Oregon Daily Emerald Sports
Ducks look to fill in
holes during spring
By Steve Mims
Oregon (Xttfy £ m0r&d
Members of the Oregon foot
ball team began spring drills yes
terday. trying to put last season
behind them ami answer ques
tions that lie ahead.
The Ducks agree almost unan
imously that 1993 was a lost sea
son. one filled with a lot of poten
tial early on and disappointment
by the e>-(t finish. The start of
spring practice is the unofficial
start of the 1994 season, and the
Ducks are glad to see it finally
arrive.
"I’m anxious to get out there,”
Oregon head coach Rich Brooks
said. "We have a lot to prove to
ourselves We failed to achieve
what we were capable of last
year, and we need to redirect our
selves mental I v
Brooks seems confident in his
team's physical abilities, as the
Ducks return n number of play
ers who have proved themselves
on the field The mental side is a
different issue, as Brooks and his
players agree that the team must
get tougher,
"People are always enthusias
tic until tilings get tough,'' Brooks
said. "As things started to go
against us we didn't respond well
to the adversity.”
Quarterback Danny O'Neil had
a great season statistically, com
pleting 02 percent of his passes
for 3,087 yards and 22 touch
downs However. O'Neil has nev
er led a team to a come-from
behind victory, a fact that is a
stigma to him and has given o.rit
ii s an arsenal to fire with.
I hat s something I want to
improve on," O'Neil said, "to
show myself and everybody else
that 1 have the ability to come
back to win myself."
O'Neil made no promises about
the upcoming season, referring
all questions about expectations
to his couch. After a year of unful
filled goals, O'Neil will keep
them inside this year.
"As far as expectations, I don't
have any,” O'Neil said. "Last year
I gave a lot of expectations and
they didn't come to fruition, so
I'll bypass expectations this
year."
However, that doesn't mean
O'Neil hasn't set personal and
team goals for next season.
"There are a lot of areas we
need to improve on." the senior
to-be said. "One area I'd like to
improve on individually is hav
ing the will to win. overcoming
circumstances or tough days at
practic e, whatever it might be,
overcoming some obstac les and
still having the will to win. That's
what separates the good teams."
So why wasn't Oregon a good
team last year?
"1 don’t think we had (the will
to win) last year. I think it's pret
ty obvious we lost a lot of tight
games," O'Neil said.
Hnough about 1993. O'Neil
looks at a strong off-season as
being the first key to turning it
around next year. The Ducks had
a lot of players working out and
playing football together during
the off-season, and O'Neil hopes
that will translate into more vic
tories on the field.
"I'm not going to say there's
going to be a change because it
must tie proven." O'Neil said. "In
the off-season we had more peo
ple out there in 7-on-7 games
than we ever had, and that's a
sign to me that this year's team is
more dedicated than teams in the
past."
Brooks agreed the team worked
hard in the off-season but said he
wasn:t sure how mm h that
would run over to next year
"It's been one of the best off
seasons we've ever had." Brooks
said. "But off seasons are just that
— they 're off-seasons We need
to carry that attitude on the field
the whole time consistently, from
week to week, not only this
spring but also this fall That's
sometimes where that message
gets lost in the transition "
On the field, the Ducks must
overcome the loss of a talented
senior class that includes as
many ns four possible NFL draft
i hoices. Making matters worse.
Turn to FOOTBALL, Page 12
Arkansas relishes title, looks ahead
CIIARLOrm N t: (AP) - Arkansas basket
ball fan*, savor the moment It was some kind of
finish to some kind of year
a first NCAA championship,
a No 1 seed in the Midwest Regional
•a No 1 ranking for nine weeks
No matter what coach Nolan Ku hardson has
fold his players about no res pet t. this team mm
resides nt the summit of college basket frail
Whether there will lie a return to the summit
next year is another matter The Ra/ortsn ks vs ill
have pist about all of their players bet k. but that
guarantors precious little.
In 1990, when rodd Day. LlV Mayberry ami
Oliver Miller were sophomores, the Ra/.orhm ks
made it to the Final Four
Wait til next year, people said
in 1991, Arkansas lost in the finals of the
Southeast Regional.
Then thoughts turned to Day . Mayberry and
Miller as seniors m 19'*.! By that time, they
were probably all ready for the NBA anti
Arkansas lost to Memphis State in the set out!
round of the tournament
ihis 1994 group was special - they genuine
ly enjoyed playing the game Outside of the
Kentucky game in tile Southeastern Conference
tournament, they ployed hard every game
There was no jealousy Not when Al Dillard
was getting alt kinds of notice for his long range
shooting Not whim a TV technician used an
electronic illustrator to expound on Corliss
Williamson's shaved head
(.iivs on the bench swooned at their team
mate s dunks and is hverybody swooned at
Si otty Thurman's killer t pointer with .‘id set
onds left Monday night m the 7fi7j victory over
Duke
The only two seniors are Roger Crawford,
who broke his ankle in the second round of the
NCAA tournament, and Ken tides
(raw lord started four games and averaged
mure than seven points per game His biggest
contribution < ante w hen he relieved (iorev Him k
or C lint Mi Daniel in the pressure defense
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