ladyhawke

I agree but Cody did well! The offense really stepped up their game today. FABULOUS WIN!!! Onward to Texas!!

-ladyhawke~

Rex. 2 TD passes and a TD run. Great game and a perfect momentum-bringer for the rest of the team, IMO.

 

Glad to see Green have a game finally...will give him a mention.

After I read his column this morning I thought-Man! I thought he was on OUR side? Blah!

My link

 

College Station, Texas — Bo Pelini lost his mind. The Huskers lost their composure. Nebraska lost a game, 9-6, to Texas A&M.

 

Can they still hold on to this season?

 

That's the issue this morning and up until Friday, when the revived Colorado Buffaloes rumble into Lincoln for what shapes up as the biggest game in Bo Pelini's three years at NU.

 

After a chaotic night, in which Pelini and his team were in meltdown mode, the Huskers' fate was still crystal clear.

 

Beat the Buffs and Nebraska takes the Big 12 North and has a shot to achieve this season's ultimate mission: win the Big 12 championship.

 

Lose? The season is a major dud and Pelini takes heat for losing his grip on the situation.

 

Either way, Pelini will have a hard time living down Saturday night.

 

He screamed. He raged. Lip-readers in the television audience were covering their children's eyes.

 

Pelini screamed at tight end Ben Cotton. He yelled at quarterback Taylor Martinez in a surprising scene. He even spewed some fire at reliable kicker Alex Henery.

 

Then there were the officials. Pelini saved his best fury for the zebras. There were a school-record 16 yellow flags against NU for 145 yards, only two against the Aggies. Pelini let them hear about it in no uncertain terms.

 

At one point, with his team backed up deep in its own territory in a 6-6 game with field position paramount, he got an unsportsmanlike flag. That's like a hoops coach getting a technical foul late in a tie game.

 

Then, after the game's final play, Pelini immediately chased after referee Greg Burks to get a few more choice words in.

 

Pelini has worked hard on curbing his image as the hothead, but it came back in living color Saturday night, overshadowing a valiant night from his defense and a gutsy performance by Martinez on one ankle in the most hostile environment you could imagine.

 

Did he have reason to chew on some zebra? You bet.

 

Look, the Big 12 officials have had a bad year. They've been uneven, inconsistent, just awful at times. It's gone both ways, though conspiracy theorists would beg to differ.

 

Those theorists seemed to get ammunition last week from an espn.com report that said NU ranked first in fewest penalty yards by opponents.

 

I'm guessing last night's ratio probably added to the margin.

 

while maybe the Huskers just forgot how to play football, the easy theory is to say there's some striped revenge going on. There was some weird science out there, stuff that officials never have to answer to. Courtney Osborne's personal foul after hitting Ryan Tannehill in the chest? Top of the list.

 

Honestly, I still have my doubts that this is some huge Big 12 conspiracy. I don't think Big 12 officials are good enough to collectively single out a game plan and execute it.

 

The truth is, officials are human. They make mistakes — like coaches and players. And Nebraska's move to the Big Ten almost led to the Big 12's destruction. A lot of officials could have been out of jobs.

 

Would they hold a grudge? I don't know. We can't talk to the officials. We're all left guessing and hoping/assuming there's integrity there.

 

Here's this, though: how would the Huskers losing to Texas A&M help the Big 12? NU entered the game with an outside shot at the BCS title game and giving the league a second BCS bowl team. And if there's a conspiracy to keep Nebraska out of the Big 12 title game, it couldn't have ended last night. NU still has a shot.

 

But that's up to the Huskers, not the officials.

 

What I do know is that Nebraska absolutely has to play above this. And Pelini has to coach above it. They had a hard time with that in the crazy zoo that was Kyle Field.

 

You knew it was going to be a tough night. NU's old friend, Texas A&M Athletic Director Bill Byrne, set the table by calling for Aggie students and fans to show up in record numbers. They did — setting an A&M record with a crowd of 90,079. With record noise. There will be 90,079 hoarse throats today.

 

There were a handful of false starts by NU linemen. That's too many, but the place was insane. It happens.

 

But the two penalties for 30 yards — on one play — by Cotton? Can't happen. Not here. Not against this team. Not with the season on the line.

 

Two personal fouls against Eric Martin? The kid plays full-tilt. But he's also been suspended already this year. Think they might be watching, Eric? Got to dial it back. Fair? Doesn't matter. You can't even put yourself in that situation.

 

Same for Courtney Osborne. Pelini teaches his players to play aggressively and not hold back. But that kind of 50-50 play isn't going NU's way this season. You can't expect it. If you're Osborne, you just can't hit the guy in the chest after he's released the ball. Bad call, yes. But you can't take that chance.Again, the penalties and the Pelini imagery will be the story from here. It's too bad. The Blackshirts had one of their finest moments, and they should be applauded. Do they have another one left in them?

 

They'd better. NU's offense is going backwards fast. Martinez still doesn't look right. He reinjured his high ankle sprain early when center Mike Caputo stepped on it while Caputo was being driven back by a defender.

 

Martinez came back in the second half. But he's not pushing off on the right foot with confidence when he's throwing, and you wonder if that had something to do with an interception that took away at least a Henery field goal.

 

This would be the perfect time to grind out a power running game, but the Huskers seemed to have lost that mojo, too.

 

They'd better find it. And fast. Nebraska had better take a deep breath, get its composure and find a way to stop a confident bunch of Buffs who have given NU fits in Lincoln since 1996.

 

At this point, the best revenge for NU would be to get to Arlington, Texas, and force Big 12 Commissioner Dan Beebe to hand Tom Osborne and Pelini the trophy.

 

First, they have to get there.

Sorry, my bad-(getting over a bad cold-codine makes me a little foggy brained) I totally agree with you! I'm still mad about last nights' game too! We were so hosed!!! I don't like it that Missouri is ahead of us but it makes sense to me and this is why: The AP poll ranking is by sportswriters and sportscasters-right? That means that every Texas loving sportswriter and sportscaster is going to vote against Nebraska. So it's logical to me that Missouri moved ahead of us based on the hate that Texas feels for NU. I'm thinking they voted for Missouri and Oklahoma just because the wanted Nebraska to go as low as possible on the polls. The Coaches Poll is voted on by the Division 1 coaches. They have us ahead of Missouri. I'll just be glad when we're out of this conference. Texas is like a cancer. They bully their way into a conference, ruin it then move on. It will be interesting to see how long the big 12 survives. I predict in 5 years it will be dissolved.

Mizzou didn't play Texas.

Also, when Mizzou played A&M it was actually 11 on 11.

Duh, maybe because we beat them soundly and would have beaten them even more handily had our QB not been injured. And they also have 2 losses..

There's no doubt that we beat them soundly BUT they beat A & M. They also beat Texas. We did not. But quit your whining-we were ahead of Missouri in the Coaches Poll. To me that's a better indicator of our true performance. I'm sure the coaches watched our game and saw how we were hosed by the refs.

I expected they would move ahead of us as they had beaten A & M. BUT! We are still ahead of A & M. It's not a bad place to be. Hopefully, it will motivate our boys to play their best come Friday.

Mizzou is ahead of us????

I would like to see Rex Burkhead given a shot a qb. When they play the Rexcat I've just been waiting for him to throw a pass. Could be cool-he could BE another Joey Ganz.

I believe T-Mart to be a prima donna who will not last here at NU. In fact it would not surprize we to see him leave after the season. Green will never have a significant role and the next possible QB is coming from TX. We are out of luck for QB's right now we need a guy like Ganz not a pretty boy!

I think it might be different in the Big 10. I think that Bo, coming from Ohio, played for Ohio State, played in the Big 10 will make a difference.

As for other coaches not going 'bezerk' during the game: Did anyone see Iowa State's coach during last night's game? He was every bit as livid at the officiating of their game than Bo was at ours. When you're getting hosed for something you didn't do, you will get a little 'hot under the collar' to say the least. And about him yelling at Martinez: He was trying to get him fired up. Just because you're a 'star quarterback' doesn't mean you can sit and sulk after you get hurt. You need to be in there motivating your guys to play harder. Pelini saw that Martinez wasn't doing that so gave him an earful. I also think that because it's so noisy sometimes (and not just at last night's game) that Bo exaggerates his speech so he can be heard. He had every right to be angry. Anyone watching that game who has any football sense at all saw what happened-even people from A & M commented that they knew the refs gave them that game.

A & M knows it won this game by their '12th Man'=He was wearing stripes.

ladyhawke~

Please don't ban me for life for what I am about to say but....

 

I am starting to wonder if our lot with big 10 officials will be any different than these Big 12 officials. I am in the camp that I don't think officials are getting together before the game putting together a plan of how to screw nebraska. I do think the officials for the most part do not like Bo. My guess is they come into the game with their guard up because they know its going to be 60 minutes of f bombs, screaming and berzerkness. If we are at our jobs doing the best we can, and somoeone is in our ear all the time dropping f bombs at us, going on woody hayes style exoplosions, its going to effect you. you are going to get tired of it. you are going to react.

 

long term, I wonder if Bo's bedside manor will prove to be a liability for this program.

I am growing more uncomfortable with the multitude of berzerkness on the sideline. Whatever Martinez did could not have been worth the asschewing he got on national TV last night. there were so many berzerk confronatations with the officials..they are human and will only be told to F off so many times before they are going to start throwing flags. At one point I was wondering how Bo is coaching when he is spending so much time jawing at the officials. Bos average outburst, which there seems to be one every play or 2, most coaches only get to if they get a bad call on the last play of the game and lose...A bench foul last night...really? Doesn't that only happen in basketball?

 

having been around some of these officials, I think the officials would tell you that they know a lot of calls get missed. the game moves very fast, its hard to see it all. they cant go back and see junk getting grabbed on a replay when they are focusing on where the ball is in the pile. that stuff happens everywhere!They dont watch ESPN, read the sports page or come on these boards so they can be as impartial as possible. a lot of them are very successful personally and don't have the time for it. they call the game the best they can. BUT, they are human too and I know if I was an offical out there ...this amount of abuse from Bo would get old quick. I would be on the defensive the second I walked into the stadium.

 

I hope Bo's career does not end like Woody Hayes' did.

 

OK, come after me, but I have said whats on my mind.

I was just reading the comments on the College Station's newspaper website. A & M knows they didn't really win this game. Here are a couple of samples:

"We definitely had the refs on our side tonight. If we can book these refs every game we might win more. A wins a win."

"Most of the comments already tell the story. Nebraska feels the big 12 officials were not going to allow them to win this game, and A&M feels knows they were on the receiving end. I am not a fan of either of these teams, but wow, this is without a doubt a homer job by the big 12 officials. I've heard Nebraska fans early in the year say they weren't going to get many breaks this year in conference games because of their decision to leave the conference. I can't help to think that Nebraska only feels better tonight, about leaving a corrupt conference as the big 12. Those schools who are left in the big 12 may think they stuck it to a team tonight who dissed them by leaving the conference. As an outsider looking in, you might as well call it the Texas 10 conference. UT and A&M control the conference, anybody who thinks otherwise is part of the corruption."

Sad game...I just hope we can get our crap together by Friday night against Colorado. I also wonder how we'll play against Oklahoma (I'm hoping we'll play them and NOT Oklahoma State)

-ladyhawke!

I hope there is some way that both MO and KU can come to the Big 10. My sister-in-law, who was born/raised in Nebraska but lives in MO and is now a die hard Tiger fan, totally bit my head off when I sent her the 'Farmaggedon' piece from this board! She totally blames Nebraska! So for my family's sake I hope they get to come along. Blah!

We didn't start the fire!!

-ladyhawke~

they must be pretty upset, and shocked. they kind of got the ball rolling with this who realignment thing by stating their interest and intent. and now they may have nowhere to go.

Now we know why so many people 'hate' Nebraska and blame them for the break up of the Big 12! The media is fueling this. That interviewer was a total jerk!

Suh was class personified! He did NOT take the bait that crusty 'fisherman' was casting! Thanks Suh for representing the Big Red! We'll be following you with the Tigers this fall!

http://espn.go.com/espnradio/player?rd=1#/podcenter/?id=5277780&callsign=ESPNRADIO&autoplay=1

Hey 'Duffman'

This is brilliant! and hilarious! I hope it comes to fruition. The Omaha World Herald even referred to 'Farmageddon'. Did you create this? So funny! I love it paired with the picture of the farmer leaning on his rake/hoe and an nuclear bomb exploding in the backgroun. What a great rivalry this will be! Much better than the Colorado faux rivalry.

As to all the folks who think that Nebraska is the reason the Big 12 broke up? Sorry-we didn't start the fire.

-ladyhawke~

Welcome to the B10. I speak for the majority of Iowa fans when I say, this is going to be one helluva ride. A few of us at Hawkeyenation.com have decided there should be an annual football gamebetween Iowa and Nebraska over Thanksgiving weekend (we think it will be more fun and popular than Nebraska Colorado was). The game shall be known as "Farmageddon". There shall be a trophy constructed and the winner each year will get posession. In addition we shall have a feast in the winners honor. The feast will have the finest beers, meats, and cheeses from the land. Let us all celebrate the new great rivalry in college football.

Yeah I heard the same tripe on ESPNU last night. Those people don't know jack. I'm glad Texas is suffering. If they would've given in to the concessions that Osborne asked for in the first place when we allowed them to come to the Big 8 then none of this would've happened. 10/16 can't come soon enough for me!

If you guys want a look at real Texas arrogance, check out this article:

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/dallas/ncb/columns/story?columnist=reeves_jim&id=5263837

 

Please check this out. Just the title made me laugh. I didn't even finish reading it. Kind of made me sick to my stomach. I am so sick of Texas. After last year and everything that happened, I cannot wait for 10/16 to roll around. :koolaid2:

This was an interesting piece not from a reporter but from someone who went through the break up of the SWC. It seems that there was alot more going on than just sanctions!

NolanForAD:

The SWC had a rule that forbid any referee that lived in the State of Arkansas from working a game involving the University of Arkansas. Understandable, except there was no rule forbidding a ref calling a game involving his alma mater. As a result, Arkansas played every conference game against a team from Texas with refs from Texas, often with refs that graduated from the school Arkansas was playing against. In football, we had a winning record against every school but UT and in basketball we absolutely dominated. They didn't like it and they cheated against us. We suffered numerous "questionable" calls that cost us huge games, the most notorious of which was the one that nullified a TD against UT in 69. It was a phantom call made by a graduate of the University of Texas. The old SWC schools other than Arkansas are among the most notorious NCAA violators. SMU, Tamu, Houston, and Texas Tech took turns being convicted of the 'most infractions ever.' Texas and Baylor were also no strangers to the NCAA infractions committee. Some SEC schools (Bama) are also known for cheating but none compare to what was going on in Texas. The Governor of Texas was caught paying players at SMU - top that!

We were SICK and TIRED of dealing with a band of outlaws that treated us like the proverbial red-headed stepchild. When we got thw chance to move to the premier conference, knowing full well that the SWC could not survive after losing one of the big three (AR UT and Tamu). We left them to die and we knew it and liked it- they had it coming. UT Tamu Baylor and TT eventually got lucky and got into the Big12. Old school Arkansas fans only want them and the other four to suffer and certainly don't EVER want to associate with them again. The youngsters that want to join the Big12 need to study the history of those programs so they can understand how offensive that suggestion is to those of us who were around in those days. Those cheaters cost us at least 2 nc's - 78 and 69. Never forget!

***This person sounds as passionate about his football as we do here in Nebraska. I'm just angry that we have to leave OUR HOUSE! I wonder if Osborne saw this day coming. It's sad. All the tradition traded for what? Money? Money has ruined sports. (Getting off of my soapbox now)

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

The hits just keep on coming!

 

 

http://www.kctv5.com/sports/23860558/detail.html

EXACTLY! THANK YOU!! It ain't over til it's over.

Just imagine the letdown if nothing comes of this and we stay in the Big12? There has been nothing official and we are all acting like it is a done deal. Suicide watch 2010.

Hello 'Nexus'

Thank you for your intelligent reply! I am very impressed. It has helped to relieve some of my stress about the situation. I see that CU has already left (which doesn't bother me in the least) It will be interesting to see what happens on Friday. I'm just angry that Texas came in and took over our house and now they're going to burn it down just like they did when they were in the SEC. To me they are like a cancer that destroys any conference they join.

I don't know why they don't start their own conference. They have more than enough teams to make it work. Then they could leave everyone else alone.

I'm sad to see the old Big 8 break up but if truth be known this was probably inevitable. It's bittersweet.

Thanks again for responding,

ladyhawke~

I think John Cook is okay with it. You have to like the idea of NU vs Penn St. in volleyball on a regular basis. Not only that, Cook used to coach at Wisconsin before coming back to NU to take over after Pettit retired, so he's already familiar with Big Ten volleyball.

 

As for the rumors, I know it can be mind boggling and downright frustrating at times, but if you're savvy enough to read between the lines, there is movement going on behind-the-scenes. The parties involved are just playing it close to the vest until all the paperwork is cleared and formalities met before making it official to the public. What we do know for sure is that the Nebraska Regents will meet on Friday afternoon and one of the main topics of discussion will be conference re-alignment. Like I said, it's a formality since Perlman and Osborne have to get the approval from the Regents in order to make it official. Once it's approved, then they'll hold a press conference either Friday or Saturday.

IF (and it's a very big if to me) we decide to leave I, for one, will be very sad. I've been watching this conference since I was a little kid. (I'm older than dirt now!) I remember the Big 8 and how NU dominated it. It's just grieves me that we would think of throwing away all of our tradition. This is OUR house! Why are we the ones to leave. Let Texas go to the Pac 10. They will destroy it just like they did the SEC. They are like a cancer to college football. Why don't they just start their own conference and see how long they last. (frustrated here!!!)

I've been reading about this for weeks now and the conclusion is always the same: Nebraska has NOT been officially invited and Nebraska has NOT made any final decisions. So it seems like 'much ado about nothing'.?? I'm just frustrated I guess because all of these rumors are flying around and I'm sorry but I refuse to believe anything that ESPN says about Nebraska. I guess we will all know by Friday.

I'm older than dirt and would hate to see the Big 12 dissolve. I hate Texas though. Let them leave. Was the Big 8 so bad without them? This is our house, why should we have to leave it. HOWEVER, an Iowa-Nebraska game once in awhile would be awesome.

I also wonder about how this will look to the other sports at NU-has anyone talked to John Cook about leaving the Big 12? It would be interesting to hear what they have to say.

But in the end, Dr. Tom is a level head when all about him are losing theirs. I'm sure whatever decision is made, he will have had a huge say in it. We'll see.

P.S. If this has already been discussed, I apologize.

I wrote to ABC/ESPNU about the stupid Ron Jaworski phone interview during the NU game. WHO CARES ABOUT THE NFL! Stick with the game you're commentating! It was so rude! We turned the sound off. Oh for the days of Lyle Brimser (sp?) and Kent Pavelka!!!!

ladyhawke~