The Lincoln Star from Lincoln, Nebraska • 29

Lincoln Journal-Star SUNDAY, APRIL 26, 1992 Huskers lack some answers to fJ It III 'W XJjy' Vi 5 I' I vt i i Red-White statistics Red 33, White 21 Whit I I I 11-11 Rtd 7 7 7 12-33 Whit Tyron Byrd hrtrcptlon return (kick failed) Rtd Vincent Hawkins 17 pan from Tny VKmd (Tom SKIr kick) Rd Cory Sdiminaw 12 run (Jtt Land kick) Rtd Vttond 17 run (Sllr kick) Whit FO Byron Bennett 17 Whit Bill Humphrey 7 fumble return (kick foiled) Red Derek Brown 1 run (pan foiled) Red Jon McMlllen 1 run (kick failed) White Duone Wiles St pan from Matt Jsnw (kick failed) A 24,212 White Red First downs It Rushes-yard! 4f) 40-15 Passing yards 22t 171 Passing 22-J7-1 1M7-I Return yards S3 I Punts Fumbles-lost 3-0 Penalties-yards 5-5 1-2S Time of possession 33:23 2:37 Third-down conversions 7-21 4-11 Fourth-down conversions 4-10 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING White, Andre McOuffy -H Jason Fisher 4-lt, Jeff Makovkka 44, Daman Scnmodeko 4-7, Rick Blatny 2-4, McMlllen 1-f, M. Jones 13-Z Brook Berringer 11-2. Red, Veland 1045, Calvin Jones t-35, D. Brown (41, Schlesinger 3-30, Lance Lewis 3-4, Kyi Emskk 2-4, McMlllen 1-1, Joel Cornwell -(-S). PASSINO White, Cornwell 4-11-0, 7 McMlllen 3-7-2, 55; Veland 44-1, 4t.

Red, M. Jones 13-224, 141; Berringer 7-12-1, 49; McMllkM 2-34, 14. RECEIVIMO Whit, Truman Bell Hk Wiles 3-4, David Seiiys 3-17, Schmadek 3-a Darin Duln t-24, Erich Hohl 2-4, McDuffv 2-(-2, Fisher 1-23. Tom Steer 1-10, Brent Popplewell J-t. Red, Allen Pommier 3-3S, Hawkins 2-4S, Jones 2-27, Tom Werner 1-24, William Washington 1-15, D.

Brown 1-t, Tyrone Hushes 1-4. By Ken Hambteton Lincoln Journal-Star If the questions still linger about the Nebraska football team, join the club with head coach Tom- Osborne and defensive coordinator Charlie McBride That's the case even after 15 days of spring practice, including Saturday's 43rd annual spring Red-White game that ended with a 33-21 Reds victory and almost as many questions as when workouts began. The questions before the spring: Who, for the fourth straight season, will take over at quarterback? Will the defensive line and secondary improve? It would be hard to gauge how much closer Nebraska was to answering either question Saturday before a Memorial Stadium crowd estimated at Not best day According to Osborne, the 227-yard effort by the Reds (No. 1 offense and No. 2 defense) against the Whites (No.

1 defense and No. 2 offense) wasn't the best day for the Corn-husker offense this spring. "Of course, most of the time next fall, we wont go against better people," Osborne said. 1 think well be OK on offense if the quarterbacking keeps getting better. GAIL FOLOAUNCOLN JOURNAL-STAR Red team quarterback Tony Veland (16) looks for a way out as he's surrounded by Jamie Uewer (70) and David White (96) of the White team Saturday during the Husker football team's spring game.

Veland led all rushers with 55 yards on 1 0 carries. fresh ctfflrocich might do NU good Mike Babcock Columnist for the Reds with a 12-yard gain on a draw play and a 24-yard pickup on a short pass from backup quarterback I Joel Cornwell. The Reds also con-I verted on a fourthown play for the time in the game to set up a 12-yard touchdown run by Cory Schlesinger and give the Reds a 14-6 half-time lead "We were somewhat limited in what we could do on defense no Bear 46 defense, for instance but we were not sharp," McBride aid "We were not sharp in the first half, and we missed a lot of key tackles." Quarterback sack A quarterback sack by defensive tackle Jamie Liewer stopped the first Red drive of the second half. And after Veland broke loose on a 37-yard touchdown run, the No. 1 offense stalled on downs the next time out and lost a fumble on the following possession.

Middle guard Bill Hum-, phrey scored after he scooped up the fumble and returned it 7 yards. "Physically, the defensive line can't hold up against the offensive line right now," McBride said. Of course, the defense will have defensive tackle Kevin Ramaekers, who missed spring practice recovering from knee surgery; cornerback Kenny Wilhite, who played two downs Saturday before he was sidelined with a sore knee; middle guard David Noonan, who missed most of the snrincr with irriurips- anrl snme new- He added that no conclusions had been reached. Mike Grant missed the last two weeks of spring practice with a broken collarbone. "We have 29 practices in the fall before the opener, and nothing has been decided right now," Osborne said.

"We may not make a choice until the last week before the opener (Sept 5 against Utah)." The same evaluation process awaits the defense, Osborne said. "We should be OK on defense, but we were playing without about 25 percent of the people who will contribute next fall," he said. Offensively, redshirt freshman quarterback Tony Veland had his bright moments. He was the game's leading rusher with 55 yards on 10 carries. He also hit 4 of 9 passes, including a 17-yard touchdown to Vincent Hawkins.

Early interception Veland's touchdown pass followed his initial pass of thegame, which was intercepted by safety Tyrone Byrd and returned 10 yards for a touchdown for the White team. "In a way, that made me angry and made me play harder," Veland saidof the interception, Osborne said Byrd picked up the audible at the line of scrimmage and Veland's hesitation led to the interception, a "We did OK after that" Veland said. Sophomore I-back Calvin Jones sparked the second touchdown drive And a freshman shall lead them. OK, a redshirt freshman. But, hey, it could happen.

Tony Veland, a graduate of Omaha Benson High for slightly less than one year, could be the Nebraska football team's starting quarterback in the falL The Cornhuskers could do a whole lot worse. Veland proved that Saturday afternoon in the annual Red-White intrasquad scrimmage at Memorial Stadium. Pass on first play For those fans clamoring for more passing in Nebraska's offense, Veland threw one on his first play from scrimmage. 1 The pass was intercepted by Tyrone Byrd and returned 10 yards for a touchdown. But that's of no great concern, Veland audibled on he play, and Byrd knew what to expect because he heard the audible, according to Coach Toni Osborne.

One play later, Veland threw another pass, complete to tight end William Washington for a 15-yard gain. Among the many qualities that -recommend Veland as a candidate to start this fall is resiliency. fTony doesn't seem to get rattled," Osborne said. 1 that was apparent Saturday afternoon. After the interception, Veland settled down and played welL with Veland at the time of his injury, watched the spring game from the White team sideline, in street clothes.

To conclude that Veland became No. 1 by default, however, is to misinterpret the situation. Veland might nave started, anyway, if the decision had been based more on performance than on experience. Grant, who will be a fifth-year senior in the fall, has a clear-cut advantage in experience. But in ability it appears to be a wash.

Good size Veland has good size, at 6-foot-l, 190 pounds. And he's a strong runner, "probably the best running quarterback we've had since I've been here," said defensive coordinator Charlie McBride. Early in the third quarter, Veland ran 87 yardj for a touchdown, adroitly scrambling through a No. 1 defense intent on mayhem, after a pass play didnt -develop the way it was planned. Veland also can pass, though, by his own admission, he lacks consistency.

The 17-yard touchdown to Vincent Hawkins late in the first quarter was evidence of Veland at his best He released the ball under heavy pressure from his left, just as he was about to be hit The pass was high enough to get over a defender in front of Hawkins, who caught the ball with an easy jump at See BABCOCK on page 50 And most of the time, he was playing against the No. 1 defense or what's left of it Veland's statistics weren't spectacular. He completed 4 of 9 passes for 49 yards and one touchdown, and he rushed for a scrimmage-high 55 and one touchdown on 10 carries. 'Reai nervous' 7 "I was real nervous," Veland said afterward "Vdu could tell by that first pass. 1 "In the back of my mind I probably thought Td do bad (on the first play).

But once I got it out of the The nervousness gave way to composure. Veland's opportunity to start for the No. 1 of fense Saturday afternoon was, in part, a result of a shoulder injury suffered by Mike Grant during a scrimmage two weeks earlier. Grant, who was sharing No. 1 on the depth chart i i comers.

See HUSKERS on page 50 Sangria Time bides time, barely wins Bosselman Handicap By Gary Svoboda Lincoln Journal-Star GRAND ISLAND Sangria Time bided his time just fine Saturday during the third running of the $100,000 BosselmanGus Fonner Handicap. Ji i The result was a Fonner track record of 1:44 over the mile and one-sixteenth distance and a $60,000 payday for owner John Franks. v'-1 Success isn't anything new for "the Louisiana horseman, who has" been the" leading today." The day wasn't a total disappointment for Tim Masters, who rode Honor The Hero to second place. Masters said Saturday's race was a good one for the fans with the top three horses heads apart When asked to run down the stretch. Honor The Hero responded, "but he's real thin-skinned," Masters said.

H.v See RACING on page 20 money winner in America three times and is a two-time Eclipse Award winner. But the victory didn't come easy as Sangria Time raced second or third almost the entire distance before moving to the lead with a furlong to race and holding off Honor The Hero by a head. Inches farther back in third place was Perfectly Proud the prerace favorite trained by Nebraska native and Hall of Famer Jack Van Berg. It was strictly a three-horse race, with about a five-length gap to the rest of the field at the finish line. Debbie Barnett, whose husband Bobby, trains Sangria Time, said she sensed a victory despite the tough field.

"We shipped in (Wednesday), and the next morning he was cool as a cucumber," she said. "He was feeling great this morning. I had a feeling he'd run big. "This is the first time Bobby has sent me by myself." With the horses battling down the stretch head-to-head, "I thought I'd fall over the rail," Barnett said with a smile. The victory also was a dream come true for jockey Chris Valovich.

The win was his first in a $100,000 race in 10 years of riding, he said "I was trying to follow the trainer's instructions," he said "He said to lay second or third and save ground if I could. When we eased around the second turn, actually, the horse made his own move. I just mostly let him do it. "I wasn't relaxed until I got back. I thought it might be a dead heat He showed his class Q-L-OR- Huskers' Bowers Shot streak survives Comhmker's off day parkle yt far J-: NCAA Indoor title this season, but his best effort outdoors this year is 64-10.

Saturday, Coleman said his technique was off. "It's starting to come back, but I was a little slow today," he said "I'm not getting off my left foot until the center of the ring, and that's creating some problems." Coleman got off to a fast start in the competition. His second toss was the eventual winner. In the final round, Coleman bettered the 60-foot mark once. 'Good competition "It took a little pressure off," he said.

"I wasn't on today, and I knew I had some good competition, like John Godina of UCLA I wish I could have done better, but I'll take it." Godina, second with a throw of 62-3, has gone head-to-head against Coleman three times this year and has yet to get the best of him. Coleman's win was the First by a Husker at Drake in the shot put since 1937, when Olympian Sam Francis won the event "I just wish I could have done better," Coleman said. "I wanted to throw great with the big crowd around. It just wasn't meant to be today." Graham, a senior, won the 800 in 2 minutes, 7.24 seconds. Unlike Coleman, Graham was pleased with her performance.

Last week, Graham won the 1,500 and 800 at a meet in Eugene, Ore. By Mark Derowftsch Lincoln Journal-Star DES MOINES, Iowa According to the statistics, Nebraska shot putter Kevin Coleman's streak is still alive. Coleman, however, sees it differently. The junior from Elgin, III, had an off day Saturday, but his toss of 63 feet, iVt inches was good enough to win the title at the Drake Relays before a near-soldout crowd of 13,000 at Drake Stadium. In 10 meets this year, Coleman is undefeated "All the other guys needed to do was throw a personal best, and they could have bettered my throw," Coleman said.

"I dont consider this part of a winning streak. What I did today wasn't worth diddly squat." Women's dominance Nebraska's dominance in the women's events at the Drake Relays continued Saturday. The team of 100-meter runner-up Kathy Travis, Kwani Stewart, Shanelle Porter and Denise Lucas won the 400 relay, Stewart, Lucas, Susan Hedrick-Rehm and Porter won the 1,600 relay, and Lisa Graham won the 800. The three victories Saturday and one win Friday give the Husker women a record 29 Drake titles. "We did really well in the relays," Nebraska Coach Gary Pepin said.

"We didn't get the 1,600 qualified (for nationals), and we're running out of chances. If the weather had been better, we might have made it But overall, we had a pretty good meet" Coleman wasn pleased with his By Steve Sipple Lincoln Journal-Star Nebraska gymnast Che Bowers' most consistent event all season has been the pommel horse. Bowers, a sophomore from Atlanta, sparkled in the event during the first two days of the NCAA men's championships, scoring back-to-back 9.875s in the preliminaries and the team finals. So it wasn't a shocker Saturday night when Bowers put it all together in the individual event finals before 3,185 spectators at the Devaney Sports Center. t.

Best routine "I think out of all three sets this weekend that was my best routine compared to Thursday and Friday," Bowers said after his 9.9 score tied the school record and gave Nebraska its first NCAA champion in the event Bowers was the Cornhuskers' only individual titlist as the 50th jNCAA Championships came to a close. He's the first Cornhusker to win an individual title since Patrick Kirksey won the parallel bars in 1990. Nebraska, coming off a second-place finish in the team race, had four other gymnasts earn All-America status Saturday night by finishing in the top six in their events. Sophomore Sumner Darling finished second on the parallel bars hi City rec Softball will start on schedule Page 5D Bagley sparks Celtics to OT win Page 2D NU baseball team splits with KSU Page 4D Crete's Steer gets mad, gets records Page 7D New team tour appeals to state's bowlers Page8D TED KIRKAJNCQLN JOURNAL-STAR Minnesota's John Roethlisberger really concentrates during his still rings routine Saturday at the NCAA Gymnastics Championships. Roethlisberger won the all-around title.

i See DRAKE on page 70 win, though. He threw 654 to win the See GYM on page 30.