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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (April 8, 1998)
Jeff Randall Holy Cow! Cubs are a contender For years, 1 have lived in a world of quiet desperation. I have seen hopes crumble. I have known the agony of defeat and little else. I am a Cubs fan. I know there are thousands of oth ers out there. And most of them are proud to be one. For us. the words, “They’re gonna turn it around this year,” have become little more than a punch line to a joke that usually ends in mathematical elimination from the playoffs by late July. Last year was the worst year in my admittedly short memory, as the beloved North-siders (as Peter Gammons often put it) set records in futility. They opened the season with a losing streak that didn't end for 14 games. And then, before the 1998 cam paign even started, we lost Harry. But 1 will say it again: I think this is their year. Granted, 1 have had the benefit of seeing eight games played out so far this season. And granted, six of those games have ended in Cubs victories. I have never claimed to be a prog nosticator. I don’t study the lineups, the pitching rotations or the stat sheets. My research usually involves tuning into WGN in the afternoon or SportsCenter at night. My baseball reading usually reaches its limits after I’ve scanned the division stand ings in the newspaper. All I know is that this year, for the first time I can remember, the Cubs are near the top of those standings. So was I right or was I right? I could go into the details of why I made this startling prediction. I could tout Jeff Blauser and Sammy Sosa as pivotal playmakers. I could tell you how' Rod Beck is the best closer in the game. well, 11U, 1 Ldll l. 1 lldVC 11U lUCd. All I know is that the Cubs are finally winning. And they’re doing it while I’m still alive. Maybe I’m being a little pre sumptuous here, but I think all sports fans should be like me. I don’t obsess over the-numbers. I don’t freak out when my team blows a play. I don’t waste valuable conversa tional time discussing team strategies that I’ll never be able to implement. I just watch the damn game. I cheer when my team hits or scores or strikes the other guy out. And even if those things don’t happen on a regular basis, I don’t get too upset about it. It’s just a game, after all. And it doesn’t really matter if you win or lose. Of course, I have to say that. I'm a Cubs fan. Randall is a junior news-editor ial major and the Daily Nebraskan arts and entertainment editor. Finley fills void at free safety By Darren Ivy Assignment Reporter Although the Nebraska sec ondary doesn’t have a senior, NU Defensive Backs Coach George Darlington said he is expecting big things from his group of young guns. Gone from the national champi onship team is senior safety Eric Warfield, who likely will be select ed in the NFL Draft later this month. Warfield’s replacement is Clint Finley, a 5-foot-ll, 200-pound sophomore from Cuero, Texas. With the addition of Finley, the Cornhuskers will have two juniors and two sophomores as starters this spring. “It’s ironic,” said Darlington. “Even though we are younger, we are more experienced.” Juniors Mike Brown and Ralph Brown and sophomore Erwin Swiney - all starters on the national championship team - give the Huskers a lot of experience. Swiney’s status is uncertain because vji a giuni liijui v. The secondary - after being crit icized by fans and being picked on by opposing quarterbacks much of last season - is now battle-tested and “looking for some respect this year,” said Ralph Brown, a two-year starter. He said shutting down Peyton Manning and Tennessee in the 1998 Orange Bowl gave the team a lot of confidence and helped the sec ondary assess where they want to be. “We want to become more dom inant against the run and pass,” Ralph Brown said. “I think we can be the best (secondary) or up there with the best in the nation if we work hard.” Sophomore Mike Brown said part of becoming a more dominant secondary will involve taking on a new attitude. “We have a lot to prove with a new coach,” Mike Brown said. “The secondary has to be leaders. We have to step up and prove we can play with the best of them.” But the secondary also will get help from the rest of the Blackshirts, Mike Brown said. “What's great about this defense is everyone is a leader,” Mike Brown said. “We all feed off one another.” With the style of defense NU plays, the backs understand they have an important role. “If they want to throw the ball, it’s our job to stop them,” Mike Brown said. Darlington said he wants to see more interceptions. Finley said he thought this group of players should be able to do that by pressuring opposing quarterbacks and capitalizing on their mistakes. “We will play physical just like always,” said Finley, one of Nebraska’s biggest hitters. “That’s what Nebraska football is all about. The offense gets the credit for wear ing down people with physical play, but the defense does the same Please see FINLEY on 8 f I Mike Warren/DN NEBRASKA SOPHOMORE safety Clint Finley will look to fill the shoes of departed senior Eric Warfield this season. All three of the other starting Huskers in the secondary return with at least one year of starting experience under their belts. NU adapts to new game format By Jay Saunders Assignment Reporter So far, life without returning All American Lisa Reitsma hasn’t been too bad for the Nebraska volleyball team. Even with a new game format in place for the spring season, NU traveled to Hawaii and beat the Rainbows, who finished with a 25-7 record last season. The Comhuskers are trying to find a replacement for Reitsma’s offensive con tribution this spring. The Huskers return six players who had 100 or more kills last season, including seniors-to-be Megan Korver and Jaime Krondak. Pettit said the offense may come by committee. “We will have much more balance on offense this year,” Pettit said. “We are not going to be a team that will have a player averaging five to seven kills per game. Instead, we will have several players that should have three to four kills per game.” One of those players that Pettit said has stepped up this spring is junior-to-be ivjiua laurvc. The Council Bluffs, Iowa, native was looked to last year mainly as a defensive player. The 6-foot-3 middle blocker did have a .311 hitting percent age, but was third on the team in block ing with 1.18 blocks per game. Pettit said Tauke, who is an emo tional leader on the floor, has played with a lot more than pure emotion this spring Against Hawaii, Tauke had six kills and had a .415 hitting percentage. “Tonia has had a really strong spring,” Pettit said. “She has committed to be good every day.” NU and Hawaii played with a new format that is fan- and television friendly. The plan was presented to the NCAA in part by Michigan State Coach Chuck Erbe. Instead of playing a best-of-five match, teams play three timed games with rally scoring. The first two games are 14 minutes each, with the clock run ning during play only. The third game, which would serve as a tiebreaker, is only three minutes. fcfc We will have much more balance on offense this year” Terry Pettit Volleyball coach The new format should provide an increase in scoring. Against Hawaii, both teams scored more than fifty points in each game. “It is a little different tempo,” NU coach Terry Pettit said. “We are running a quicker offense and the sets to the mid dle attacker are a lot faster. It is still vol leyball, though.” The new format, which will be adopted full time by the NCAA in a few years, is only being used in spring exhi bition games. Pettit said there are a lot of positives in the new system, but he said he doesn’t like changing for television purposes. “You don’t know how long a golf or tennis tournament is going to be,” Pettit said. “You don’t even know how long a baseball game is going to be. I think if everyone put fans in the stands the way Nebraska does this wouldn’t be a big deal.” Note: The Huskers have avoided injuries so far this spring. Pettit said there have been some chronic injuries, but no one has had a major injury. One absence from spring practice is junior Renee Saunders. Saunders is scheduled to have her second ankle surgery of the year later this month. Pettit said Saunders will probably not return this fall.
