Nebraska/Florida

[VA Husker Fan]

But you have to give credit where credit is do, if you don't think Floridas team last year wouldn't have given Dr. Tom and the 95 Huskers all they wanted youre a damn fool, IMO today they know more about nutrition, weight training, and in general-people are bigger/stronger due to it. They also start playing football much earlier.

You just can't directly compare teams from more than a few years apart for this reason. Nebraska 1971 was undeniably one of the greatest teams of all time, beating #2 teams back-to-back (or maybe Hawaii was sandwiched in there) plus the #3 team. But looking at the speed, size and strength of the players, if you dropped that team in against any major team now, they'd probably get crushed. Likewise, the world class speed on 1967 USC (Simpson and McCullough were on a relay team that set the 4x110 world record) would be pretty average today. So I only consider how good a team is realitive to their era when trying to judge teams from different eras.

What's going to hurt Nebraska case more is not getting to play Penn State or Michigan. That's a shared title in 1997, and a title that some will dispute in 1994.

 

[Pedro Guerrero]

I don’t think that Florida could have played with the 1995 team, that being said I think they could have played with the 1994 & 1997 team. This Florida team is a different beast then the one that Spurrier fielded in 1995. This team wants to run the ball instead of the “Fun N’ Gun” empty backfield stuff. Also this team has a much better defense then the one from that year.

Actually, wasn't it after the Fiesta Bowl pasting that Florida grabbed K-State's defensive coordinator and started to make a concerted effort on building a defense--or am I remembering incorrectly?

Yes they brought in Bob Stoops to run the defense in 1996, the year after NU beat the tar out of them.

 

[rkhufu7]

Penn State had no defense and Michigan had no offense. Florida have never gone undefeated and they play a weak schedule beyond LSU and the SEc title game. They squeaked by UT and LSU.

 

[Husker NoNo]

I don’t think that Florida could have played with the 1995 team, that being said I think they could have played with the 1994 & 1997 team. This Florida team is a different beast then the one that Spurrier fielded in 1995. This team wants to run the ball instead of the “Fun N’ Gun” empty backfield stuff. Also this team has a much better defense then the one from that year.

Actually, wasn't it after the Fiesta Bowl pasting that Florida grabbed K-State's defensive coordinator and started to make a concerted effort on building a defense--or am I remembering incorrectly?

Yes they brought in Bob Stoops to run the defense in 1996, the year after NU beat the tar out of them.

But wouldn't it be fun to watch this years (or last years for that matter) Florida team and the 95 Huskers play! Talk about two incredibly well coached teams with quarterbacks that would refuse to let their teams lose.

 

[Paul in WI]

I don’t think that Florida could have played with the 1995 team, that being said I think they could have played with the 1994 & 1997 team. This Florida team is a different beast then the one that Spurrier fielded in 1995. This team wants to run the ball instead of the “Fun N’ Gun” empty backfield stuff. Also this team has a much better defense then the one from that year.

Actually, wasn't it after the Fiesta Bowl pasting that Florida grabbed K-State's defensive coordinator and started to make a concerted effort on building a defense--or am I remembering incorrectly?

Yes they brought in Bob Stoops to run the defense in 1996, the year after NU beat the tar out of them.

Thanks. My memory IS getting bad (no offense Mr. Stoops).

 

[junior4949]

Say Florida runs the table and wins another National Championship this year making it 3 in 4 years. Would that 4 year run end all the talk of people saying what NU did at the end of TO’s career never happening again? Also would 3 National Championships, 1(maybe 2 Heisman’s and another Top 3 finish) push Tim Tebow into the talks of one of the best to ever play College Football thus lower people memories of Tommie Frazier?

I think the thing that hurts Florida and helps NU is the 6 losses compared to 2 in that 4 year stretch. I will say this though, it is a lot harder to win all of your games in the current SEC then it was to win them all in the late Big 8 and early Big 12.

People outside of Nebraska are already forgetting about the run NU had and I think if Florida wins again it will push it that much farther back in their minds.

I'm guessing Florida will be remembered as better, and here is why. Tebow has won one Hypseman and may win two while Tommie won none. In 1994, some fans still argue that Nebraska wasn't the best team and that Penn State got shafted. In 1997, we didn't win the NC outright. With the way they've tweaked the BCS, it's a lot more difficult to argue Florida didn't win possibly all 3 titles outright. If Florida runs the table, they will have beaten #4 LSU, #2 Alabama, another #2 in the NC game and however else the teams rank. I don't see how this can be seen lesser than what we did in 95'. Plus, the word parity seems to be the flavor of the decade. If Florida can win 3 in 4 years with all this claimed parity, it will be viewed as being better than what we did in the 90's. Then, there's also that last caveat. Phillip Fulmer, Lloyd Carr, and Larry Coker were all either forced out or fired from their respective schools even though they won NC's. We live in a what have you done for me lately era. Florida will have done it now while Nebraska did it 12-15 years ago.

 

[ThePancakeMan]

I think the bottom line here, at least regarding the 1995 team, is that no other team really even deserved to be on the other side of the ball.

The 1995 team not only beat everyone, there was not even anyone left in the discussion as a capable opponent, that year, or ANY previous year for that matter. The opponents were left destroyed, and humiliated. Not only that but I remember opposing coaches stating that it took them weeks to recover from the physical beating that their team took. (Remember Jaquez Green getting carted off the field in the Fiesta Bowl?). The players all lived through the LP debacle, and everyone calling Tom Osborne the face of what is wrong with major college sports...They used that to fuel their devistation, and it really paid off. Not only did they have the talent to beat the other teams, they had the singular focus and desire to have the other team running back to their mommies, crying, as if to get revenge for the awful way that the media was portraying their program, and TO in particular. (wow, rant over...)

These Florida teams are not finishing all their games early. Huskers of 95 didn't play their #1's all through the games because they were over early. Gators are keeping their guys in to finish the games. Case in point, Tim Tebow getting a concussion late in a game. Scratch that...the coach was insane to have left him in and did it probably only to pad his Heisman stats.

 

[ThePancakeMan]

*deleted duplicate*

 

[UGAHusker]

I haven’t found anything for 06 & 07 yet, but last year Florida beat #4 LSU, #6 Georgia, #25 S. Carolina, #20 Florida St., #1 Alabama, and #1 Oklahoma.

This year they have beaten #4 LSU, with #22 S. Carolina left plus (assuming they both run the table) #2 Alabama and then to win the National Championship it would be #2 somebody else.

All of this is moot if someone would just beat Florida though.

Problem here is that you're looking at the rankings for teams when they played them and not at the end of the year. That FINAL AP poll in '95 was Jean Shorts #2, CU #5, KSUCKS #7, KU #9. You look at Jean Shorts in '06 and they beat #3 LSU, #2 Ohio State, #13 Arkansas, #23 UGA, #25 Tennessee and lost to #9 Auburn. Pretty good. Last year they beat (pre bowl game rankings) #1 OU, #4 Alabama, #17 UGA, and lost to #24 Ole Piss...doesn't really compare, especially when you consider how 'Bama got blown out by Utah.

 

[SuperBigFan69]

But you have to give credit where credit is do, if you don't think Floridas team last year wouldn't have given Dr. Tom and the 95 Huskers all they wanted youre a damn fool,

I recall a statement by someone recalling The Florida team in 95 and the great strategy they will surely come up with to defend against the Huskers' offensive weapons.

One astute fan said, "I could come up with a great strategy to contain the Huskers offense too, but you can't tackle the ball carrier when you are lying on your back."

That pretty much summed it all up nicely. The OL was so utterly dominant, that the DL would just have giant gaping holes in it, and the LBs were too slow to catch our offensive backfield.

By the way, the same was true in reverse...Our DL was in the backfield on every play almost.

-ThePancakeMan

I believe it was Mike Tyson that said it best "Everyone has a great plan until they get punched in the face"

 

[junior4949]

Or, part of their ear bit off.

 

[NUpolo8]

In one year, 07 I believe, Florida lost more in that season than NU in their entire run.

Thus endeth the discussion......eth

 

[irafreak]

Yeah see Nebraska's "disputed titles" still came after undefeated seasons. Florida keeps getting invited after blowing it earlier in the season.

 

[J_2_THA_BONE]

To me it's not even close, Nebraska's accomplishment was way more impressive. I mean hell Florida hasn't won a national title in their "run" that was undefeated while ALL of Nebraska's were.

 

[T_O_Bull]

In the 1996 Fiesta Bowl Nebraska beat Florida 62 -24 and it wasn't that close.

The 1997 team beat a Tennessee team lead by one of the greatest QB's of all time, Peyton Manning.

Florida now is good and Tebow is as inspirational a leader as any college team has ever had but when the chips were down the Huskers beat them head to head and all three teams were undefeated, there was no Ole Miss. beating the Huskers.

T_O_B