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It's three days before Nebraska's big "rivalry" against Iowa State, and nobody is talking about the game. There is, by my unofficial count, one thread of jokes about Iowegians in general, while the rest of the board is enthralled by the discussion of Bo Pelini's job. So much for the rivalry. (Note - I'm being told the game is against Iowa, not Iowa State. I'd apologize but my editor is probably the only one who noticed) Such is the state of the Husker Nation on the eve of Thanksgiving Eve. Lines in the FieldTurf® have been drawn - the Bo-Lievers vs. the Bo-Haters. You're either one or the other in the black-and-white world of internet message boards, where the persnickity perpetually parse points. Of course this isn't true; the world isn't black-and-white but we all know how these conversations go. I made my point and by gum you will accede to my will or you're them! Whoever "them" is. All we know is, "them" is bad people. Likely closet Missouri fans. I've been fascinated by the conversation, the rumors and the battle lines. The accusations, the labeling, all of it. Most of it isn't even fueled by mass media - these are our home-grown delineations. And while each definition is absurd in its simplicity, that you can either love Bo Pelini without criticism or that you utterly hate every fibre of his being, an idea occurred to me in the midst of the discussion: They're not wrong. Either of them. Impossible, right? One side has to be right, one side has to be wrong. This is the internet for God's sake! This is no place for middle ground! Someone on the internet is wrong, and must be shown so or all is lost! But this is the internet, so of course I'm right. Here's why... Then I saw his face, now I'm a Bo-Liever First, a definition. Bo-Liever : /ˈbō·lē·vər/ (circa 2011) noun :A die-hard Bo apologist who takes unreasonable positions and/or engages in revisionist history in an effort to put lipstick on the pig that is Bo's career as our head coach. This is, apparently, a real thing. They even have their own clothing line and presumably a secret handshake. The one on the left looks like she'd cut you. I wouldn't cross her for a million dollars. These are the people for whom another year of Bo Pelini helming the Husker ship isn't already a disaster, for whom Tom Osborne's first six(ish) years of Head Coachingness are an apt comparison, for whom injuries and conference change and the explanation that Bo is a first-time-head-coach rolls off the tongue like the sweet nothings whispered into your sweetheart's ear (like when you're trying to get in her pants (but not Bo's pants because that would be really weird (unless you're in to that kind of thing (who am I to judge (nttawwt))))). Bo-Lievers believe that, while everything is not necessarily copacetic, we're getting better, and Bo is the right man to lead us on to glory. Yes, there are issues but there are reasons, there are agendas against Nebraska, there are - if not excuses - then explanations. 85 scholarship limit. No more Prop 48. Recruiting kids with character. Nine wins, man. Nine wins. For the Bo-Liever, nothing inflames the soul more than a negative post about the team, because any post not entirely pro-Nebraska means you, yes - YOU, you are a Bo-Hater. And oh, those Bo-Haters. They're just the worst... I'm sorry, Darla, but you can't join our he man Bo-Haters Club Merriam-Webster defines them thusly: Bo-Hater : /ˈbō·hātər/ (circa 2011) noun :A die-hard Bo detractor who takes unreasonable positions and/or engages in revisionist history in an effort to find aggravating fault with Bo's career as our head coach. These are real people, too. For them, the face of the program is a pissed off prune, an irascible Italian, or a rancorous rhino. They are a group tired of the excuses (they are no longer "explanations"), who want to get this team off this aggravating plateau and for whom, often, the solution is a man they already know looks good in red. This is a group for whom the honeymoon ended some time ago, and for whom the monotonous seasons drag on, and on, and on, and on, and on, and on... each season teaching us once again that the name is spelled "PeLLLLini." A group for whom the litany of mistakes cannot be overlooked any longer, whether those be the fumbles, or the questionable coaching hires, or the hit-and-miss recruiting, or the sideline antics, or the belligerence with the press, or the... well, you get the picture. This wasn't intended to be War and Peace. The Bo-Liever would have you believe a Bo-Hater cannot possibly be happy with a Husker win as long as Pelini is involved. But the Bo-Hater will tell you they're just as much a fan as anyone. The fact is, this program is in a state of stagnation, and if you can't see that, you're clearly a Bo-Liever. Bo-Haters often define themselves as "realists," and they present real facts to back that up. Actual factual facts that you can look up for yourself. They're not lying, they just see things as they are. You're all wrong, I'm right, so listen up bub! So here's where you're all wrong and I'm right and I win the internet. Both the Bo-Lievers and the Bo-Haters are optimists. And both are running scared. The Bo-Liever's optimism lies in the moment. We have a ton of talented players on Offense. Tons. Over the past several games especially, the defense has played much, much better. Shades of 2009 better, albeit against weak opponents. There's talent there that wasn't evident the past couple of years. Bo brought these guys in, and Bo is a bona fide defensive guru. Give him time with these players and they're going to put the "hurt" in Blackshurts again. Further, Bo wins nine games a year, and improving on that would be pretty rare. The Bo-Hater's optimism lies in the future. We have a solid base of players at this point, we just don't have the coaching to get them over the hump. It's not the players (although recruiting could use a shot in the arm), it's the coaches. Get a better coach in there, with these players, and we get to that BCS game, or possibly beyond. The name implies hate (uncharitably given as it was by the Bo-Lievers), but it's not about hate - it's about what's best for the program. The fact is that you don't have to like Bo Pelini to be a fan of this program, and you don't have to hate him either. Both "sides" want what's best - they just have differing views on how to achieve that. Neither side, unfairly denied a crystal ball by magic's snobbish decision not to exist, have any idea if their chosen path is correct. And on both sides, aside from the most staunch defenders of their position, the conviction swings back and forth, sometimes week to week, loss to win. And that's because both Bo-Lievers and Bo-Haters are afraid of disaster befalling the program. For the Bo-Liever, the thought of firing yet another nine-win coach, and what that might bring in return, is terrifying. It's a legitimate fear. For the Bo-Hater, the fear is that a once-proud school is slowly declining, and our last championship team seems to have played so long ago. Both are legitimate fears. Firing a winning coach can poison the well for top coaches. But continuing to do the things that have led you into this position of stagnation can very easily lead to complete failure. Regardless of your position on retaining Bo, or even your position now if it's changed, just remember that the guy you're boiling mad at, the guy whose position on Bo Pelini doesn't match your own, proabably isn't really that far off. Picking the Bo-Lievers and Bo-Haters out from the crowd isn't as easy at it seems. Bottom line is, we're all Husker fans. And we all want what's best for the team.