r ■ k _ , _ - ; • :
(Coaches: *7
James Nicas
Staffwriier
'T braska gave up 590 yards
st Louisiana Tech, you
les around the Big
12 Conference to
see a window of
opportunity to
beat the
Comhuskers.
Ttoo years of
NU dominating
the conference
not allow
coaches to place
a lot of emphasis
on Saturday’s per
the Bulldogs.
can’t simulate what
. Louisiana Tech does,” Texas Tech
Coach Spike Dykes said “It is part of
the process you go through early in the
season. (Nebraska) did what was need
ed to win, and there wasn’t much
change in their team.”
Although conference coaches
claim to put little stock in Nebraska’s
performance, there were some glitches
inNUbplay.
On Saturday, the Bulldogs i_
tered the record book against
Nebraska^ passing defense. Louisiana
Tech quarterbacl Rattay set
Husker opponent recoras ior comple
tions, attempts and yards. Rattay com
pleted 46 passes on 68 attempts for 590
" yards.
Rattay’s performance was over
shadowed by wide receiver Troy
Edwards. His 405 yards receiving set a
NCAA record for yards in a game, not
to mention an NU opponent record of
21 catches.
ami, Missouri Loacn Larry amim
said there is not really much reason to be
concerned-ifyou’re Nebraska, that is.
“Theygaveupalotofyards,butit
has to be taken with a grain of salt
because Nebraska was in control of the
football and did not do a lot of gam
bling,” Smith said
“Louisiana Tech looked impres
sive, but they still lost by 30 points”
One coach who has had first-hand
experience with Louisiana Tech is
Texas A&M Coach R.C. Slocum. The
Aggies defeated the Bulldogs 63-13 in
1996, and will play them at College
Station on Sept 12.
Slocum said he was not surprised
by Louisiana Techfe performance.
“I can’t say I was surprised,”
Slocum said. “They have good players,
and they know what they are doing.
When you have a great quarterback
and wide receiver you are going to be
See wheeling.”
Even though the Bulldogs gained
attention with their passing offense,
coaches were not sold on having to
pass /u tunes to beat Nebraska. Smith
said teams must try to play to their
strengths to beat the Huskers.
“Louisiana Tech wasn’t going to go
down and run it down Nebraska’s
throat,” Smith said. “They tried to
match them score for score, and they
thought it was die best way to win.”
Preparing for a team that passes
almost exclusively is often difficult
Kansas State Coach Bill Snyder said
his strategy against such a team would
have mirrored NU’s.
“We would probably approach it
the same way as Nebraska did,” Snyder
said. “They were playing with the same
players of a year ago, and whatever
mistakes they had will be corrected.”
Oklahoma State Coach Bob
Simmons said there is little reason for
coaches to deny that Nebraska is still at
the top of the Big 12.
“Ibis doesn’t mean Nebraska is a
vulnerable football team,” Simmons
said. “They have had trouble with early
games before, but they will always get
better and better.”
Jackson shines in opener
JACKSON from page 10
Jackson spoke for himself and the
offense when he stressed the need to „
erase any questions fans had about the
inexperienced unit
Then, Jackson provided many of
the answers himself.
- “(Louisiana Tech) bit on the play
action pass,” Jackson said. “When that
happens, you’re going to be open down
the middle of die field.
“I’m realistic. I know we’re not
going to pass the ball that much and
that’s up to the coaches. But I’m going
to be ready when we do.”
Jackson should earn more opportu
nities in the coming months.
Newcombe completed 9 of 10 passes
for 168 yards - including a 46-yard
touchdown pass to Jackson on NU’s
first series of the game.
“We’ve run that several times in
practice,” Newcombe said of the play.
“I just dropped back and Sheldon was
wide open. Sheldon knows he needs to
get open fast, or I’m going to duck and
run up the middle. But that touchdown
realty helped out our offense to start”
Jackson hopes the pace continues
throughout his final season - for him
self and for the Husker offense.
“This is like a great weight lifted off
my chest,” Jackson said of the
Louisiana Tech game.
“Itls great for us to get out there and
still show the world we can put some
points on the board. This is an offense
that can still move the ball. Running or
passing, it doesn’t matter. We’ll get it
done.”
Huskers to meet Bluejays
BLUEJAY from page 10
excited about just being there and
get into the game right away.”
For the Huskers, tonight’s
match begins a long week for the
team.
After the match with Creighton,
NU will compete this weekend in
the San Diego State Tournament.
Waiting for Nebraska will be
defending national champion
Stanford.
“It’ll be good to play a game
here before we go to San Diego,”
senior middle blocker Megan
Korver said.
“We’ve got a lot of work ahead
of us, so playing Creighton can
only help our preparations.”
NU Head Coach Terry Pettit
normally woulan t be in favor ot
playing four games in one week.
But he said it’s better to do it early
in the year, rather than later when
his players could be fatigued.
On the court, the starting lineup
won’t be known until game time.
Senior outside hitter Jaime
Krondak’s presence is still doubt
ful. Krondak injured her left foot on
Aug. 24 and didn’t return to prac
tice until Monday.
Despite die possible absence of
Krondak, Pettit is still confident
about whatever lineup he features
tonight against the Bluejays.
“I think we’re pretty comfort
able with a strong unit of eight or
nine players,” Pettit said.
Top recruits still eyeing Huskers
By Christopher Heine
Staff writer
The season within a season known
as college football recruiting continues
to build speed behind the scenes.
Several top high school players
from around the country are consider
ing playing for Nebraska next fall.
Cole Pittman, a 6-foot-3, 270
pound defensive lineman from
Shreveport, La., is considering NU
along with Florida State, Notre Dame,
Louisiana State and Penn State.
Shreveport Evangel High Assistant
Coach Rick Berlin said Pittman is “the
most productive defensive lineman
we’ve ever had here.”
Berlin said Pittman, who runs the
40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds, doesn’t
have a favorite school on his short list
NU is also recruiting quarterback
Colby Freeman, a 6-foot-3, 210
pounder from Brownwood, Texas.
Steve Freeman, father and coach for
the highly touted prospect, said “Colby
isn’t even thinking about recruiting at
this point”
Freeman said his son, who has 4.5
speed in the 40-yard dash, plans to visit
NU but will consider Tennessee, Texas
A&M and Texas as well. Freeman is
considered one of the top five run-pass
quarterbacks in the nation.
Chris Buda, a 6-foot-4,305-pound
offensive lineman from Tallahassee,
Fla., has had enough offers to be unsure
exactly which schools want to give him
a scholarship.
“I think Nebraska has offered, but
I’m not really sure,” Buda said. “I
haven’t made any serious decisions yet”
Buda, who has 5.3 speed in the 40
yard dash, said he’s considering
Syracuse, Michigan, Tennessee,
Florida, Florida State and the Huskers.
Bruce Thornton, a 5-foot-11,182
pound running back and defensive back
prospect from LaGrange, Ga., is also
being recruited by NU.
LaGrange High School Assistant
Coach Richard Childs saichThomton
has 4.3 speed in the 40-yard dash and “is
everything you’d want from a player.”
Childs said Thornton is leaning
toward Ohio State but also will consider
NU, Georgia, Notre Dame and Florida.
Nebraska currently has seven oral
commitments.
NU golfer misses U,S. Amateur cut
By Christopher Heine
Staff writer
Nebraska golfer Steve Friesen
headed into the Final three holes of die
qualifying rounds for the US.
Amateur Golf Championship last
week knowing he had a shot at mak
ing the prestigious tournament
“I needed a birdie and a couple of
pars to make the cut,” Friesen said.
“But then I went bogey-par and kind
of lost hope on the last hole.”
Friesen, a senior on the
Cornhuskers’ men’s golf team, said
this was the second straight year he
tried to qualify for die championship.
Last year at die Cog Hill Country
Chib in Chicago, he totaled scores of
74 and 71. This year Friesen shot 74
and 75 at die Oak Hill Country Club
in Rochester, N.Y.
“I’m really disappointed because I
think my game has improved a lot
over the summer, and I believed I
would at least qualify, ” he said.
“In fact, I thought I had an outside
chance of winning the tournament.”
rucscu gui luc cuoucc iu compete
in the national event by shooting a
course-record 63 in the second and
final round of a regional qualifying
tournament at Shadow Ridge Country
Club in Omaha on Aug. 11. It was the
lowest round of Friesen’s career.
The biology major didn’t fare as
well at Oak Hill - a venerable, tree
lined course that has played host to the
U.S. Open, PGA Championship and,
most recently, die Ryder Cup in 1995.
On a course where accuracy is a
premium, especially on the finishing
holes, friesen said he didn’t hit
enough fairways and greens in regula
tion.
“My driver and long irons were
too inconsistent,” Friesen said. “I
hung in there though by putting and
chipping pretty well.”
Friesen said he loved Oak Hill
because of the “unbelievably pure
fairways and all the history that’s hap
pened there.”
each green, Friesen said playing in
front of a crowd was something he
liked.
i naa never naa inai oeiore, so
that was kind of a thrill,” he said
At Nebraska, Friesen won two
tournaments last fall and was the
Huskers’ No. 2 golfer behind
Australian Jaime Rogers. He helped
lead NU to the NCAA tournament in
the spring.
In the summer, Friesen scorched
the Held at the Nebraska Stroke Play
Championships, where his 23-under
par winning total broke the tourna
ment scoring record.
Friesen said playing the amateur
championship will help him this com
ing season.
“I think playing in a big-touma
ment atmosphere was a good learning
experience,” he said.
“Oak Hills also helped me realize
how important it is to hit a good driver
at the professional level.”
Even though he didn’t make it to
the spotlight, Friesen said the trip to
upstate New York was definitely
worthwhile.
“I told a few people to watch for
me on TV last Wednesday, but unfor
tunately I didn’t make it.”
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