JJ Husker

I agree that Beck is integral to our hopes today. He has to be patient and be willing to check his ego and stay with the plan. Most important, if something is working...........STAY with it until they prove they can stop it. Yes, with Beck, it is probably more important that he recognize what is working and stick with it. That should be a given but........

I've got quite a few hopes for today but the biggest is that Beck has a game plan and makes logical adjustments to it as required. The others all pertain to winning field position and sustaining drives.

I dont make it in here often but Sir Jameson is kicki g my ass tonight.

If you're expecting me to defend the churches position on condoms, I've got bad news far ya. It is one of the many issues I disagree with. I get it on abortion. I get it on contraceptive method that takes place post contraception. And I get the admonitions against sex outside of wedlock but I don't get their position against being able to prevent contraception with the added benefit of preventing std's. But I digress. My point was that the church (the Pope, whatever) is not telling people abstinence is better than condoms at preventing std's. They aren't passing it off as some scientific finding, it is simply part of their belief structure to avoid unmarried sex and the use of contraceptives. The vast majority of Catholics ignore the churches instructions on the use of contraceptives. I find it odd that they can be blamed for an Aids epidemic in Africa given that most followers of that religion ignore it and that many in Africa are not even Catholic. If I'm sick or have an ailment that requires a doctor or medical attention, why would I ignore them and choose to listen to the views of a religious leader instead?

Yep after Lou left, we went undefeated vs the state of Michign twice, in 15 attempts. Do you have the option of putting in a benched former starter at qb? Absolutely we do. Taylor Barktinez get over here. And wash that green paint off your toes.

I was thinking about making the trip from Colorado just to meet some of you bums but my parole officer advised against it if there was any chance at all that PaulCrewe might be there. Guess I'll have to watch the game on TV now.

I hesitate to enter this discussion but this is just flat out wrong. Abstinence is absolutely a better, more sure method, of preventing STD's than condoms are. Now if a person doesn't actually abstain, then yes, it's a problem. But to say they have blood on their hands is over doing it. If that is true then anyone who isn't walking around Africa, handing out condoms, and educating the people how to stop the transmission of aids, also has blood on their hands.

Special teams likely will play a huge role in this game, be it punt returns, punting, or any aspect of the kicking game. IMO we need to win on special teams and turnovers to have a chance. Our D should be fine if we can maintain some reasonable field position but, if we start giving them short field looks, it could be a long day. And our O is going to need all the help they can get against that MSU defense. Would really love to see us perform well in the punting game (kicks & returns) for once this season.

Great post. My feelings exactly. I have vacillated so much on this one game. Earlier in the season I was not worried about MSU at all. It seems every year we've been in the B1G their defense is over hyped pre and early season and then we ended up handling them fine. Now, as this current season has progressed, our offense has not been as prolific as I thought it would be, we've suffered devastating injury loses on our line, to WR's, and to TM, and our defense which started out badly has shown some real progress the past 2 weeks but, our depleted, under performing offense seems no match for their defense. But as I look at who they've actually played and their results, it seems that possibly they've acquired those defensive stats at the hands of some less than stellar opponents. The scary thing is, I no longer have any feeling of how our team will actually perform. My gut tells me this might be the break through game we've been waiting for. Problem is, every time I have THAT feeling these past few years, that is when reality slaps me upside the head. There is absolutely no outcome that would surprise me. Blowout win, blowout loss, close game, well played, poorly played...... I need a hug.

I agree. The keys to this game will be protecting the ball, keeping our D fresh, and creating turnovers. We don't have to score a lot to win but we will at least have to sustain some drives to gain some field position and rest our D. Beck is going to have to call a great game and we absolutely have to win on turnovers.

Happy Birthday! Have a cold one, you've earned it (I think?).

Well thank God for duct tape I guess- at least our O line has that going for them.

No problem. I apologize also if I over reacted. I think what we all have to keep in mind is that the vast majority of posters here want what is best for the program. There may be some extreme opinions of how to achieve that but most peoples intentions are well placed. And QMany- I think we all saw it coming from a mile away. I'm sorry if I contributed to derailing it further by explaining my position so others would better understand it but this is what it was destined for.

That's bullsh#t. You question someones fandom because they want the program to win more and perform better? You must be of the opinion that this is as good as it can be. Not ranked, squeaking by Wyoming, losing to Minnesota, getting blown out by UCLA and, so far, one great win beating Michigan in their house. That's it? That's all you want? Which team are you a fan of? Relax. I'm fairly new here. I've noticed there are clearly fans of other teams posting here. "TAKODA" does not say "Husker Fan" nor does his avatar. Then he posts a heavily researched stats-laden post trying to tear down the Huskers, complete with a virtual high five to the guy who helped him compile these dramatic stats. And I was supposed to correctly guess that he was actually a Husker fan??? I'll relax when you do. I'm not new here. Acceptable convention would suggest that possibly you might want to know who you are addressing before pulling out the "you're not a fan" card on another poster. You aren't supposed to guess squat but it would be nice if you tempered your comments with a bit of knowledge before going there. And, BTW, so you learn a little bit more about me, I'm not 9 yrs old but more like 50. I attended UNL 1981-1985. I've been a fan since I was a little child growing up in Nebraska. I was not enamored with Solich the year before he was fired but I wasn't calling for his head either. I think, if he was going to be fired, it should have been done the year before he actually was canned. And yes, in hindsight, I wish it had not been done at all or at the very least that it had been handled much differently. But, I firmly believe the problem was not created by changing coaches but rather by interrupting all program continuity, trashing the walk-on program, and alienating former players and tradition. So, I do not fear coaching change in and of itself. Devaney to Osborne was not a problem. Osborne to Solich was not a problem. Callahan to Pelini was not a problem. The only real problem we've had therefore can be attributed more to what Callahan and Pederson did and allowed to happen and not to the HC change itself. I don't dislike Bo, I'm not a hater. I just see a bunch of evidence that suggests we could and should be doing better and also that Bo would fly the coop if presented the opportunity. If you think I'M a negative Nellie, I've got a list of people you've just got to meet.

I actually hate using W-L in this discussion at all. I absolutely can take losing if we give it our best effort. I'm not upset because we lost to Minnesota. I'm upset that we didn't do anything to help us have a chance to win that game. I'm a firm believer in "it's how you play (coach) the game". That is why winning against a team like Southern Miss doesn't mean much to me. That is why beating Michigan by 4 in the Big House is a huge victory for me. Heck, losing to UCLA was not really all that disappointing to me, the margin made it worse but that was at least a decent team. I was also pretty satisfied with our bowl game last year with Georgia. We played with them for 3 quarters (much better than our typical 1.5-2.5 quarters of actually playing football). Give me one complete game this Saturday and I'll STFU, even if we lose.

It certainly would be above mediocrity as far as that stat is concerned. But, the problem is you have to look at how that stat was acquired and what goes along with it. Where have we ended up ranked at the end of those 5 seasons? Has it translated to any sort of national relevance or respect? How have we lost the games we have? Where are our "hang your hat on" victories? How many embarrassing blowouts have we suffered? I realize I'm by nature a bit negative and typically I will recognize the bad before the good but, we are severely lacking in big wins against quality opponents. What we are not lacking in is subpar performances against lesser teams and embarrassing blowouts against what should be our peers. I don't give much credit for padding the resume with wins over the likes of S. Miss, SD St, Purdue, and squeeking by Wyomingesque foes. To be honest, the Michigan game this last week is one of the few in recent memory that I was actually proud of. Because we were more evenly matched and wining in the Big House is not something I expect. That was a great win and I give the players and coaches credit for that. In fact, I hate to even be engaged in this discussion this week because of that. I just see serious flaws that make me think that was more an aberration than an indication of things to come. I hope I'm wrong, I really do. And unfortunately, with the injury problems we currently have, it probably isn't fair to expect a win in any game we have left, especially one against the MSU defense this week. Minnesota was just a back breaker for me. It is absolutely ridiculus that we lost that very winnable game. I just can't and won't accept it anymore. Just look at the summary of our games vs ranked opponents in post #38 and our losses by more than 14 points. I firmly believe we've acquired that 9 wins per year for the last 5 years in a much less than admirable way. If we were anywhere near .500 against teams in the top 25 I would feel much differently. It feels to me like bragging about beating my 8 year old neighbor in games of horse 90% of the time but when I play someone who has actually played basketball before I drop off to about 30%. But yeah, I won 9 games of horse per year for the last 5 years, just never made it past ho with anyone over 3'-9" tall.

You are absolutely right EZE. I am getting very impatient. I have not been satisfied since prior to sitting in Folsom Field and watching the debacle in 2001. I recognize that Bo has accomplished much and much of it came quicker than it probably should have, considering where we were. You're right, we're at that last hump, and more difficult point but, it just drives me nuts when I see coaching decisions and actions that keep us from getting that leg over the hill.

That's bullsh#t. You question someones fandom because they want the program to win more and perform better? You must be of the opinion that this is as good as it can be. Not ranked, squeaking by Wyoming, losing to Minnesota, getting blown out by UCLA and, so far, one great win beating Michigan in their house. That's it? That's all you want? Which team are you a fan of? JJ; thanks for the defense, not to worry, everyone is entitled. My seats in the stadium are always full and I hoot and holler with the best of them +1 for the save! Sorry it just pisses me off when people go there. We all want the best for this program. We just have differing opinions of what that is and how to get there. But I'm done with accepting mediocrity. People throw up nine wins and one of only I five programs stats like it should be a discussion ending statement. What ends the discussion is walking off that field with no regrets and your best game lying on that field. God do I want to see that again.

Yeah, it's so impressive it shows in our ranking. Where are we ranked now? Where are the teams we've beaten ranked? You're right- we might just be one of the best teams, outside the top 25. Sorry but if wanting more than that is unreasonable, I'm going to remain unreasonable. I hope to hell this team wins out and I am forced to eat crow for being critical but, unfortunately, I don't see it happening. I'm tired of constantly looking forward to the next year. At some point in time it has to be expected this year.

That's bullsh#t. You question someones fandom because they want the program to win more and perform better? You must be of the opinion that this is as good as it can be. Not ranked, squeaking by Wyoming, losing to Minnesota, getting blown out by UCLA and, so far, one great win beating Michigan in their house. That's it? That's all you want? Which team are you a fan of?

No offense, but this is really a crap argument. What's your definition of satisfied? Who do you think is satisfied? You want to do the same thing that got us here in the first place -- fire a winning coach. If you truly expected those things you listed above, you should be hoping like hell that Pelini figures it out because starting over will throw us back another 6 years. I understand the tendency to think this way but you've got some problems with your cause and effect rationale. We didn't get here necessarily by firing a winning coach but rather how and the timing with which he was fired. And more influential to where we are now is the process Pedey used in selecting a new coach and the guy he finally settled on. Please keep in mind, a coach does not have to be as bad as Callahan or as despised to be fired. Also, not all new coaches will be that bad or as eager to destroy tradition. I don't hate Bo and I would really like to see it work out for him here. I give him a ton of credit for undoing much of the damage inflicted by Pederson and Callahan. He has righted a bunch of wrongs and has things headed in the right direction. But nine wins against the teams we've got them against is nothing to write home about. We have serious issues when matched against equal or better teams. Running a clean program and reviving the walk on program are great things but getting out coached and out performed by lesser teams still isn't acceptable. The facts are that we get wins against most teams we should and for the most part we get losses and/or blowouts against teams Nebraska should be able to compete with. The Minnesota loss is not unacceptable because it was Minny, it is unacceptable because we could've and should've won it by making adjustments, calling a better offensive game, and by not sticking with a QB that was being totally ineffective. Anybody that is satisfied only beating the easy teams on our schedule and the rare surprise like the Michigan win this week, needs to raise their standards closer in line with the storied history of this program. The Callahan years are no benchmark to determine that better than that ia good enough. It isn't.

Too many other factors to consider. 1- What is the score? I know you're up by 12 but have to get a feeling for capabilities of the offenses and defenses. 2- Have they stuffed your run for less than 2 yards on more than a few occasions? 3- How many turnovers (funmbles/Ints) have you had? Sit A) I try to run the clock out. That would indicate running it but, have to consider how your O has performed against their D. If you've been tearing them up passing without ints, I wouldn't shy away from doing whatever it takes to move the sticks Sit B) 4th & 2- If I've had good success in short yardage obvious run situations, I go for it. If their D has been stifling then apparently your D has been tough too (since you're ahead by 12) I wouldn't be afraid to kick it. You're up by 12, they still have to score, and you may get the ball again up by 5 with hardly any time left. Keep in mind- I know jack squat about 8 man football.

You are not missing anything, dumbest firing ever. Easy there..........your screen name would be different if it weren't for that