Why are the Huskers getting pounded by opponents?
One possible explanation is that they are not nearly as physically talented as their opponents are, and because of this they are greatly outplayed by their opponents at the game. In sporting matches, a team that is inherently better at the sport than their opponents wins the game in the vast majority of cases. If a NFL teams takes on a college team, the NFL team will win because the players on their team are inherently better at football. When a loss is accounted for because of a disparity in talent, searching for some deeper reason as to why they lost is a futile practice.
In the case of the Huskers, I don't think that they are getting pounded because their opponents are inherently much better. All of the athletes who start for the Huskers were highly recruited out of high school. The Huskers showed their ability when they beat Wake Forest earlier this year, and many of the guys on the team proved their abilities last year by beating teams like Missouri and Texas AM. So, I think these guys are talented enough to compete and win against some of the most talented football teams. I don't think an inherent disparity in talent between the Huskers and their opponents can adequately account for the beatings they've received.
What then accounts for the beatings? I think the mindset of the players accounts for them. A large part of success in football is having the right mindset. Mental problems can lead to problems on the playing field. This is what I believe is happening with the Husker football team. Screws are loose in their heads right now -- they aren't passionate, they aren't having fun, and they generally are not thinking in such a way as to maximize their output on the field.
The players could have mental problems for a number of reasons. I think the main reason is that they are disenfranchised with the idea of being a "Husker", largely because they're tired of the stupidity and cruelty of so many Husker fans. Why should they give the fans victories and thereby make them happy after the fans treat them like crap? People on this board are always saying stupid and mean stuff about the players on the football team, and evaluating their worth on whether or not they're playing football well. Moreover, so many fans say plainly stupid things. They make unfair comparisons between them and the past Husker teams, and build up expectations that are simply impossible to live up to. There are so many different sources that expose the players to such fan cruelty and stupidity --- the TV media, the internet boards, Facebook, radio -- and, of course, person-to-person contact that they have on campus with students and at games with fans. The players are under so much scrutiny that I feel sorry for them, and if I was in their shoes, I wouldn't be caught up in the idea of being a Husker either, which would be an easy sentiment for me to feel if I didn't grow up as a Husker fan like most of the players did not.
Some may say this theory is fluffy and lacks hard evidence that supports that the players actually feel this way. Well, there is some substantial evidence to support what I say. Steve Octavien showed his disenfranchisement with the husker fan base when he candidly expressed his feelings towards the fan's disapproval of the defense's play. He said in a post game interview, "If they don't like what they have to see, then they don't have to come to the games." In other words, he said "to hell with the fans."
The coaches put up with the same crap from the fans, but at least they can take solace in the fact that they are getting paid for the abuse they take. Getting paid also means that they have a real incentive to keep winning and keep their job, regardless of whether or not they like being apart of the "Husker community."
The coaches themselves may be responsible for what I perceive to be the disenfranchisement of the players, perhaps the players don't like the coaches, or that the coaches don't do enough to make the players feel at home in Nebraska. This is a possibility, but I'm not inside in the locker room, and I don't know what the coaches say, whereas I am exposed to fans, so I am only commenting on how many of the fans act.
I do not mean to suggest that the fans are solely responsible for the woes of the team, but I do think that their actions add a lot of fuel to the fire. Things go wrong, players have bad games, and teams inevitably lose -- that's life -- but what some fans serve to do is to make a tough situation a lot worse by disenfranchising the players.
Compare the atmosphere at Nebraska with that at Northwestern University. While Northwestern's football players are not nearly as inherently talented as the Husker players are, I think that they actually make for a better team this year because they play with a lot of heart. Northwestern players seem to enjoy playing football for Northwestern; they like their coach, their fans, and the university. The fans have realistic expectations, and the don't put the college football players under too much scrutiny. Northwestern football players just seem to enjoy playing when you watch them, which is a stark contrast to watching the Husker players, who drop their heads after making a bad play and who feel "hurt" in the locker room after a big loss. Enjoying what you do is an incentive to do whatever you do well.
What I see in Huskers players are guys who like they're playing in the NFL, who don't necessarily enjoy playing for the love of the game, who don't like the annoying, pesky, and demanding fans, but one difference is that the NFL players are much more mature and used to the culture, and that they have a huge incentive for playing and suffering through the game --- money.
For all of you fans who act like jerks and think you know more than you actually do.. I say this: you help give the Husker fans a bad name, and you're not helping the team. Go become more responsible people.
One possible explanation is that they are not nearly as physically talented as their opponents are, and because of this they are greatly outplayed by their opponents at the game. In sporting matches, a team that is inherently better at the sport than their opponents wins the game in the vast majority of cases. If a NFL teams takes on a college team, the NFL team will win because the players on their team are inherently better at football. When a loss is accounted for because of a disparity in talent, searching for some deeper reason as to why they lost is a futile practice.
In the case of the Huskers, I don't think that they are getting pounded because their opponents are inherently much better. All of the athletes who start for the Huskers were highly recruited out of high school. The Huskers showed their ability when they beat Wake Forest earlier this year, and many of the guys on the team proved their abilities last year by beating teams like Missouri and Texas AM. So, I think these guys are talented enough to compete and win against some of the most talented football teams. I don't think an inherent disparity in talent between the Huskers and their opponents can adequately account for the beatings they've received.
What then accounts for the beatings? I think the mindset of the players accounts for them. A large part of success in football is having the right mindset. Mental problems can lead to problems on the playing field. This is what I believe is happening with the Husker football team. Screws are loose in their heads right now -- they aren't passionate, they aren't having fun, and they generally are not thinking in such a way as to maximize their output on the field.
The players could have mental problems for a number of reasons. I think the main reason is that they are disenfranchised with the idea of being a "Husker", largely because they're tired of the stupidity and cruelty of so many Husker fans. Why should they give the fans victories and thereby make them happy after the fans treat them like crap? People on this board are always saying stupid and mean stuff about the players on the football team, and evaluating their worth on whether or not they're playing football well. Moreover, so many fans say plainly stupid things. They make unfair comparisons between them and the past Husker teams, and build up expectations that are simply impossible to live up to. There are so many different sources that expose the players to such fan cruelty and stupidity --- the TV media, the internet boards, Facebook, radio -- and, of course, person-to-person contact that they have on campus with students and at games with fans. The players are under so much scrutiny that I feel sorry for them, and if I was in their shoes, I wouldn't be caught up in the idea of being a Husker either, which would be an easy sentiment for me to feel if I didn't grow up as a Husker fan like most of the players did not.
Some may say this theory is fluffy and lacks hard evidence that supports that the players actually feel this way. Well, there is some substantial evidence to support what I say. Steve Octavien showed his disenfranchisement with the husker fan base when he candidly expressed his feelings towards the fan's disapproval of the defense's play. He said in a post game interview, "If they don't like what they have to see, then they don't have to come to the games." In other words, he said "to hell with the fans."
The coaches put up with the same crap from the fans, but at least they can take solace in the fact that they are getting paid for the abuse they take. Getting paid also means that they have a real incentive to keep winning and keep their job, regardless of whether or not they like being apart of the "Husker community."
The coaches themselves may be responsible for what I perceive to be the disenfranchisement of the players, perhaps the players don't like the coaches, or that the coaches don't do enough to make the players feel at home in Nebraska. This is a possibility, but I'm not inside in the locker room, and I don't know what the coaches say, whereas I am exposed to fans, so I am only commenting on how many of the fans act.
I do not mean to suggest that the fans are solely responsible for the woes of the team, but I do think that their actions add a lot of fuel to the fire. Things go wrong, players have bad games, and teams inevitably lose -- that's life -- but what some fans serve to do is to make a tough situation a lot worse by disenfranchising the players.
Compare the atmosphere at Nebraska with that at Northwestern University. While Northwestern's football players are not nearly as inherently talented as the Husker players are, I think that they actually make for a better team this year because they play with a lot of heart. Northwestern players seem to enjoy playing football for Northwestern; they like their coach, their fans, and the university. The fans have realistic expectations, and the don't put the college football players under too much scrutiny. Northwestern football players just seem to enjoy playing when you watch them, which is a stark contrast to watching the Husker players, who drop their heads after making a bad play and who feel "hurt" in the locker room after a big loss. Enjoying what you do is an incentive to do whatever you do well.
What I see in Huskers players are guys who like they're playing in the NFL, who don't necessarily enjoy playing for the love of the game, who don't like the annoying, pesky, and demanding fans, but one difference is that the NFL players are much more mature and used to the culture, and that they have a huge incentive for playing and suffering through the game --- money.
For all of you fans who act like jerks and think you know more than you actually do.. I say this: you help give the Husker fans a bad name, and you're not helping the team. Go become more responsible people.
Last edited by a moderator:
