SPORTS UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Thursday, December 1, 1994
3B
Frazier may be able to play in bowl
The Associated Press
LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska quar-
back Tommie Frazier, sidelineed
since September to recover from
blood clot problems, may split time
when the top-ranked Cornhuskers
play No. 4 Miami in the Orange Bowl,
coach Tom Osborne said yesterday.
"If Tommie is able to scrimage, then we will let him compete for the job," Osborne said. "If he can't scrimage, I don't see any way you can move him ahead of Brook."
"We'll have to see who seems like they are best prepared to play come game time and we may play them both. Quite likely, we will."
Frazier suited up for Nebraska's regular-season finale against Oklahoma last Friday, but hasn't played since Sept. 24. Brook Berringer, a junior from Goodland, stepped in to lead nebraska to a 12- record and its fourth straight Orange Bowl visit.
Frazier, who is taking blood-thinning medicine that prohibits him from having contact in practice because of dangers from internal bleeding, has been at practice since Nov. 14.
ANALYSIS
A junior from Bradenton, Fla., Frazier started in the Huskers' first four games this year. Doctors on Sept. 24 discovered a blood clot in his right leg.
He began taking blood-thinners the next day, but a second clot was discovered about a week later.
An NCAA panel had denied Frazier's appeal for another year of eligibility.
Play with no shame in minors
Olympic hockey star can't make the NHL
By Jim Litke The Associated Press
CHICAGO — It did not faze Ray LeBlanc that things did not turn out exactly the way he pictured them.
Finding the right angle in every situation is one of those things that goalies do best. And if lowering his sights is what is called for, well, LeBlanc knows how to do that, too.
"I've done everything I ever wanted:
"I played in the Olympics. I had that one game in the NHL. And I'm still making a living at it. And if that's what I have to look back on, I'll be happy. Maybe this is the level I was cut out for, maybe not.
"Either way," LeBlanc said, "it will still turn out to have been a pretty good career."
Somewhere between detachment and defiance, his expression seemed to say there is no shame in being a minor leaguer. Besides, there is no one around to argue the point. Except for LeBlanc, the locker room of the International Hockey League's Chicago Wolves is deserted.
Just minutes earlier, with practice finished Tuesday, a few teammates ducked into the exercise room, waved hurried goodbyes and scattered in a rush. LeBlanc acknowledged each one, the veterans trying to squeeze a few more paychecks out of an aging body, and the youngsters still footloose and free enough to play out the string.
But his attention was fixed on a VCR replaying a recent game. A pulled groin muscle already cost LeBlanc last weekend's start and threatened to hold him out another two weeks. And so he rode the stationary bike hard, not stopping until the sweat soaked a thermal shirt and put some black back into his gray-flecked hair.
It did not work out that way. Now, with two young kids and a six-figure income in a minor league with improving prospects, he is resigned to that. His work ethic suggests pride, not discouragement, at the mention of the word "journeyman." His attitude confirms it.
Three years ago, LeBlanc, already 27, became a big Olympic hero for a short time, and one of the best stories in sports in the bargain. He looked like that rare guy who, against all odds and the opinions of all the professional talent scouts, was going to crack the big leagues long after his best days were supposed to be behind him.
"Some people still expect me to be bitter with the Blackhawks and the whole National Hockey League because of the way the thing happened," LeBlanc said. "But you know the way I looked at it? I was promised one game and I figured I was fortunate to get it."
In March 1992, capitalizing on more than just his recent Olympic fame, the Chicago Blackhawks brought LeBlanc up from their IHL farm team in Indianapolis for his first (and so far only) game in the big time.
During the last two minutes of that 5-1 win over San Jose, the crowd in
Chicago clambered to its feet, greeting LeBlanc's every move with the same thunderous "U.S.A., U.S.A." chants he heard a month earlier half a world away.
For all that, LeBlanc had no illusions. He knew the Blackhawks gave him the opportunity solely to make him available for the expansion draft. That in turn allowed the club to protect the three other goalkeepers on the roster they valued much more. He did not dispute those rankings at the time, though he would still love another chance to prove them wrong.
"The one thing I was disappointed about was that I didn't get drafted by the expansion teams," LeBlanc said. "But there nobody to blame for that but myself."
Instead of moping, LeBlanc simply improved. He went back to Indianapolis and the IHL, then to Cincinnati on loan from the Blackhawks to the Florida Panthers. When an NHL call-up failed to materialize once more, the Blackhawks cut LeBlanc free and he made a deal with the Wolves, who have no affiliation with an NHL club.
"You know what's funny about this?" said Ted Crowley, another former U.S. Olympian playing with the Wolves. "I think Ray is more confident, tougher, sharper ... playing better than at any time in his career.
"I mean, everybody's goal here is to make it to the NHL. But at the same time, dwelling on that too much will make you crazy.
"It's the guys who are only proving things to themselves that are making this league go. It's the guys like Ray."
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KANSAS BASKETBALL Attention Students!
PowerBar Shootout
KU Men & Women
vs. Univ.of Connecticut Men&Women
Kemper Arena Kansas City, MO
January 28,1995
Tip-off 12:30p.m.
4 Nationally ranked teams 2 great games!
Student lower-level seating:
$10.00 for both games
Get your tickets at KUTicket office while still available!
Deadline for Pickup is Dec. 21
For information, call 864-3141