SportsTuesday
Truth told,
reporters
must bear
bad news
Five days before he was to
be fired Sunday, Missouri
Football Coach Larry Smith
arrived at his final weekly press
conference and launched into a
quivering
tirade on
journalism,
directing
every SCUD
missile he
owned
straight into
all tape
recorders
w i i n i n ^ r
earshot. Samuel
Smith, at McKeWOfl
61, had hit
the end of the
road. He, his players, his staff
and Mizzou knew it The coach
had a quiver of arrows set aside
for the media, so why not use
them?
A man not known for keep
ing his emotions at bay in pub
lic setting, Smith had cartoon
ish venom to spread. Among his
salvos:
“(The media) have no idea
what it takes to coach a football
team. You have no idea what it
takes to play the game of foot
ball on the college level. You
have no idea. But still, you try to
write about it, you try to evalu
ate it, and you try to judge it.
And it’s strictly opinion.
“Who cares about your
opinion? Because it’s not right
It’s not founded; it’s not factual.”
In another
“I don’t read all that crap.
But I hear about it. The (coach
es’) wives hear about it, the
players read it, they hear about
it. Every one of you - most of
you - have tried to bury this
program. You’ve tried to bury
me and this program.”
He went onward, and of
course incurred the sarcastic
wrath of columnists and sports
writers all over the region, who,
if they so choose, can gloat,
heartily over Smith’s firing by
MU, which had to call its own
press conference because the
coach basically said the Tigers
cared about nothing but win
ning.
Smith’s tirade is one that
nearly every college football
coach secretly wishes he could,
if it didn’t affect his image,
which it almost always would,
and then if the athletic director
didn’t mind, which he usually
does. Because those two vari
ables rarely co-exist, coaches
stay quiet.
oui uic icxiMUll la liiexe, ailU
it can be felt, even at Nebraska.
A glare from Coach Frank Solich
might say, Who are you to ques
tion me about a game I under
stand far better? Some sports
writers, especially those cover
ing NU, think twice before
throwing down against a pro
gram that wins nine games a
year, every year.
Solich has enough restraint,
and enough sense, to wisely
refrain from public floggings of
the media. But recent questions
surrounding his ability to func
tion as coach and offensive
coordinator offer a man that,
while calm and understanding
of gentle jabs at his skill,
nonetheless wonders why he
must answer to those who know
less than he.
The answer is, ofcourse,
that a public spotlight brings
such scrutiny.
Days are gone when sports
writers smoked with Joe
DiMaggio in the clubhouse,
then went out for a round of
drinks afterward.
The 1960s changed journal
ists. The Civil Rights movement
changed journalists. Vietnam
changed journalists. Watergate
changed journalists. And the
ugly truth about many college
football programs, including
Oklahoma and Miami, changed
journalists.
But football, in many circles,
would still like to operate under
old standards, when lies about a
player’s injury were accepted
and a coach’s word was left less
challenged. Like anyone else, a
football coach, or a player,
would much rather not face the
bad stuff.
They’ll operate on double
Please see MCKEWON on 9
A battle of pride for Husker seniors
BY JOSHUA CAMENZ1ND
On Friday, the Nebraska sen
iors will take the Memorial
Stadium field for the last time with
bruised egos and rival Colorado
on the opposite sideline.
The seniors have a four-year
record of 42-7 strapped on their
backs and a bull’s eye printed on
their chests.
“Everybody we play against is
the other team's biggest game of
the year,” Dan Alexander said.
“You look at Kansas State, and
they believe that they are better
than us, and they beat us this last
game, but since last season, they
have been counting down
towards the Nebraska game.
"No matter how bad a team’s
season is going, playing Nebraska
and being able to beat us can
make or break somebody’s sea
son.”
The 2000 Husker senior class
has dealt with numerous pres
sure-filled situations before, and
Friday's against the struggling
Buffs will be no different, rover Joe
Walker said.
“Us being a top contender
allows us to have a lot of rivals,”
Walker said.
Walker said Colorado has
been one of those rivals, along
with Texas, Oklahoma and others,
in the last couple of years. Though
the Buffaloes haven't beaten the
Huskers since 1990, the margin of
"No matter how bad
their season has gone
and how good we are,
they are going to play
us tough."
Dan Alexander
NU 1-back
victory of the last four games
serves warning that Colorado will
come to Lincoln with hopes of
ending NU’s regular season on a
bad note.
The Huskers have beaten CU
by margins of five, three, two and
three points since 1997. But the
Buffaloes have as many losses (7)
this season as the seniors do in
their four-year careers at
Nebraska.
Doesn’t matter, Alexander
said.
“No matter how bad their sea
son has gone and how good we
are, they are going to play us
tough,” Alexander said.
All surveyed at the NU camp
expect a battle in a game that pits
two teams that lost their last game.
Nebraska lost 29-28 to Kansas
State, and Colorado was downed
35-27 by Iowa State.
Count CU Coach Gary Barnett
as one of those, as welL
“We know that we are walking
ON Hie Photo
Nebraska hopes to have many more touchdown celebrations like this one when the Huskers face Colorado in Memorial Stadium
on Friday. Players say that effort won't be a problem against the Buffs, despite Nlft having no chance at a Big 12 or national title.
into a hornet’s nest, but we lost
too," he said
No one is denying that Senior
Day will bring out the extra emo
tion that, coupled with making up
foraloss, could spell doom for the
Buffaloes.
Even though a conference and
national championship are out of
the picture, Alexander said the
PleaseseePRIDEon9
Ffriend back for Collier, NU
■Nebraska is closer to full
strength and is looking for win
No.1 against Eastern Illinois.
BY BRIAN CHRSTOPHERSON
Nebraska center Kimani
Ffriend couldn’t help but think
about how Saturday’s basketball
opener against Oral Roberts
could have been different if he
were on the court
The Comhuskers lost 87-83
without Ffriend and senior guard
Rodney Fields, who both sat out
the last of a three-game suspen
sion.
“We lost by four points, and I
think if I were in the game, surely I
could have made up a four-point
difference," Ffriend said. “It was
unfortunate that we couldn’t
win."
The senior said his suspen
sions served as a “good learning
experience” and has him even
more excited about his season
debut tonight.
"I think you are going to see a
new and improved Kimani
Ffriend, a more mature Kimani
Ffriend,” he said. “After playing in
the Big 12 for one year, I proved
that I can play at this level I realize
what I bring to the table.”
Ffriend’s return also is a wel
come sight to Coach Barry Collier,
who is searching for his first win at
Nebraska.
“Kimani is a special player
because he is very intense and
athletic,” Collier said. “He adds
quite a bit out there and makes
your team look like they know
even more what they’re doing
because he can erase a lot of mis
takes.”
Tonight, Ffriend hopes to help
even NU’s 0-1 record against 0-1
Eastern Illinois in the Huskers’
DN File Photo
NU senior Steffon Bradford looks to dominate Eastern Illinois tonight like he did Oral
Roberts on Saturday. Bradford had 26 points and 14 rebounds in the Huskers' 87-83
loss to ORU.The power forward will have help in the middle against Eastern Illinois -
preseason All-Big 12 center Kimani Ffriend is back from a three-game suspension.
home opener at the Bob Devaney
Sports Center.
The Panthers 90-73 opening
game loss came at the hands of
Collier’s old team, Butler.
EIU will be led by senior guard
Kyle Hill, who led a balanced
Panther attack against Butler with
21 points.
Hill has fond memories of the
Devaney Center. Early last sea
son, he put up 35 points in a 81-78
double overtime loss to the
Huskers.
“We’ve got to play well against
a team that has really good expe
rience, especially at the guard
spots,” Collier said of tonight's
confrontation with EIU. “They
play a pretty fast game, shoot the
three quite a bit and will attack the
basket It will be a great challenge
forus.”
Husker Notes
Nebraska may be close to
adding another weapon to the
lineup.
Junior Kevin Augustine went
through some full-speed, five-on
five action in practice Monday
and “looked really good” accord
ing to Collier.
The transfer point guard has
sat out the beginning of the sea
son with a back injury.
Collier said Augustine would
not play tonight, but he would be
evaluated day-to-day this week
with 2000 NCAA tournament
qualifier Winthrop looming on
Monday.
Runners build for 2001 at nationals
BYJILLZEMAN
Running in freezing condi
tions, the Nebraska men’s cross
country team finished its season
Monday in 26th place at the NCAA
Championships in Ames, Iowa.
The race, which featured 31
teams and more than250 runners,
marked the final collegiate com
petition for seniors Marcus Witter
and Aaron Carrizales.
Witter finished his season the
same way he did in almost every
meet this year - as the first Husker
to cross the line.
Witter finished the 10,000
meter race in 79th place with a
time of 31:36. Carrizales was close
behind, taking 108th place in
31:49.
The men's race was won by
Providence’s Keith Kelly in a time
of 30:14.5. The title was captured
by No. 2 Arkansas, who upset top
ranked Colorado to win.
The top 20 finishers in the
contest received All-American
honors. Although Carrizales and
Witter didn’t make the cut,
Dirksen said he was still pleased
with their performances.
“Marcus and Aaron had
tremendous senior years,"
Dirksen said in a press release.
“Both of them improved greatly
from last year and throughout
their careers, as well”
Witter was the only Husker
who had competed at nationals
before Monday. The younger run
ners finished their first national
race closely together.
Freshman Kyle Wyatt took
180th, sophomores Jed Barta
placed 197th, Mike Kamm took
201st, Ian Gray placed 206th, and
freshman Eric Rasmussen came
in 224th.
The runners faced bone-chill
ing temperatures in Ames. At 11
a.m., it was 17 degrees with a -19
degree wind chill at the Iowa State
Cross Country Course.
The weather was colder than
almost any race conditions Coach
Jay Dirksen could remember.
“The conditions were brutal
out here,” he said.
* “I’ve coached for 31 years and
I think this is the coldest I can
remember.”
This year’s race was the first
time since 1997 the Huskers com
peted in the national champi
onships.
The Huskers barely made it
into the national competition this
season, as they placed fifth at
regionals two weeks ago.
The Huskers’ invite to the race
came as a surprise, Dirksen said.
“The way I look at it, we came
into the meet as the 30th team and
finished 26th, so we did a little bet
ter than we supposedly were,”
Dirksen said.
Dirksen said he thought the
race was a good way to end the
year.
“Everybody ran good, solid
races,” he said. “We had a young
team, so we have a lot to build on
next year.”
Young QB Ochs
excited for test
BY DAVID DIEHL
This is the kind of week Craig Ochs dreamed about
The true freshman quarterback, bom in Colorado Springs and raised
in Boulder, is finally experiencing Nebraska week firsthand
As quarterback at Boulder's Fairview High, Ochs would watch former
CU signal callers such as Kordell Stewart, Koy Detmer and Mike
Moschetti go into Nebraska and come out winless. Now it is Ochs’ turn to
try and stop the Buffs’ eight-game losing skid to NU.
“CU fans take this game very seriously,” Ochs said. “We’ve obviously
struggled against them the past six or seven years, but it’s still a very big
game and it’ll be very exciting to play.”
Ochs leads a CU team that has, to say the least, underachieved in
2000, compiling a 3-7 record. The Buffs aren't bowl-eligible for only the
second time in die past 14 seasons.
A part of that record kept Ochs in the closet for the first games of the
season, Coach Gary Barnett said A non-conference slate that included
Colorado State, Southern California and Washington kept the inexperi
enced Ochs on the sideline, while Barnett turned those games over to the
more tested Zac Colvin and Bobby Pesavento. CU lost all three by a com
bined 10 points.
In CU’s fourth game, Barnett finally decided to test Ochs’ ability for
the first time against Kansas State.
“We felt it was time to see what he could do against Kansas State,”
Barnett said
Ochs responded with 208 yards on 15-24 passing and a touchdown.
Since then the starting job has been all his. Afterwinningthe job, Ochs has
thrown for more than 1,200 yards in six games. He also leads the team in
total offense and is second in scoring.
Barnett said the coaching staff has known all along about the young
quarterback’s ability.
“The first few days we had him in camp, we knew he would be the
guy,” Barnett said. “But we wanted to make sure before we inserted Craig
in there that the other two guys had a fair shot at winning the job.”
But Ochs’ success on a personal level hasn’t echoed itself for Colorado
as a whole. While living out his dream of playing quarterback CU, Ochs
has suffered through one of the worst seasons of Colorado football in
years. Should CU lose to Nebraska and finish 3-8, it’ll be the team’s worst
season since it suffered through a 1-10 campaign in 1984.
The CU locker room, however, doesn’t want that stigma attached to
them, Ochs said.
“Obviously we’ve had a frustrating year,” he said, “but hopefully we
can go out on a good note. That’s our goal”
That will mean dealing with a hostile environment, which Barnett
said will be "a shock” to his young team that consists of only six seniors on
the active roster. Barnett said Saturday’s game at Memorial Stadium will
just prepare the younger members of the team for their trip back to
Lincoln in 2002.
Preparing is what Colorado has been doing a lot of this year, Ochs
said.
“This has been a great learning year for a lot of us,” Ochs said. “We’re a
young team, so while it’s been frustrating, hopefully we can carry over
what we've learned this year into next year.”
Larry Smith’s firing at
Missouri may have implications
in the state of Oklahoma.
Sooner co-defensive coordina
tors Mike Stoops and Brent
Venables are both rumored to
be replacements for Smith, who
was let go after compiling a 7-15
record die last two seasons.
OU Coach Bob Stoops said
he had no reservations with let
ting his two assistants, or any
other assistant, explore differ
ent options.
“My coaches can go when
they want to go,” Stoops said.
"This is a free country, and this
program is bigger than one
player or one coach.”
Kansas State Coach Bill
Snyder endorsed both for
coaching jobs in the future.
**«
K-State, which gained a
rematch with OU in the Big 12
Championship game by beating
Smith’s Tigers 28-24 on
Saturday, will have an extra
week of preparation for the
Sooners because Oklahoma still
must play Oklahoma State.
But Snyder said payback for
a 41-31 loss to OU earlier in the
season will not be a topic dis
cussed in team meetings for the
next two weeks.
“Our motivation in the game
Please see NOTEBOOK on 9