The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current, October 02, 1997, Page 9, Image 9

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    Andrew Strnad
KSU fools
fans with
fake facts
MANHATTAN, Kan. - Let’s
get this out of the way right now -
Kansas State is a fraud.
My belief in this was solidified
last weekend when the Nebraska
volleyball team defeated the
Wildcats in front of an announced
crowd of 5,035 at the Ahearn
Fieldhouse.
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had the misfortune of visiting the
Fieldhouse in Manhattan, I’ll
describe it. Imagine Nebraska play
ing volleyball on the Bob Devaney
Sports Center Indoor Track.
The Ahearn Fieldhouse has a
capacity of 5,000.
About one-third of the seats
were blocked off, much like the
NU Coliseum for Husker volley
ball matches, leaving about 3,000
seats remaining.
It seemed to me that everyone
at the match had plenty of leg
room, leading me to estimate the
crowd at about 2,000.
If there were 5,035 people
there, then my name is Lynn
Dickey (former KSU quarterback).
The only thing equaling 5,000*
that night was the temperature. It
was so hot that from press row in
the balcony, we could see the sweat
gleaming on the forehead of NU
coach Terry Pettit.
Speaking of press row, when I
arrived at the Fieldhouse and
walked to what I thought was a
table for the two visiting members
of the DN, I was greeted by ai mem
ber of Kansas State’s Sports
Information staff.
Alter asking ner n ine lasi
empty table on “Press Row” was
for us, she told me that it was for
the pizzas and soda.
Pizzas? Sodas? Where were we
supposed to sit now? After all, it
was a capacity crowd, right?
This fraudulent behavior does
n’t stop with the volleyball pro
gram. The football team has com
mitted its share of offenses as well.
Admittedly, KSU has had
arguably the greatest turnaround in
college football history, but the
team has fooled quite a few people.
. In the ’90s, KSU has beaten
only two ranked teams and played
only one ranked team in non-con
ference play.
Their field, Wagner Field, was
paid for in 1991 by lottery winners.
Maybe a Kansas State volley
ball fan can win a scratch-off gariie
and buy the team a turnstile for the
Fieldhouse.
In the meantime, KSU will
travel to Lincoln this weekend and
lose to the Huskers for the 29th
straight time and return to
Manhattan continuing a tradition
not as losers, but as frauds.
Strnad is a senior broadcast
ing and political science major
and a Daily Nebraskan staff
reporter.
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, .. . . . ,i, ... Ryan Soderlin/DN
NEBRASKA l-BACK DEANGELO EVANS rushed for a career-best 168 yards last season against Kansas State. This year the sophomore from Wichita, Kan.,
is contemplating redshirting as he hasn’t yet fully recovered from a pelvic injury.
NU’s Evans likely to redshirt
By Sam McKewon
Staff Reporter
Last year, Nebraska sophomore I
back DeAngelo Evans had his break
through game in a 168-yard, two
touchdown performance as NU
defeated Kansas State 39-3 in
Manhattan, Kan.
This Saturday, Evans, who is from
Wichita, will not have a chance to
duplicate his performance against the
Wildcats as he continues to nurse a
pelvic injury that has kept him out of
games all season. It has also left a
question mark on how much he will
play the rest of the year.
“Right now, I’m about 90 percent
sure that I’m going to redshirt the rest
u
... / was planning on having another great
game against Kansas State ”
DeAngelo Evans
Nebraska I-back
of the season,” Evans said. “Basically
I am, but I’m not 100 percent sure,
because I’m not even practicing yet.”
Evans said his injury is one that
still limits his side-to-side mobility
and inhibits his acceleration up the
field. He said it will still be time
before the scar tissue around his pelvis
breaks up and he is fully ready to play.
Evans said while no deadline has
been set as to when he would come
back and play this season instead of
redshirting, that point may be rapidly
approaching.
“We haven’t set an end date,”
Evans said, “but it’s somewhere in the
near future. We’re going to be playing
consecutive weeks, so if nothing dras
tic happens, it might be better just to
sit out and redshirt this season.”
Nebraska coach Tom Osborne had
not commented on the chances of
Evans sitting out this season, saying
he would rather wait until Evans is
ready to practice.
“When he feels like he can go out
there and play in a football game, then
we will make a decision,” Osborne
said at the Tuesday press conference.
“I don’t know what his feelings are
right now.”
As a freshman, Evans ran for 776
yards, third-best in NU freshman his
tory. He also scored 14 touchdowns,
which tied a freshmen record.
After sitting out the Orange Bowl
game, Evans did not practice in the
spring. In July Evans flew to Boston to
h^ve surgery to repair a pelvic muscle
Please see EVANS on 10
KSU coach stresses
emotion, concentration
By Antone Oseka
Senior Reporter
Kansas State coach Bill Snyder
wants his team to be focused on
beating Nebraska.
While Snyder
is bringing a
young team into
Lincoln for
Saturday’s 6:07
p.m. kickoff
against No. 3
Nebraska tl at
Memorial
- Stadium, he wants
Snyder them to focus on
playing the game, not on the crowd
or the national television audience
on FX that night.
“If you’re focused on the crowd,
you might as well not get on the
bus,” he said. “You have to learn
how to focus and concentrate on
what the task is, not what’s outside
the white lines distracting you.
“A lot of things can be distract
ing; you need to keep the focus on
the field itself.”
That rule also goes for the
coaching staff around Snyder, he
said. They’ll need all the concentra
tion they can muster as No. 17 KSU
tries to beat the Huskers for the
Please see SNYDER on 11
Bishop optimistic
■ The highly touted KSU
quarterback says a victory
against Nebraska is not
impossible.
By David Wilson
Senior Reporter
MANHATTAN, Kan. -
Michael Bishop hasn’t experienced
failure since high school.
A transfer from Blinn (Texas)
Junior College, Bishop emerged as
Kansas State’s starting quarterback
this fall after leading Blinn to two
consecutive national champi
qnships in 1995 and 1996 while
compiling a 24-0 record.
Since arriving in Manhattan,
Bishop has continued his trail of
success. The junior led the
Wildcats to a 3-0 start with wins
over Northern Illinois, Ohio and
Bowling Green, and currently
owns the best passing efficiency
(170.23) in the Big 12 conference.
Conference play begins
Saturday, when 17th-ranked
Kansas State will travel to Lincoln
to face third-ranked Nebraska (3
0) in Bishop’s first true Division I
test at 6:07 p.m. in Memorial
Stadium. But even after hearing the
horror stories of past Wildcat
Comhusker matchups, Bishop isn’t
scared.
“I feel that if we come in and
stay focused and everybody
believes that we can win,” Bishop
said, “we’ll come out on top.
“We have the talent to do it. We
Please see BISHOP on 11
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