passranch

"...and there's no way Nebraska is going to turn the ball over 8 times at home against Iowa State..."

Yeah, truly - money isn't the reason Minnesota fell from their perch. The Vikings are. Did you know that in 1961, the year the Vikings started play in Minneapolis, the Gophers won their 7th (and last) National Championship? That was more National titles than Alabama, Oklahoma, Ohio State or USC had by then. Tied them with Notre Dame (at the time) and it is still more titles than Nebraska, Texas or Penn State have to this day. My theory is that if the Vikings had never happened we might think of Minnesota in the same vein as Alabama right now. It is also possible that our rise to national prominence post WW2 is in some way connected...

Absolute chickensh#t move by Miami, IMO. This looks to me to be more of a convenient excuse to get out of playing a game that they could very well lose rather than an actual safety concern for the players. Of course they probably legitimately doing what they think is best for the kids, but the optics of this are terrible. Just terrible. I feel bad for the A-State fans and players.

OP QFT. Okay so let's parse this a little bit: What you appear to be doing is asking for "honesty". No "spin or bullsh#t", just real down to earth hand-on-the-Bible "honesty". Because we know that what is most important to you here is that people remain truly honest in expressing their real feelings. Which is truly well and good. Honesty is a great virtue to have, we all strive for it every day I am certain. HOWEVER... You are adding conditional terms to your appeal right from the start. You are asking for "no spin or bullsh#t" and to "take the blinders off". This implies that the default position (or at the very least the position that is counter to your presumed one) is one that is formed with spin, bullsh#t or impeded by the use of blinders. The matter is further complicated because there is no authority given to just exactly who is the ultimate arbiter of honesty - nor what is considered truly spin, bullsh#t or blinded. Presumably that arbiter by default is you, the OP. This grants you the authority to simply say "no, you're wrong" to whoever disagrees with what is your undefined position. Not really productive in any way, more like a type of self-gratification. The end product is not a thread that is conducive to productive, healthy debate. It is - rather - a thread that is (or already has) devolved into a flame war full of base and ignorant arguments. Probably destined for ad hominem attacks of which I suspect the OP was intending to incite in the first place. I also doubt that if (by some admittedly miraculous turn of events) the Huskers manage to start the season off 8-0 or 9-0 @marko polo would be willing to posit this exact same question, asking for truly honest no spin or bullsh#t, no blinders debate over whether this team has s "chinaman's chance in hell" of contending for the league title. Unfortunately we may not get the chance to test this theory. But I digress... So in order to give you an honest response to your query, not that it matters in the least AT ALL what I think - I truly understand that nobody gives a rat's ass but I'll try anyway. Maybe some decent discussion can come of it: As it stands right now, no. This is not a team that appears to be making any kind of real progress towards contending for a league title. Simply because it's very clear that the defense is a work in the very early stages of progress, penalties seem to also be an issue. It also appears to be a team that doesn't appear to be regressing from their 9 win plateau either. While that is frustrating to most of us at least we aren't Texas and making 4 win seasons more of the norm than the exception. The season is still in its infancy though. Football is a funny game and with parity in the game what it is these days a little luck with injuries here and a funny bounce of the ball there we very well could get on that magic carpet ride. I, for one, will enjoy that ride no matter where it takes me. Probably because no matter how loud I holler "run the damn ball" or how angrily I post on message boards how clock management is a problem I am aware that I am not in control of what happens in any way. I also know that not getting to 9 wins is probably a big step in the direction of canning Riley (and probably Eichorst too) and getting coach Frost to come back home. So win or lose there is some reason for hope. But that's just my opinion. I could be wrong.

...and just like that...

Yeah it kinda was. I can't find the tweets of the dude who created the trophy (he tweeted pictures of himself making it) but it started on twitter with Goldy Gopher asking fauxPelini if he cared to make an online wager a couple of days before the game. The internet ran with it, finally the dude in Minnesota slapped together the trophy in his garage in time for him to give it to Goldy to take to Lincoln. He did it on his own but it was pretty immediately embraced by Minnesota, Nebraska and the online community at least. The trophy travelled for a few years but the NUAD definitely shut it down (it appears that Minnesota is not interested in maintaining the Chair as an official trophy either): http://247sports.com/Bolt/Nebraska-wants-the-5-Bits-of-Broken-Chair-Trophy-to-go-away-49203334 This document contains pretty definitive proof that NU (and UM, too) shut the trophy down, one line in particular to pay attention to is quoted below: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2SYfiSSgUO-UkhtVkZLSlNSYW8/view ">>>No idea on the whereabouts of the chair since it's not an official trophy game. I don't think either school is interested in promoting it if we can avoid that." As for Minnesota fans? Yeah, they still talk about it, here's a thread from GopherHole just within the last couple of weeks: http://www.forums.gopherhole.com/boards/showthread.php?77418-The-Jug-Pig-Bell-and-Axe&highlight=bits+of+broken+chair

So both of those guys were on three years during seasons the last season they coached. Chambers would only be at two if they don't do anything before next season. So that's one example of a coach (probably) on a shorter contract. And a couple who are the same. That leaves how many on four- or five- year contracts? So my statement that it's about the shortest deal in D-1 is correct. It's not looking like Chambers is going to get an extension...his seat is quite a bit hotter than Miles' I suspect. Anyway, I'm not about to go digging for info on the current coaching contract situation for all 347 D-1 coaches, but it would probably be a tad hyperbolic to say that Miles' contract is "about the shortest" in D-1. Shorter than average? Sure. My point was simply that one doesn't need to look very far to see examples of basketball coaches working on a 3 or even 2 year contract. All it really means is, barring getting to postseason play, preferably the NCAA Tourney, this will be Miles' last season at NU.

Not sure but I believe Pat Chambers is down to 2 years now on his contract. John Groce was down to two years when he was let go this spring. Not extending coaching contracts, especially for coaches who have had losing seasons isn't unheard of at all.

I think "profit" at least as we understand it in conventional terms, is a misnomer for the purposes of what USA Today is trying to report. Every institution reports their finances differently, and budgets things way differently from each other. "Profit", and really, "Revenue" for that matter should be taken with a HUGE grain of salt as these lists are concerned. One could - I suppose - get a feel for a schools' Athletic Department health and relative level of success in like the Director's Cup standing based on these rankings. But it would be a loose correlation at best I'd imagine. It might make more sense if they would break down AD budgets by revenues per varsity athlete. More so if they looked at expenses per varsity athlete. Those numbers might be more interesting. Or they would be to me at least.

Think a lot of that has to do with their donation drive they did over the last few years to renovate Kyle Field. Yep. A lot of those schools that appear near the top tend to be ones in the midst of huge capital improvement projects or fundraising drives. Oregon, who is one spot behind NU on the most recent list and who's AD budget is typically comparable to Nebraska's was #1 a couple years ago with $196 million in revenues. Oklahoma State (#37) reported an eye-popping $241 million in 2006 thanks to T Boone. Look for Kansas to pop into the top 10 or 15 in the next year or two as they ramp up their Stadium renovation project.

University of Nebraska regents would probably never approve UNL to get varsity hockey, as it could have such a negative impact on Nebraska-Omaha hockey and their overall athletic department. I'm not sure if there's a hard and fast policy by the NU Regents on whether they'd allow UNL to start a varsity Hockey program or not, but: -It has been rumored that there is a "gentleman's agreement" in place between the NUAD and Trev over at UNO that after the move into the B1G and the controversial sh#t-canning of the UNO football and wrestling programs, Nebraska would refrain from starting a varsity Hockey program so as not to compete with the Mavs (but with the change in regime in the interim at NU who knows if that bond is still as solid as it may have been between Trev and TO) -UNO's hockey program is a behemoth nationally now with Baxter Arena, a Frozen Four appearance and a HOF coach, I doubt that starting a varsity program at NU would have any measurable impact on them at this point. (The Lincoln Stars, however, would likely be the program to suffer most - similar to how UNO pushed the Lancers out of the way in Omaha.) But back to the point, the Regents tend to favor UNL over UNO in practically any matter anyway, my guess is they would not stand in the way here either. -Finally, I believe that Jim Delany and the NHL carry significant enough juice that if they really want something to happen in this area, they can make it happen...greasing the wheels that need to be greased i.e. NU Regents. Money talks, and when it comes to $$$ in the B1G, one needs to look no further than Chicago. If Delany and co want this to happen, I'm sure it will happen. IMO.

Plus, @TeddyOwens may still prove beneficial to the Huskers in his capacity at Carrolwood Day:

What you are all failing to recognize is that neither of the two guys who left to take coaching positions were actual assistant coaches at NU. Saying that two "top assistant coaches" left is not only factually wrong, it is an outright and blatant lie. Ali Farokhmanesh was working as "Director of Player Development" in the program (read: NOT an assistant coach - i.e. a non-recruiting position). It was a 100% made up position for him because he was previously a Graduate Assistant but you can only do that for 2 years. Getting an actual coaching job at Drake was a HUGE promotion for Ali. This position is likely going to be left unfilled because it was only created as a way to keep Ali on staff a little longer while he pursued other full-time assistant jobs. Teddy Owens was working as "Director of Basketball Operations" (also NOT a coaching position, also a non-recruiting position). Basically this position is glorified towel boy, but more appropriately, this position assists with making travel plans, assisting with scheduling, etc...and while he left to be a head coach at a High School, it should be noted that this is an elite private HS in Florida - one that presumably includes recruiting in some capacity. This is a good step towards coaching in college if that is his ambition. As far as *actual* assistant coaches on staff; Hunter, Lewis and Molinari - they all remain intact. It appears that Lewis, while rumored to be in the running for the Butler head coaching job (an absolute step up in terms of prestige for a B1G assistant coach, at any school in the B1G), is probably not in the running any more. But had he gotten the job there it would have been by far the biggest HC position that any of Miles' assistants who have moved on to take. Getting your assistants promoted to HC is a little like getting players drafted in the NBA. It is a very good thing for the program. Getting guys like Johnson, Harriman and Smith promotions that they did get is what allows us to get guys like Lewis and Hunter (both whom bring with them very solid recruiting connections) on staff. All of this hand-wringing about those guys moving on really seems like just another way to whine and complain about a subject that one knows little to nothing about.

Well, except that the first order of business of the Big Ten would be to move conference offices from NYC and Chicago to Dallas because that's a condition that UT would put on membership in the league. So the conference meetings would be held in a hangar at DFW. But otherwise, yes, you are correct there.

idk I think the hundreds of kids being given free educations and hoping to make the olympics or make a career out of their craft care about them. If the goal is to give out free education, who not simply dole out hundreds of scholarships to poor and first-generation college students? I would prefer that to creating some sports programs no one cares about so some kids playing sports no one cares about can attend school for free. If the goal is to help the athletic department and/or the university, it makes far more sense to plow the money back into the sports people care about and already generate revenue than to create and subsidize even more silly programs like bowling. "sports programs no one cares about" Seems a little hyperbolical, doesn't it?

Men's and Women's Hockey teams Men's and Women's Lacrosse Men's Soccer and Women's Field Hockey Nebraska is woefully behind their B1G conference mates in the number of Olympic sports they fund.