Bay Area Husker ENews 4-18-08

Hey Bay Area Husker Fans,

Sorry about the time between emails and the lack of news from the homeland, but I wanted to kick this one out to remind you that the annual Spring Game is Saturday 4-19-2008. Kickoff is at 11 a.m. Pacific Time. More info next week after the game.

Go Big Red (White and Blue),

Carl

SPRING GAME LINK FOR LIVE AUDIO AND STATS...
SPRING GAME LINK
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HUSKERS FINISH LAST PRACTICE BEFORE SELLOUT SPRING GAME...

Offensive Coordinator Shawn Watson is excited about the balance between the Red and White units for Saturday's spring game.

The Nebraska football team concluded its last spring football practice with a 2 ½-hour, helmets-only workout inside the Hawks Championship Center Thursday afternoon. This was the Huskers' last practice before the much-anticipated Spring Game on Saturday, which will be played before a packed house at Memorial Stadium.

"We have two teams that are really balanced. It worked out really well, and barring anyone gets nicked up, it's going to be a lot of fun," Offensive Coordinator Shawn Watson said. "I'm really happy with where we are at. Football is a long process, where were at today, the questions we had coming in, we feel like we have started to get some of those questions answered."

One of the main attractions of this year's spring game will be the progression of the defense. The defense has made great strides this spring according to Defensive Coordinator Carl Pelini, but they still have work to do.

"Guys are getting more comfortable with what we are talking about, which is the basic fundamentals and techniques. Everything is moving in a good direction," Carl Pelini said. "I'm really excited about the progression of the defensive line. I think they are really taking to the new techniques, they are asking good questions, and the "want to" is there, which is the biggest thing."

Kickoff for Saturday's spring game is scheduled for 1 p.m. All students eighth grade and below will be admitted for free, as they can take a Drug Free Pledge at halftime led by Head Coach Bo Pelini, and former Nebraska linebacker Demorrio Williams.

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SOLD OUT SPRING GAME OFFERS REGULAR-SEASON ATMOSPHERE...

Nebraska's Spring Game sellout promises to offer fans a fall game-day atmosphere.
Lincoln - For the first time, Nebraska's Red-White Spring Game is sold out for April 19, and fans will get a full game-day experience, complete with some pedestrian and traffic congestion caused by the 80,000-fan convergence on downtown Lincoln. Kickoff for the spring football game is 11 a.m. PDT, with a Husker baseball game beginning at 1:35 p.m. PDT at Hawks Field.

Fans are reminded that no tickets will be sold on Saturday, but those who have not picked up tickets can arrive at the Ticket Office beginning at 9 a.m. The Husker Nation Pavilion will open at 10 a.m. at Ed Weir Track/Nebraska Soccer Field to enhance the game-day atmosphere. Memorial Stadium gates open at 11:30 a.m.

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SPRING GAME PROGRAM...

The 2008 Nebraska Red-White Spring Game program is available for sale at Huskers Authentic and will be for sale at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, April 19. Kickoff for the Huskers' annual spring game is set for 11 a.m. PDT

Nebraska's Spring Game Program includes coaches biographies, updated player biographies on returning Huskers, biographies for 2008 signees, statistics from the 2007 season and much more...

Part 1 : Pages 1-36 : Introduction, Coaches Bios, 2008 Spring Outlook, Returning Player Bios, 2008 Signees
Part 2 : Pages 37-71 : 2007 Honors, 2007 Season Stats, 2007 Game Recaps, 2007 Senior Bios, Spring Game History

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HUSKERS.COM ANNOUNCES RED-WHITE ROSTERS...

Huskers.com will give Nebraska football fans their first opportunity to see the rosters for Saturday's sold-out Red-White Game. Check Huskers.com to find out who will wear Red and which players will don White jerseys on Saturday afternoon.

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11 HUSKERS NAMED TO BERRINGER TEAM...

Holder and place-kicker Jake Wesch earned his fourth straight spot on the Brook Berringer Citizenship Team.

Lincoln - Eleven members of the 2007 football team comprise the 11th annual Brook Berringer Citizenship Team as announced by the Nebraska Athletic Department. The student-athletes will be recognized on the field before kickoff of Saturday's Red-White Spring Game at Memorial Stadium.

The Brook Berringer Citizenship Team was established by the Husker football program in honor of former Nebraska quarterback Brook Berringer, who died in a plane crash in April of 1996.
Berringer was a member of NU's back-to-back national championship teams in 1994 and 1995. He was also one of the most dedicated Husker volunteers in the community with youth, both in Nebraska and in his hometown of Goodland, Kan. The team honors players who display a similar love and dedication for volunteering in the community.

This year's Berringer Citizenship Team is headlined by five repeat honorees, including a four-time honoree and a pair of three-year recipients. Place-kicker Jake Wesch is a member of the team for the fourth consecutive year, while punter Dan Titchener and 2007 senior fullback Matt Senske were both named to the Berringer team a third straight time. Senior receiver Todd Peterson and 2007 senior lineman Victory Haines are the two-time honorees on this year's team.

Six players have been named to the team for the first time in their careers. Those honorees include senior quarterback Joe Ganz, sophomore fullback Aaron Gillaspie, senior linebacker Cody Glenn, sophomore linebacker Blake Lawrence, senior long snapper T.J. O'Leary and senior linebacker Tyler Wortman.

The football team has been among the most active teams in the local community, ranking among the finalists for the Life Skills Team Award each of the past three seasons. A large group of student-athletes and coaches, including football team members are scheduled to visit a local Lincoln hospital and retirement center on Thursday, April 24.

Athletic Director Tom Osborne and Associate Athletic Director for Life Skills Keith Zimmer will make the presentation to the Berringer team recipients.

In addition to the Berringer Team, senior defensive end Zach Potter will be honored on Saturday as the recipient of the second annual Cletus Fischer Endowed Scholarship. The scholarship is presented annually to a Nebraska football player who has demonstrated a high level of athletic and academic achievement and intends to pursue a career as a high school or college coach.

2008 Brook Berringer Citizenship Team (years on team)
* Joe Ganz, QB, Palos Heights, Ill., 2008
* Aaron Gillaspie, FB, Littleton, Colo. 2008
* Cody Glenn, LB, Rusk, Texas, 2008
* Victory Haines, OL, Logan, Utah, 2007, 2008
* Blake Lawrence, LB, Shawnee Mission, Kan., 2008
* T.J. O'Leary, LS, Omaha, Neb., 2008
* Todd Peterson, WR, Grand Island, Neb., 2007, 2008
* Matt Senske, FB, Bellevue, Neb., 2006, 2007, 2008
* Dan Titchener, P, Cheyenne, Wyo., 2006, 2007, 2008
* Jake Wesch, PK/H, North Bend, Neb., 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
* Tyler Wortman, LB, Grand Island, Neb., 2008

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HUSKERS INK THREE-GAME SERIES WITH SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI...

2012 Nebraska Football Schedule

2013 Nebraska Football Schedule

2015 Nebraska Football Schedule

Southern Miss will visit Lincoln in 2012 and 2015, with the Huskers traveling to Hattiesburg in 2013.

Nebraska announced on Monday that it has agreed to a three-game football series with Southern Miss, with games scheduled in Lincoln during the 2012 and 2015 seasons, along with a 2013 contest in Hattiesburg, Miss.

The first game in the series will be played on Sept. 1, 2012, in Lincoln, and will mark the Huskers' season opener. The Huskers will travel to Southern Miss for a game on Sept. 7, 2013, with the final meeting in the three-game contract set for Sept. 5, 2015.

The games in 2012 and 2013 are the second non-conference games scheduled for those seasons. Nebraska previously agreed to a home-and-home series with UCLA that will send Nebraska to Pasadena in 2012, with the Bruins playing in Memorial Stadium in the 2013 season. The Nebraska-USM game in 2015 is the first non-conference game on the Huskers' 2015 schedule.

"Southern Miss has an outstanding football program with a tradition of taking on top programs around the country," Nebraska Athletic Director Tom Osborne said. "We had a competitive three-game series with them a few years back and this should be another challenging set of games for our football team against a good opponent."

The three-game series with the Golden Eagles will mark the second such agreement between the two schools, following three games between 1999 and 2004. Nebraska defeated USM in Lincoln in 1999 and was victorious at Hattiesburg in 2003, before the Golden Eagles knocked off Nebraska in Lincoln in 2004. The three recent games are the only meetings between the two schools on the gridiron.

Southern Miss is coming off a 7-6 season in 2007, including a trip to the PapaJohns.com Bowl. The Golden Eagles have been to a bowl game in nine of the past 11 seasons and 2008 will mark the debut of first-year head coach Larry Fedora.

Nebraska has completed its non-conference schedules through the 2010 season, and Big 12 Conferences schedules are set through 2015.

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Executive Travel and UNL Alumni Association announce partnership

(I've been getting their travel advice emails for some time now...very good stuff with a national and international view from a Lincoln based company...check out their website at www.executivetravel.com )

Executive Travel is pleased to announce that we have been selected by the University of Nebraska Alumni Association as their official membership tour operator. This new program will launch new tours beginning in 2009. We are excited about this new partnership and are honored to work with such an outstanding organization.

Executive Travel 1212 O Street Lincoln, Nebraska 68508
402-435-8888 Fax 402-435-2735 info@executivetravel.com

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