Nebraska Cornhusker Football vs. Iowa

[FRANKSOLICH - PRESS CONFERENCE FOOTAGE] We will have Eric Crouch be the quarterback for us. We will have Bobby Newcombe be a wide receiver for us and will return punts for us in this next ball game. Myself and coach Gill have had direct contact with those players as you might well imagine on numerous occasions and we visited with them about this aspect of it and they both feel very comfortable about moving into the roles we have asked them to move into it. The one thing it will give us is a chance to have great --

[KUGLER] Good evening, everyone and welcome to Big Red Wrap-up i'm Kevin Kugler. Have you had a busy day? no busier probably than the day in the nebraska football camp. The Huskers today not only made the switch at quarterback but lost their number one I-back as well. Frank solich today announced that Deangelo Evans has left the football team will in all likelihood not return. For Solich, the drama surrounding the depth chart continues into another week and today's events may raise more questions than they answered. And by the way, the huskers are trying to prepare for what may be their toughest non-conference opponent in southern mississippi. We'll certainly cover the quarterbacks, the I-backs, and the rest of the Huskers, too, as we put the wraps on Nebraska's 45-0 victory over Cal and on all the excitement today in husker football. We'll also look back at this past weekend in the rest of college football and look ahead to the weekend that will be in lincoln and around the country. Joining me tonight, first from the "Omaha World-Herald," Lee Barfknecht. Lee, it's always a pleasure to have you along.

[BARFKNECHT] I'm here to announce I'm not quitting or changing chairs.

[KUGLER] That's good to know. From the "Lincoln Journal Star," Steven Sipple is with us tonight. How are you?

[SIPPLE] Good. It's nice to be here.

[KUGLER] It's been a busy day - we may have a little to talk about tonight. We also want to hear from you. Give us a call in Lincoln at 472-1212 or toll free throughout the free world at 1-800-676-5446. You can also e-mail us at sports@unl.edu. Give us your name, where you are calling from, and, of course, your question or comment. We will talk about the Cal game in a little bit but we have to talk about what happened at south stadium. A busy day for Frank Solich. A new quarterback, a new wingback, and one less I-back at Nebraska.

[BARFKNECHT] We saw history. I don't think you have seen a team ranked fourth and sixth in the country change quarterbacks and lose an I-back and move a quarterback to a totally new position. Mark this on your calendar, folks. you saw it all today.

[KUGLER] Steve you were working on the story for deangelo evans yesterday. Are you surprised by the turn of events over the last 24 hours?

[SIPPLE] I was shocked certainly by Deangelo quitting the team. I never envisioned that. obviously it's strange. What's he going to do? He is done with football it looks like unless he thinks he will play professionally and i personally don't see that. The quarterback thing you could kind of see coming. Crouch had an edge I thought during fall camp and played well the first two games. I think that was a matter of time.

[KUGLER] You mentioned the first two teams. Lee, why do you think now? They talked about it today as if it was a foregone conclusion since the beginning of fall camp. Frank said this was being discussed from the beginning of two-a-days why make the change now?

[BARFKNECHT] That's the big puzzle. If they talked about this since day one, why now? Why after beating a couple of opponents 86-7 or whatever it is, why when you are ranked that high and why now? I don't think we got an answer to that today. They didn't have to give an answer. We asked, they didn't give it. It's their team, they can do what they want. This could be one of the genius coaching moves in football or if things go awry with injuries, it could blow up in their face.

[KUGLER] Steve, injuries are certainly a concern for all husker fans. Jeff Perino is a second team quarterback. Depth is a problem.

[SIPPLE] Depth at quarterback would be a concern. As we talked about a little bit ago, depth at i-back is a concern obviously. Alexander right now is on a gimpy ankle. If you lose him, all of a sudden you are down to buckhalter and Diedrick - you couldn't put them in the great category.

[KUGLER] The running attack is something Nebraska has struggled with already this year. Maybe Nebraska's rushing game is not where it needs to be is what has been talked about.

[BARFKNECHT] We were asking coaches today if perhaps they looked down the road and could not win the big games doing what they're doing and needed a change. I understand trying to get the two best athletes on the field at the same time. Maybe they thought they had to do that injury be darned, they need to get them out there to get play making on offense.

[KUGLER] Eric crouch talked today at the press conference and he talked about whether he was surprised about the decision to be named the starting quarterback.

[CROUCH] It did really take me by surprise because I thought things were working out pretty well how they were going and I didn't expect this to happen but it did and you got to deal with it now. I think that like I said before and I will say this again many times, it was in the best interest of our team to do right now to utilize both myself and bobby at the same time and coach solich mentioned this way we're going to be able to get as many plays as we can in for the both of us during the game.

[KUGLER] It's hard to believe this has happened only two weeks into the season. Here we are two weeks into the season and it's hard to believe here we are two games into the season and it is happening this way.

[BARFKNECHT] They're shuffling the deck from the outside that looks like may not need to be shuffled. I think the coaches somehow looked down the road and are a little bit concerned perhaps about what they see in upcoming opponents, where they need to go with their offense. Nebraska has a great defense but there must be severe concern about what they're doing offensively to meet the good teams they will see down the road.

[KUGLER] They talked about getting the two best athletes on the field at the same time. In the first two games they've had both Newcombe and Crouch on the field at the same time that was what puzzled me a little bit. was it a decision they wanted newcombe and crouch on the field more often together?

[SIPPLE] They have been on the field together but it has not been on a consistent basis. This will get them on the field the majority of the time which is what frank wants. I personally think it's a good move. I think to have both of them out there is what they should have done probably from the start.

[KUGLER] I'm sure we will have folks that call in or write in. we will get to that later. Let's talk about the game -- Nebraska and Cal. Just a couple of days ago, things were looking positive around Nebraska. In a non-conference season dominated by defense, the offense has not had to do too much. Saturday was another example.

[BARFKNECHT] Cal had guys 9, 10 yards within the line of scrimmage. Frank indicated that was Deangelo's frustration that he could not show what he wanted to do. Again, Deangelo is the number one I-back going into the game and Frank said coming out of the game, he was still the number one I-back and he quit. If that is not good enough to satisfy you, it may be time to hit the road.

[KUGLER] At number one I-back there's not many other places to go.

[BARFKNECHT] And at the premier rushing offenses in the country.

[KUGLER] Your impression of the win?

[SIPPLE] It was a strange defense of Cal. If you recall Kansas State where they bunched up on the line with 9 or 10 guys on the line and Nebraska still was able to move. That was one of the best offensive lines we will have. I don't know. All indications are the offensive line -- the linemen will say they graded out well milt says they blocked awfully well so I don't know why they were not getting it done on the ground besides five guys can't block 10 and maybe that's the situation. We will see. We will see as the season plays out if they can get the rushing game going. Right now we don't know.

[KUGLER] Frank solich will always have criticism. The Huskers threw the ball nine times against Cal. It seems like every one of those went for at least 30 yards. Is that something that you guys think maybe should have been done more earlier on to loosen up the running attack?

[BARFKNECHT] I mean when you win 45-0, i guess it's hard to say they didn't do the right thing. I think there's -- your coaches talk about trying to create attitudes or create rhythms in what you're doing and I think Frank has had the intention of re-establishing the running game regardless of what they see. I think that was part of the plan for this game was to run it.

[SIPPLE] Like Lee says, it's hard when you have 45 points. 45-0. It's an amazing thing to me they're 2-0 and beat teams like combined 87 - 7 that and people, you know, I don't know what they want exactly. There are still people hammering away at Frank. It seems strange to me. I guess that's the way it is around here.

[KUGLER] There are some husker fans you can never satisfy. 45-0. it should have been 52-0. Why not another touchdown? I'm sure those folks will always be around. Let's take a look at the highlights of the 45-0 win. The brand new sky boxes getting their debut. Frank Solich and tom holmoe on the sidelines as you would expect. They'reboth head coaches. Bobby Newcombe getting to start at quarterback. Maybe his final start as quarterback. Earlier on it was the california defense parker on the sack. One of four Cal sacks on the day. Still first quarter second and 16. This is where Newcombe is at his best - improvising, out of trouble and then the late hit out of bounds. That added 15 yards. Bobby Newcombe with only 11 yards rushing because sacks count against the rushing total. An excellent play. Here is one of the better run options. Fakes the pitch and into the end zone for the first touchdown of the day. Nebraska 7-0 late in the first quarter. Second quarter, Eric Crouch with his first appearance at quarterback on a third and five play. Crouch to throw. Tracey Wistrom is turning into Crouch's favorite target.You will see another big pass to him later on. 2-2 on the day passing for eric crouch. A one-yard touchdown sneak. The Husker defense steps up as they have done in the first two games of the season. The Husker blackshirts Tony Ortiz. Five sacks on the day for the Huskers. The second of crouch's two passes. There is Tracey Wistrom. You will never see anyone more open than him on this play. In practice there is more coverage than out there with wistrom 70 yards, crouch excited the TD makes it 21-0 Nebraska in the second quarter. still in the second, Tom Holmoe try to go figure out what to do to slow down the Husker attack. Find number 7. Bobby Newcombe at quarterback. This is a nice play. It's all eric crouch after the great blocking downfield. Crouch nearly runs out of gas at end but gets into the end zone. 60-yard touchdown pass. The first player since Johnny Rodgers to throw, receive, and run in a touchdown. Coach Solich and Crouch with a happy word for each other as Nebraska leads 28-0 at halftime. A Josh Brown field goal makes it 31-0. Ralph Brown with an interception on the pass of Samuel Clemons. One of two husker picks on the day. Ralph brown. On the next play from scrimmage, Eric Crouch in at Quarterback. On one of the plays that made Nebraska famous, the option to the right side. 38-0 in the third quarter. Pretty much all over but the shouting at memorial stadium and the home opener. Bobby Newcombe throwing an out pattern to Matt Davison. Goes 18 yards. Drive on first and goal capped by Dan Alexander. The new number one I-back gets into the end zone. A final score of 45-0. Frank solich and tom holmoe meet at mid-field. The Huskers get the win on Saturday. The final stats: 301 yards for the Huskers. Blackshirts hold Cal to 145 total yards. Two interceptions for Cal. Nebraska 5-9. They didn't have to throw much when you are up big early. 15 first downs for Huskers. Time of possession in favor of Cal. Look at penalty disparity. Kept Cal from getting back into it. 14 penalties for 110 yards. A final score of 45-0. Anything stand out to you in the stats, Lee or Steve?

[BARFKNECHT] The 114 yards rushing. Again, you got to talk the way Cal played defense. Those are just the numbers. People are not used to those numbers. makes you wonder if it was involved in the re-evaluation over the weekend and the changing of positions.

[KUGLER] Steve in Lincoln wants to know with Buckhalter playing, will we have the same record as last year? Maybe a better record than last year, Steve. I don't know if you would want the same record. That didn't make Husker fans happy.

[SIPPLE] I hate to put it all on Buckhalter for crying out loud. he is fine. Who knows what the record is going to be.

[KUGLER] You may not know if you are joining us for the first time tonight. Lee is the a.p. voter in Nebraska. I expected to see many of these come in. Carl in Lincoln writes via e-mail. With Deangelo Evans leaving the team, will Nebraska fall to 15th?

[BARFKNECHT] No, probably 16th.

[KUGLER] Lee has them 10th on the ballot. Why do you have the Huskers 10th?

[BARFKNECHT] Again, part of it is having them 12th or 11th in the beginning of the season. In essence, I think there are enough question marks at the start of the year, I didn't consider nebraska a top 10 team at that time. Two fine victories. They beat people the way they were supposed to beat them up. I want to know how Bobby Newcombe would hold up, how Deangelo Evans would hold up how Dan Alexander would hold up and how the line would do. I think the jury is still out. People seem to be worried about where I have them voted. I didn't know mine counts so much more. I must have 80-90% of the poll in the A.P.

[KUGLER] All that power resting in one man. That's dangerous.

[BARFKNECHT] There is two top 10 matches this week. Nebraska will probably move up two spots regardless of how they come out.

[KUGLER] That was Jim in South Omaha wanting to know that. Nebraska played Iowa and Cal. Cal was thought to have one of the better defenses. Iowa is thought to not have too much of anything. How good are these opponents and how good are the wins by Nebraska?

[SIPPLE] I think Nebraska did what they should have done generally speaking. Iowa is not a good team. These teams, California and Iowa, their defenses were representative but their offenses were not that good, not ready for a team like Nebraska in either case and you saw that. Southern Mississippi will be a step above both these teams and like you said will start to show that this will be their toughest test. We will find out more about nebraska on both sides of the ball but I think particularly on defense. Well, actually Southern Mississippi has been strong both sides of the ball so we will know more after Saturday's game.

[KUGLER] We will talk more about Southern Mississippi later in the hour but we have some clean-up work from last week's program. We never got to the final answer of our third trivia question. Last week we asked what are the three pac-10 teams Nebraska has not played in the 1990's. The answer was Stanford, Oregon, and Southern Cal are the three teams. Stanford only played Nebraska once and that was in the Orange Bowl. Those are the only three Pac-10 teams Nebraska has not played in the 1990's. Tonight's first trivia question, be the first correct caller and you will receive a Nebraska etv mug. They're stylish. One winner per household this season. Nebraska's leading rusher Saturday versus Cal was redshirt freshman, Dahrran Diedrick. He finished with 29 yards rushing on five carries. When was the last time Nebraska's leading rusher finished with below 30 yards? We need his name, the yards, and the game. Be the first correct caller and you will win the ETV mug. We have talked a little about the Cal game. Let's get to some questions. Will Jammal Lord step in?

[BARFKNECHT] Frank mentioned they have worked him with the number two offense and coach Gill mentioned he was impressed with the way he picked up the mental part of the offense. Sounds like he may get into the match.

[SIPPLE] Particularly if Perino has injury problems. What I got out of it is they would like to red shirt him if possible.

[KUGLER] Bill in Lincoln wants to know how do you feel now that you chose Colorado ahead of Nebraska in the pre-season? I think you answered that in a column. You saw the Colorado-Colorado State game and had the privilege of being tear-gassed.

[BARFKNECHT] I have had bottles thrown at me but not tear-gassed.

[KUGLER] Usually those people know who you are. This was anonymous tossing.

[BARFKNECHT] Pre-season picks are guesses. I took a fly on Colorado. I suggest you don't discount them totally. You might want to call in and give your full name and give a prediction on the Colorado-Nebraska game. My sense was that maybe Colorado might catch lightening in a bottle with a good coach coming in. Every coach in the big 12 talked about them having great talent. Might be like a Mack Brown thing with Texas last year.

[KUGLER] They looked good in their win this year week. George in Lincoln wants to know why the computer rankings have Nebraska number one and your comments on whether they have valid? The computer rankings seem to be weighted even more as far as the B.C.S.

[BARFKNECHT] Any computer poll done on two games is worthless. The reason the B.C.S. added to their system is because of Sagarin's poll last year. They weight eight polls and throw off the one the most off center of the other polls. You can't do computer rankings after two games.

[KUGLER] Sam in Council Bluffs wants to know what is happening with Josh Davis this year?

[SIPPLE] With the situation today, it looks like they will move Josh Davis back to I-back is what I'm getting. I think they would still prefer to redshirt him but they may not be able to. He came as an I-back and moved him to Wingback. It looks as if he will move back to I-back, his natural position.

[KUGLER] We are still waiting on a winner for the Big Red Trivia question. We had Ken Hambleton on last week and he gave me a hard time that they were too easy. We need a happy middle. Here is your chance to have friends and family all over the world log onto the "Wrap-Up." Log in at net.unl.edu. Scott in Omaha wants to know will the change for Newcombe be better for his future in pro football? That's an interesting thought. I think it probably will be.

[BARFKNECHT] We have talked among ourselves if he wants to play in the NFL is that's his position as a break away guy, punt returner, special teams. I think looking down the road it helps Bobby a lot.

[KUGLER] Mike in Norfolk asked and this was addressed in a way by Frank Solich in the press conference. Is there too much pressure on the kids coming in?

[SIPPLE] There's a lot of pressure here and Frank talked about the quarterbacks as being the most pressure position in the college game. You look at this program and the Michigan and Alabama and Florida State's and Tennessee, the big time programs, there's a tremendous pressure on the kids. The scrutiny on those two guys is amazing. It's intense. It's white hot scrutiny. I don't know -- we're a part of it. I always have misgivings about that to a degree but you got to report what the people want to read.

[BARFKNECHT] I think what has magnified this is the advent of 24-hour sports channels and internet and talk radio. Our papers and the papers that cover Alabama and Auburn and the paper in Florida. I think the fact that there is so much on videotape, if you yell at a teammate, you will probably see it on ESPN tonight. If there are guys spying on practices and going to their chat room or internet site and typing out plays. A&M closed practice because people were putting their plays on the internet from practice. It's not a good situation. i don't have an immediate answer for it.

[KUGLER] I know looking on the internet this afternoon, about an hour after the press conference, it was a headline on ESPN's web site. Not only the pressure from the local level but the pressure comes from coast to coast.

[BARFKNECHT] And instantly.

[KUGLER] Frank Solich as we mentioned talked about the pressure that athletes feel at his press conference earlier today.

[FRANK SOLICH] They're under a tremendous amount of pressure in terms of playing and responding and doing everything right and sometimes it's almost impossible to live up to some of the expectations and with that in mind, you know, I think it's a tough time for players to go through college life in terms of getting a degree and playing college football but most of them enjoy it and really like it and most of it goes well for them.

[KUGLER] Frank Solich and the pressure the athletes are under. not only are the quarterbacks and athletes under pressure, Frank Solich is under a tremendous amount of pressure these days and it's magnified these days. It may be more white hot on the coach.

[BARFKNECHT] When I first started covering college football almost 20 years ago, it was kind of tabu to criticize a player by name. You always cut them some slack when you could cut the coach for the way he used the player. It's been since talk radio and 24-hour television came and it became more competitive, a pro mentality is creeping in. A lot of times people forget these are 18, 19-year-old kids trying to buy their books and find their way across campus and trying to find a girlfriend and you are treating them like John Elway and ripping into them.

[SIPPLE] I think Deangelo Evans is a good case of this. I think it got to him. I know for a fact the pounding he took -- everybody questioning whether he could play hurt. I know it hurt him to his core, the people questioning his heart. He heard that a lot. It was a prevalent thing. It was not whispers. it was an outcry. It got to him. He heard it and he is an example of a guy who I think the pressure really got to him. I think it contributed to what we saw today.

[KUGLER] Lee we talked today at the press conference about how people don't know how much Deangelo Evans went through to play. He laid it on the line to get on the field for Nebraska.

[BARFKNECHT] His last five or six games, he took four cortisone shots and he took them in a place where you don't want to get them. Not that any of them are fun. Nobody questioned his guts at that time. I find it confusing that what has happened and transpired in the last couple of years, not many teammates stuck up for him today. Most said it was in the best interest of the team. This was friction filled by the time it came to a head. It's complicated and we won't know all the answers I'm sure.

[KUGLER] We have a winner in our first trivia question of the night. Is there bad chemistry between Deangelo Evans and the rest of the team? Anything you guys can see?

[SIPPLE] I don't think there is anything bad in that regard. I think Deangelo's personality, he is a quiet kid, not a lot of friends on the team but I don't think he has a lot of enemies either. He has a quiet nature. he is an interesting kid and kind of off on his own by his own admission. That doesn't mean -- like I say he doesn't have a lot enemies. It's part of his personality to kind of be aloof and maybe that's why he got some of those statements today.

[KUGLER] Bob from Lincoln wants to know when the kickoff is on Saturday. 12:30 central time. It's not on television. You have to find a ticket or climb over the walls at the stadium. What is Bobby Newcombe's reaction to the new change? We haven't talked too much about Bobby Newcombe. How did Bobby take being changed positions? That was something earlier in the season there was concern he might leave the program or would not like being wingback. He came in and said I'm a Quarterback, that's what I want to do.

[BARFKNECHT] He likes to play quarterback and likes to be the leader of the team but -- and this is a pure guess from watching -- I think deep down he liked it. I'm not sure if perhaps in the beginning he was whistling in the dark that he liked it. I got the sense he was calm about it today and very comfortable with it.

[SIPPLE] He was light hearted. I thought he would take it harder. he had me convinced he wanted to be a leader. He said he was born to be a leader, born to be a quarterback. A couple of players said that he approached them about doing it. I don't know if that's the fact. Frank said otherwise. He said it was a group decision. There were a couple of players who said Bobby went to them and said let's do this.

[KUGLER] Phillip of Fremont, Nebraska knew the answer to the trivia question. Eric Crouch, 28 yards in last year's Holiday Bowl. He was the leading rusher against Arizona in the Holiday Bowl. It stumped me a little bit when I was writing it. I expected it to be 1950 or 1960 somewhere and here it was last year. My thanks to Keith Mann for helping me with that. Mike from Hickman for Lee the A.P. voter. What is your opinion of where Penn State should be ranked among the other teams?

[BARFKNECHT] I have them second. It's too early. There is so much gas emitted over polls in the pre-season and early on. I have spoken for years and years I don't think any poll should come out until the middle of October. The reason they do is they're conversation pieces for Press Associations. Would you mention A.P. in your life if it didn't involve a football poll? No. This is the greatest advertising vehicle ever created. Most people would not know who the Associated Press was. Until they play five or six games. The B.C.S. poll will come out later and then start marking your calendar.

[KUGLER] And you're going to have to look for checks from the A.P. now that you're the guy from the A.P. let's look at the polls today. First the "USA Today/ESPN" poll then we'll look at the lee barfnect/A.P. poll. More questions from folks watching and listening on the internet. Dan in omaha says -- this is a perception Nebraska is in danger of having across the Nation. Solich seems to be having leadership problems. Who is in charge in Nebraska? more nationwide I think you will see that. What is the story, who is really in charge?

[BARFKNECHT] We're speculating from the outside especially since they closed practice now. My personal feeling, I think Frank opened the door for this last year when he let Bobby Newcombe go home for a week in November and when Deangelo Evans went off and did his own rehab program and had surgery after the game in Utah. This was done with permission but i think it created a perception there may be different rules for different players, that there may be some sort of social strata on the team, or perhaps Frank was running scared and fear that someone may leave. Again, whether it is true, perception becomes reality. Frank was grilled about this in Dallas. One of the first question was whether he allowed these guys to operate outside of the program. Now he faces the questions again.

[SIPPLE] It's hard to say. I mean, what coach osborne would tell you is these things run in streaks. This has been a rough three-week period for coach Solich. I'm not ready to proclaim the program out of control or say Frank has lost control but he has gone through a rough three weeks. I do think you have runs like this and then you might go a year or two, a season or two without anything happening. It's kind of like injuries. These things crop up and they don't just crop up at Nebraska, they crop up everywhere. Having said that, it's been a strange three weeks.

[BARFKNECHT] Today may have been the day where Frank said I'm mad as heck and not going to take it anymore. I'm putting my stamp on this program. here is where who the Quarterbacks will be. If you don't like your spot on the depth chart, come talk to me about it and don't let the door hit you on the way out.

[KUGLER] It certainly was a bold move and wasn't a move made by someone not in control of the program. Time for the second trivia question. be the first correct caller and you will receive the year 2000 16 month calendar. one winner per household this season. The huskers first two games this season were televised on ABC-TV. In Husker football history, Nebraska has appeared 83 times on ABC. In this decade, how many times has Nebraska appeared on ABC and how many times have they lost? Be the first correct caller and you will receive a year 2000 big red calendar. More questions. Jay from Hastings, this is for Steve. What are the chances for Nebraska getting the national championship and who will be Nebraska's toughest opponent this year?

[SIPPLE] The chances for a national championship, it's hard to say. Right now it's hard to say because you got to figure injuries into the equation somewhere and you don't know when those will come or who will be injured. Just looking down the schedule, though, I think they'll get to the texas A&M game, I think undefeated. They have to go to Texas October 23rd. That's probably the game that we will know what Nebraska is about at that point. That kind of gets them ready for the three-game run at the end. A&M, Kansas State, Colorado. that's where we will find out everything. The Texas game and those three games. I don't know. I can't predict what's going to happen because it's too far down the line.

[KUGLER] Only in Nebraska and a few other places do we talk about national championship two games into the season. Let's take a look at the Big 12 scores. The first one is just a heartbreaker: UNLV 27 Baylor 24. Baylor had it one they just had to take a knee, instead they decided to run a play, UNLV stripped the ball from the I-back and ran it in for a touchdown with no time left. Colorado rebounds with a win over San Jose State 63 to 35. Iowa State 2-0. They beat Iowa 17-10. Cyclones are blowing through Iowa and on the way for the Big 12 Championship. Kansas with the win over Cal State Northridge kind of what you'd expect in that game. Kansas State blanking temple 40-0. Texas over Rutgers 38-21 made me surprised that Rutgers scored that many points. Texas Tech over Lafayette. Oklahoma over Indiana state. Oklahoma State over Tulsa 46-9. Nebraska 45 and Cal nothing.

[SIPPLE] Let me defer to Lee here, you went to K-State. What did you think of the Wildcats?

[BARFKNECHT] I thought they looked similar to the upper echelon teams. A good defense. A lot of question marks on offense. Their new Quarterback spent a good portion of the night back pedaling behind their reconstructed offensive line which went through a major reconstruction this week. Frank Murphy their running back looked very impressive. Again, it's very, very early but I think once the Big 12 season starts, there will be a lot of ugly 16-9's and 21-10's. I don't think anyone will run it up around the league.

[KUGLER] Let's look at the Big 12 standings. No Big 12 action but here is where they stand. Nebraska and Iowa State unbeaten at 2-0. Missouri and Kansas State 1-0. Colorado and Kansas 1-1 over all. No conference games as we head to the South division. Oklahoma State 2-0, Texas A&M 1-0, Texas 2-1, Oklahoma 1-0, Texas Tech 1-1, and Baylor 0-2 could've been 2-0. They missed the extra point in the first game and lost in overtime. That loss against UNLV has to kill Kevin Steele and the Bears. Former Husker Assistant Coach Kevin Steele and talk about the spotlight being hot on him in the Big 12 teleconference and across the nation, people were saying what happened at Baylor. Kevin Steele has to answer why they're try to go get a touchdown with almost no time left.

[BARFKNECHT] He was trying to keep a stiff upper lip. He let go a Tom Osborne style sigh. You could tell it was getting to him. Kevin will do fine down there. He is a fine coach. I think Baylor could come back.

[KUGLER] Frank Solich has certainly had a grueling couple of weeks. He talked about that today at the press conference, how tricky and difficult the last few weeks have been for him.

[FRANK SOLICH] I will say this, it's probably been the toughest couple of weeks, maybe month in coaching for me but, you know, those days are going to come along. You ask your players to work through things, you do it as a coach also. We're moving forward. I feel comfortable about things. Our football team feels comfortable about things. You will get a feel for that when you visit with them. In any case, I'm still coaching. I love the game. I love the sport. Some days are better than others.

[KUGLER] This has been the first big test in his coaching career. A lot of injuries to deal with last year. This year has been marked by people's dissension on the team. How has he handled it as head coach?

[SIPPLE] I think it was wearing on him last week. I saw him daily last week and you could see on his face, it was wearing on him. He was tense. His answers were shorter to our questions about Buckhalter mainly. He was not joking around. He was barely saying hi. Today I thought he handled it well. I thought he really rose to the occasion today if there was an occasion. I guess there was an occasion. He was fine. I was impressed by that today. He had it under control, carried himself well like a leader. That's what he has to do. It's been tough.

[KUGLER] It has not been easy. We have a winner in the second trivia question. We will get to that in a moment. A 13-year-old knew the answer. T.J. in Omaha wants to know the status of Frankie London? Is he going to quit the team?

[BARFKNECHT] I think that was hot on the internet today about him quitting. He is on the depth chart and practiced and I think that's it.

[KUGLER] In that same vain, with Bobby Newcombe going to Wingback, Gary in Hebron and Dave in Central City want to know what do the other wingbacks think about being demoted? You have Sean Applegate and Frankie London at Wingback and now Bobby Newcombe comes in and is going to take some of their playing time.

[SIPPLE] I know Frankie talked to a couple of reporters and wasn't happy. He expressed dissatisfaction with his being kind of demoted again, bringing in a guy who has not played there since 1997 and all of a sudden he is ahead of Frankie, and he's not happy about it.

[KUGLER] We have a winner in our second trivia contest. Once again let's remind you of the question. How many times has Nebraska appeared on abc in this decade and how many times have they lost? Chris Nelson knew the answer. 35 times in the 1990's and lost six times on ABC. Congratulations to chris. he wins the calendar. Three of the losses by the way were in last year's season. Kansas State, Texas, and Texas A&M. Back to the questions now. We have a lot of folks wanting to know about Correll Buckhalter. He had the incident last week that took some of Frank Solich's time. What's his status coming up for the future? What's he look like for the future?

[SIPPLE] Back-up I-back to Alexander. He gained 799 yards last year, about 5.6 a carry I think. He is a good back. He is not a great back. He doesn't have the break away speed they want here. I think he improved his quickness. He had a good spring and a pretty good fall. I think they're pretty confident with him.

[KUGLER] A question in a different vain. Dutch in Omaha wants to know - is it clear if Turner Gill on the sideline is having a desired effect at this point in the season?

[BARFKNECHT] That's a great question. I think it's one of the things that's hard to answer unless you are on the sideline. You don't know what the communication pattern is. I think they thought it was going to help or they would not have done it.

[KUGLER] We have Cole from Lincoln on the line. How are you?

[COLE] Good.

[KUGLER] A few things to talk about, huh?

[COLE] I was wondering what do you think about the offensive line situation? Is it too early to tell or are we in the rebuilding process?

[KUGLER] You must have been looking over my shoulder. That was my next question. Let's pose the question to either one of you.

[BARFKNECHT] That's one of the good questions. I think they have made improvement but again, I think they're still young and trying to fit things together like they want so a little more of a wait and see situation.

[SIPPLE] I would agree. I think they're better. I think they showed in the fall camp they have made improvement but it is a wait and see situation.

[KUGLER] Time again for our next Big Red Trivia question. It's the third one of the night. Be the first correct caller and you will receive a copy of "Coach Osborne: More Than Winning" produced here at Nebraska ETV. Southern Mississippi, Nebraska's opponent this week, went to division 1 football 40 years ago. Since that switch, the Golden Eagles have had two All-Americans as named by either the coaches of the A.P. Adalius Thomas, the Golden Eagles' starting defensive end, is one of those All-Americans. Name the other Southern Mississippi All-American, his position, and the NFL team for which he starred. Be the first correct caller and you will receive a VHS copy of "Coach Osborne: More Than Winning." We have had several folks calling in on what will happen with Southern Mississippi. Curtis Johnson in Lincoln - Southern Miss had a good defense and excellent receivers, how does their offense look this season?

[SIPPLE] You know the last two days have been as crazy as they have been and I don't know anything about Southern Miss. I know they have held their opponents to 62 yards on 62 carries. They have some NFL type speed at receivers. That's the extent of my knowledge.

[BARFKNECHT] I think the one thing that is key is that in the 90's usm has played at Tennessee, at Florida, at Florida State, at Penn State, at Auburn, and at Alabama. They will not be intimidated.

[SIPPLE] That's a great point.

[KUGLER] Let's look at where Southern Miss goes this season. Their non-conference games are at Nebraska and Texas A&M. Back to back weeks for arguably two of the top teams in the Big 12 conference. The next part of their season, they skip in and do a non-conference game late in their season. They wrap up with army and then October 30th, they travel to Alabama and play there. I don't know who is making the schedule but it's somebody who wants to see them play tough teams.

[BARFKNECHT] Associate Athletic Director in charge of finance.

[KUGLER] That's for sure. Monte in North Platte wants to know what's the status of Robin Miller?

[SIPPLE] Right now he has a bad ankle. They want to redshirt him. he won't play this year is what we're looking at unless they really get decimated at that position. He is in line for a redshirt.

[KUGLER] We have talked about it Tonight. Southern Miss expected probably to be the top team Nebraska faces in the non-conference schedule. You guys have said it's been a busy week and haven't had a look at Southern Miss too much. I had a chance to watch the game against Tulane where they demolished a decent Tulane team. This is a team that has a solid running game. They have Nixon at I-back that looks solid. They've got supposedly one of the top receivers in the country. I think it will be a challenge this weekend.

[SIPPLE] I think so, too. It does by all indications look like they're going to be tough. I don't think you will see a game like these first two games. We have a winner on the third trivia question. Joe in Kearney will Jason Schwab get a sixth year?

[BARFKNECHT] They're probably working on the paperwork now? Depends on if the NCAA says yes or no.

[KUGLER] Mickey in Utica wants to know what are the chances of Crouch playing defensive back and Newcombe returning punts? Newcombe will return punts but if Crouch plays d.b., that would be a surprise to everybody involved. Maybe Steve Sipp will play quarterback this season. You have a year of eligibility left. Who else? Gary in Lincoln. Another poll question for you, Lee. How can you keep Penn State at number two when they only beat pittsburgh by so few points?

[BARFKNECHT] Real easy - find the spot that says number two and write Penn State. Tennessee plays Florida this week so if they beat Florida, I will move tennessee up. People get worked up early in the season.

[KUGLER] Is this more trouble than it's worth? You get a lot of criticism.

[BARFKNECHT] I believe this is pro-bono work like attorneys. You don't get paid. You stay up late Saturday night and get up early Sunday morning to do homework. People give you a lot of bologna. But that's fine. I love college football. It's one of the great conversation starters in college football. The polls are great for the game. People just need to calm down a little bit. It's early in the season.

[SIPPLE] I wish they would have fun with it.

[BARFKNECHT] It's great fun to talk about it. Far too many people get way too worked up about it.

[KUGLER] Bob in Lincoln wants to know what about Southern Miss's defense? I think they're pretty good. Sounds like a scheme similar to Cal in that they're going to stack up to try and stop the Husker's running attack.

[SIPPLE] What Frank mentioned today is they don't go into their real formation until the ball snaps so Crouch is not going to know exactly what he is seeing he goes to the line of scrimmage. That can cause problems.

[BARFKNECHT] If Eric has trouble with audibles, then people can scream for Bobby Newcombe.

[KUGLER] Bob also says crouch will light up the game and fans can be happy. So there's the answer to that. Frank Solich speaking about Eric Crouch today and his big plays and how it seems that Eric has made a lot of big plays in only two games this season.

[FRANK SOLICH] You saw Eric making big plays but don't expect to see eric making big plays every time he touches the ball. It doesn't quite work that way. I think some of the expectations can get almost to that point. he is going to have plays and he is going to have days where things don't go as smooth as what they have gone. He is a tremendous athlete. He has done tremendously well up to this point. I know this, he will have a lot more better plays and a lot more better days than off plays or days. We feel good about him taking over the quarterback role.

[KUGLER] Eric Crouch not expected to throw a 70-yard touchdown pass every week.

[BARFKNECHT] At least Frank will not expect that. Some of the folks on the 30 yard line will expect that.

[KUGLER] Kevin in Schuyler - if Crouch is injured, will Newcombe move back to Quarterback? Probably, I would say would be a good bet.

[BARFKNECHT] Seemed like he indicated if it was a close game and Crouch needed a blow, they would let Newcombe slide over and take a few snaps.

[SIPPLE] What I got out of it -- I guess we disagree. What I gathered is only the situation where Newcombe would play quarterback is where Crouch was injured. That's a good question.

[BARFKNECHT] Something we need to follow up on.

[SIPPLE] Thank you.

[KUGLER] Here is good question written in on e-mail from Jay- will we be able to replace evan with another scholarship player or will he continue to count toward the maximum amount of scholarships allowed? That's a very good question.

[BARFKNECHT] He will count and your roster is locked in a week before the first game in the season.

[KUGLER] We have a trivia winner in our third trivia question of the night. Steve in Omaha knew the answer to this trivia question. Name the other Southern Miss All-American and his position and the NFL team where he starred. I expected people to say Bret Favre. The player was Ray Guy. Ryan in Alliance - is Nebraska moving to more of a passing offense under Frank Solich?

[BARFKNECHT] Again, I think that's something we will have to wait and see. People have the perception Crouch is better option and Newcombe a better passing quarterback. We won't know until they play a few games.

[KUGLER] Brian in Portland wants to know what about Deantae Grixby? What's the status of his injury?

[SIPPLE] Coach Solich mentioned him today. I think a week or two. He was impressive in the fall before he went down. He is a good back. Very much like Deangelo Evans. Very small 5'9" kid that's pretty fast.

[KUGLER] This is going to be an interesting week to see how this pans out. Can't get much more interesting than today at south stadium. Lee, Steve, thank you for joining us. This hour has flown by. We have had lots of people calling in. Interesting to see how the rest of this week pans out. Can't get more crazy than this. Next week on "Big Red Wrap-Up," we will have Tom Shatel, columnist from the Omaha World Herald, and Curt Mckeever, from the Lincoln Journal Star. For Steve and Lee, I'm Kevin Kugler. We will talk to you next week on "Big Red Wrap-Up." Good night, everybody.