Arizona Republic from Phoenix, Arizona • Page 210

I THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC (r TrSV TrS LATE SCORES NBA Philadelphia 90, LA Lakers 89 WEDNESDAY JANUARY 3, 1996 Editor, Kathy Tulumello 271-8641 The Sed Riminiaiway II DAVID CASSTEVENS Republic Executive Sports Editor "It's all cool ifor Phillips, Cornhuskers oni Osborne spent last week turning on a slow spit over hot coals. Day Vy.V ret i i sr. Paul F. GeroStaff photographer In a reflection of the final outcome, Cornhuskers linebacker Jared Tomich celebrates his sack of Gators quarterback Danny Wuerffel. Frazier, Nebraska roar past Florida Experience in title game proves key be patiently answering innocuous questions about the big game when someone would jab a microphone under his nose.

Coach, "'Lawrence Phillips Osborne was unfailingly polite. His benign smile never faltered. But inside, the coach heaved a weary sigh. You know the story. It won't go away.

Osborne suspended star running back Lawrence Phillips earlier this season after -Phillips admitted striking his girlfriend, a iNebraska student, and dragging her caveman style by her hair down a flight of tsteps. The coach later reinstated the player, and last week announced that the young man, who is No. 1 on the roster and remains No. 1 in the hearts of many forgiving Nebraska faithful, would return to the starting lineup when the Cornhuskers faced Florida for the college football national championship in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. "I feel if a player has redeeming qualities," Osborne said Phillips catches the ball.

He's, wide open in the flat. Look out, there he goes, into the end zone. Touchdown Nebraska! Phillips takes the handoft, cuts to the outside. Breaks one tackle. Then another.

Oh my! He's loose. Goodbye. He's going all the way, 42 yards for another Cornhusker touchdown. I'm going to and work with him," Osborne said, "and give him a chance." Society can debate whether Osborne's decision was right or wrong. But there is no question which is the No.

1 college football team. Under a desert moon, and in front of a national TV audience, the defending national champions did to the 12-0 Florida Gators have done to lesser opponents in their past 24 games. They beat them, easily and decisively. An overwhelming win Nebraska, 62-24, said it all. The Cornhuskers were bigger, stronger, tougher, meaner, better.

They ran at will. And Ed. And Mark. And Dexter. And the rest of the Gators' defense.

They swarmed Florida's All-America quarterback, Danny Wuerffel, sacking him seven times and picking off three of his passes. He took a beating. By I the fourth quarter, Wuerffel felt like the mouse who no longer wanted the cheese. He just wanted his tail out of the trap. It was something to watch, although didn't we see this game earlier in the i season? (Nebraska 77, Arizona State 28).

Nebraska was a big red 18-wheeler with chrome bumpers, running wide open, downhill, full throttle, Tommie Frazier at the wheel. You could hear the piercing blast of its air horn from here to Lincoln. Phillips ran for 165 and scored three touchdowns. But it's fair to say the Cornhuskers didn't even need him. Nebraska has a silo full of running backs.

If Phillips skips his senior season and plays in the NFL, the Huskers won't miss a beat. They'll replace him, like a spark plug under it FIESTA BOWL No. 1 Nebraska 62 No. 2 Florida 24 (6 Until you play in the national championship game, you can't prepare for a national championship game. Aaron Graham NEBRASKA CENTER By Norm Frauenheim Staff writer In the end, it was Nebraska for the defense.

Its own. After a season of defending itself in courts of law and public opinion, an unyielding and often ferocious Nebraska defended its national title with a 62-24 victory Tuesday night over Florida at Sun Devil Stadium in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. That, perhaps, is no surprise in a turbulent seasomnarked by Lawrence Phillips' assault of a former girlfriend and other reported problems. But it was, especially for Florida. Fun 'n' Gun? How about Stumble Fumble? There wasn't much superior about Gators Coach Steve Spurrier's vaunted air attack.

Spurrier didn't even have his trademark sun visor to toss around. Good thing. Nebraska (12-0) probably would have intercepted it anyway. "We did not come to the ballpark prepared to play," Spurrier said. "I'm embarrassed about that." Nebraska's offense rolled, just as advertised.

Of the Cornhuskers' 629 total yards, their 524 on the ground set a Fiesta Bowl record. Their point total set another By Paul Newberry Associated Press They brushed off Nebraska's experience in national-title games. Hey, the Florida Gators kept saying, we've played in four straight Southeastern Conference championship games. As they learned Tuesday night, however, there's a big difference between playing Arkansas in Atlanta the first week in December and meeting top-ranked Nebraska in Tempe the first week in January. The battle-seasoned Cornhuskers were playing in the national-championship game for the third consecutive year.

The Gators, who didn't win so much as an SEC title until 1991, had never been in such an important game. "I think it's probably going to be the determining factor in the outcome of this game," Nebraska center Aaron Graham said before the No. 1 Cornhuskers went out and proved him right, routing No. 2 Florida, 62-24. "Until you play in the national championship game," Graham had said, "you can't prepare for a national championship game." The Gators scoffed at Graham's words.

They pointed to victories this season over Tennessee, Auburn and Florida State. "We've played in a lot of big games," record. At quarterback, there was quick-footed, quick-thinking Tommie Frazier, who was the offensive Most Valuable Player with 199 rushing yards and two touchdowns. At running back, there was Phillips, who wore No. 1 on his jersey and was Public Enemy No.

1 to those who condemned Cornhuskers Coach Tom Osborne for starting him. Phillips, rushing for 165 yards and three touchdowns, jump-started the Cornhuskers in the first quarter by catching a screen pass from Frazier and racing 16 yards for a touchdown that gave Nebraska a 6-3 lead. Early in the second quarter, he ripped off a 42-yard touchdown run that dazzled the Nebraska-dominated crowd of 79,864 fans. For nearly four hours, the stadium See BIG RED, page E6 Michael ChowStaff photographer It's not a mirage, it's more like a nightmare for Florida Coach Steve Spurrier. His team was crushed by Nebraska.

receiver Chris Doering said. But they had never faced anything like this. Steve Spurrier, the brilliant offensive mind known as "Steve Superior," was transformed into Coach Inferior. His detractors around the SEC must have relished the sight of Spurrier standing meekly on the sideline in the second hal taking the kind of beating his Gators were used to handing out to conference foes See TITLE-GAME, pageES See EVERYTHING'S, page E5 Strikeout king Ryan is Parada marshal Bumper crop of players draws recruiters to state 1 jf SUPER SOUL By Gail Tabor Staff writer Nolan Ryan, baseball's all-time strikeout king, will be the grand marshal of the 1996 Parada del Sol Arizona Super Bowl XXX Parade on Jan. 27.

Ryan came into the Parada picture primarily through the influence of Wrangler, Parada boss Mark Williams said. Wrangler is the sponsor of the Hashknife Pony Express, which will kick off Parada activities when the outfit arrives in Scottsdale with the U.S. mail on Jan. 26. The Super Bowl is Jan.

28. "We jumped on the chance (to get Nolan) right away," Williams said. "A lot of people know him, he is a major sportn figure and he's a Western-type person. We looked for somebody Western." When Ryan was asked whether he would be grand marshal, Williams said, his answer was, "I would be honored." Ryan retired from the Texas Rangers in 1993. It was his 27th season, and he still holds the record of seven no-hitters.

In 1989, he became the oldest pitcher to strike out 300 in a season. Ryan, 46 when he retired from baseball, hasn't been idle. He owns ranches in Alvin, Three Rivers and Gonzales, Texas, and owns The Express Bank in Alvin and Danbury, Texas. In 1995, Texas Gov. George W.

Bush appointed Ryan to the Commission on Texas Parks and Wildlife. The baseball great will lead the Scottsdale Jaycees' 43rd annual Parada del Sol in downtown Scottsdale, one that forgoes a lot of tradition because of the linkup with the Super Bowl. No longer can it call itself the world's longest horse-drawn parade. Motorized floats have been See NOLAN, page E8 By Richard Obert Staff writer This is no longer Little League stuff. The Valley has four major sports franchises.

There are housing developments stretching seemingly as far as Casa Grande. And Division I schools from Los Angeles to New York are invading the Valley, searching for high-school football talent. "I asked some recruiters how many Division One kids are there in Arizona Nolan Ryan The holder of a record seven no-hitters will lead the Parada del Sol Arizona Super Bowl XXX Parade on Jan. 27. INSIDE ROAD TO TEMPE: Who plays whom on the way to Super Bowl.

E8. this year," Tempe High Coach Tim McBurney said. "He said 100." McBurney was shocked. But look around. The population is See TOUGHER, page E8 1.