Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 14, 1997)
The Big 12 offensive player of the week was sophomore running back De’Mond Parker of Oklahoma. Parker had 291 yards on 31 carries and three touchdowns in a 27-24 loss to Texas. The Big 12 defensive player of the week was Kansas State sopho more linebacker Mark Simoneau, who had 13 tackles (four unassist ed) in a 41-11 win over Missouri. The Big 12 Specialty Teams player of the week was Oklahoma State sophomore place-kicker Tim Sydnes, who was four for four on field goals in the Cowboys’ 33-29 win over Colorado. ■ \ Texas A&M’s soccer team clinched at least a tie of the Big 12 Conference Championship with a 4-2 victory over Texas Tech on Friday. The Aggies could have won the title outright on Sunday against Baylor but lost 2-1 in overtime in a controversial game. Baylor’s Nikki Hales’ goal at the 23:46 mark appeared to hit the outside of the net until the linesman and head referee determined Hales had scored a goal. The game is under appeal to the Big 12 Conference and NCAA Rules Committee. Kansas State junior quarter back Michael Bishop had the best rushing day ever for a Wildcat quarterback with 196 yards and two touchdowns in the 41-11 win over Missouri. “This was a coming out game for Michael,” KSU coach Bill Snyder said. “He’s getting better every week and his game manage ment has improved a lot, too.” ■ After a 158-yard performance against Baylor, Nebraska junior I back Ahman Green now has 691 yards on the season and is tied for the Big 12 lead with 11 touch downs. “Green is just one great football player,” Texas Tech coach Spike Dykes said. The Red Raiders face the Huskers this week. ■ Kansas junior linebacker Ron Warner has already set the KU sin gle-season record for sacks with 10. He had four sacks against Texas Tech alone. / •• < • With a 51-yard boot against Oklahoma, Texas senior place kicker Phil Dawson set the Texas record for consecutive field goals with 14. Coach John Mackovic said Dawson compares well with a kicker he coached while with the Kansas City Chiefs: former All-Pro NickJLowrey. “Phil and Nick are both guys that believe that they willmake kicks,” he said. “That’s what sepa rates good kickers from great kick ers, that they think they can make everything.” This week’s Big 12 games Unas A&M at Kansas State Kansas at Colorado Big 12 Notebook compiled by staff reporter Sam McKewon. Second, third teams need to improve By David Wilson Senior Reporter WACO, Texas - Depth is comforting, but it was also Nebraska coach Tom Osborne’s main concern after NU’s 49-21 victory over Baylor Saturday night. Although the Huskers second and third team defenses allowed Baylor to score seven points in the second half, Osborne said, not everyone was to blame. One of the players who may get a compli ment instead of criticism for his performance < was sophomore linebacker Tony Ortiz. i Playing behind Brian Shaw at Sam line- 1 backer, Ortiz finished with a team-high five 1 tackles against the Bears. He also recovered a < fumble in the second quarter and sacked Baylor quarterback Jeff Watson for a seven- j yard loss. 1 Ortiz, who had only recorded six tackles 1 prior to Saturday, said he did not take the Bears for granted. “We treated this team with a lot of respect,” Ortiz said. “We came out there knowing that if we slipped up, they could take advantage of us. We didn’t want to let anything happen that would put us down. We wanted to keep them in a hole as long as possible.” The NU backup linebackers finished the game with 10 tackles compared to the 19 tack les recorded by the rest of NU’s second and third team players. Please see BAYLOR on 8 NU offensive line wipes up field with Bear defense By Darren Ivy Staff Reporter Baylor’s defense and Nebraska’s offense feasted on two completely different diets Saturday night in Waco, Texas. Bears defenders found themselves eating a lot of turf, while the NU linemen enjoyed an all they-could-eat pancake feed of Baylor defensive players. The second-ranked Huskers (5-0 overall, 2-0 in the Big 12 Conference) recorded a season-high 88 pancake blocks en route to a 49-21 conference victory. “Whenever we needed to move the ball, we were able to,” said NU offensive line coach Milt Tenopir. The solid play of the offensive line, Tenopir said, was one reason why NU leads the nation ip total offense with 530.20 yards per game and rushing offense averaging 401.8 yards per game. NU is also second in the nation in scoring offense averaging 45.8 points a game. The play of the first-team offensive line has pleased Tenopir, but he still wants the reserves to improve. “I have no complaints about the top unit,” Tenopir said. “These guys are making things hap M pen. me starting line oi Aaron rayior, josn Heskew, Erik Anderson, Fred Pollack and Jon Zatechka is ahead of last year’s line, Tenopir said. They are focused and have the right mind set, he said. Although the reserves have improved from the beginning of the season, Tenopir said, they still need to get sharper. “I feel better about how these guys are play ing now than 1 did three weeks ago,” Tenopir said. Against Baylor, Tenopir was happy with the play of backups James Sherman, Jason Schwab and Adam Julch. They played well for the 20 or ^ 30 snaps they were in, Tenopir said. Tenopir said he needs to do spot substitutions rather than wholesale substitutions. — “I worry about injuries, but I need to weigh that against having continuity,” Tenopir said. “Ybu have to get kids in game situations to tell if they have progressed enough to play.” Tenopir has been pleased with die effort of all the linemen this year, but says the team still needs to work on little phases of the game if die team wants to get to where it wants to be at the end of theseason. “Regardless of opponents, we want to keep improving each game,” Tenopir said. “We are going to be a difficult team to contend with.” <v j; r j* - • r:. By David Wilson Senior Reporter When Nebraska coach Tom Osborne calls, you answer. Even if you’re sitting in contem porary literature class. - Such was the case for Jon Bowling, a senior at Lincoln Southeast High School, who received a pass during his 9:30 a.m. class on Friday with a memo to call Osborne. **l was just like, ‘Whoa, that’s pretty sweet,”’ Bowling said. Bowling wasted no time and returned the call on the in-classroom phone. *My class was freaking out,” Bowling said. “My teacher was like, ‘We’ve never had anybody call Coach Osborne from that phone before.’” But Bowling ± and the rest of his 'The 6-foot-4,210-pound tight end was offered a scholarship to play foot ball at Nebraska. And after talking it over with his parents and his coach, Chuck Mizerslri, Bowling became the sixth high school senior to give the Comhuskers a verbal commitment A three-year starter on varsity, Bowhnghas caught 13 passes for 326 yards and four touchdowns for the top-ranked Monarchs (6-0) this fall. As a defensive end, Bowling has four quarterback sacks and one intercep tion. ' “He’s au exceptional athlete,” Mizerski said. “He has very good size and very good speed and very good hands.” Bowling, who has qualified acad emically, runs a 4.84-second electron ic 40-yard dash and has a 31 Vi-inch vertical jump. An All-State basketball player, Bowling chose to play football over basketball in college even though he played on the Godfather’s All-Star Basketball team last summer. . - ...v—I"" — Please seeCOMMTT on 8