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Lincoln - Nebraska's overstocked I-back position has lost one contender to a
Southeastern Conference school and another young runner to
a new spot in the NU backfield.
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Chris Butler hustles in the Husker Spring Game April 15, 2000.
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Chris Butler, a 5-foot-11, 205-pound redshirt
freshman from Hoover, Ala., plans a transfer to home-state Auburn,
his mother Rosie Butler, said Tuesday.
The Tigers offered Butler a full scholarship. He earned a one-semester scholarship
in January at Nebraska but
would have returned to walk-on status in the fall. As a reserve I-back, Butler
rushed for a game-high 118 yards
and two touchdowns on 16 carries for the White Team in the April 15 Red-
White game.
"I think the overriding factor is that he wanted to be closer to home," Gillespie
said. "There's some illness in his family, and he feels it's important for
him to be there. We're losing an outstanding person and a good player.
"You always hate for that to happen, but we understand his desire."
In addition, Coach Frank Solich said, redshirt freshman Robin Miller of Kent,
Wash., plans to move at least temporarily from I-back to fullback when fall
camp opens in early August. Miller, 5-11 and 225 pounds, was listed as
the co-No. 5 I-back with Butler and Josh Davis on the post-spring depth
chart.
Not including Miller, NU returns its top five scholarship I-backs next year,
including veterans Dan Alexander, Correll Buckhalter and Dahrran Diedrick.
It also adds touted junior-college transfer Thunder Collins.
"It's still a position where we have a great deal of depth," Solich said. "But it's
working itself out, and we still have to be concerned about the possibility of
injuries.
Redshirt freshmen I-backs DeAntae Grixby and Davis have battled injuries
during the past year. Solich said Miller will stay familiar with both positions.
Butler walked on at Nebraska in the spring semester of 1999. He then sat
out last fall and was bothered by a case of athletic pubalgia during the spring
season. He underwent surgery to correct the problem April 17.
Butler estimated in the spring that he was playing at about 70 to 80 percent
of full speed.
Despite the injury, Butler still performed well at times in March and April.
He regularly ranked among the team's leaders in performance testing over
the past 11/2 years. Before spring practice, Butler ran a 4.59-second 40-yard
dash.
"It was difficult to get a good feel for him throughout most of the spring, because
of the injury," Gillespie said. "He had a nice spring game, but there'sbr> much
more than one (scrimmage) to that time of year. Just to play with that injury,
Chris showed a lot of courage to make it through."
Gillespie said Butler informed the Nebraska coaches of his decision about three
or four weeks ago.
Butler's speed and running instinct impressed the Huskers since his arrival in Lincoln,
Solich said.
"In terms of the reasons he discussed with me," Solich said, "it involved him wanting
to get closer to home."
At Auburn, Butler will have three years of eligibility beginning in 2001. Rosie Butler
said the 100-mile drive to Auburn, Ala., from her home near
Birmingham looks much more manageable than trips to Lincoln.
"We love Nebraska," she said. "We really do. Everyone has been so kind to us on
our trips there, but this is a situation Chris feels more comfortable
with."
In another development involving the unstable NU backfield, Collins said Tuesday
he has moved a step closer toward returning to Lincoln to ready
himself for fall camp. The sophomore from Los Angeles must complete one more
exam in a music-appreciation course at West Los Angeles College
to become eligible under NCAA transfer regulations.
Collins originally moved to Lincoln in January, only to learn of a technical problem
with his transfer from junior college. Since that time, he has studied at Southeast
Community College in Lincoln and at home this summer in California.
"It ends July 8," Collins said, "and I'll be out there about two days later. The class
has gone real well. I've gotten good grades, and right now I'm
thinking a lot about football. At first, I was thinking about this class, but now
I've got all kinds of football stuff running through my head.
I've been working out, and I've practiced getting a good hold of the ball.
Newcomers officially report to Memorial Stadium Aug. 4, with their first practice set for Aug. 5.
As Nebraska's fall roster becomes firm, Solich said, the Huskers should hear soon on the academic status of incoming freshmen rush end Manaia
Brown and wingback Alvin Marshall.
Brown, from Salt Lake City, recently completely his final attempt at the ACT college-entrance exam, said Ray Groth, Brown's coach at Granger
High School.
Solich said Marshall, from Locke High School in Los Angeles, also must still meet eligibility standards to compete as a freshman next season.
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This-N-That
Big Twelve sports budget's ,Texas has the Highest.
LINCOLN (AP) -- Eric Crouch is back on the Nebraska football team after paying for a plane ride and ham sandwich he recently received that raised some questions with the NCAA.The team's starting quarterback was temporarily suspended from the team after the university learned he had not paid for the ride and sandwich, which is not permitted under NCAA rules.Nebraska director of compliance Bob Burton said Crouch's mistake was rectified when the quarterback recently wrote a check to charity for the amount of $22.77.With the NCAA's clearance, Crouch was reinstated on the team Tuesday."He did not intend to break the rule about extra benefits," Burton told the Lincoln Journal Star. "He has made restitution and the issue is resolved."