RedNeckHusker

the original post is an interesting one, and begs the question: What is NU's ranking so far for the 2011 class or is there such a thing yet? And how have the Big 10 teams fared in this "ranking" versus some of these other conferences...most notably, the one we just left?

call me the tin foil hat guy, but I think the jury is going to be out for a long while before we know how our move to the Big 10 works out with recruiting. Although we will start getting some indications between now and February. Will be interesting to see how our "first" Big 10 class (Feb 2011) stacks up against Bo's first classes in terms of rankings. Not that those silly rankings ever mean anything I hope I've been totally wrong and that the Big 10 move actually enhances our recruiting.

I liked the concept of staying in the Big 12. But even I gotta admit, TU has way too much stick. It's a shame really because I think NU has a lot more in common with the Big 12 schools than Big 10, and I think it makes much more geographic sense. But that TU bunch is a trip. They can't live with the conference, and they can't live without it. They're narcissistic, paranoid, neurotic all in one. And the 9 remaining dwarfs will suffer the wrath of Texas' neuroses until the whole thing caves in which will prolly be sooner than later. While I wouldn't say the Big 12 is on life support, it's in Hospice. Don't think we really had a choice in the matter. Had UT been forthcoming and honest, as well as fair, I think we would have stayed from now on.

and then what happens when you travel through the valley of mediocrity with a Bill Callahan, which inevitably will happen again sooner or later. What happens then?

yeah I'm shocked that they aren't shocked, since the shock of its empire falling apart must come as a bit of a shock.

Big 12 is definitely going to survive. Here is what it could look like per orangebloods: North Division Kansas Kansas State Iowa State Missouri Northwest Missouri State Pittsburg State South Division Baylor West Texas A&M Abilene Christian Sam Houston State Stephen F. Austin Wayland Baptist

Two things I've learned through all of this: 1. Anything is possible. 2. Never say never.

How many years until the members of these so-called "super" conferences wake up and realize that it's all a ruse. All of the teams can't win the conference every year, someone's got to be the doormat, and our fan base is having to travel over hell and half of Georgia just to make a game now and then. All for some extra cash and "prestige". The panacea is exposed. How many years until the schools caught up in all of this mad rush wake up and say "This is nutso. How about an athletic conference that actually fits our geography a little?" I think in 2015, we see these things busting up, and OU, Nebraska, and others are back together again. Back to the future.

Oh yes, absolutely. That's the ONLY reason Nebraska is joining the Big 10. Because one second got put on the clock in the Conference Championship Game. That is 100% the only reason whatsoever this is happening. You're like the Amazing Kreskin. You just perceive things so clearly, it's like magic. Hey Master mind, that's cute. But I didn't say it was "the reason", or even "a reason." My question was and is: Was it the last straw?

would we even be having these discussions right now? Was that the proverbial last straw?

that's it in a nutshell. The days of getting up early on Saturday morning to drive to a game are pretty much over unless you live within 3-4 hours of Lincoln AND you have some inside track to home game tickets College football is getting ready to be permanently altered, and not for the better. I don't like it at all. I'm going to be following the MIAA (D2) conference more this year. A lot more fun to actually go to games even if they are D2.

It's not. Your statement is a gross oversimplication. Recruiting "Texas" per se isn't the concern. It's our ability to continue to successfully recruit the south and west in general, where most of our out of state players come from right now, that is a question mark. Of course, I hope it's all a real simple deal and life will go on as normal. But Coca-Cola has changed its recipe. We'll have to wait and see. why is it a bigger question mark now than it has been for decades? where our road games are played does not appear to be nearly as important to most southern kids as the actual location and climate of UNL. that hurdle will not change and we will continue to battle and overcome it. I'm drink'n the same koolaid you are, dude. But I'd be lying if I said I didn't have concerns. It's a question mark because we will no longer be playing in warm weather climates. At all. None. The end. That, my friend, could cause some problems. See Ohio State, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Purdue, Indiana, etc., etc. for a few examples. Ohio State, MU, and PSU all thankfully have their own states sewn up, which allow each to be at least marginally competitive on the national stage. And there's a decent population in each of those states. That metric doesn't work out too good for 'Sconsin and the rest as their states are thinly populated. And that could well be our situation, too. Then again, I might be pleasantly surprised. We'll know sooner than later. I think our best outcome is "marginally competitive on the national stage." At this point, I'll take it.

It's not. Your statement is a gross oversimplication. Recruiting "Texas" per se isn't the concern. It's our ability to continue to successfully recruit the south and west in general, where most of our out of state players come from right now, that is a question mark. Of course, I hope it's all a real simple deal and life will go on as normal. But Coca-Cola has changed its recipe. We'll have to wait and see.

I think we all hope that a recruiting problem in the Big 10 is a myth. But if it's a myth, why so many threads about the subject?

Recruiting impact is THE question now, and there's really no way to know for sure how it could shake out. My issue isn't so much with recruiting Texas, but rather the south and west in general, where most of our scholarship athletes come from other than the state of Nebraska. The case can be made that recruiting will stay status quo, since we will now have the upper hand (seemingly) against the likes of KU, KSU, and ISU in the recruiting battles. I like our chances in really picking up kids in Missouri and KS that maybe before went to KU or KSU. The case can be made that our recruiting will actually improve, due to more national TV exposure. The case can be made that our recruiting will suffer significantly, due to the fact that we will not be a member of a conference that plays many of its games in the south (i.e. Big 12 South), and that Lincoln and all of the other road games will simply be too far for south/west recruits to have a genuine interest in. And if that is the case, new recruiting grounds have to be mined, and there are no guarantees of success. The truth is, it's an open question. What isn't a question is that it is a huge gamble on the part of Nebraska; we really must have felt as though there was no other logical way out of this situation. I just hope that it all works out. In terms of football competitiveness, I honestly have some concerns that we will descend to more of a "Wisconsin" level, which really depresses me. I have a high level of confidence in Pelini, but let's be real, he won't be our coach forever. What happens when we have another "Callahan" debacle for 4 years. Do we have the recruiting pipelines to "restore the order" as we did before? I've got my doubts about that. But I hold out lots of hope that I'm dead wrong! Anyone that doesn't have at least some concerns about recruiting is drinking a bit too much red kool aid.

but Osborne also adds "it's a big deal in terms of other universities..." Sorry. I just don't see Perl or Oz doing that to KU, KSU, and ISU, unless they simply have no other option. It's just too un-Nebraska-like. Un-Osborne-like. If Texas refuses to compromise, then indeed NU may go. On the other hand, this may be a key turning point that ends up turning the Big 12 into one of the super conferences in its own right. Anything, and ANYTHING, is possible at this juncture.

I think we are staying. There's about a dozen reasons (half of them darn good, the other half so-so) why we will, and really only a couple of reasons why we would not ($$$ and some presumed extra "prestige"). If they truly wanted Nebraska (which I sincerely question), the Big 10 should have never let this cat out of the bag. I suspect that the Big 10 was merely using Nebraska as an accessory to get Notre Dame. And I think it was a bluff. No, I don't think ND is going to the Big 10, any more than I think Nebraska is.

All of this "Nebraska winning the Big 10", "Dominating", etc., is all predicated on one thing: ALL OTHER THINGS BEING EQUAL. That is, it assumes we will continue to gain good recruits and field a good team. We can't just assume this. Our world is getting ready to change drastically - the location of much of our fan base, our recruiting pipelines - we haven't made such a step in our entire history. I liken our move to Coca Cola changing its recipe back in the 80s. I think that is a huge question mark that only time will be able to answer.

Hey why are you sweating it? Even if we suck in the Big 10, we'll have lots of $$$$ like Indiana and the rest, and we'll have a lot more "prestige". I know I'm driving into Lincoln each game day for some of that amazing cash we'll have!!!

oops double post

Ease off the panic button a bit. Were you this panicked when we joined the Big 12? If not, why not? The money is better in the Big 10, both athletically and academically. The prestige most certainly is there. The ability to make Nebraska a better educational institution is most certainly real, and has recent examples of success. Speaking strictly from an athletic point of view, we would benefit in football by rubbing elbows with three of the top seven teams with the most wins in college football - four if Notre Dame joins. That would make, including Nebraska and Notre Dame, five of the top seven teams all time in one conference. That's a heck of a football pedigree. And as we've seen with Oklahoma, Nebraska, USC, etc, just because a program is down now doesn't mean they'll stay down when they have the kind of fan bases and support structures like a Michigan. ND adds some sizzle to be sure; I just don't think they're coming on board. My concern overall is that NU is leaving its roots, which is the western edge of the midwest and even south (NE, KS, CO, OK) to do this deal. Texas to a lesser degree. If our college kids can't attend road games without catching a flight, then something has really gotten out of whack. I also think that we have some neighborly responsibility to our other midwest friends that we have shared a conference with for a long, long time. KSU, KU, ISU, OU, OSU, and CU to a lesser degree. I feel genuinely sorry for programs like KSU that are in even more isolated markets than Lincoln, and I feel we owe them more than this. The Big 10 might be a better deal financially and with the "prestige", but that league isn't Nebraska culture and won't ever be. Square peg forced into a round hole for a grab for cash and perceived prestige. I don't like it. As for the Big 12 formation, I liked it because I thought the geography was still a good fit and that some new rivalries would be born. And the Texas culture fits very well with the Oklahoma, KS, and NE culture. We certainly have a lot more collectively in common (agriculture, farming, ranching, and energy) than any of the rust belt states. There is a lot of commonality among the Big 12 schools - bullying by UT athletics aside.

it's all good. I hope we make the right call, and I know I'm currently in the minority thinking that we should stay put. But I wouldn't stay put without some conditions. My biggest beef is TU's desire not to play along with a Big 12 network. The other stuff - Jerry's World, the league offices, the last second - are things that could be argued either way forever more, but aren't good reasons to leave a conference. I have some huge problems with the Big 10, but I've made those known. About the only benefits that are being touted are more $$$, and more "prestige". As if those two things are the be-all, end-all. I don't think that they are, and I think that over time that fact will come clear. I see it as a gamble of unprecedented proportions, with a true "payout" that is highly questionable.

oops, repost

I think the Big 12 is royally mismanaged, so we are on the same page there. I also think Nebraska has become increasingly thin-skinned. No matter the action, seems as though everyone says "That's it...last straw!" If Nebraska wasn't highly valued by the conference, no ultimatum would have been delivered. And if no ultimatum had been delivered, we all would have been crying "They don't even care enough that we're considering leaving!" There is nothing the Conference could do now to please us, and I think the other members are well aware of that and have resigned themselves that this 14 year run is over. It's been a good one overall, even for Nebraska. Though we shouldn't have fired a guy who batted .750 and replaced him with a clown. Hope it all turns out. The horse left the barn We're moving to the Big 10 if the invite comes. Our feelings are hurt too bad, and we're too sensitive now to judge anything rationally at all. Hope it turns out.

You really think you should be a MOD and be so arrogant? I've got the same concerns as C-4. This is going to be a mistake and 4 years down the road when we're busting our arses to break .500 I expect you to man up and swallow that sort of b.s. I'm glad I'm not like you. Nothing in the MOD handbook says I can't speak my mind. And Texas may have a hard time breaking .500 in four years, but frankly, I don't care. That'll be your concern. Frankly, it won't. Never been to a Texas game, other than several against the Huskers, in my life. No problem with speaking your mind; I just think everyone could do without the insults. I love the Huskers as much as anyone on the planet. I've seen them play over 120 times - in person. I've seen them play in 3 national championship games. I don't think I'm uninformed.