Cyclones showing
signs of improvement
By Samuel McKewon
Senior staff writer
Editors note: this is the eighth of
an 11-part series exploring
Nebraska s football opponents in the
Big 12 Conference.
Iowa State Coach Dan McCamey
considered his Cyclones’ 3-8 record in
1998 a success.
Seriously.
66
I can’t really predict the future, but
hopefully I'll stay healthy. I don’t like to
talk that much about nryself I like to talk
about other guys.”
Darren Davis
ISU running back
It may not have always shown on
the field, McCarney said, but ISU
made significant strides. The defense
allowed 15 less points per game. It had
a school-record 32 sacks.
The Clones beat Iowa for the first
time since 1982. And generally, Iowa
State improved in every statistical cat
egory from the year before.
In 1999, the coach turns his atten
tion to getting a few more wins and,
although it seems unlikely, a possible
bowl berth.
“Gaining momentum and confi
dence and getting the young people to
believe and expect and knowing that
they can win games is really important
when you haven’t turned the comer
yet,” McCarney said.
The defense returns most of its
firepower, with three-fourths of the
defensive line and all of the secondary
coming back.
Ryan Harklau, a 6-foot-3, 280
pound defensive lineman, is among
the best Cyclone returnees. He said
Iowa State believes more in its cause
this season than ever before.
We didn’t have a great season last
year, but it gave us a lot of confidence
to know that we can do that,” Harklau
said. “We can beat teams we’re not
supposed to beat.”
Offensively, ISU returns its most
exciting player in running back Darren
Davis, who had 1,166 yards last year,
including seven touchdowns. Davis is
the younger brother of former ISU star
and Heisman Trophy runner-up Troy
Davis.
He has had problems with injuries
in the past and hopes he can play his
entire senior season without pain.
“I can’t really predict the future,
but hopefully I’ll stay healthy,” Davis
said. “I don’t like to talk that much
about myself. I like to talk about other
guys.”
With Damien Groce and Chris
Anthony returning after combining
for 89 catches last year, the question
turns to quarterback, where
McCarney has decided to go with
junior Sage Rosenfels instead of
Derrick Walker. Either will have a
tough time replacing Todd Bandhauer,
who ended his career at ISU with the
most yards in the school’s history.
“I don’t want him to have to be
Marino or Montana - feel like he’s
going in the game, and he’s got to
make those throws and those plays and
some decisions that will make or
break our offense,” McCarney said of
the quarterback situation.
“He’s gotta be sound. He’s gotta be
smart.”
Ferentz s offenses and defenses remain mystery
FERENTZ from page 15
have no solid way to prepare for Iowa on either
side of the ball because of the new systems.
“This is probably the toughest game I have
ever had to prepare for as a coach at Nebraska,”
18-year Defensive Coordinator Charlie McBride
said. “I expect the unexpected. We really don’t
know what they’re going to throw at us, so we’ve
prepared for just about everything from a three
back set to a zero-back set. It’s not going to be a
fun game, let’s put it that way.”
But despite the fact that the Huskers may have
very little idea as to what Iowa will bring to the
table, Ferentz said the advantage of such a lack of
knowledge won’t be as great as it seems.
“Maybe we do have an advantage initially
because we’ll be running new systems,” Ferentz
said. “But that will be short-lived.
“Football is football. The Nebraska players
will play with a full package. They will be flexi
ble, I’m sure. They’ve had coaches who have been
there for a long time who know what they’re
doing. They play in the Big 12 and have seen all
kinds of offenses.”
The Nebraska defense has been keeping an
eye on game films from the Baltimore Ravens -
where Ferentz was the offensive line coach from
1993-98 - and on Fordham University, which was
coached last year by Ferentz’s new offensive coor
dinator, Ken O’Keefe.
The defense could also learn a lot from watch
ing tapes of Iowa teams from 1981-89, when
Ferentz was the Hawkeyes’ offensive line coach.
During those years, Iowa football saw some
of its finest hours under Ferentz’s predecessor,
legendary Head Coach Hayden Fry. The
Hawkeyes went 73-33-4 and made it to eight bowl
games - including two Rose Bowls - during that
stretch.
Five of Iowa’s top-10 offensive teams, in
terms of yards gained per game, were operating
behind Ferentz’s offensive lines. And seven of
Iowa’s top-10 passing teams of all time occurred
during the Ferentz years.
For that reason, people in Iowa and Nebraska
are expecting Ferentz to use a similar offense that
Fry used - a pro- set that revolves around the run
ning back, in this case sophomore Ladell Betts,
and usually uses a drop-back passer at quarter
back, in this case junior Kyle McCann.
McBride said he expected a balanced attack
from the Hawkeyes, complete with low-risk run
ning plays and quick, short passes to compensate
for a relatively inexperienced offensive line that
has shifted some players at certain positions.
“Their offensive line has moved around, and
it’s a new offense,” McBride said. “Since we’ve
prepared for just about anything, they’re going to
have to trick us to put us out of position.”
The NU offense has prepared itself by watch
ing videotapes of recent Vanderbilt squads who
played under new Iowa Defensive Coordinator
Norm Parker. Parker rebuilt the Commodore
defense when he came to Vandy in 1995 and
turned it into the best unit of the Southeastern
Conference and sixth-best unit in the nation last
year.
Although it may be hard to figure out what
kind of scheme the Iowa defense will bring,
Nebraska starting quarterback Bobby Newcombe
said that there’s only so much that can be done m
preparing for any team’s attack.
“The only thing that concerns us is our
selves,” Newcombe said. “This team is so fired
up to play this game that it doesn’t really matter
who we play.”
Ferentz hopes that all the commotion and
confusion surrounding playing a season-opener
against Nebraska will get the same results as his
first game as an Iowa assistant in 1981, when the
Hawkeyes upset the Huskers 10-7 in Iowa City.
But don’t plan on him using that as a springboard
for confidence in preparing for NU.
“Honestly, Saturday is going to be a great
challenge,” Ferentz said. “When I came here in
1981, we opened with Nebraska, and the only dif
ference was that I didn’t know any better.”
Johnson plays many
roles for Nebraska
JOHNSON from page 15
Booker, Terrell Farley, Ryan Terwilliger
and Larry Arnold all took Johnson
under their wing.
It was a warm, family atmosphere,
and it helped Johnson keep going when
he wasn’t allowed to practice his fresh
man season because of his grades.
Looking back at his four years at
NU, it wasn’t a quarterback sack; a pass
interception or a fumble recovery that
Johnson was most proud of, it was the
friendships he had made with his team
mates.
“I take pride in being able to call
everybody on the team by name,”
Johnson said. “\bu can’t go into war not
knowing the people you are with.”
Interacting with people is some
thing Johnson has no problem doing.
When he walks through the Hewitt
Center, he makes it a point to shake
hands with everyone he meets. It does
n’t matter if it is Bobby Newcombe or a
new freshman player.
Johnson is glad to give to the
younger players die same guidance he
received as a freshman.
“Every person that comes in, I try to
make comfortable,” said Johnson, who
started all 12 regular-season games last
season. “The only thing I ask in return is
that they do the same thing.”
Solich said Johnson is a good role
model for the younger players.
“He has a great attitude,” Solich
said. “He always has a smile on his face
and is an upbeat player with a lot of
enthusiasm. That enthusiasm carries
over onto the field.”
Ortiz said the way Johnson plays
provides motivation to teammates on
the field.
Johnson knows that football was
almost taken away from him - because
he struggled academically - so he cher
ishes each moment he is on the field.
He goes into each game like he has
never been on the field before.
“The excitement each game is like a
new experience,” Johnson said. “I am
like a kid in a candy store with $ 10.”
As a football player, Johnson has
more than surpassed his goals, but he
still has one thing left to accomplish - a
college diploma.
“After that, I will have accom
plished everything,” Johnson said. “I
want to be remembered as someone
who never gave up and overcame the
stereotype of being a Prop 48 player.”
Eddleman a ‘game-breaker’
EDDLEMAN from page 24
said she felt as if she had gone full
circle in her four years. As a fresh
man, she said §he just went out and
played and didn’t worry about any
thing. However, following her stand
out freshman season, she said she felt
pressure to do better and become a
first-team All-American. She put
similar expectations on herself for
her junior season.
She has learned her lesson from
past experiences and doesn’t have
any expectations for herself this year.
“I just want to play,” Eddleman
said.
The way Eddleman has started
the season, Coach John Walker will
be happy to let her just keep playing.
“We are really seeing her play her)
best soccer,” he said. “She has devel
oped a very good understanding of
how to get open. She really has
rounded herself into a complete play
er. It definitely has helped her being
pain-free.”
Even with various injuries
throughout her career, Eddleman has
climbed near the top of many of NU’s
career-statistical charts. She needs
just 18 points, 12 more goals and
three game-winning goals to set new
Husker marks in those categories.
But the modest Eddleman said
she wasn’t aware of how close she
was until she opened the media guide
before the season.
“It would be nice to break them,
but it isn’t a personal goal,”
Eddleman said. “Since I am a senior,
my main goal is to lead this team.”
Eddleman’s teammates recog
nized her as leader by voting her to
be one of four captains. Even before
being given the captain title,
Eddleman took on more of a leader
ship role this fall, Walker said.
She is vocal, but perhaps her
biggest leadership attribute is the
way she plays the game. A rough and
tumble, physical player, Eddleman
sets a standard for other Huskers to
follow, Walker said. She also has a
knack for scoring goals in big games,
he added.
Texas A&M is one team that has
seen Eddleman break its heart with
game-winning goals.
“She is an incredibly dangerous
weapon for Nebraska,” Aggie Coach
G. Guerreri said. “I know our players
look at her as someone who can do a
lot of damage.”
Guerreri considers Eddleman
one of the four top-notch forwards in
66
I know our players
look at her as
someone who can
do a lot of damage
G.Guerreki
Texas A&M head coach
the Big 12. The others are Nicky
Thrasher of A&M, Courtney
Saunders of Baylor and Nicki Thole
of Missouri.
“They are the four game-break
ers in the conference,” he said.
NU will need that game-break
ing ability out of Eddleman. The
Huskers are playing n lot of top
teams this fall. Defeating those
teams is the only way Eddleman can
accomplish her ultimate goal, which
is to win a national title.
“I think it would be any graduat
ing senior’s dream to go out as a
national champion,” Eddleman said.
“We always have that goal, but I
think this year it is more realistic that
we can do it.”
Young runners
to compete at
weekend meet
■ Coach Jay Dirksen
says his top runners will
not competent the Bearcat
Classic in an effort to give
NU’s youth experience.
By Sean Callahan
Staff writer
The Bearcat Classic, held at
Marysville, Mo., on Saturday, will
not be a meet that will show how
good the Nebraska men’s and
women’s cross-country teams will be
this season.
It will instead be a meet for the
younger Cornhusker runners to give
them some needed competition expe
rience.
NU Cross Country Coach Jay
Dirksen said he will hold out his top
four runners on the men’s team and
top six runners on the women’s team.
“This is a low-key meet,” Dirksen
said. “There will be some good indi
viduals in the meet, but the teams
won’t be anything we’ll see later on.”
Last season, when the Huskers
ran in this meet with their full teams,
both the men’s and women’s team
placed first.
This season Dirksen thought the
meet would be a good physiological
race for the younger runners - to give
them some early confidence.
The runners, Dirksen said, that
will likely lead the team at the
Bearcat Classic are juniors Todd
Tripple and Deb Osteen.
Tripple was one of the Huskers’
top runners a year ago until he suf
fered an injury. He said this will be a
good meet to help him come back.
“The competition isn’t really that
tough,” Tripple said. “It’s more or less
a good opportunity for us to get in a
race situation.”
Osteen agreed with Tripple and
said this meet will be a good building
block for the rest of the season.
/ “I think that all of us who are
going to the meet feel we will all do
very well,” Osteen said.
After the Bearcat Classic, the rest
of the Husker team will be in action
Sept. 18 at the Woody Greeno
Nebraska Invite in Lincoln at
Pioneers Park.