Nebula

To be honest...I've actually always kind of liked Richt and Georgia. I just despise what your conference has done to the game. I even have close relatives that went to Tech, so I root for Georgia annually just to piss them off. It's not fair to hurl lacerating comments at you through some "guilt by association" justification. That's on me. None of that changes how I feel about your conference, though. In the battle between integrity and winning, your comrades have scoffed at the former and are throughly unapologetic about Cam Newtoning their way into the latter. Over signing is the one thing that is copped to, but we both know damn well that's only a part of the full equation.

I certainly don't fit the protocol of someone "far more qualified to comment" than zoogies (or you, for that matter,) but I'm saying it. Do you think Martinez's total yardage on the ground against MSU was due to the O-line? Do you think a guy lacking Taylor's near freakish ability for explosive, immediate acceleration and straight line speed would have accounted for equal yardage through grinding Collin Klein style drives? I'm inclined to say no. In fact, I think that game is a perfect example of how our skill position talent accounted more for the success of our offense this year than the ability of the guys up front. Reiterating, this isn't a bad O-line. They sure as hell had something to do with the output we generated on offense this year. But we have exceptional skill players, and a multitude of them. Not good players, exceptional. And they made us dangerous on offense. Not the line. Which we both agree is the best unit we've trotted out in a while.

Yeah...which would suck. I really, really hope they go for twelve and add Creighton. That would be big for the city, it really would. That's a nice arena, and there could be a solid buzz for those games. If this doesn't happen, it's gonna be pretty annoying watching Creighton play Indiana State and even Wichita State. (Although, that is usually a pretty entertaining game I have to admit.) I want to see Xavier, Marquette, all those types of teams coming through here. And yeah, you definitely have a good point about the big fish small pond deal, but I feel like joining a league like that would open the door for Creighton in new recruiting areas, and for some high caliber kids they wouldn't have been in the running for anyways.

I don't hate the fact that he's had an extra year to grow into his frame. S is a huge position of need, so good stuff! Welcome aboard D.J.!

You have 30 commits already for this class. Either you are unware of this, or you tacitly accept and encourage cheating. In which case, you have no integrity. Since that can't be the case, I urge you to contact your conference and demand a return to honorable practices. You are honorable people, right? As for the game, it isn't real. It's a team that has inflated it's talent level through dubious means (You, Bulldogs) vs a team that hasn't in us. We have no right winning this game...after all, we're at a severe disadvantage because we aren't in the SEC, land of Wonderlic 4s who are...gee...somehow college grads. Piss off if you aren't disgusted with the impropriety. A win should be an embarrassment for you. Victory is only worth anything if you attain it honorably.

So, just wanted to gauge the feelings of a potential big increase in national prestige with a move from the quaint but, let's face it, relatively marginal Valley. (When the Salukis were rolling, and N Iowa was stout and a few other teams were making real noise, the Valley was a legit conference. But it's been downhill for awhile now.) From the outside looking in, this looks like an automatic acceptance. The opportunity to play the likes of Georgetown, Seton Hall, Villanova, and a host of other established upper tier college basketball programs seems like a HUGE step up in how Creighton is defined as a national program. This seems like a chance to shed the b-side feel of the Jays, saddled with the "yeah, but who do they play?" caveat every year. You knock off #9 Georgetown in their barn (coming in at #19 or something) you're getting big coverage. One hell of a lot more than if you dumped 85 on Drake for an easy win. Nothing against the Vally, but this seems pretty exciting. Hell, I'M excited, and I'm definitely Nebraska basketball first. FULL DISCLAIMER: It is literally impossible for me to care any less than I already do if you've got a problem with this, but I root for Creighton too. I go to all NU home games, I don't own any Jay gear...but they play out of my hometown, and bluntly, I've been rewarded for my loyalty to NU with decades of irrelevance. I wanna watch some games that matter, and if that means I'm rooting for Nate Funk to drain a three, then I'm doing that. I'm not rooting for Duke, Butler, or Kentucky. So I like Creighton, except for those two hours we play each other. Mainly, I wanted to gauge the feel of Po and some other Creighton fans on this thing. Excited? Disappointed? Nervous? If they stick at 10, you're prob out, correct? So need 12 teams, and then...maybe a sweeping change in your program with HUGE repercussions. So what are you guys hoping for? Personally, I think the GU's of the world will be shocked when they get to the Quest Current Sponsor Stadium. It's a legit facility. Word will trickle. And CU may start plucking some higher caliber athletes out of places they never had any presence in. Big deal. (IF it even happens.)

I don't know man...complete horsesh#t to me is calling for a guy who won 10 games this year to be on some kind of hot seat. (Never heard you intimate that view, just to be clear. Referencing those that made that leap, not you.) Thinking that NU should be capable of having some lines that are punishing, disciplined, and feature some depth seems reasonable to me. Not every year. But at least SOME years, for god's sake. Best line in a decade? That's possible. And step back and think about what you're saying. A decent to sometimes pretty good line is our best in ten years, and the the guy steering that unit has been around for a good while. Decent to pretty good. Best in years. That's not going to get it done. I'm patient, I really think I can make that assertion with a degree of confidence. You know my opinions to at least some degree: I'm not a reactionary, "burn down the world when we lose" guy. I think enough time has passed to say that if this year represents what we can expect from our line under Cotton when they're "better then they have been for x amount of years" then it's time to weigh our options and consider making some changes. Maybe at CU, where the facilities are sh#t and support is nil, you accept what we've accomplished under Cotton. With our facilities and resources, there is no good reason to be so frickin mediocre on the line year in and year out.

You know what is never discussed? It baffles me because it seems so simple. (I didn't read this whole thread. Maybe someone did mention this.) Making ammunition extremely difficult to buy is doable. There are WAY too many guns to actually rid the landscape of the weapons themselves, but you suddenly make the bullets sparse as sin? Those guns become about as valuable as a brick. Maybe less.

Does this mean that the assistant leaving made the unit perform better? Or was it the time spent by Garrison and Stai teaching technique and extending wisdom gleaned from their own personal experience? It's a real question, not trying to sneer at you. I have to say, in this case, I'm leaning towards the added insight and coaching being substantially relevant in the improvement. It's going to be a hard sell to convince me this was a purely an addition by subtraction situation. Hard, but not impossible. Make the case. If you want. Who really gives a sh#t? I want to win big games. I'm still pissed about Wisco, full disclosure. And for both you and the Dude: Did you see how f'ing fast the Badger D got in the backfield on Martinez's miracle TD? It was like *that*. Which is why the 8th in the nation thing doesn't satisfy me in terms of representing proof of the line's production, and especially Cotton's ability as an o-line coach. I'll say it even though anyone who has read my posts know this is intrinsic in most any view I offer, but these are my opinions. They are not the infallible products of an omniscient sentience. So...feel free to tell me why you disagree. I see arguments for Cotton. He isn't a disaster. I think we can do a lot better.

This applies to an almost infinite number of concepts. For example: "Keith Richards is a better guitar player than Neil Young." "I disagree. Just because you believe that doesn't mean you're right." "I didn't say frogs develop from tadpoles. I made a subjective observation." Stating the obvious(?): The mere fact that one disagrees with the beliefs of someone does not necessarily negate the conclusions asserted. It is not clear that Barney is a "scapegoat." It is clear that we haven't had anything resembling an elite offensive line for a good stretch of time now. Yes, it has improved. Directly after we went from one coach manning the unit to having a full three people working full time on the position. Why bring in TWO additional assistants if you have complete faith in the person who led prior to their arrival? Three guys! That's...well, find me another school that has three full time people devoted to one specific position. You might find it. I'd be interested in that. Martinez, Ameer, Braylon, Bell, Enunwa, Turner, Reed, and Cotton. (Never got the credit he deserves for being a stick moving machine. Never ran a route two yards shy of the marker. Solid, sure hands. Solid blocker. HUGE Ben Cotton fan.) Dude, that's about as rich a yield of skill position players we've had in an awfully long time. And you watched the games just as intently as I did. How often did Martinez have a guy in his face immediately? How often did he make something out of nothing? What if he'd been throwing to Frantz Hardy or Wilson Thomas? Or handing off to David Horne? Or not been Martinez at all...instead, Keller or Dailey taking snaps? A line featuring some pro talent and excellent coaching can make a David Horne a 1,000 yard rusher. I think Ameer reached that number because he's a special player, his quarterback is dangerous as sin and thus diverts focus off him, and Bell, Enunwa, Turner, and Reed were all field stretching targets that thinned out holes. 8th in the nation rushing. I know that. Joe Dailey and Horne could've done that with our best O-Lines. No chance in hell we're in the top 25 with those guys, with this year's line. Again - my opinion. Which doesn't make it irrefutably accurate, nor does your disagreement represent empirical evidence that directly refutes my stance. Agree to...whatever EDIT: Oh yeah...Bell and Enunwa were also vicious down field blockers. They sprung 8-13 yd runs into 40+ yd gains a whole bunch of times.

I don't agree with this at all. The offensive line has improved by leaps and bounds over the last few years. I'm not sure of the stats, but we're one of the top rushing teams in the nation, in a conference that's loaded with quality linebackers. That flat out does not happen with a "marginal" offensive line. We're definitely not where we were in the 90s, but we probably have a top 10 offensive line in the nation. That's something that takes a hit with the loss of Jackson, however. That I absolutely do agree with. And that improvement seemed to correlate directly with the arrival of Stai and Garrison to help with the position. Coincidence? Possibly. (Not sarcastic, it IS potentially coincidental.) No question the line improved from the '09 constant false start/holding nightmares. I'm inclined to give Garrison and Stai a significant portion of the credit for that. Just my opinion, though. (Obviously.)

Absolutely not.

^And the point of that is the O-line has been marginal for an extended period of time. Cotton has not shown the ability to produce upper-tier performances from the position. He's had plenty of time. More than enough.

Cotton has done an excellent job with the line on his own. Looking at next year's roster, we're gonna have road-grader quality linemen and at least two draft picks. Or not. SO much talent in so many positions on that side of the ball. But the most important unit looks thin yet AGAIN. (Just a rather pointless toss off here, QB is the most important position on O to me, and the line is the most important unit. And if I could have all-world talent at QB or across the line, I'll take the line, every time.) Hell, Jackson definitely proved me wrong. I thought starting a guy at center who was playing D-line the year before spelled death, and that kid had a nice season. I'm just uncharacteristically pessimistic overall lately it seems...and I still feel like, when you look at our roster, the O-line is going to be an average unit next year. No better.

Sweet. Hope he doesn't get dumped in the trash heap if someone turns out to be better then him. Maybe I do, actually. It's the SEC though. Probably floated him a few envelopes, maybe a Mel Kiper text or something. The better the SEC gets, the less I care.

I know brother...I know.

IIRC, there was a recent study done showing recruit classes from 2000-2010 as it relates to the number of back-to-back classes with more than 28 recruits. The SEC had 54. The Big 10 had 18. So yea, folks who say it doesn't help to over recruit are crazy. It is easy to get great recruit classes when you are over signing by 8-10 kids and then pull for lack of performing. Look at NU this year. 20+ OL schollies and we started 3 walk-ons. The SEC, those 20+ would probably now be about 8-10. Those freed up would be used for others. same with our DL. IIRC we have 11 DT's on schollie, but we had to move Cam to there against Wisky as we had no one else. Again, in the SEC, half these guys would be gone. SEC plays by a different set of rules and it shows. If we recruited (over signed) by 8-10 guys a class, we could build depth as guys who don;t pan out are canned and other guys are kept. I do not agree with this. I think once offered, they stay on schollie until the leave, quit or are let go (kicked off). Until something is truly done, the "supremacy" (ie cheating) of the SEC will remain. Yep. It's simplistic enough for a grade school math student to understand. Breach the established, agreed upon numeric limits and you immediately see massive gains in success percentages. What does that mean? It means if Curt Dukes or Harrison Beck or Bubba Starling or Carl Crawford don't end up working our for you, the extra guy who you weren't supposed to be allowed to bring in may turn out to be Colin Klein or Drew Brees. And they pay those kids. Auburn flat bought their NC. And I'd wager enough money that I could afford to lose were my intuition wrong that Tevin Mitchell's mom got basically a no-show job, after which the kid committed to Arkansas. I am honest to god starting to feel apathy towards something I've adored my whole life. Because it's turning into a f'ing joke. The SEC is John Calipari. As CBB became a seedy underworld of AAU herders and all sorts of other murky, shady dealings, football has began to go the same way. And the reason is because no one in the national media seems to give one flying f#*k about the fact that SEC performance levels over the last 7 years are akin to one man winning the lottery 7 years straight during which millions played. The math doesn't work. It's not an anomaly. There is a reason for SEC dominance. It is called loading the dice, corking the bat, or any other similar term you may prefer. Sickening.

I'm all for gun elimination. Just as long as the police, the army, and the rest of the world do the same. Until that happens, I'm going to be convinced that the government has a good reason for wanting to take firearms out of our hands. I'll let you hypothesize why they may desire a citizenry bereft of these means of defense. And I am not a card carrying NRA member by any means. I see a recurring trend. The US government immediately seizing upon a tragedy that has afflicted our citizens, and using it to propel measures which extend the reach and control of federal liberties over the masses. (Safeguarded by intentionally opaque protections like circumstances in which warrants are no longer required to breach the privacy of anyone deemed dangerous. Deemed by whom, you may ask? Might as well not.) Eleven years straight. And since the "color threat gauge" system has been disbanded, I'll just assume it means that for over a decade now we haven't been in the "safe" range. Anybody else starting to get jittery? Like...maybe we don't actually have a two party system after all? Maybe it's just one? Just positing a theory. Off topic, but one last question: Why are the "frank" discussions between Obama and Boehner not televised? I propose that they absolutely should be, under demand of the citizens of the United States of America.

Miles knows this year is a write off. I hate to say it, but it's the truth. We'll have at least 4 different starters next year, prob even the whole five. Still going to the home games this year, though. Gotta be there for the final go round at the Bob.

It's unwatchable. EDIT: Not really, since I am watching. But wow...this is rough.

I see you have 30 committed recruits for 2013, per Rivals. And A&M fitting into your sleazy little cabal nicely with 33 of their own. Don't forget your "SEC" chant when your weasel comrades win by way of your patented grease bag maneuverings. Do you all really think you're just that much better? Or do you all acknowledge the blatant disregard for operating with integrity, and just feel no shame over it? Seriously never thought I wouldn't LOVE college football season. At this point, I almost think we're idiots if we're still following the rules.

Yup....I'm afraid it's gonna be a loooooog season, guys. Next year's roster will be completely different too, so 2012-13 seems weirdly transitory already. Not trying to be negative or throw the towel in already, just not very optimistic. (For pretty obvious reasons.) Feels familiar...like baseball season for us Cubs fans. Three and a half weeks in, and we start thinking about next year. No matter what the point total is at the end of the second half, Oregon loses regardless. Because they have to play on that abomination. Seriously...who signed off on that? "Bill?" "Looks good!" "Uh, Bill? We're all over here." "I said 'looks good.' Can't you all see I've got a pretty good buzz going here? Can't you just kinda...go away? My dog is asleep. No. My foot...it's dead. What? I said my dog is dead and I can't walk! (Indecipherable aggressive sounding mumbles) *This is actually what happened. Guy ended up leaving Nike Pacific Northwest Division or whatever it's called, and now works at Sea World. Couldn't be happier. Drinks every day. Takes a TON of mescaline. Actually...it's me. I work at Sea World. (Man...I need Nebraska to get a lot better. This is potentially the most idiotic thing I've ever posted on the board. Still gonna do it. f#*k it.)

Hell, we missed Nebraska football this year. No surprise. Annoyance yeah, but no shock.

Reminds me of the time I heard Calipari on some radio call in show talking about a few plays he regretted from the KU-Memphis championship game. How if he'd done something differently, Memphis might have won. I thought, didn't your team forfeit that entire season? Do you really wish that you had won that game? John Calipari is basically numbers 1-999 on the list of reasons why college basketball is seedy as sin. And he's basically the face of the sport. Sweet Anyways, get this gd game off already...

Never forget. This made me laugh harder than anything I've seen on HB for a while.