robsker

I should note that I think it is great that NU has scheduled Oregon. Like Cheesehead says... you have to beat the best to be the best... and the better the competition is... the more the improvement is likely to be. It creates an urgency on the team to improve. I really hope NU steadily improves and can compete when that game does come.

A challenge? Not for Oregon. Unless things change big time --- hugely --- between now and then, NU will not even register as a speed bump to Oregon. The Oregon train will roll over NU like a semi at 75 going over a pebble... they will hardly notice that there was any resistance at all. Those games will be massacres. Its posts like these that make me want to take a dive off a cliff. The games are THREE and FOUR YEARS AWAY! You must be the ultimate fortune teller to be able to say these games years from now will be massacres... Po... I did not post that to elicit a response as certain supposed mind readers posit. I said "unless things change big time" that game will be a massacre. And that qualified statement is absolutely true. NU will have to be improve dramatically --- make forward strides from season to season that exceeds any year-to-year improvement we have experienced of late... otherwise that game will be no game at all. Po... you post many insightful and well thought out views and that is appreciated... I would imagine you would have to agree that NU will need to improve dramatically for the game --- yes in 4 years --- in order for NU to compete. Agreed? I never said that NU would not or could not make such improvements --- I never intimated anything regarding probability of improvement one way or another --- I just said what is true... they will need to improve a great deal. If not... then that game will be very ugly.

This is impressive. That play was impressive... not just the catch either --- the burst of speed upon catching that ball was amazing.

I do not want to make this thread an anti-Pelini thing... but I must correct one of your points.. you put excellent GPA and graduation rate... not so. Under Pelini the graduation rates have plummeted. NU is 9th in the conference in graduation rate and have fallen precipitously with time. NU is nowhere near as good academically for football players as was the case when Bo arrived.

A challenge? Not for Oregon. Unless things change big time --- hugely --- between now and then, NU will not even register as a speed bump to Oregon. The Oregon train will roll over NU like a semi at 75 going over a pebble... they will hardly notice that there was any resistance at all. Those games will be massacres.

So true. What is bad too is that NU's record (owing to the weak teams NU plays) will be quite good... setting NU up come bowl time for a pretty good team... and, as you say... another morning in the ditch awaits... It would be better to play a stout schedule and improve week by week against that schedule than to play a bunch of veritable glorified high school teams, get a cushy record, and then jump up and play a real team come CCG and get smoked. If NU plays OSU... the Sker's get rolled by 5 touchdowns. And... given the schedule, it is quite conceivable that NU does go to the CCG.

NU will enter the rankings soon. Our schedule makes that certain. NU plays such a weak slate that 10 wins is a guarantee for any team with a pulse... and that many wins will have the team ranked at seasons end.

Bo should not berate Paps like that in a public manner. Bad managerial move. It conveys to the players that Bo thinks Pap is doing poorly and that undercuts Pap in the eyes of the players. The players confidence in Paps is now even more compromised. That is just poor management technique. Bo should bring Paps in, privately, on Monday (or some other time) and wail all he wants on the guy... but not in front of the players... never, ever undercut a coach in front of the players.

NU wants no part of either Stanford or Oregon... those would both be really, really ugly

Are you serious? No Did you watch the game today? I was surprised they still had him in during the 4th. Newby should have had those carries. Do any of you think Ameer might be too small for the NFL? He would not be too small if he had blazing speed to compensate --- but he does not. His size/speed combination will make going to the next level difficult. That said, again great college back and glad he is here.

I really like Ameer as a college back and truly appreciate him as a Husker --- but 2nd-4th round is awful, awful unlikely for Ameer. Getting drafted... maybe. But that high is wildly unlikely. The RB position is a tough one to compete in on draft day and while again Ameer is a fine, really fine college back... he lacks size and breakaway speed. And to go round 2-4 you can... essentially, be lacking in nothing. He has been great as a Husker though.

seems like forward progress to me. The defense was much, much better than at any other time this season. That is a step in the right direction... especially since that team had some offensive success this season against others. In particular, Bell, Enunwa, Abdullah, Armstrong, Mike Rose, SJB and DB Green all had good games. So did Gregory and Evans. Now... people might disagree here --- because he had a couple of bad plays --- but I still hold out hope for Imani Cross. He showed some vision and balance... but yes two bad plays. Still... he is young and I think will be really good. So... again... seems like some progress. next week we play a fish and can hopefully have that as a time to get people some low pressure minutes and develop further. This easy schedule is really nice. Time to develop.

RK3 is a game manager that knows the entire playbook. TA is still learning the full playbook so there is only so much he can do right now. But the difference is that TA has the "it" factor as a leader that TMart and RK3 don't have. He isn't as explosive running the ball as TMart is, but is pretty much better at everything else. He can give you more big plays than RK3, so that is why he is starting. Armstrong is no where near as deadly of a runner as a 100% Martinez is. Martinez is the fastest QB I have ever seen at Nebraska, and is one of the primary leaders of this team, so I still do think he'll be a loss for us if he continues to be out this year. That being said, I agree with you that Armstrong is a more natural passer and has the ability to run a more balanced offense for us. It is a very good thing to get TA field experience though. But we do not know how good a runner Armstrong is at this level yet. Not enough data. And TMart has not been 100% for well over two years. He was MUCH better a runner as a freshman than at any time since... injury related to be sure... but still...

Whoa The above about Bo is simply not the case. He was at least just as qualified as Tom Osborne. I like Bo But TO was qualified in that he retained almost the entire coaching staff He also had a PHD in Psych He also deeply understood the Nebraska culture He also was coaching on the skirttails of 2 National Championships and consistent success So while TO may not have been qualified to be HC at Notre Dame when he got the job in 1973, he was qualified to head coach at NU based on those specific set of circumstances It should be noted that being a head coach when Osborne started did not entail a huge component of public relations/dealing with media/internet/blogging etc. Of course there was some... but not like now. When Osborne started a HC could be largely a coach and had to deal with the PR some... but way, way less than is the case now. Now a HC must run the program and be a public relations man with solid ESPN soundbites and demeanor and conduct that cannot be impugned --- because before, coaches could be complete reprobates and the media never had the microscope on them (comparatively speaking) and they would not get exposed. Now that is no longer true. The point is... a HC now must be a polished communicator, have good PR and people skills... and must also be able to coach. It is much, much more difficult to be a HC now than it was when Osborne started... a much broader and inclusive set of skills are expected. Bo may have had the coaching experience when he started (not HC but at least some coaching experience) --- at least by some peoples standards... but his people skills, his maturity, his ability to interview, advocate for and represent the University --- these things he was woefully under-prepared for. The premise that Bo was not qualified when hired seems to me to be accurate. He had no HC experience at all. He had poor people skills. I feel for him. It is not easy to be in the spotlight like he has been when you do not have the experience (or the developed skills) to succeed. He should have never been hired. We have seen "on the job training" and many, many foolish rookie mistakes made by Bo on the NU watch. Next time, hire someone who had their "on the job training" elsewhere, made all those mistakes elsewhere and learned from them... and is ready to deal with the new position... polished and prepared.

What are anyone's thoughts on Ken Wisenhunt? He is experienced and is now the OC for the Chargers who are doing well on O. he is quite legit. Of course, he might have no interest in college. But if he does... There are lots of guys like that (or, at least, a handful) of people who one might contact. there is always hope. Pound the streets hard and NU can get someone good. Scott Frost needs 5-6 years of success as a Head Coach elsewhere before he should at all be considered. go with proven experience (not proven incompetence like Callahan had when NU hired him --- experience is not enough --- it must be experience w/ success)

Do not know much about him... except he had the Bears for a time. What are your thoughts?

Why would you think NU would be so unattractive to potential coaches? NU has great history. great facilities. Is in a fine conference. has some athletes on board that are pretty good. Has a good academic history for athletes. We have a record sellout streak, great support. And NU has $ to offer. There are, of course, better programs and higher level coaching positions... but NU is still an attractive option. I do not buy the argument of "NU's fan and administration's expectations are too high" as an argument against a coach coming here." Expectations are high in many places and media scrutiny abounds in many places. NU is not special in that way. NU has appeal... not like it used to... but it still has appeal. They should not have to settle for hiring a newbie coach with no experience. It would be the same song and dance after Solich was fired. No coach wants to go to a program where even if you win 10 games that's never going to be good enough. Nah. If you want to coach a nationally relevant team that competes for Championships --- as many do --- you know that 9 wins a season is not enough --- not when there are 4 losses and the wins are not there against ranked teams. No coach would look at the record NU has put up these last half-dozen years against ranked --- and even un-ranked conference foes and not see plenty of room for improvement. Expecting more than 9-4 teams year and and year out against NU's schedule is not an expectation that a good coach would find intimidating at all.

Why would you think NU would be so unattractive to potential coaches? NU has great history. great facilities. Is in a fine conference. has some athletes on board that are pretty good. Has a good academic history for athletes. We have a record sellout streak, great support. And NU has $ to offer. There are, of course, better programs and higher level coaching positions... but NU is still an attractive option. I do not buy the argument of "NU's fan and administration's expectations are too high" as an argument against a coach coming here." Expectations are high in many places and media scrutiny abounds in many places. NU is not special in that way. NU has appeal... not like it used to... but it still has appeal. They should not have to settle for hiring a newbie coach with no experience.

I am also in Idaho. As it were, I would not think that Peterson would make the move to NU. Perhaps the $ would entice him. But he has a good gig in Boise and I am not sure why he would move to NU except for money. Of course, many people do things for money. Boise is a great place to live (almost always in the top 5 in the nation rankings) and his team has had success. And the pressure is less. So... it would take a great deal to get him to move. If he were interested in NU... NU should take a look. Peterson's teams are very well coached. Again just a feeling I have. I don't think a lot of places out there would really be a great fit for Peterson, but I think Nebraska would be. So where do you live in Idaho? Pocatello. Home of the mighty Idaho State Bengals. Cool, live in a little town called Parma just west of Boise. I would imagine I get a little more Bronco stuff than you do then. I guess I just feel that if he were to make a move it would be within the next couple of years or he won't go at all. I would imagine you do get more BSU than I... that said, BSU is very popular here... and Pete is very, very respected. If he would be interested in NU (and NU in him) --- I would be pleased. Perhaps there would be a better option for NU... but if so, it would be quite the option as Pete is a very, very good coach.

One thing though is certain... Maryland is the only sports team with worse uniforms than the Oregon Ducks. So.. they do bring epically bad uni's to the conference.

I am also in Idaho. As it were, I would not think that Peterson would make the move to NU. Perhaps the $ would entice him. But he has a good gig in Boise and I am not sure why he would move to NU except for money. Of course, many people do things for money. Boise is a great place to live (almost always in the top 5 in the nation rankings) and his team has had success. And the pressure is less. So... it would take a great deal to get him to move. If he were interested in NU... NU should take a look. Peterson's teams are very well coached. Again just a feeling I have. I don't think a lot of places out there would really be a great fit for Peterson, but I think Nebraska would be. So where do you live in Idaho? Pocatello. Home of the mighty Idaho State Bengals.

both Rutgers and Maryland would beat 90% of the schools in this conference right now. And I hate saying that but it is what it is. You might be right. Their history, however, is not so impressive. And their likelihood of national prominence is low. But again... that is now. perhaps things will change. Perhaps they will bring a great deal.

how have they not? we're better than most of the conference. now if the conference hadn't gone into the crapper the last couple of years maybe this wouldn't be the case, but without us the B1G is looking even worse right now. What I was thinking was that the B1G envisioned NU to be alongside OSU as a national contender. And NU is not. They wanted... I would guess... NU to be a power that has national significance to elevate the top of the B1G. And... they have not delivered that. NU has been upper middle of the conference. #3 or #4 or so --- even #5 in the conference. The B1G wanted a consistent #10 in the nation (or better) out of NU. You are correct that NU has added something. but they (B1G) wanted a major program and NU has not been that. It may... some day get there again. But now... and for the foreseeable future (assuming no changes) the notion of NU being nationally competitive is rather unlikely.

How do they do that in soccer? What is it that you envision with what you say. I have no notion of what they do with soccer.

the more interesting question is whether the B1G is glad NU is on board. NU was to have elevated the level of competition in B1G football and increase overall interest in the conference. It would seem that, thus far, NU has not delivered. But it is still early. Frankly, I do not know what Rutgers or Maryland adds except geographic area for influence and recruiting --- which may be it right there. hard to say... but thus far, the moves that the B1G made and have in the pipeline have been not so great for the conference. The B1G is still not very good as a football conference... and, I suppose it remains to be seen... but it does not look to be getting much better in the immediate future. Still early though. Perhaps OSU can do something this year.