Page 8- The Michigan Daily- Thursday, October 1, 1992
Hughes doubles up for Iowa
Hawkeyes' star wideout splits time between gridiron, diamond
by Michael Watkins
The Daily Iowan
Former PresidIent Theodore
Roosevelt once said that when you
wish to get a message across effec-
tively, you should "speak softly and
carry a big stick."
Well, in case you haven't noticed
lately, Iowa's soft-spoken wide re-
ceiver Danan Hughes has been doing
just that - and the stick he's been
talking with just happens to be a
baseball bat.
Aside from being named first-
team all-Big Ten at wideout and
averaging a conference-leading 18.7-
yards per pass reception last season,
the 6-foot-2, 207-pound Hawkeye
centerfielder out of Bayonne, N.J.
spent the past summer playing
baseball with a Milwaukee Brewers
farm team in Montana - and really
enjoyed it.
"It was a real good experience
and I'm glad that I got the opportu-
nity to go there," said Hughes, who
hit .317 in 33 games including one
home run, 22 runs-batted-in, four
doubles, two triples and two stolen
bases.
"It was a place full of nice people
and good, loyal fans," Hughes said.
"It wasn't like a big city, but it was a
place where you could concentrate
on what you had to do and get it
done."
However, for Hughes, this dual
role as college football standout and
potential major leaguer is nothing
new. He was chosen by the San
Diego Padres in the 1991 Major
League Baseball draft but decided it
was in his best interests to pursue a
career in pro football as well.
"It's always been a dream of
mine (to play both sports on a pro-
fessional level)," said the 1991 third-
team all-Big Ten baseball selection.
"It didn't really start becoming a
reality until the last couple of years
when I started doing well in base-
ball, especially last year.
"When I started having such a
successful sophomore season in
baseball, I really started believing
that I was one of those elite people
that could do both."
But according to the Iowa first-
team and preseason all-Big Ten re-
ceiver, the difficult selection be-
tween a life at the plate or in the end
zone is way off in the distance - at
least for now.
"I hope I won't have to (choose)
any time soon," said Hughes, the
Iowa career leader in touchdown
receptions with 17. "It's a problem
that a lot of people would like to
have. I'm just glad that I'm in that
situation. When the time comes and
I have to make a de-cision, it's going
to be a tough one.
"Right now I think that I'm still
too young to make that decision.
FILE PHOTO/Daily
All-Big Ten wideout Danan Hughes harbors hopes of becoming the next
Deion Sanders. Hughes played minor league baseball this summer.
then I'd like to have seven or eight
in the next. And if I don't get that,
which is not always going to happen,
then I don't get down on myself. I
just go out the next game and try to
improve.
"I think that I have the potential
to be (all-American), but I have to
go out there and play on top of my
game all of the time. Most all-
Americans that came here and at
other schools played consistently
above everyone else and that's the
type of game that I'd like to play this
year."
One thing that Hughes as well as
the members of the Hawkeye offen-
sive line have had to adjust to this
season is the presence of a different,
but not new, quarterback in Jim
Hartlieb. But according to Hughes,
seeing Hartlieb back to pass instead
of Matt Rodgers is anything but for-
eign to him.
"It's not like Jim and I are brand
new to each other," said the sixth-
ranked Iowa receiver in career yards,
with 1,725. "We've been working
together since our freshman year.
Matt and I worked together a lot the
last couple of years, but I always
made sure that I got in some time
with Jim.
"We know how we can play to-
gether.Heknows whatI'mgoing to
do, and I know what he's going to
do. We've just got to build on that
and help the team win.
Hartlieb agrees.
"Danan really presents a lot of
problems for a defense and we defi-
nitely have to get him the ball," said
Hartlieb, who completed seven of
'I really started
believing that I was
one of those elite
people that could do
both. - Danan Hughes
his 22 passes vs. North Carolina
State to Hughes for 87 yards.
"We've been concentrating on
that this whole camp, and we've
been hitting on all cylinders."
In addition to wearing the title of
leading receiver for the Hawkeyes
the last two seasons, Hughes says
that he sees himself wearing a cap of
leadership on and off the field.
"I think that I am real uplifting to
the team," Hughes said. "I consider
myself one of the leaders on the
team. I always keep things up-tempo
and keep everybody's head up no
matter what goes wrong."
"I mean, people are going to drop
passes, and people are going to miss
blocks. But you've just got to be
there and pat them on the back and
say, 'It's going to be all right,' and
that's the type of player that I am."
Heading Home
Former Michigan standout Terry Mills (right) will be wearing a Pistons
uniform this fall, after the New Jersey Nets opted not to match Detroit's
5-year, $9 million offer. Mills said he did not want to play for the Nets.
Young
'M'
netters
01
Hopefully I won't have to make it
for a few more years."
Iowa coach Hayden Fry, who's
seen Hughes mature and improve in
both sports, says that he believes that
"Danan is an extremely consis-
tent big play-maker who you can al-
ways count on to get open," Fry
said. "As far as his playing two
sports professionally, from an ability
and attitude standpoint, he can do it.
"He's not a flashy player, but he
has more than adequate ability. I
know that he'd like to do both, but
that's got to be his own decision."
For right now, however, in the
opening stages of another season of
Iowa football, Hughes has set his
sights on becoming the Hawkeyes'
version of Desmond Howard, last
year's Heisman Trophy winner.
With touchdowns of 23 and nine
yards in Iowa's opening game
against North Carolina State, the po-
tential all-American has already at-
tested to this comparison.
But according to the all-county
pick in baseball and football at
Bayonne High School, just making
progress from game to game is his
goal this season.
"I just try to go out there and im-
prove every game," Hughes said.
"Making all-conference and having
one good game really doesn't satisfy
me. I like to go out there and if I
have five or six catches in one game
to play in
by Rachel Bachman
The Michigan men's tennis team
hopes to leave the Crimson from
Cambridge feeling blue this week-
end.
The Massachusetts town, home
of host team Harvard, will also see
teams from Northwestern and Notre
Dame tomorrow through Sunday at
the Harvard Fall Invitational.
Because no team scores will be
kept in the tournament, it likely will
not affect the team's Big Ten
ranking. It will, however, give team
members a chance to improve their
individual rankings.
The netters, who finished eighth
in the Big Ten last year, are confi-
dent they will do well this weekend,
with junior Dan Brakus leading the
way.
"Brakus is the number one-ranked
player in the region, so he's got a
good chance," said freshman John
Costanzo, who won the consolation
final for his flight at the recent Tom
Fallon Invitational in South Bend,
Ind.
Brakus, who won the top flight
of that September 20 invitational, is
in a good position to repeat that per-
formance. is two toughest opponents
at the tourney Notre Dame's Andy
'Yahd'
Zurcher and Chuck Coleman, both
nationally ranked) will not attend the
Harvard match, leaving the path to
the 'A' flight singles title unclut-
tered.
This year's freshmen, who now
have one tournament under their
belts, should show much improve-
ment in the upcoming tournament.
"I think they played just a little
nervous (at the Fallon tournament),"
Michigan assistant coach Tim Mad-
den said. "They've seen what col-
lege tennis is all about, so they
should play much better this week-
end."
All three of Michigan's oppo-
nents are strong, although there is
one in particular the Wolverines are
setting their sights on.
"The team to beat is always
Notre Dame," said freshman Geoff
Prentice, who also had a strong
showing at the Fallon Invite.
"We did alright against (the Irish)
at Notre Dame, so we should do well
against them this weekend," Cos-
tanzo said.
Winning the invitational would
be icing on the cake for the netters,
who are doing well despite having a
very young team. As Prentice said,
"We're inexperienced, so this tour-
nament will give us some practice."
Hughes
the team reception leader with 43
catches for 757 yards and eight
scores in 1991 has what it takes to
become the next Deion Sanders - if
he wants to.
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