Final Red-White scrimmage ends at 21-21

Chilly and windy conditions kept many fans away from Nebraska's annual Red-White spring game.

And at halftime, the 22,415 that braved the conditions might have been wishing they had stayed home.

The score was 7-0 in favor of the Red team, which was made up of the No. 1 offense and the No. 2 defense. The teams had combined for only 120 yards of offense, and the lone touchdown was scored by third team quarterback Kelly Cook on a one-yard quarterback sneak. And the No. 1 offense hadn't gained a single first down by the end of the half.

During halftime, those fans not suffering from hypothermia likely weren't entertaining warm thoughts of 30 more minutes of spring football.

Luckily for them, the hitting and scoring picked up in the second half, as 35 points were scored in the final half to forge a 21-21 tie, the first since 1950. The White squad, consisting of the No. 1 defense and the No. 2 offense, rallied for two fourth-quarter touchdowns behind quarterback Brett Lindstrom and I-Back Chris Butler.

Lindstrom connected with Ryan Ommert on a 46-yard touchdown pass with 2:24 left in the game, and Tim Reese converted on a two-point conversion by running up the middle to tie the game at 21-21.

Coach Frank Solich, who watched the game from the press box to evaluate talent, said he was happy with the way his team concluded the spring season.

"I was generally pleased with (the game)," Solich said. "I thought the execution was decent. Not a lot of mistakes, not a lot of foolish penalties, not a lot of things that make coaches pull our hair out."

The game plan was simplified to include only base offenses and defenses with the idea that this would give the coaches the best picture of the squads' ability. Inexperience at quarterback and the fact that all three - Joe Chrisman, Lindstrom and Kelly Cook - were forced to wear green jerseys, meaning "hands off" to the defense, didn't help for exciting offense either.

The basic plays frustrated some, like Chrisman, who completed only two of nine passes for 27 yards. He was sacked four times and rushed six times for negative five yards.

"It's tough (wearing the green jersey), but I understand why we do it," Chrisman said. "We can't afford to lose another quarterback, but it kind of presents an unrealistic view out there for both the offense and the defense."

But the bland play calling made stars of a few players, too. Redshirt freshman fullback Judd Davies and Butler, also a redshirt freshman, both earned praise from Solich. Davies had two carries for two touchdowns and 22 yards. Butler led all rushers with 118 yards on 16 carries and added two touchdowns.

Defensively, rush end Kyle Vanden Bosch was nearly unblockable. He recorded three sacks, 28 yards of losses and missed sacking Chrisman for a safety by about a foot.

"He is showing tremendous quickness and tremendous strength for his size," said Solich of Vanden Bosch. "He is a player that at the snap of the ball is going to give you everything he's got on every play, and he's got a lot.

"I would expect that he'll be a national-type player in terms of his ability to play his position and to play it at a level that the great players in the country will be playing it at."

If the Cornhuskers are going to be a national championship-caliber team next season, they will need more offensive production than the top unit produced. The top offense's premiere first down came on a 30-yard scramble by Chrisman with 11:55 to go in the third period. It would only score 14 points on the day, with both touchdowns coming on runs by Davies.

This was in contrast to the first two scrimmages where the offense ran roughshod over defense when the quarterbacks weren't hindered by green jerseys, and quarterback Jammal Lord was leading the No. 1 offense before he went down with a knee injury.

But change is a good thing, Vanden Bosch said.

"I was real happy with how the defense played today," he said. "We came out strong at the beginning. A lot of the spring we've been playing at the offense's tempo, and we wanted to come out and set the tempo like we did last year."

A slight damper was put on the scrimmage as Solich revealed that wingback Bobby Newcombe suffered a dislocated elbow as he was returning a punt in the second quarter and will miss five to six weeks.

Weak side linebacker Randy Stella suffered a shoulder stinger, and Solich said the team will wait until June to decide if Lord's knee warrants surgery or has healed significantly.

Newcombe should be back by fall camp, as should starting quarterback Eric Crouch and several defensive players, which center Dominic Raiola hopes will set the table for a title run.

"Our limits are as high as the sky this year," Raiola said. "We haven't set any limits on ourselves this year. We know what everyone wants, and it isn't a Big 12 Championship, it's a national championship. And it's going to take hard work this summer and throughout next year."

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