an ACL in the spring
game and has had reconstructive
surgery. He’s been practicing
once a day with minimal contact.
Alexander has the size and speed
to play either I-back or fullback,
but has been practicing mainly at
I-back.
“Learning the I-back will be
plenty,” Solich said.
Alexander doesn’t care which
position he plays.
“It doesn’t matter.” he said.
“Once I learn the position, I’ll do
well at either. I-back is an easier
position to learn. It’s easier and
more natural for me.”
Fullbacks Ben Kingston and
Willie Miller - tied for fourth on
the depth chart - are both injured
and not expected to return to
practice until the middle of
September. Kingston suffered an
ACL injury in spring practice,
and Miller had unexpected shoul
der surgery from the spring game.
“Willie Miller, one of our top
fullbacks, unexpectedly had a
major shoulder operation one
month after spring ball,” Osborne
said. “We thought he was fine
with no major problem. He won’t
be ready until middle of
September, early October.”
As fall practice continues,
depth in the backfield remains a
concern for the players and
coaches.
“Four of our probably top
eight or nine backs aren’t ready
to go right now,” Osborne said.
“That remains a cause for some
concern.”
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Kosch, Brown eye NU record books
By David Wilson
Senior Reporter
Nebraska kicker Kris Brown and
punter Jesse Kosch don’t consume
themselves with breaking records.
They have bigger things on their
minds.
“For us, we both break records
and do this and do that,” Brown said,
“but if we’re not playing for the
national championship, that won’t
mean a lot to us.”
As a junior, Brown is on pace to
break every career place-kicking
record for the Cornhuskers. The 5
foot-10, 205-pounder ranks 14th in
career scoring, and is 129 points
behind career record-holder Mike
Rozier. Brown is two field goals
behind career-leader Dale Klein and
is 43 extra points behind Kevin
Seibel.
“You just try to do better than
you did the year before,” Brown
said, “and I think in both Jesse and
my case, I think we’ve become more
consistent over the years.”
Kosch, a senior, set a school
Nebraska Preview Jesse Kosch is
second in the nation
Special Teams
Name Ht Wt Yr. Position
Jesse Kosch 190 $r. Punter
Bill Lafleur 5-11 200 Jr. Punter
Kris Brow 5-10 205 Jr. Place Kicker
Ted Retzlaff 6-0 180 Sr. Place Kicker
record last season averaging 44.7
yards per punt and is on pace to
break Mike Stigge’s career mark of
41.8 yards per punt. The 6-foot, 190
pounder has a 43-yard career aver
age and is a candidate for All
America honors this fall.
A walk-on in 1993, Kosch red
shirted before backing up Darin
Erstad in 1994. Kosch earned the
starting role as a sophomore in 1995,
beating out other qualified candi
dates, said Dan Young, NU’s kickers
coach.
“When he came, there was about
three players that came in at the
same time,” Young said. “They
weren’t all super-duper, but they
were all class athletes. Jesse has
made a lot of improvements. He’s
gotten a lot more consistent.”
Kosch said repetition has helped
him improve.
“With anything you do,” Kosch
said, “the more you do it, the better
you’ll be. This is my fifth year here.
I’ve had time to improve - which I
needed to do. I wasn’t very good
when I got here. I’ve improved sub
stantially.”
Brown said he also had
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