Nantkes improving but still hurting

Steve Guiremand

Thursday, Nov. 6, 2003 | 10:08 a.m.

UNLV quarterback Kurt Nantkes took about a dozen throws with the first team offense in practice on Wednesday night at Rebel Park.

The good news was his arm and throws looked fine. The bad news was he still couldn't take a snap from center and drop back while trying to recuperate from a painful groin injury that knocked him out of Saturday's 37-35 upset of New Mexico.

"Baby steps," Nantkes said. "I did better than I did (Tuesday night) and I just hope to keep getting better every day."

"He did everything in shotgun today so he didn't have to use the legs," UNLV coach John Robinson said. "But he did all the throws and threw as good as he normally does. But there's one more step to make. (Today) he'll probably do some (more). Friday he may do it all at our workout. But I think he'll play."

Would he start?

"I don't know," Robinson said.

"I probably won't be 100 percent but I'm confident that I'll be able to come out and play," Nantkes said. "It's getting better every day and that's all I can ask for."

That's a big improvement over the way Nantkes felt earlier this week.

"After Saturday I was just looking forward to the bye week (next Saturday) to try and get ready," he said.

True freshman Shane Steichen and sophomore Scott Turner split the majority of the practice reps. Steichen, a 6-foot-3, 175-pounder from Oak Ridge High School in El Dorado Hills, Calif., is expected to get the starting nod if Nantkes can't go.