Friday, October 9, 1998
The University Daily Kansan
Section B·Page 3
Oklahoma game haunts 'Huskers, Bobby Newcombe
The Associated Press
LINCOLN, Neb. — Battered and dazed, Bobby Newcombe shuffled out of Arrowhead Stadium last weekend.
No. 2 Nebraska beat Oklahoma State 24-17 but Newcombe's first road game as the Cornhuskers' quarterback wasn't easy.
"It was my toughest test mentally and physically." Newcombe said Tuesday. "I took a pretty good beating."
Every game is a learning experience for Newcombe. Up next is tomorrow's contest at No. 18 Texas A&M (4-1, 1-0 Big 12), provided an injured knee that hasn't fully healed allows Newcombe back on the field.
As of yesterday, the status remained unclear for Newcombe and backup Eric Crouch, who injured his hip against the Cowboys. If neither is ready, the Huskers (5-0, 1-0) have third-string Monte Christo.
In two home games, Newcombe looked so smooth leading the Huskers that it was easy to forget he's a sophomore who played wingback last fall. But last weekend, he was anything but polished.
Newcombe carried for 22 yards. Under his direction, the Nebraska offense — which went into the game rushing for 303 average yards — produced only 73 rushing yards, its lowest output since 1975.
Complicating matters for Newcombe; a swarming Oklahoma State defense and swelling from his partially torn knee ligament — an injury he suffered in the season opener and that forced him to miss two games.
"We just wanted Bobby to see some things from a different view," said quarterbacks coach Turner
Gill.
Adding to his frustration, Newcombe capped a third-quarter drive with a 6-yard touchdown run against Oklahoma State, only to be replaced on the next possession by Crouch, who led the Huskers to their second touchdown.
Later, it was disclosed that Newcombe had yelled at teammates while trying to kick-start Nebraska's struggling offense.
"I always try to stay calm and let the team know I have a lot of confidence in the people around me," he said. "At that game at times, I did get a lot more vocal than I usually am."
Gill said Newcombe did the right thing. He just went too far.
Newcombe: May not play because of a knee injury.
"We didn't
"We didn't move the ball as well we'd hoped, and that reflects on the whole offense," Gill said. "As the quarterback, you've got to do something, maybe verbally, maybe set an example on the field. Bobby did that."
Newcombe, who returned after Crouch was hurt, said he knows fans expect a lot from him, but he said his teammates expect more.
"My goal at the beginning of the season was not to impress the fans or anybody else out there," he said. "It was to lead the team to a championship season."
Newcombe has worked hard off the field. He's carrying 17 credit hours this semester, and by winter break, he expects to have 62 accumulated hours — enough classroom time to categorize him as a junior.
Newcombe said he pushes himself hard because no one can judge him more harshly than he judges himself.
"My own expectations, I haven't even come close to that yet." he said. "I can't really rate myself because I'm not 100 percent ready to go. I've shown him 'a able to play hurt in a game and lead us to victory, but I'm not at the level I'd like to perform."
Kansas volleyball to face rivals
By Laura Bokenkroger
Kansas sportswriter
Balanced attack key to beating opponents
Kansas volleyball coach Ray Bechard said the Jayhawks would need to find a rhythm and establish a balanced attack against their Big 12 Conference rivals this weekend.
The Jayhawks will battle No. 16 Texas A&M at 6 p.m. today in College Station. Tomorrow they travel to Austin to face No. 13 Texas
After the win Wednesday at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Bechard said his team had to be more consistent.
"volleyball is dependent on rhythm, and we played choppy in that match," he said.
Not all of that choppiness was the Jayhawks' fault. The game was televised and time-outs were taken every time a team collected five points.
But Bechard said his team also had lapses in concentration and consistency.
"We missed too many serves to develop a team rhythm," he said. "We played 12 players, which may have made us a little unstable. And it's tough to play a non-conference game in the middle of the week, but that really shouldn't have been a problem."
Setter Laura Rohde said the team's consistency needed to improve.
"We played at about half of our potential,"
she said. "We can't do that against Big 12 teams."
"They are both quality teams," Bechard said. "Texas is big and physical, and A&M has a combination of size and extensive volleyball background and technique."
The bayhawks resume their staring of conference matches against two Top 25 teams with two different styles.
Texas A&M, picked to finish fourth in the conference, are led by Stacy Skyora, reigning Big 12 Conference Player of the Week. Skyora has 202 kills and 177 digs this season.
Picked to finish second in the Big 12, the Texas Longhorns are led by Demetria Sance, three-time All-American and last week's Big 12 and National Player of the Week.
Both the Aggies and the Longhorns are 102 overall.
Texas A&M is 3-1 against Big 12 opponents, its only loss coming in a five-game battle against Texas.
Texas remains undefeated (4-0) in the conference before tonight's match against Oklahoma
"We have to get a pass to establish our game in the middle," he said. "We learned against Colorado that we can't just focus on specific players. You have to establish a balance."
Canssa middle blocker Amanda Reves, left, and outside hitter Moira Donovan react to the ball in a game against Nebraska. The volleyball team will play Texas A&M at 6 p.m. today and Texas tomorrow. Both games are on the road. Photo by Dan Elvassky/KANSAN
Cross country team to face nation's best
Jayhawks to battle top-ranked Stanford
By Dan Ferguson
Kansan sportswriter
The Kansas cross country team has something to prove.
Coach Gary Schwartz said this weekend would be the perfect time to show that Kansas can run with the top teams in America. Both the men's and women's teams will compete in the Bob Timmons Invitational tomorrow at Rim Rock Farm north of Lawrence.
"There are two levels of importance to this meet," Schwartz said. "One is to prove that we can host a great meet, and secondly, the men have a real chance to show what we can do. We need to beat some good teams."
Schwartz said this was the team's most important meet to date, especially on the men's side.
The men's team has a tough road ahead - they will run against four of the top five programs in the country, including No.1 Stanford
The invitational also will serve as a qualifying meet for the NCAA championships, which will be at Rim Rock Farm in November.
Freshman Brian Jensen, who is coming off a second place finish at the Iona Meet of Champions, said the meet was extremely important if the Jayhawks hoped to compete
in the NCAA championships later in the season.
"It's very important qualifyingwise," Jensen said. "That's what we're looking for, but we also we need to see how we stand up against other teams."
Schwartz said the team was preparing as if it were a championship meet.
"This meet is a very big deal," Schwartz said. "It will provide us with a good test going into the conference season. We have to prepare just as other teams prepare for big games in the middle of the season."
The women will also face many of the top programs in the country including No. 2 Stanford and No.4
Colorado.
"I think there has been improvement with the women, but it's not observable from a team standpoint." Schwartz said.
The women's team is coming off a 14th place finish in the Iona Meet of Champions.
"Iimprovement is what we're looking for," Schwartz said. "Realistically, we're not going to be able to compete with the top teams at this meet."
Schwartz said the team's results depended on their readiness to compete.
"We're just trying to get everyone prepared," Schwartz said. "Then it will just come down to performance."
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