Guy Chamberlin

There's no way I would. It's statistically absurd. It has been the last 4. Hasn't stopped it from happening. Hopefully we can look back on it the way we looked back on Tom's 7 year bowl losing streak before the mid 90's happened. I get what you're doing, and absolutely, but the two aren't comparable Not perfectly aligned, but definitely comparable. Especially if you consider a conference championship mandatory and the old Big 8 a slightly lesser prize: 1985 Nebraska finished 2nd in the Big 8 1986 Nebraska finished 3rd in the Big 8 1987 Nebraska finished 2nd in the Big 8 1988 Nebraska finished 1st in the Big 8, finished 11-2, but the two losses were embarrassing blowouts 1989 Nebraska finished 2nd in the Big 8 1990 Nebraska finished 3rd in the Big 8, ended the season with embarrassing blowouts to Oklahoma and Georgia Tech Nebraska was ranked in the Top 10 for most of this run, but anyone who lived through it remembers near identical grumbling that Tom Osborne's team wasn't trending in the right direction, and those six consecutive seasons simply weren't acceptible by Nebraska standards. After 17 seasons as head coach, conventional wisdom among the Husker faithful was that Tom Osborne couldn't get over the hump. In big games, the other coaches just seemed to have his number. And they were right. Osborne needed to change his approach. And he did.

I'm okay with this being the benchmark for the season. Bo has got us to the CCG every other year, and winning the championship would be the breakthrough that everyone has been waiting for. This would also get us over the 9-10 win (4 loss) hump. Now, if they don't win the CCG this season, I don't see it as a reason to fire Bo, as I see the uptick in recruiting that is occurring as Bo putting this program on a hot track for success. What are you guys talking about really here? The expectations you are referring too "that must happen this year" are the expectations that most Husker fans have every year period! There is no revelation in this thread thus the only thing that is being stated is that Crouch has these expectations and some of you guys assumptions that if it does not happen it will give cause for Bo's firing, which I say is a reach. I agree. I only posted this because Polo was hiding behind Eric Crouch and being coy about the purpose of the thread.

Just to be clear, failing to achieve this expectation this season is reason enough to fire Bo Pelini. That's the only reason for Crouch coming out with a "kinda unacceptable" quote, and the only reason for promoting it on this thread. I'm betting most people who demand this level of expectation do not expect Nebraska to win the Big 10 this season and want to make sure we've established the baseline for Pelini's firing. But most of us don't need Eric Crouch to tell us that winning the Conference Championship would be a big step forward.

Until four years ago, Ken Clark was #5 on the Husker all-time rushing list. And he's still the #6 RB. So consistent, he was nearly forgotten. Or maybe he just needed a cooler name.

I think if that scenario played out I feel our next step should be the planned eradication of the winged swine. Obviously, in that highly unlikely scenario, there should be different approaches taken as it means the conference as a whole got a whole lot better, and NU would likely be in a BCS game, which would be an obvious improvement. As we've discussed. I think if Nebraska did those things you described they more than likely would win the B1G, which is what we should expect. Why? Why would you expect a good Nebraska team to beat another good Big 10 team, who would come into the game with a similar legacy, talent level and high-pressure expectation? This same conversation is taking place at Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, Wisconsin and Michigan State. It's not taking place at Iowa, Minnesota and Northwestern, but any or all of those teams will beat a favored Big 10 opponent at least once this season. Let's not mistake "what we should expect" for "what we'd like to happen."

As more than a few national football analysts noted, Lawrence Phillips looked like a man among boys in most games he played. But Richard Nixon was a highly skilled politician and he's not Rushmore material either. In fairness to Ahman Green, Nebraska didn't miss a beat when he stepped in to replace Phillips. He was damn close in terms of talent. Roger Craig benefits from a high-profile NFL career, but by his Senior season he wasn't the best running back on the team. Still, I'm hard pressed who I'd bump off the list and who I'd replace him with. The "problem" with Nebraska running backs is that competition was so fierce, not many guys got to be the featured back for more than a couple seasons. A healthy Burkhead would have gotten consideration. A healthy Ameer might bump Craig off my list.

So if Nebraska played its heart out, got to the CCG at 12 - 1, lost a close one to a ranked Big 10 foe and finished with a BCS bowl win, that would be unacceptable? And if you wouldn't accept a season like that, what do you think should happen next?

Tommie Frazier had to bail Brook Berringer out of the Orange Bowl, otherwise Nebraska would have lost the national championship and you wouldn't have had the screen name Redux. Brook was a second-string quarterback for a reason. He might have started on some other college teams, but contrary to legend he was never NFL material. His legacy is that he died tragically before his time, as do many outstanding young men who don't get elevated to football hero status. It didn't change the culture at Nebraska, just gave us all a deep sadness for a good life cut short. If you know anything about Brook, he wouldn't have wanted his face on a Husker Mount Rushmore at the expense of any of the quarterbacks mentioned. This is where misplaced, maudlin sentiment actually works against the person you're trying to honor. I didn't want to go there, dude, but you just kept going on.......

Putting Brook Berringer on our Mount Rushmore would be like putting Thaddeus Stevens on the real Mount Rushmore. A great man who helped another great man, but not part of the same discussion. There's a point where sentiment gets weird and counter-productive. This is that point.

Alll statistics aside, I felt a lot better watching Tommy Armstrong step in as a freshman to replace Taylor Martinez than I did Cody Green as a sophomore. I couldn't see Cody getting any better. I can totally see Tommy getting better.

Have Newby and Cross not had enough carries to prove themselves yet? Cross, yes he has. Has he proved to be an every down back? Newby, while he hasn't had enough carries to really show his true potential, I don't see him getting enough to inflict Ameer's carries. Taylor, while we can say he will get a good portion, this is just all speculation, as he hasn't even seen a collegiate snap. I am a firm believer in this kid, and is my favorite guy in the backfield (except for Ameer), but I need to see it on the field to say that he will be a contributor. Now for your question on how to prove for them to be quality backs... you play them during reliefs or when your in a comfortable lead and non conference games. This is how its done at every other school. They don't just throw them out when the competition is fierce and put the game on the line, when you have that PROVEN guy already. Cross did have 10 TD's on 85 carries with a 5.3 yard average last year. Cross had 7 TD's on 55 carries with a 5.9 yard average his freshman year. That would be 17 TD's on 140 carries and a 5.5 yard average throughout his career. Seems like he deserves carries to me. Cross has thrived in a back-up role to a Heisman-caliber running back. He's been given carries in pressure situations, not merely garabage time. He has scored a lot of touchdowns because they've set him up to score touchdowns. He's earned his carries. Perhaps a few more. But a couple fumbles and some bad decision making give pause. He's not misused or underused. He's right where he should be. Even if he never gets the big numbers, he has likely attracted some NFL attention just by way of his physical sklll set. And actually you DO throw young running backs out on the field when the competition is fierce. Sometimes you catch a defense napping when your featured back is taking a breather. If you look good in practice, you deserve your shot in a game with real stakes. Great players thrive under pressure and it's always fun to discover that quality in a Freshman running back.

We did this same stat watch thing going into Rex Burkhead and Taylor Martinez's promising senior seasons, so what say we shut this thread down now, admit we have no idea, and throw ourselves on the mercy of the football gods.

In the Penn State clip Westerkamp fair catches the ball at the 11 yard line. That's borderline, but excuseable. There were other games where he fair caught inside the 5 yard line. That's a brain fart. You have to know where you're standing, and if you have to look up or backpedal to catch the ball, you just let it go. Really basic stuff. After a few muffs and turnovers early in the season, it looked like Nebraska gave up on punt returns entirely. Westerkamp was supposedly the most surehanded guy on the team. He was told to fair catch every ball and just get the offense back on the field. But too often we started with lousy field position, and that puts a crimp in the play selection.

I'll grant you that Bo is better with the media than a some of his detractors claim. But let's not pretend Bo doesn't have a problem with the media. Don't compare him to other coaches who are bad with the media. Compare him to college coaches on the whole, who are also representing the University and the State, where they are typically the highest paid state employee in which case media relations are part of the job description. You can come up with any percentage you like, but Bo has been curt, snarky and defensive too often in his six years here. And don't kid yourself: that 2011 post-Ohio State recording was the real Bo. How could it not be? Bo has also gotten better with the media. He deserves credit for that. But he's gotten better because he had to. Because he realized he had a problem. It's not ESPN or any sports media's fault how Bo is depicted. They show other coaches blowing up on the sideline. They show assitants and players blowing up on the sideline on any team in any sport. It's usually a pretty good insight into what's going on with the team. In Nebraska's case, out-of-control Bo matches up with the play of an undisciplined team. It's not an unfair observation. Just is what it is.

My biggest question mark is the intangibles. Which includes teamwide state-of-mind. Which includes resiliency. And focus. Which has a lot to do with turnovers.

Yeah, how do you look at a player like Huard or Butz or the deserving Darin Nelson and say 30, 40, 50 years after the fact: okay.....now it's time.

When mammals overtook giant reptiles as Earth's dominant lifeform, I knew we were on a slippery slope to another 9 - 4 season.

1. Our defense was pretty damn good in 2006. It wasn't 2009 or 2010 good, but to call it championship-caliber defense (defining that as good enough to win championships) is reasonable and accurate. We held a #4 ranked USC team to 28 points despite anemic offense, a #5 Texas team to 20 points, a #10 Oklahoma team to 21 points, and a #10 Auburn team to 17 points. That's good. So just remember that nobody had any serious criticisms towards Cosgrove before the third game of the 2007 season. Who knows what would have happened if he fired Cosgrove, but I don't think it is the case that it would have changed anything. Callahan was fired based on his inability to turn around the second half of that season, according to the words of Tom Osborne. That wasn't going to change regardless of Cosgrove. Callahan and Pedersen both were fired for as much of what went on off the field as for what went on on. Solich, too. But a championship season -- or just avoiding that 7 loss season -- might have saved everyone's job. Would Bo have survived the Iowa loss if Kellogg's Hail Mary wasn't answered a few weeks earlier? That's a fingertip margin of error right there.

Sometimes assaulting Seahawks fans is simply the right thing to do.

Well we set a standard of 2008 being better than 2007, and Bo Pelini delivered. We expected 2009 to be better than 2008, and Bo Pelini delivered. For the most part. One of the best defenses in Husker memory, which is saying something. After which I thought our expectations for improvement remained pretty reasonable. And that was the point where Bo stopped delivering.

This is why I'm an agnositc. You don't know if Nebraska would have done better last year with a different coach. Any coach. You don't know if that coach would have agreed to come to Nebraska. Nobody is suggesting we can't do better than Bo Pelini. But how could you possibly guarantee we'd do better with this magical coach who isn't Bo Pelini? Nobody here predicted what the Huskers would do last year if they happened to lose Taylor Martinez and three starting O-linemen. If they predicted we'd beat Georgia in the Gator Bowl, I missed it. Since even Bo supporters don't seem satisfied with the status quo, and the entire college football nation knows Bo Pelini is on the short leash, it's ludicrous to suggest Bo has a luxury of diminshed expectations. You don't have to drink a lick of Kool-aid to envision the team doing better this season. Maybe even breaking through. You don't have to be an a-hole to doubt that it will happen, simply because it hasn't for the past six years. But right now we don't know sh#t. And if Shawn Eichorst says "we're lucky to have Bo" it's exactly what he has to say on behalf of the entire Nebraska football program. If the rock bottom is last year's 9 - 4 season fluffed up with the patsies every college football powerhouse schedules, he may also be right.

He needs to win at least a conference championship. Ultimately. This is only missing your definition of "ultimately."

I hold the same sentiment He just carries himself yhe way i wanna see my qb do so. Just ghe way he plays. Hes git aura about him. A certain swagger. Particular leadership qualities that to me are refreshing. I see the team on both sides of the ball reacting to his presence in a manner that i like to see. That was my first reaction, too. It may not make sense, I'm sure the numbers don't support it. But I just like the way Tommy carries himself. That's not a small thing, especially for a Freshman asked to replace Taylor Martinez mid-season. Some quarterbacks have the rifle for an arm. But they don't have that look. I'm already comfortable with Armstrong running the offense. Can only imagine it'll get better, with so many skill positions returning and a less than hobbled offensive line.

I'd love a Big Ten Championship this year. Who wouldn't? And having won a Big 10 Championship, Nebraska would likely be in play for a National Championship. Wouldn't that be great? Absolutely. But I wouldn't demand a Conference Championship this year from Bo Pelini any more than I would have from the dream coach we didn't get to replace him last year. No more teamwide meltdowns. No more Minnesota or Iowa or Wyoming games for that matter. Fewer turnovers. Contuining improvement on D. Team plays hard, has fun, make entertaining football. Loses a couple games to good Big 10 competition, including the CCG, but maybe by one touchdown instead of seven. Of course I'd take that improvement. Who wouldn't? Nothing less than a conference championship is a recipe for disappointment. The possibility of a good season that doesn't end with a Big 10 Championship has got to be on the table. With all due respect to Devaney and Osborne, I wouldn't call that a "luxury" in any sense of the word. The team — and Bo — remain under plenty of pressure to do better than last year. Let's measure it one game at a time.

I can tell you that Taylor Martinez continued making highlght reel plays for another three seasons. His most famous, perhaps, coming in 2012.