Ohio Pete

Don't forget that game in December against Texas.

For some reason Oklahoma has not posted their 2008 and 2009 schedule on their web site yet other than a 2009 game at Miami. 2007 features home games against North Texas, Miami, Utah State, and an "away" game at Tulsa.

Anyway, for comparison, here are the non-conference games for a few other teams:

Ohio State

2008:

Youngstown State

Ohio

@Southern Cal

Troy Univ.

2009:

Army

Southern Cal

Toledo (in Cleveland)

New Mexico State (end of October)

Georgia

2008:

Georgia Southern

TBA

@Arizona State

Georgia Tech (end of November)

2009:

@Oklahoma State

TBA

Arizona State

Georgia Tech (end of November)

Kansas State

2008:

Louisiana-Lafayette

Fresno State

@Louisville

North Texas

2009:

Massachusetts

TBA

@UCLA

TBA

Texas

2008:

TBA

@UTEP

Arkansas

Rice

2009:

TBA

@Arkansas

Central Florida

UTEP

Wake me when camp starts.

i can't find it on omaha.com either. not even in their archives. i could fedex you a copy...DaveH's idea is still better though

Weird Herald make you pay for Shatel (and other stuff) as part of their "online extra". Apparently designed to make me read the LJS. Idiots.

any links?

Yes.

http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_page=1200&u_sid=2375111

Published Monday | April 30, 2007

Zac Taylor agrees to free-agent deal with Tampa Bay

BY RICH KAIPUST

WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

LINCOLN - Already having played for Bill Callahan, former Nebraska quarterback Zac Taylor's next opportunity will come with Callahan's old boss.

Taylor told Tampa Bay head coach Jon Gruden on Sunday night that he would sign a free-agent contract with the Buccaneers. Taylor was still available after the seven-round National Football League draft.

"I feel like I can go in there and not have to start all over learning an offense," Taylor said.

Callahan was offensive coordinator in Oakland when Gruden was the Raiders' head coach. The Husker head coach also was offensive line coach in Philadelphia when Gruden was the Eagles' offensive coordinator.

Tampa Bay, New England and Carolina all negotiated with Taylor as the draft concluded, although the Patriots and Panthers were talking to other potential free-agent signees at quarterback. In addition to speaking with those teams and his agent, Taylor got a call from Callahan.

"He just wanted to see where I was at with things," Taylor said. "He knew what I was going through. I asked him about all three teams looking at me and he said good things about all of them, but he did say I would be a good fit for Coach Gruden's system."

Taylor said former NU tight end Matt Herian also is going to Tampa Bay, and the two report to a Bucs rookie camp Thursday. Among other former Huskers agreeing to free-agent contracts Sunday night, nose tackle Ola Dagunduro chose Dallas and defensive tackle Barry Cryer hooked up with San Diego.

Taylor was prepared for the possibility of going undrafted despite shattering nearly every NU single-season and career passing record as a two-year starter. At Tampa Bay, he'll see a depth chart that includes Chris Simms, Jeff Garcia, Bruce Gradkowski and Luke McCown, with Tim Rattay listed as an unrestricted free agent.

"All have started and played in the NFL, so that's really tough," Taylor said. "But I'm going to have to compete anywhere I go. There are no guarantees. Coach Gruden said, 'If you want a shot, I'll give it to you.'"

The two previously met when Gruden spent time at a Husker spring practice in 2006 when he was speaking at an NU coaches clinic.

I want some SEC teams on the schedule....!

I wanna play Florida!

 

 

BCS bowl game!

too many cream puffs, NMS, wow, scarey!

 

 

Yeah, and everyone jumped on K-State for Synders opponents?

But their "tough" game was Marshall.

And there is a definite media bias towards that conference for whatever reason.

I think one of the big factors behind the bias is television coverage. The Big Ten and the SEC completely outworked the Big 12 in getting television contracts. This is also often given as reason for the Pac 10 not getting respect, late games on crappy channels.

Meanwhile, even fewer games may be shown:

League seeking to fill TV void

With regional coverage, I may only be able to see one or two Nebraska games here. I guess I can look forward to more exciting match ups like Illinois v. Indiana: An intriguing matchup between a recruiter who can't coach and a coach who couldn't get anyone to come to his school even if he could recruit.

From my time spent in MN, Big 11 country, there is a lot of Big 11 uppity-ness.

I'd say MN is in a whole other class of delusion given their recent personnel decisions.

Even with the drought of the past 5 years, from 1993-2006 (14 drafts), only 4 teams produced more than our 7 drafted RBs: Ohio State(10), Miami (8), Tenn. (8), Georgia (8). If we go back to 1982 (25 drafts), we are tied with Michigan, Georgia, Ohio State with 15 behind only Miami, Tenn, and PSU and their 16.

So who has been best in our absence, 2002-2006 (5 drafts):

4 Miami

4 Virginia Tech

3 Georgia

3 Virginia

3 Louisiana State

3 Southern California

3 Kansas State

2 Tennessee

2 Penn State

2 Ohio State

2 Auburn

2 UCLA

2 Wisconsin

2 Michigan State

2 Oregon

2 California

2 Colorado

2 Louisville

2 Oklahoma State

2 Stanford

2 Minnesota

Now as far as Nebraska being known for QUALITY RBS in the NFL, someone will have to point me to the data if they'd like a similar break down. (What would you use? HOFers? 10-year vets? Kind of unfair at a poistion which averages 5 years.)

Calvin Jones made it to the pros, but his lack of cutting ability due to knee problems kept him from being great.

Drug problems from what I heard, but perhaps those came later.

It is a bit curious that a running attack did not produce more DRAFTED RBs.

On the other hand the trickle for the 80s and 90s was completely shut off after 2001. Here come the numbers (courtesy of the NFL):

(Note: drafts prior to 1993 had more than 7 rounds)

1982 1

1983 1

1984 0

1985 1

1986 1

1987 0

1988 1

1989 0

1990 2

1991 0

1992 1

1993 2

1994 1

1995 0

1996 1

1997 0

1998 1

1999 0

2000 0

2001 2

2002-2006 0

However, there has been a slight decline overall in the numbers of running backs from any school taken from the mid-90s to the 2000s. For instance from 1993-1998, 130 RBs were taken and from 2000-2004, only 98 were taken.

Well Ohio State drew 75,301 for some damn reason (I was at Lowe's with everyone else in town), and they didn't even open the ugly metal stands in the South end zone:

Commentary

Numbers don't lie: 75,301 say spring game really matters

Sunday, April 22, 2007 4:08 AM

By bob hunter

I don't know how you determine which city deserves to be called the college football capital of the world.

Maybe there's an American Idol-type television show that lists phone numbers to call in your vote, a show on which a Simon Cowell-wannabe is berating Bloomington, Ind., and Starkville, Miss., but probably not.

So we're left with the usual means to settle what has been an ongoing dispute for years, pointing out the flaws of other cities who claim the title (Does anybody actually live in Lincoln, Neb.?), citing arcane statistics (Columbus sells twice as many No. 1 foam fingers as does South Bend, Ind.) and finally, just trying to drown out the other guys.

But now there's also this: 75,301.

That's the number of people who were willing to pay what seems an exorbitantly high price -- $5 plus the incalculable cost of a beautiful spring Saturday afternoon -- to watch an offseason football scrimmage yesterday in Ohio Stadium.

"It just reminds me of why I came here," junior flanker Brian Robiskie said. "I was driving over this morning through campus and I just kind of soaked it in. There were some people tailgating and it's nine o'clock in the morning. They were getting ready for the spring game."

That kind of thing isn't done in a lot of places where college football is considered very, very important. Southern California drew 15,000 to its spring game this year. Tennessee had a crowd of 17,409. LSU drew 14,375. West Virginia, which had the misfortune of having its game in a snowstorm, counted 3,000.

The only place that outdrew Ohio State this spring was Alabama, which put 92,138 in the stands yesterday to finally get a look at Nick Saban, the coach the Crimson Tide is paying $4 million a year to save the program. And there's another side to that story that also bears repeating: Admission was free.

Personally, I have never understood this. The Scarlet-Gray scrimmage doesn't seem like even a distant cousin to one of those Ohio State-Michigan games that are about as good as it gets in any sport. To compare real college football to this is like comparing the NCAA men's basketball finals to a pickup game in your driveway.

But to have more than 75,000 people pay $5 to see it says a lot about how much people care about college football around here, and yes, maybe just a little about their sanity.

Last year, the spring game drew 64,000, which was the most ever. But last year, the Buckeyes returned Troy Smith and Ted Ginn Jr., were coming off a win over Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl and were already being billed as the likely preseason No. 1.

Logically, the crowd this year should have been smaller. A 41-14 loss to Florida in the national championship game left Ohio State fans with a football hangover that they were still feeling when the Buckeyes lost to the Gators again three weeks ago in the men's basketball final.

Yet the fans still streamed through the stadium gates, apparently eager to see for themselves which of the three green quarterbacks -- Todd Boeckman, Rob Schoenhoft and Antonio Henton -- they think should replace Smith and why.

But is a chance to tell your pal at the office water cooler or the gang on the Internet message boards who you think should start really worth saying goodbye to a beautiful spring Saturday? Probably only in places in the running to be called college football's capital.

Lincoln, Neb., is one and it showed why again, drawing what had been the biggest spring crowd this year before yesterday, 54,288. But that figure is down from past years, maybe because Lincoln hotels require a two-night minimum on spring game weekend.

Conversely, Columbus' "capital" stock is up. In the past dozen years or so, Ohio State football has been riding a tsunami of momentum and interest seems to be increasing proportionately.

Sure, the Buckeyes got drubbed by the Gators for the national title, but there's always this:

Florida's spring game drew only 47,000.

skers is right...my friends played basketball and football against them and they said he can be much better... he has the talent... but hes a lazy piece of SH% and bitches and complains

So was I at that age. No wait that was college.

Anyway, maybe the coach at Millard South can whip him into shape help him maximize his talent.

Picking up a ton of offers, but none from Ohio State (speculation is he needs to show something in camp given all the TE talent this year and next) and we are not on his list of interests.

Also might be a DE prospect.

Based on what I've read, sounds like a good kid, but I think PSU is leading. Ohio State would be a lock, but they don't have room for anymore RBs unless something drastic happens. Maybe our new Ohio connections will start paying off.

I believe he's the fourth player from Trotwood to get an offer from NU this class to go with their QB, RB and TE.

Are we in on Domonick Britt? I think that's their QB. I'll check to see where things are with the other guys. One concern besides Ohio State is Cincinnati though their coach leaving probably helps.

this is going to make myspacing recurits even more important

Hi <insert recruit name>,

Steve Spurrier would like to be added to your MySpace friends list.

By accepting Steve Spurrier as your friend, you will be able to send Steve Spurrier personal messages, view Steve Spurrier's photos and blog, and interact with each other's friends and network!

Only in Nebraska can people complain about only having 55 thousand people to watch a practice.

 

Yes....and these are the same people who will/do:

1) Complain when Nebraska is not the first team mentioned in a Saturday matchup.

2) Complain when Nebraska is not the lead team on Sportscenter.

3) Complain that Nebraska does not get a 'fair shake' from commentators.

4) Complain that Nebraska is getting 'shafted' when they aren't in the top 10 pre-season.

5) Complain when at least 2 Huskers are not on the Heisman watch-list.

But that's all true!

I mean how could a team that finished outside the top 25 last year, lost its starting qb, top RB and entire starting defensive line not be ranked in the preseason top ten? Clearly a conspiracy by the Eastern media.

I said it is a fun idea. Who said that this cant be a fun experience. I understand the point of the game, and giving the lesser players a chance to shine. But lets be honest. That "game" was brutal. There were very little chances to shine. It seems to me, that if you even out the teams a little (not 1s versus 2s but relatively even) you would have more competition. Competition can only help the program. I saw quite a few "white" players hustling at the end of the game, but i also saw some mailing it in. I dont care who you are, that was demeaning. IMO if we even out the teams it would raise the level of things. I think that this might just make the players better.

 

As far as having honorary coaches? Why not...if they are guided by real coaches then whats the harm? If they have total control of the offense, well thats just plain stupid. But a little bit of play calling...why not. It might improve relations from the team (what about make a wish kids) and be a little bit of a draw. Could it really be that bad?

Notre Dame also does the honorary captains. Could add some fun and if the names are big, might help recruiting. Of course letting them call plays (beyond saying "throw the ball to Purify here") seems going a little too far.

I read a report on ESPN today that said there is division in the locker-room.

 

It seems that chuckd has been lashing out at forrealbigredfan and other team mates over posting issues like positivity, Callihan criticism, Keller's popularity and the special teams of the posting board; grammar.

 

Although there is still time before the beginning of the season, if this rift isn't fixed the Huskes might be in trouble this year.

 

You got a link for this report? I've been to ESPN about 30 times today and haven't seen anything of the sort.

I missed that one too...maybe try, www.imakestuffup.com

I'm guessing this was a joke, making light of the importance of a couple of board members' name calling.

If only there was some way of showing facial expressions or emotions in a posting.

Oh Man...You're no fun!!!

Obviously, you haven't seen me in a Speedo...

Just say no

Friday, April 20 - Hokie Hope: Orange and Maroon Effect

Virginia Tech family members across the country have united to declare Friday, April 20, an "Orange and Maroon Effect" day to honor those killed in the tragic events on campus Monday and to show support for VT students, faculty, administrators, staff, alumni and friends. Everyone across the country is invited to be part of the Virginia Tech family this Friday and wear orange and maroon to support the families of those who were lost, the school and the community.

Is there a link anywhere to this. I want to see who else is all on there. I image Leaf and Ettman are up there pretty high.

Page one in fact:

Draft Busts

i can see phillips being a bust but is it fair that trev is put in there also...wasnt he hurt while playing?

Trev also later freely admitted he was a bust and shouldn't have been drafted at that spot. However the only reason he makes this list is the argument between Kiper and the Colts guy. There have been plenty of other early picks that also disappointed.

Been with the program longer than most of these players. I appreciate their efforts, but getting your ass handed to you by Miami and Florida State, year after year doesn't exactly leave fond memories. If you all were really busting your ass every day, would you have been embarrassed like that? Or were you busy planning future failures at the next level?

Ohio State Spring Game is crap. Just heard Spielman on the radio say that by his senior year he was only taking a couple of snaps during the Spring game since he wasn't playing for a position. Basically just a pre-season game. Imagine driving 7 hours for that.