I
NU,KSU
similar
save QBs
The
Huskers
and
Wildcats
stand toe to
toe, staring
at each
other, and
it’s like
looking in
Matthew
Hansen
Not a pretty sight, either - the
image is one of fat, cartoonish Lil’
Red mating with the ridiculous
Powercat to produce a bastard
offspring that both stands on his
head and uses his arms to expert
ly spell out the letters, “K,” “S” and
“U."
Power Red. Lil’ Cat Acreation
from mascot hell.
The similarities are so many
and varied that it’s hard to imag
ine Saturday’s game being any
thing but close, though not neces
sarily well played.
Both teams are chock full of
talent They have more than any
one else in the nation save Florida
State.
Both teams have under
achieved this season. Both were
beaten by an Oklahoma team that
had no business beating them.
The Sooners just wanted it more.
Both teams have spectacular
field generals - Eric Crouch,
Michael Bish... oh.
It’s not Bishop, but a pawn
named Jonathan Beasley that
leads these Wildcats. He inter
rupts the utter duplicity of the
Comcats, theWildskers. Saturday,
he will be the
difference, a
Nebraska negative differ
wfff not ence, for KSU.
WUl HOl Nebraska
Win this will not win this
50 Ee“S
much as get knocked
Beasley downbyanoth
... er round of big
Wlll get game football.
knocked Jonathan,
down by “Z;
another time, neither
round Of MissourTHgere
big-game will make the
football. bruises disap
__ pear.
All this big
game pummeimg started with
Nebraska last season, when
Beasley attempted 19 passes and
scattered 16 of them across the
Memorial Stadium turf.
Of course, to hear K-State
coaches and Beasley tell it this
week, his shoulder was grue
somely separated.
Not buying it Yes, there’s no
doubt that Beasley was banged
up. If he'd been seriously injured,
though, why didn’t capable back
up Adam Helm start?
The results weren’t much bet
ter when Beasley's shoulder was
all better. In the Midcats’ loss to
Oklahoma this season, it was 22
incomplete passes and two inter
ceptions.
More? Twenty-five incom
plete passes and two picks came
in a loss to Texas A&M.
His totals - three big games,
31 of 94 passing (32 percent), 538
yards (179 yards/game) and four
interceptions.
Joe Montana he ain’t
Let’s not forget the games
where KSU unexpectedly strug
gled, with Beasley at the helm.
In close wins over Iowa State
last season and Texas Tech this
season, Beasley threw for a whop
ping 184 yards combined.
The opinion behind all these
numbers is that Beasley can’t do it
when the bright lights are on. His
stats are padded beyond belief by
easy wins over mediocre Big 12
teams and nonconference door
mats.
The burning speed of Aaron
Lockett and Quincy Morgan has a
lot to do with Beasley’s inflated
numbers.
But come game time, real
game time, Beasley won’t show
up. You can bet that Eric Crouch
will. Nebraska by two touch
downs.
Otherwise, these teams might
play forever.
Two boring coaches with
questionable big-game juevos,
good offensive and defensive
lines, religious zealot fans who
insist on the mass wearing of
bright, ugly colors, Lincoln,
Manhatt... oh.
! Huskers shatter A&M win streak
■ Nebraska maintains perfect record by
defeating the Aggies in tough College
Station atmosphere.
BY KRISTEN WATERS
The Huskers ended two Texas A&M
streaks and kept their own undefeated
streak going as they beat the Aggies in four
games, 8-15,15-6,15-13 and 15-9.
With the win, Nebraska ended A&M’s
28-match home winning streak. The
Huskers also snapped their own two-match
losing streak in College Station.
NU moved its record to 23-0 and kept
their No. 1 ranking intact, but it wasn’t easy.
In a hostile crowd of 2,130, NU lost its
first game of the match to die Aggies, (15-5,
10-4 in conference play), something it has
only done three times this season to
Colorado State, Texas and UCLA.
"It’s a hard place to play here,” Head
Coach John Cook said in a post-game radio
interview. “They got the troops rallied up
tonight. But for the most part we were able
to keep our focus and win.”
Nebraska started the night out strong in
the first game as sophomore setter
Greichaly Cepero served four straight points
for NU, leaving A&M down 4-0.
But the Aggies were able to fight back as
the Huskers had a hard time controlling the
ball and executing an offense. The bad pass
ing, missed hits and serves allowed Texas
A&M to slip by the Big Red in an easy 15-8
first-game victory.
Nebraska stepped up its fundamental
play in the second game as they shot down
11 points before the Aggies could put up
two. A&M didn't buy into the Husker intimi
“It’s a hard place to play here.They got the troops rallied up
tonight. But for the most part we were able to keep our focus
and win.”
John Cool
_NU volleyball coach
dation and crept back into the game by cap
italizing on Nebraska’s errors.
But the six kills and three stuff blocks by
Junior Jenny Kropp was too much for A&M
to handle. In a quick thirty minutes
Nebraska ran away with a 15-6 win.
The Huskers started the third game with
a 4-1 run, but couldn’t hold on to its lead.
Nebraska was sluggish as they continued to
suffer from missed hits and serves. The
Aggies stepped back in the game with five
straight points to tie the game at 6-6.
Nebraska and A&M were in a dog fight
for control of the game. The squads strug
gled back and forth giving and taking one
side out after another.
But sophomore Amber Holmquisi
refused to allow the Huskers to lose anothei
game to the unranked Aggies, as she
stepped up her play and dammed down ter
kills. Freshmen Anna Schrad added anothei
three and NU rolled on to win 15-13 in a
tight third game.
Please see VOLLEYBALL on 1C
Line prepares for KSU's rushing attack
■With the defensive front
healthy, Nebraska looks to shut
down K-State's running game.
BY SAMUEL MCKEWON
It was reminiscent of an NFL
Films serial - Nebraska defensive
lineman Jeremy Slechta sticking
a giant white bear claw in cele
bration of his first interception of
the season against Kansas
Saturday.
The claw was actually a giant
cast on Slechta’s right hand, the
result of yet another injury to a
Comhusker interior lineman. KU
quarterback Dylen Smith
searched for a Jayhawk receiver
over the middle. Slechta was
back in shallow coverage.
“I was in the right place, right
time,” said the junior from
Papillion.
Slechta watched as the ball
stuck in his arm like a rock would
in a slingshot. It was almost too
easy. And for the NU interior
linemen, it was about time some
thing happened without the dif
ficulty of a kidney-stone passing.
As the key trio of Slechta,
Jason Lohr and Loran Kaiser pre
pare for one of the better rushing
foes of the season in No. 16
Kansas State - yes, Kansas State.
The Wildcats bring with them
nine games’ worth of pain, injury
and lost time.
At different times of the sea
son, each player has either been
injured or, as in Lohr’s case, out of
condition after being injured for
two-a-day practices.
“It's been one thing or anoth
er most of the season" said Lohr,
who leads the defensive tackles
with 32 stops in 2000. “As soon as
it looks like one guy’s healthy,
another guy would get hurt”
Right now, all three are
healthy enough to play, as Kaiser,
the senior from Grand Island,
saw extended action against
Kansas after playing sparingly in
the loss to Oklahoma. Before
that, he sat out three games with
a sprained foot
Nebraska Defensive
Coordinator Craig Bohl said it
continues to hamper Kaiser’s
production, but he could start on
Saturday.
Slechta’s broken hand was
Steven Bender/Dti
Nebraska defensive tackle Jeremy Slechta celebrates with teammates after his interception during the Huskers'win against Kansas Saturday.
received against OU. Besides
having to take awkward notes in
class and occasionally use an
awkward three-point stance, the
6-foot-6, 285-pounder has lost
the ability to grab and throw
offensive lineman.
Instead, he uses the cast as a
human billy club of sorts to
smack lineman out of the way.
“That’s worked a couple of
times,” he said. “But it's still been
tough at times.”
Despite the turmoil, there
have been few rushing defenses
better than the No. 4 Huskers.
They give up only 101 yards per
game, good for 19th nationally.
Despite the injuries, NU
Defensive Line Coach Jeff Jamrog
said he hasn’t detected oppo
nents attempting to exploit an
injured middle.
The most rushing yards this
season weren’t relinquished in
the 27-24 overtime win against
Notre Dame as some might
expect, but against Missouri,
when a number of quarterback
scrambles netted the Tigers 203
rushing yards overall.
That was the only NU oppo
nent over the two-century mark
this season. San Jose State
weighed in with 193 yards. ND
had 184. Only Oklahoma, with
118 yards, managed triple digit
rushing figures otherwise.
Kansas State, if it has its way,
would be No. 5.
Though KSU’s 214 rushing
yards per game pales in compar
ison to the 381 yards Nebraska
averages, the Wildcats, with run
ning backs Josh Scobey and
David Allen, have struck a bal
anced offense that relies equally
on a diet of wide off-tackle plays,
quarterback draws from
Please see DEFENSE on 1C
KSU still has bite after losses
Courtesy Photo
Kansas State quarterback Jonathan Beasley and the Wildcats
have a lot left to play for this weekend against Nebraska.
■ After a rebound victory over }2) s?id Tuesday that they
' haven t lost their bite.
l0W3 St3t6, KdllSdS St3t6 Still They’ll need it coming into
has Big 12 title hopes coming ^SaSe0"*
intOtheNUgame. te^tKSUis always charged up
BY JOHN GASKINS “The fans aren’t going to
- want to come here anymore just
MANHATTAN, Kan. -Kansas to watch a good football game
State football players, coaches and see Nebraska play,” KSU
and fans had to swallow a lot of junior linebacker Ben Leber
purple pride in October, and it said. “They're going to be more
didn’t go down easy. excited. The community is more
First, now-No. 1 Oklahoma excited.”
blazed into Manhattan gun Even K-State’s morbidly
slinging and shot down the stoic coach, Bill Snyder, said he
Wildcat’s national title hopes wants and expects his team to
41-31 on Oct. 14. play like there is plenty to play
If that wasn't bad enough, K- for.
State had to endure the agony of “If you attempt to play with
the Aggies and a deafening 12th- out any (emotion), you set your
man crowd two weeks later. self up for some difficult times,”
KSU lost 26-10 at Texas A&M in said Snyder, who is 1-10 against
an ugly game where nothing NU.
went right. “I would suggest that if
But despite losing national you’re 21 years old and you’re
respect and being in grave dan- going to play year-in and year
ger of losing three games for the out one of the finest football
first time in four years, the 11th
ranked and four-point-under
dog Wildcats (6-2,4-2 in the Big Please see WILDCATS on 10
Huskers to play
Richmond first
FROM STAFF REPORTS
The question surrounding the fourth-seeded
Nebraska soccer team was who it was going to plaj
in its first match of the NCAA Tournamenl
Wednesday night it was answered resoundingly.
Richmond blew past West Virginia 5-1 with for
ward Brooke Sands leading the way.
Sands, Richmond's all-time leader in points
(124) and goals (51), scored two goals and twc
assists for the Spiders, which scored on four ol
their first six shots on goal.
The Mountaineers were unable to put anj
points on the board until the 56:36 mark in the sec
ond half.
NU Coach John Walker said his team will begin
preparations for his team’s matchup with
Richmond Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Abbott Sports
Complex.
Walker said he spoke with coaches around the
country, trying to get as much information aboul
Richmond and West Virginia, but won't have a
chance to look at game film until tomorrow.
The Spiders will enter the contest with a pro
gram-best 13-6 record, while NU has only one
blemish on it’s 21-1 record.