Section B · Page 8
The University Daily Kansan
Monday, August 24, 1998
'Huskers' new quarterback old hand at position
The Associated Press
LINCOLN, Neb. — As Nebraska piled up points during a 69-7 victory over Oklahoma, Bobby Newcombe showed his full range of talent.
The freshman wingback caught a pass and blazed for a 40-yard touchdown in the nationally televised game last November. He had a 57-yard punt return and also made a spinning, one-handed catch from a sideline pass that
quarterback Scott Frost had tried to throw away.
Back in Newcombe's hometown of Albuquerque, N.M., Highland High School coach Judge Chavez chuckled.
"The amazing part of it for me was that he was doing the same kind of stuff in high school," Chavez said. "I couldn't believe he was doing it for Nebraska. He was making big-time players look ridiculous."
Newcombe: Will be Nebraska's new quarterback.
Now a sophomore, Newcombe has moved to the position for which he was recruited - quarterback. He asserted himself with a 175-yard rushing effort in Nebraska's spring game, including a 91-yard run for a touchdown on his first play.
"He certainly is fast," said Nebraska linebacker Jay Foreman. "There are times when you think you have him and then he has that little bit of extra speed, that burst or whatever, and he leaves the defense behind."
In football-crazed Nebraska, Newcombe already is a household name. A group of fans in Omaha has an Internet site dedicated to Newcombe.
One of the nation's top high school quarterbacks two years ago, Newcombe chose Nebraska over Arizona, Michigan, New Mexico and Oklahoma. Huskers fans were excited to have him, and Newcombe knows they expect a lot
It's nothing new for Newcombe. Chavez said that as a standout four-sport athlete at Highland, Newcombe effortlessly handled a media crush and always credited teammates, assistant coaches and his family.
"He was always very appreciative of what others did for him," Chavez said. "He's a very humble kid."
Newcombe was born in Sierra Leone in West Africa, where his father was a Peace Corps volunteer who married the daughter of a Mende tribal chief. The family moved to the United States when Bobby was 2.
For many Nebraska fans, Newcombe's pumping legs and agility evoke memories of 1972 Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Rogers. He's also compared to quarterback Tommie Frazier, who led the Huskers to unbeaten seasons and national titles in 1994 and 1995.
Newcombe said he has drawn on Frazier's experiences.
"Tommie told me there would be a lot of pressure, but that I would do fine," Newcombe said. "He told me to relax, to go with the flow. I don't feel any nerves whatsoever. I know I'm prepared."
'Kid at heart' Ricky Williams returns to attempt to break rushing records
Longhorn player will lead team under new coach
The Associated Press
AUSTIN, Tex. — Ricky Williams' face lights up as he recalls one of his favorite football memories. The game wasn't against Texas A&M or Oklahoma — it was at an elementary school.
"There were bodies flying all over the place," the nation's leading rusher said. "It was all the girls and me against the boys. I was making up all these trick plays, and the girls were
going the wrong way. They had no clue how to play."
Later, the pupils at
Kiker Elementary School in Austin all tried to tackle the 6-foot, 225-pound Williams, who can bench press 402 pounds and has 4.39 -second speed in the 40.
"I had eight kids hanging on me, but I couldn't let them bring me down, so I kept dragging them," said the Texas senior. "It was a lot of fun. I don't know if the teachers were too happy, though."
Welcome to the world of Ricky Williams, overgrown kid, fiercely loyal, refreshingly generous, eager to please and perhaps the best college football player in the country.
The fact that he's still in college is a surprise to many.
Williams gives several reasons for
turning down millions as a probable top-five pick in last spring's NFL draft to return to the Texas Longhorns, who'll play this season under new coach Mack Brown.
Williams needs 1,928 yards to break Tony Dorsett's NCAA Division I career rushing record and 20 rushing touchdowns to break Anthony Thompson's career record.
Then there is Earl Campbell's all-time rushing mark at Texas (289 yards to go), the Heisman Trophy and the chance to improve on the Longhorns' 4-7 record last year.
He already is a professional athlete. A member of the Philadelphia Phillies minor-league baseball organization since 1995, Williams knows the cutthroat nature of professional sports.
Those closest to Williams said he struggled with the decision but ultimately stayed simply because he wasn't ready to give up the fun he was having in college.
"In the NFL, everyone is trying to step on everyone else to get a starting position and make more money," Williams said. "It's survival. It's all business. In college, it's your last chance to just play and have fun. I'm a kid. I want to keep being a kid."
Williams is known for pouring grass clippings into the earhooks of teammates' helmets. He plays video games with the 14-year-old son of former Texas running backs coach Bucky Godbold and his favorite movie is The Princess Bride.
He'd rather talk to kids than adults and has been a frequent visitor at children's hospitals since high school.
"Kids are just free," Williams said. "They represent freedom to me. And they are impressionable. What you say
His punishing running style and appearance — dreadlocks, two tattoos, a pierced tongue and pierced left nostril
do a lot to hide his shy, soft-spoken side. When he was in high school, he would never refuse a date with girls because he didn't want to hurt their feelings.
can have an impact on them."
Growing up with two sisters may have had something to do with that.
Williams has been the man of the house since he was five, when his father left the family. With his mother, Sandy, working during the day in a government purchasing job in San Diego and going to night school, it was his job to cook dinner for his twin sister,
Cassie, and younger sister, Nisey. His specialties were macaroni and cheese, pork and beans and hot dogs.
With the roughly $100,000 he's earned in his four years in the Phillies farm system (the Phillies also are paying for his education at Texas), he has helped pay for Cornell's seller.
Cassie's college education.
"Ricky's the kind of guy who, if he has $10, he'll give you $8 and get by on $2," said fellow Longhorn Chad Patmon, who went to high school with Williams in San Diego. "He'll give as much as he can to help you out."
He paid for his mother to move from San Diego to Texas and other expenses. Both sisters attend Texas, and his mother also lives in Austin.
Williams: Considered a favorite for the Heisman Trophy.
When Williams talked to his mother
about turning pro, she told him. "If you're worried about helping us out with money, don't. We haven't been rich our whole lives, so now' not the time to start worrying about it."
But his mom did secure $2.8 million in insurance against serious injury for her son this year. Williams does not even know the details of the policy.
"My insurance against injury will be my education," said Williams, who would like to teach elementary school when his football and baseball careers are over. "I don't worry about getting hurt. You can't live your life like that."
Williams cut short his summer stint with the Phillies' Class A Batavia Muckdogs of New York state to return to Austin and prepare for his final college season.
Before deciding to stay at Texas, he wanted some assurances from the new coach: That the Longhorns would improve on defense (Texas was trampled most of last season, ranking 104th of 112 nationally against the run) and that there would be more team discipline.
"Last year, the seniors said they weren't going to drink during the season, but that lasted about two days," Williams said. "There was drinking late in the week before games, and everyone just kind of gave up on the season."
Brown has a policy that players look the way they would in a job interview after college. But he relented on making Williams cut his dreadlocks, which he has worn since his sophomore year in high school as a tribute to Bob Marley.
Campbell, who has said Williams reminds him of a faster version of himself, told him three years ago to get rid of the dreads.
"He told me one day, 'Those people in the stands won't hire you for a job with that haircut,'" Williams said. "I said, 'I don't plan on working for them.'"
Nebraska plays on without Osborne
Heisman winner Rodgers praises new coach Solich
The Associated Press
Rocket preferred to talk a bo u t Husker football under new coach F r a n k Solich, a long time assistant for T o m Ochope
With his 1972 Heisman Trophy ring on his left index finger, "The
OMAHA, Neb. — Johnny Rodgers still looks good enough to suit up for the Nebraska Cornhuskers.
Believe that."
Osborne
"If Tom Osborne is any kind of an educator, he's had a student for the last 20 years with him," Rodgers said. "Frank is good. He's got what it takes. He knows what he doing."
This could lead one to beleive that Nebraska is on its way to winning more than 10 games this season as Solich sets out to replace Osborne.
Osborne won 255 games and three national titles during 25 seasons before retiring last season.
Rodgers recently completed his degree at Nebraska and has been working with the Nebraska Alumni Association to get other former 'Husker athletes to do the same. He runs an events-marketing company and manufactures collegiate clothing and bedding in association with J.C.Penney.
This weekend, he lured Florida State coach Bobby Bowden to Omaha, where he put together the Husker-Heisman Alumni Weekend. Along with Bowden, several other Heisman winners (Archie Griffin, Tony Dorsett and Mike Rozier were among the invitees) were expected at a dinner to roast and toast Osborne.
Osborne was a position coach in the early 1970s, and Rodgers still remembers Osborne's flair for reading defenses.
"Coach Osborne really had a knack for calling the right play at the right
time," Rodgers said. "He was able to teach his quarterback to see what he sees."
Rodgers used Scott Frost, the quarterback who helped Nebraska win a share of the national title with Michigan last year, as an example.
"Frost was not what we call a great passer, but he was one of the first guys (at Nebraska) to get 1,000 yards rushing and passing because he read defenses so well," he said. "My claim to fame, not being a large receiver, was not so much being able to fight people getting out on pass patterns, but understanding and reading the zone so I would know where people were not going to be."
Rodgers said the players would be able to relate better to Solich than Osborne.
"Frank is a player's coach," he said. "Tom was on another level. Frank is one of the guys. You can feel very comfortable around him. He's not going to make you nervous. Coach Osborne has an air about him. He's very nice and considerate, but he carries himself in such a way — he's straighter than most people. Frank's more sociable."
Rodgers also noticed more players
"My claim to fame, not being a large receiver, was not so much being able to fight people getting out on pass patterns, but understanding and reading the zone so I would know where people were not going to be."
Johnny Rodgers Former Nebraska Player
stayed and worked in Lincoln this summer than in recent years.
"These guys are not ordered back," Rodgers said. "They came back because they want to help make a statement for Frank. He's going to be a guy the players want to win for."
What sets Solich apart is that he played for the fans, he was an all-Big Eight player and had big plays for them, Rodgers said. He came up the ranks and was trained by one of the best men.
"And he's supposed to be on top of his game," he said.
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