Stai Hoping to Get a Shot at Miami : Orange: Redshirt freshman guard from Esperanza is optimistic that No. 11 Nebraska can upset No. 1 Hurricanes.

Bowl games aren’t exactly old hat to Brenden Stai, but Nebraska’s redshirt freshman guard, admits he was more excited about last season’s trip to the Citrus Bowl than this year’s Orange Bowl game.

“Last year, I hadn’t experienced a bowl and we did a lot of things because there are so many things to do in Orlando,” the Esperanza High graduate said before leaving for Miami. “This year, I’m excited to see the Miami Beach and Miami, but I’m really excited for us to play the Hurricanes and beat them.”

Few neutral observers believe the 11th-ranked Cornhuskers (9-1-1) can accomplish that feat. Nebraska is a 9 1/2-point underdog, the largest point spread of the eight New Year’s Day games. The top-ranked Hurricanes (11-0) are playing at home where they have a 44-game winning streak. Miami’s last loss at the Orange Bowl came on Sept. 7, 1985, against Florida.

Stai believes Nebraska will have to play “a perfect game” to manage the upset.

“Our offense has to play well, the defense has to read and cover very well and put a lot of pressure on the quarterback,” he said.

Miami has exhibited a dominance over Big Eight teams, much like it has shown against nearly every team in the nation. Since 1977, the Hurricanes have defeated their past 11 Big Eight opponents, including three in the Orange Bowl game.

A key reason for that streak has been the inability of Big Eight defensive backs, more familiar with playing run-oriented offenses, to keep up with the swifter Miami receivers. But Stai is confident the Cornhuskers will make up in scheme what they lack in speed.

“Miami has four guys with 4.2 speed (in the 40-yard dash),” Stai said. “If they’re going to throw four or five passes deep, they’ll hit at least one. If we play our man-to-man and ‘combo’ zone and we read it really well, we can cope with it.”

Stai disagrees with those reporters voting on the Associated Press poll who have tabbed the Hurricanes as the nation’s best team.

“In my opinion, Washington should be No. 1,” said Stai, concurring with the assessment of the USA Today/Cable News Network coaches’ poll. “We looked at film of Miami, and played Washington, and defensively, they’re stacked all the way and Miami is not the Miami of 1983. They don’t have the defense (that team did.)”

The Huskies defeated Nebraska, 36-21, Sept. 21. The Cornhuskers led, 21-9, with 5 minutes 32 seconds remaining in the third quarter, before Washington scored 27 straight points. Stai didn’t play in that game, but got a good look as the Huskies rolled up 618 yards, the most surrendered by Nebraska since 1956.

“Watching them come back in the fourth quarter was just unbelievable,” the 6-4, 255-pound Stai said. “They had so much talent, they could have got the job done from the get-go.”

Stai has played in six games this season. He strained his right knee during a blocking drill the final week of the regular season and missed the Nov. 29 victory over Oklahoma, which sent the Cornhuskers to Miami. However, Nebraska could forfeit four victories--and its share of the conference title--because of the use of an ineligible player.

Stai has been practicing with the second and scout teams and is expected to play some today.

“The football has been going real well,” said Stai, an All-Southern Section selection, the Empire League’s lineman of the year and Esperanza’s most valuable player in 1989. “To me, it looks like the next three years are going to be real promising.”