Nebraska Takes Different Approach

Enough! The Times has relentlessly this season made it a pastime to berate Nebraska, Nebraskans, the football program and Coach Tom Osborne. In today’s flurry [“It Was No Game,” Dec. 27] from Bash-Nebraska Central, The Times recycles the old “news” with more stories and photos than Nebraska has ears of corn. It used to be that seeing Nebraska even mentioned in your pages was as rare as finding an Okie on an NU squad.

Tom Osborne is no saint. Nor is Pete Wilson with his “three strikes” remedy for offenders. Osborne is, however, trying to deal with the violence in a different manner than in California, where the course is to lock up offenders for life and to keep the proliferating prison industry booming.

ANDY KAY LIEBERMAN

West Hollywood

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1. Lawrence Phillips is arrested for beating a former girlfriend and Tom Osborne promptly kicks him off the team.

2. Osborne is quoted as saying, “I wouldn’t put a player on the field if I thought he was guilty of some of the things they have been accused of.”

3. Phillips pleads no contest and is sentenced to a year’s probation.

4. Osborne names Phillips as the starting tailback for the Fiesta Bowl.

Did I miss something?

NANCY JOUJON-ROCHE

Culver City

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You deserve a Pulitzer! I only wish your articles on sports and crime bother those who could do something to change things. Maybe instead of playing bumper cars, we could teach athletes to read, write and compute. How about courses in ethics and morality?

JOAN MARTIN

Woodland Hills