Huskers Open Spring Season in Deep South

The snow-bound Nebraska men's golf team will escape the winter conditions in Nebraska next week to open its spring campaign. The Huskers begin their spring schedule at the Sam Hall Intercollegiate, hosted by Southern Mississippi at the Hattiesburg Country Club, Monday and Tuesday, Feb. 16-17.

The tournament will be held at the par 72, 6,950-yard Hattiesburg Country Club, and will open with 36 holes on Monday, beginning with at 7:30 a.m. shotgun start. Tuesday's final round will also begin at 7:30 a.m. with tee times off both the No. 1 and No. 10 tees. The 13-team field is headlined by host Southern Mississippi and Wichita State, who both finished the fall ranked among the nation's top 70 teams according to GolfWeek.

Third-year Nebraska Head Coach Bill Spangler is excited for the start of the season despite the recent weather conditions in Lincoln. The Huskers have not been able to practice outdoors this semester, but Spangler said his team has made the most of its preparations.

"We've had three weeks of great practices," Spangler said. "Our guys know the situation and have accepted it. The weather has been poor in a lot of areas, so there are a lot of teams in the same boat as us. We are excited to get out there and get the season going. You are always concerned about being sharp in the short game, but I think we will do OK."

Nebraska also opened the 2003 campaign in the Sam Hall Intercollegiate and finished in sixth place in a 15-team field with a three-round 893 total.

A pair of Huskers who competed in last year's Sam Hall Intercollegiate will headline the Husker lineup next week. Fifth-year senior

J.J. Sullivan finished 32nd in last year's event and completed the fall with a 74.81 stroke average. He will play the No. 2 spot for Nebraska at Southern Miss. Sophomore Judd Cornell finished in a tie for 36th last year in the same tournament and will compete as NU's No. 4 golfer next week.

True freshman Brady Schnell will play the No. 1 spot for Spangler's team. The Millard West graduate finished the fall with a team-best 74.75 stroke average. Senior Chris Hartwig will play the No. 3 spot, while redshirt freshman Drew Reynolds will round out the Husker lineup in the fifth position.

 Fall Season Recap

The Huskers open the spring season looking to make up ground in their bid for a spot in the NCAA Regional Championships in May. Nebraska had an inconsistent fall season in which the Huskers struggled to put three strong rounds together.

Nebraska's top finish was at its own Fairway Club Invite, where NU finished sixth in a 14-team field. The Huskers were fifth among eight teams in the Jim Colbert Intercollegiate and placed seventh in a 12-team field at the 49er Collegiate Classic, where the Huskers posted a three-round score of 874, their best performance of the fall.

The five players who will travel to Hattiesburg, Miss., next week saw the majority of the action for Spangler's team last fall.