DomiNUs

Considering that I'm that concussion +20 years. I had 4 between the ages of 8-14, and I can tell you now that I"m 20 years later from my last I am encountering all sorts of problems. Depression, anxiety, I have a hard time focusing on things that I use to just dive into and enjoy. I can't watch movies without getting frustrated by sitting still. I can't enjoy video games any more except a few. I have a hard time with jobs that require a lot of concentration, I'm argumentative about everything, I have a hard time hanging on to relationships, and that is just 20 years. TBI is a huge problem, and your response is a slap in the face to someone who is dealing with it on a daily basis. No it isnt because im not talking about anyone eles concussion problems. Im talking about zd's. im going to assume that hes had the proper care and has made an educated decision to keep playing. You're expecting a 20 year old who is a competitor and grew up dreaming to play football and got offers from big Div I schools to make an educated decision about this. Is Darlington an expert on brain science and we just don't know about it? Things like this should not be up to the kids. At some point in time people have to be responsible for the decisions and life they choose to lead. If we can send 17 year old kids into battle, which is far more dangerous than football, then we can let others make their own life decisions. The reason I don't like that comparison is because on one hand you're risking your life to protect your country and on the other you're risking your life to play a sport. Also, in the past I've seen lots of coaches let the players decide and it didn't end well. Burkhead came back too early because he was a fighter and hurt himself worse. It's happened other times but that's the first that comes to mind. It is a valid comparison. Some choose to defend their country, some choose to play football. The point is that they have the freedom to make that choice. Sometimes people should be protected from their choices because they're incapable of grasping the weight of them. I'm not coming down on either side of this, but especially with kids, yes, 20 is still a kid, who's brains are still developing at quite a rapid rate. 20 is not a kid. Not by the law and not by a lot of other factors. Once turned of a legal age, people should and do have the freedom to make their own choices.

Considering that I'm that concussion +20 years. I had 4 between the ages of 8-14, and I can tell you now that I"m 20 years later from my last I am encountering all sorts of problems. Depression, anxiety, I have a hard time focusing on things that I use to just dive into and enjoy. I can't watch movies without getting frustrated by sitting still. I can't enjoy video games any more except a few. I have a hard time with jobs that require a lot of concentration, I'm argumentative about everything, I have a hard time hanging on to relationships, and that is just 20 years. TBI is a huge problem, and your response is a slap in the face to someone who is dealing with it on a daily basis. No it isnt because im not talking about anyone eles concussion problems. Im talking about zd's. im going to assume that hes had the proper care and has made an educated decision to keep playing. You're expecting a 20 year old who is a competitor and grew up dreaming to play football and got offers from big Div I schools to make an educated decision about this. Is Darlington an expert on brain science and we just don't know about it? Things like this should not be up to the kids. At some point in time people have to be responsible for the decisions and life they choose to lead. If we can send 17 year old kids into battle, which is far more dangerous than football, then we can let others make their own life decisions. The reason I don't like that comparison is because on one hand you're risking your life to protect your country and on the other you're risking your life to play a sport. Also, in the past I've seen lots of coaches let the players decide and it didn't end well. Burkhead came back too early because he was a fighter and hurt himself worse. It's happened other times but that's the first that comes to mind. It is a valid comparison. Some choose to defend their country, some choose to play football. The point is that they have the freedom to make that choice.

Considering that I'm that concussion +20 years. I had 4 between the ages of 8-14, and I can tell you now that I"m 20 years later from my last I am encountering all sorts of problems. Depression, anxiety, I have a hard time focusing on things that I use to just dive into and enjoy. I can't watch movies without getting frustrated by sitting still. I can't enjoy video games any more except a few. I have a hard time with jobs that require a lot of concentration, I'm argumentative about everything, I have a hard time hanging on to relationships, and that is just 20 years. TBI is a huge problem, and your response is a slap in the face to someone who is dealing with it on a daily basis. No it isnt because im not talking about anyone eles concussion problems. Im talking about zd's. im going to assume that hes had the proper care and has made an educated decision to keep playing. You're expecting a 20 year old who is a competitor and grew up dreaming to play football and got offers from big Div I schools to make an educated decision about this. Is Darlington an expert on brain science and we just don't know about it? Things like this should not be up to the kids. At some point in time people have to be responsible for the decisions and life they choose to lead. If we can send 17 year old kids into battle, which is far more dangerous than football, then we can let others make their own life decisions.

Does it really matter at this point if other coaches were contacted?

It will be interesting to see how Riley stacks up with recruiting in the 500 mile radius after a few years. I think the change in recruiting philosophies between coaches are what's holding the numbers of recruits within 500 miles down.

Wait, so he says there is no comparison, and then goes on to compare the different recruiting styles? Confusing.

After watching our final four games of the season, and seeing the turnaround that happened, there is no reasonable excuse as to why we should not be one of the top contenders for the west.

I think recruiting sites and the so-called experts rely more on which schools are recruiting the players for their rankings.

The way some posters make it sound, there is no reason in the world a recruit would want to come to Nebraska. They challenge others to list the advantages that NU has over other schools, only to put down those advantages later. To those posters, why do recruits choose Nebraska over other top schools?

It sounds like POB has the work ethic and loyalty to really make a difference here. Though, for some reason all the hype and hope bring up thoughts of Harrison Beck in my brain.

Then we could be the Big Tens.

Really the only issue I take with the whole thing is he starts a new thread of a topic already being discussed, drops his article off, and then doesn't respond, answer or take part in any discussion about it whatsoever.

I somewhat remember that game. It was my first year in the Navy and I invited some fellow Nebraska friends over for the game. We decided to drink a beer for every touchdown scored. Good times.

Anything is possible, I guess. I'll drink the kool aid he's serving up. GBR!

RIP Lawrence.

So the big mistake VV made in declaring early for the draft was that he wasn't working with professionals to help him prepare for the NFL? How do you know this? I guess the multi-million dollar football staff and operation is not up to snuff when wanting to help a player get to the NFL. I think what he means is that over break VV has been back home pondering his decision instead of just declaring right after the bowl game and getting started over break working out for the combine. He is a large guy that conditioning has been an issue with him. I think it is a legitimate criticism of his decision. If you knew what you were going to do, then make the decision and start working toward your future. I didn't get that from the article. Here's why I think VV made the correct decision for his life. 1. He already graduated and accomplished that goal. 2. He doesn't risk injury without the prospect of getting paid. 3. He will have a lot more time to focus solely on football. VV knows he is not going to go that high in the draft, if at all. He probably figures that he will at least be able to give it his best effort right now, and his conditioning won't have to suffer with the distractions of college life in the way. In the whole scheme of things, a couple weeks to make a decision like this is a very short time. I agree with all 3 of those points. I think VV was smart to declare for the draft. I was responding to you saying that he was working out with our multi million dollar staff, which he was not, he was at home in Illinois I believe pondering his decision. Which is a very important decision, but I dont think there was much that was going to sway him from leaving. His draft eval probably told him to stay since if you are not a 1st or 2nd round choice that is the report. Everyone knew he was leaving so why not get to training on becoming a professional football player. I never claimed he was working out or anything of the such. I was commenting on the article where the main premise is that he made a huge mistake by not consulting "with professionals in regards to training, proper diet and everything else necessary to prepare him for a future in the NFL." VV has been in the program for a few years now and if we aren't doing exactly that as a program, we are failing. Other than assuming eightlaces is upset about VV moving on, what other reason is their to write this junk. Especially going on and then saying, "Valentine’s going to have to work double (maybe triple) time to get back into gear if he wants to climb those draft boards. He must show that he has the work ethic and proper eating habits to become the player an NFL organization wants him to be." VV took a few weeks to make a major decision, big deal. There is no need for commentary such as this. Pretty low-ball in my opinion.

So the big mistake VV made in declaring early for the draft was that he wasn't working with professionals to help him prepare for the NFL? How do you know this? I guess the multi-million dollar football staff and operation is not up to snuff when wanting to help a player get to the NFL. I think what he means is that over break VV has been back home pondering his decision instead of just declaring right after the bowl game and getting started over break working out for the combine. He is a large guy that conditioning has been an issue with him. I think it is a legitimate criticism of his decision. If you knew what you were going to do, then make the decision and start working toward your future. I didn't get that from the article. Here's why I think VV made the correct decision for his life. 1. He already graduated and accomplished that goal. 2. He doesn't risk injury without the prospect of getting paid. 3. He will have a lot more time to focus solely on football. VV knows he is not going to go that high in the draft, if at all. He probably figures that he will at least be able to give it his best effort right now, and his conditioning won't have to suffer with the distractions of college life in the way. In the whole scheme of things, a couple weeks to make a decision like this is a very short time.

So the big mistake VV made in declaring early for the draft was that he wasn't working with professionals to help him prepare for the NFL? How do you know this? I guess the multi-million dollar football staff and operation is not up to snuff when wanting to help a player get to the NFL.

I voted yes. Anything is possible and history has a tendency to repeat itself. You say that it is unheard of for a young coach to stay at someplace like NU for a long time. With Bob and Tom, it's happened twice already, and the others that have tried since were all let go by the university. I think with a Scott Frost or Turner Gill type of legacy coach, they would be happy to stay here for a very long time. It all depends on the coach. The other NU's Pat Fitzgerald says hi. Nebraska has always been at a disadvantage location wise, this is nothing new. I would say it was probably harder to get a player to Nebraska in the past than now. With the rapid advancements in technology, distance doesn't mean as much as it used to. I agree though, it is still not as easy as say a Texas or USC. In order to get back to that type of dominance we need to get back to finding the right players and developing them. Nebraska almost has never had the flashiest recruiting classes, what set us apart from everyone else was we found the right players to fit our system and developed them better than everyone else. In my opinion, that is the single most important factor that fueled our dominance. I think that bringing the athlete assessment testing back was a step in the right direction to getting the player assessment and development thing turned around.

The committee failed this year. The committee claimed to be in favor of the best 4 teams playing in the playoff. If so, then that should have included Ohio State in the playoff rather than either MS or Oklahoma. The two best teams in the country this year are Alabama and Ohio State. Both should have been in the playoff. Unfortunately the playoff committee failed in it's responsibility. Hopefully the committee will make some changes in the future to stop this type of outcome. The sport really needs them to get this right. MSU beat OSU head to head. So that makes OSU better than MSU? Everyone knows that Virginia Tech beat Ohio State last year... then Ohio State went on to win the national championship. So last year was Ohio State a better team than Virginia Tech even though VT had beaten them? Yes they were. Same this year with MS. Meyer probably made the biggest mistake of his career by handing ultimate control of offensive play calling to go to someone else. There's going to be a lifetime of "what ifs" by the Ohio State Players and coaches. What's the point in playing the game then if the better team is already determined? Also, VT beat OSU very early in the season, whereas MSU beat OSU late in the season. Timing is everything. OSU did not have the opportunity to rebound and PROVE they were the better team than MSU.

This is a solid view except for one thing. While Mike Riley may not be the guy that brings us back to the national spotlight, he can be the catalyst. Regardless of this up and down season, we finished a lot stronger than any of us expected after the Illinois and Purdue losses. While our current recruiting ranking is quite low, it should finish nicely. If Riley is only here for a few seasons before handing it off before retirement, I will feel much better than if Bo stayed another 3-4 years and left a bare cupboard, no hardware and a negative atmosphere. Riley will create a much better situation for the next guy if it ends up not being him, which it still could. at his age, we are looking at the next guy in 2-4. don't know that we gained much other than sh#t canning Bo.....i'll take it. Nick Saban is 64. Mike Riley is 62. Stop with the ageism. Totally agree. 62 is not that old.

Didn't he blast MSU for being content with their offense? Anyways, yes, he was spot on. Alvarez's comments that he can't pay Aranda b/c Wisconsin supports more sports than LSU is utterly laughable. Alvarez believes in his system, and it has proven results. To him it is bigger than any coach or player, the system is what matters. That's why he can watch two head coaches and multiple coordinators just walk. Because it's not their system, it's his, and it is the reason why they win.

The committee failed this year. The committee claimed to be in favor of the best 4 teams playing in the playoff. If so, then that should have included Ohio State in the playoff rather than either MS or Oklahoma. The two best teams in the country this year are Alabama and Ohio State. Both should have been in the playoff. Unfortunately the playoff committee failed in it's responsibility. Hopefully the committee will make some changes in the future to stop this type of outcome. The sport really needs them to get this right. MSU beat OSU head to head. So that makes OSU better than MSU?

That's very interesting. I have never seen that article before. I'm starting a petition right now to fire our "bag men." They obviously haven't been doing their jobs.

It has been said that SEC recruiting classes are bigger because more kids leave early for the NFL. Don't know how true that is, but that's the excuse my SEC buddies use when defending this.