Grape Julius

You know, I'm beginning to think that this Abdullah guy might be pretty good.

I am not overly intimidated by 78 fans booing at us. With just 5 or 6 more tarps, Miami's stadium might look almost full. Those things can be noisy when the wind picks up, though, so Bo better have the guys be ready for crowd noise.

Could someone who was a regular at Memorial in the 80s through mid-90's make a comparison between big home games from that era and the noise level last night? I'm curious about the effect the stadium renovations have had and if Memorial is even louder as a result. Regardless, the stadium atmosphere against Miami from start to finish was...never mind. I don't think there are enough keys on my keyboard to describe it. Just proud to be a Husker today.

No matter who the coach is or what decade we're talking about, Miami is the most classless program in college football hands DOWN.

--Program history and tradition --Tom Osborne's legacy of winning with class --Memorial Stadium, with its inscriptions on each of the 4 corners. --Tunnel Walk

With all the inherent advantages that Penn State has, I wouldn't vote Paterno as a better coach than Barry Switzer or Hayden Fry, let alone Tom Osborne. He was kind of like the Phil Jackson of college football, only with far fewer championships and even less integrity.

Kenny Bell hit the goalpost 2 of 3 times. Not sure Tommy would have been able to match that today, and "Slash Bell" does have a certain ring to it...

Awesome. Season wasn't what we all hoped for, but a bowl win, appearance in the Top 25, and a little humor from Bo are causes for optimism heading into the offseason. Only a short 9 months to go until kickoff! (Sigh. 9 months, 252 days...I hate the offseason, and it just started. Not even close to the next kickoff yet).

We know that Iowa fans are the experts on losing, but this "winning" you speak of? Other than yesterday, I don't think you have the credentials. In all seriousness, your team played a heck of a game yesterday, and they played above their heads this year coming off a season in which they fielded one of the worst offenses I've ever seen in D1 football. You should be proud of them. But while your fan base is all starry-eyed about an incredible turnaround to an 8 win season and suddenly have renewed faith in a coach whose record now stands at 19-18 since your last bowl win (3 years ago, in December), those numbers just aren't going to cut it at Nebraska or any school serious about football. Just different expectations, that's all. But even at a school like Iowa where around 7 wins is the norm, 8 wins today doesn't mean quite what it used to.

Is it just me, or does Kiffin bear a striking resemblance to John Kreese from "The Karate Kid"? Some say that the Cobra Kai got a raw deal and that Kreese was actually a master motivator. Coincidence...or too much of one?

Ok, I'll take your advice and think about the programs he's been at. Let's see... The first 2 (Oakland and Tennessee) have yet to recover from his bungling tenure. The 3rd was so badly traumatized that a once-proud fanbase has now embraced Ed Orgeron--yes, "that" Ed Orgeron--as a program savior. After careful consideration, I'm just going to go with "no".

What's Rich Kotite up to these days? Maybe he's available and interested.

I thought his immediate reaction after the Hail Mary win over Northwestern was very telling.

What did he say? "I would play for Bo Pelini against Satan himself and a team of demons at the gates of the underworld." I'm not even joking. He actually said that. No doubt he would. The problem is that the team would be poorly coached, commit four turnovers and lose by around 30. Lol...that's pretty good. Maybe we were lucky that there was no Twitter around in the mid-nineties. Actually, there's no "maybe" about it--has anything good come from a player using that form of social media in the history of...ever?

The problem with playing Iowa is that they have lower expectations for their football program in general. Fans of serious football programs would recognize the unique exposure of playing on Black Friday, the appeal to potential recruits, the potential for developing more of a name brand in places that don't regularly see either team. Yet, all Iowa fan does is complain about a lack of parking when the game is in Iowa City and moan about inconvenient travel plans when the game is in Lincoln. Wisconsin is good right now, but like Iowa, they're cyclical and will fall back soon enough (to say nothing of the fact that, despite the last few seasons, Iowa has largely dominated them head-to-head for the past 30 years). They also have some of the worst fans I've ever encountered--think long and hard if you really want to spend your Thanksgiving weekend at Camp Randall every other year, where Badger fans make the average Colorado fan seem like Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm). Penn State would be a great rivalry , but only if you don't mind watching the game on TV every other year. Iowa is probably our best bet for a decent rivalry in the BIG. But it would help if they would stop whining about fan inconvenience, start thinking of what the game could mean to their program, and...oh, I dunno, maybe think about prioritizing winning over recruits rather than getting to sleep in after a full day of turkey?

This is a very serious situation--you have my deepest sympathies. But at times like these, I find that it helps to look at the bright side of things, so let's consider all the BIG teams your son will never be remotely interested in: Buckeyes--there is just no way to make a poisonous nut "cool". None. And if/when he catches sight of Brutus Buckeye...game, set, and match--in your favor. Hawkeyes--nobody is really sure what a Hawkeye is. Some say it has to do with "Last of the Mohicans". Others say it has to do with Chief Black Kettle. Still others say it's the actual eye of a Hawk. But one thing everyone can agree on: no one but NO one cares, least of all little kids looking for a "cool" team name. Golden Gophers--the Gopher name is bad enough all by itself, but putting "Golden" in front of it officially placed Minnesota's team name just below the "Centenary Gentlemen" on the coolness rankings. No appeal to kids, and nothing for you to worry about. So that's 3 BIG teams eliminated right there. The other names are pretty run of the mill, so it seems to me that if you get through this Wolverine crisis, you're golden (and not the Minnesota kind, either).

Ive been going back and forth between the BTN call and the radio call, and still getting goosebumps from both. I have to tip my hat to the BTN announcers, too, they were as excited as Sharpe and Davision. As the NFL diligently works to make its brand of football as bland and businesslike as possible, it's pretty refreshing for broadcasters to display that kind of emotion and passion for the game at the college level.

Anyone have a good recommendation for watching, downloading, or buying past Husker games? I'm always glad I'm a season ticket holder when moments like yesterday occur, but it's always nice to be able to re-watch the game, listen to the commentary, etc. Plus, I'd like to be able to build my Husker library with games from past seasons. I've found some Husker games in their entirety on YouTube, but not nearly enough, and yesterday's game isn't on there (highlight clips only).

UNBELIEVABLE!!!! I am officially a huge fan of anything Kellogg from this day forward--In fact, I will never eat anything but Kellogg breakfast cereal again after this game. Post and General Mills are both dead to me. That was one of the greatest moments I have ever seen in sports. Ever.

Hockey analogies! Great. And as a Detroit Red Wings fan, I can easily see the parallels with Nebraska. The Red Wings are one of the most storied franchises in sports, like the Huskers. They wear red, like the Huskers. Like Tom Osborne in College Football, Scotty Bowman was arguably the greatest coach in the history of the game, and certainly in the conversation for Top 5 even with the most conservative appraisal of his work. Like Osborne, Bowman retired a few years too early, and left the Red Wings stuck with a legacy coach named Dave Lewis (Frank Solich). The team continued winning, but the level of play dropped and Lewis was fired after some embarrassing early playoff exits (Bill Callahan). They then hired Mike Babcock (Bo Pelini) to restore the order, and he has...kind of. But for the most part, Babcock's Wings have not been close to the level they were under Bowman, and they've become a perrenial also-ran: an automatic playoff participant (9 wins and a bowl game) and a hard night's work for any opponent, but not a serious title threat. Amazing, isn't it? Almost completely identical stories. The only thing missing is a controversial game where Red Wing fans were asked to wear black instead of red to Joe Louis Arena, but I'm sure some Hollywood producer could work it in somehow and just add a "based on a true story" disclaimer whenever this is inevitably made into a movie.

Agree with those saying Iowa doesn't deserve the game. Their fans don't seem to understand that it's not the football team's responsibility to provide them with convenient game times and travel options--the Black Friday game is about unique exposure for the program, becoming a name brand to recruits, etc. I do respect the Iowa program for getting more out of their resources historically than, say, Illinois or Michigan State, but their admins, coaches, and fan base are just far too comfortable with a 7 win program, and that's not the mindset we want for the Heroes game. Wisconsin is good right now, but they'll fall back to the pack soon enough and their ceiling isn't much higher than Iowa (and Iowa usually beats them head-to-head). My vote would be for Penn State. They lack a natural rivalry in the BIG anyway, and that could end up being a game with a lot on the line for both programs each year.

Wow. Never recover from a loss to a Top 25 team? Alabama was just miserable, beyond pathetic under Mike Dubose and became completely irrelevant under Mike Shula. Oklahoma had practically turned into Iowa State on John Blake's watch. LSU had fallen completely off the map before Saban. USC stunk for years before Carroll, Florida regressed under Ron Zook, Michigan fell to pieces under Rich Rod, Notre Dame was a complete non-factor under Bob Davie and Ty Willingham...the list goes on and on. Our lows are nowhere near as bad as what other comparable storied programs have suffered (Michigan winning only 3 games in a season was something I never thought I'd see in my lifetime) and they ALL bounced back--and quickly--once the right coaching hire was made. Either Bo will turn it around or someone else will, but the Nebraska program will be fine over the long haul. Having said that, the turnaround needs to come soon, because these blowout losses to decent competition are getting very, very old.

Actually, by definition this would be a textbook example of "winning": winning the game, and winning over the fans. Am I missing something here? Just kidding with ya--we're all frustrated after yesterday, and I hear what you're saying: coaches always get too much credit after wins and too much criticism after defeats. It happens with every team in any sport. Unfortunately, even 24 hours later, I can't see how yesterday wasn't indicative of a coaching problem. This team has more than enough talent to beat UCLA in Lincoln. And even if you disagree that we were the better team, what's not debatable is that we have more than enough talent to avoid being embarrassed at home by giving up 38 unanswered points to a Bruins team that probably won't even win their own conference. When blowout losses to decent competition (not even elite, but decent) like UCLA, Wisconsin, etc, become the norm over a period of years, how can it be anything other than coaching?

Wow--have to admire his honesty. But personally, seeing him on the field at halftime for the induction ceremony, I found myself looking at the clock and wondering just how long it would take to petition the NCAA on his behalf for an extra year of eligibility...

This. The horizontal passing game that Texas fans loved so much under Greg Davis appears to have set up shop in Lincoln. On a positive note, Taylor would have had well over 300 yards passing if the stubborn NCAA would start counting east-west passing yardage.