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Time for the next game in the BHTtNWaNT tournament! As it turns out, strep throat knocks you on your a$$ and makes you really not want to do anything, so this game is going to be a bit truncated. For the next 5 days, let's determine which team is best between the 1993 Huskers, and the 1982 Cornhuskers. Our last game between the '83 Huskers and '96 Huskers was much more of a blowout than I anticipated, as '83 won 21-1. Now, onto the Tale of the Tape! #2: 1993 Nebraska: Record: 11-1 Rank: 3rd (AP), 3rd (Coaches) Conference Record: 7-0 Coach: Tom Osborne (11-1) Points For: 437 Points/G: 36.4 (7th of 106) Points Against: 194 Opp Pts/G: 16.2 (13th of 106) SRS: 20.31 (3rd of 106) SOS: 5.48 (23rd of 106) Bowl Game: Lost Orange Bowl 18-16 versus Florida State Notable Players: Tommie Frazier, Trev Alberts, Calvin Jones Notable Games: vs. #20 Colorado (W, 21-17), vs. #16 Oklahoma (W, 21-7), vs. '65 Nebraska (W, 31-0) #3: 1982 Nebraska: Record: 12-1 Rank: 3rd (AP), 3rd (Coaches) Conference Record: 7-0 Coach: Tom Osborne (12-1) Points For: 514 Points/G: 39.5 (1st of 113) Points Against: 167 Opp Pts/G: 12.8 (8th of 113) SRS: 21.94 (2nd of 113) SOS: 4.48 (38th of 113) Bowl Game: Won Orange Bowl 21-20 versus LSU Notable Players: Mike Rozier, Roger Craig, Turner Gill Notable Games: vs. #8 PSU (L, 27-24), vs. #11 OU (W, 28-24), vs. #13 LSU (W, 21-20), vs. '84 Nebraska (W, 31-4) '82 Nebraska has the advantage statistically, but '93 Nebraska played the harder schedule. SRS has them separated by one spot, but they both finished 3rd in the polls. This is an intriguing matchup for the right to play '83 Nebraska in the title game.

Alright, it's time to get serious. The first matchup in the semifinals of the BHTtNWaNT Tournament pits the 1983 Cornhuskers vs. the 1996 Huskers. In their first round matchups, '83 demolished 2009 Nebraska 30-1, and 1996 Nebraska squeaked by 1999 Nebraska, 25-24. Time for the Tale of the Tape! Go here to see the bracket: https://challonge.com/v1yter3q #1: 1983 Nebraska: Record: 12-1 Rank: 2nd (AP), 2nd (Coaches) Conference Record: 7-0 Coach: Tom Osborne (12-1) Points For: 654 Points/G: 50.3 (1st of 112) Points Against: 217 Opp Pts/G: 16.7 (26th of 112) SRS: 22.61 (2nd of 112) SOS: 3.84 (37th of 112) Bowl Game: Lost Orange Bowl 31-30 versus Miami, FL Notable Players: Mike Rozier, Turner Gill, Irving Fryar Notable Games: vs. #4 PSU (W, 44-6), vs. #5 Miami, FL (L, 31-30), 2009 Nebraska (W, 30-1) #5: 1996 Nebraska: Record: 11-2 Rank: 6th (AP), 6th (Coaches) Conference Record: 8-0 Coach: Tom Osborne (11-2) Points For: 553 Points/G: 42.5 (3rd of 111) Points Against: 174 Opp Pts/G: 13.4 (4th of 111) SRS: 22.22 (3rd of 111) SOS: 6.53 (5th of 111) Bowl Game: Won Orange Bowl 41-21 versus Virginia Tech Notable Players: Grant Wistrom, Jason Peter, Ahman Green Notable Games: vs. Arizona State (L, 19-0), vs. #5 Colorado (W, 17-12), vs. Texas (L, 37-27), 1999 Nebraska (W, 25-24) On paper, this is an incredible offense vs. a very stout defense; '83 Nebraska had the best offense in the country (and some would say in school history), but the '96 defense was no joke, only giving up 13 points per game against the 5th best schedule in the country; the SRS has them virtually neck and neck, with '96 only .4 tenths of a point behind '83. (A note on statistics: all stats are taken from sports-reference.com. SRS refers to a Simple Rating System, described here: https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/about/glossary.html#srs. SOS refers to Strength of Schedule, described here: https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/about/glossary.html#sos)

It's time for the final game of the First Round/Quarterfinals! In a recap of the last two games, 1982 Nebraska crushed 1984 Nebraska, 31-4, and in the closest result so far, 1996 Nebraska edged 1999 Nebraska 25-24. This weeks game pits the 1993 Nebraska Cornhuskers vs. the 1965 Nebraska Cornhuskers. Updated bracket is here: https://challonge.com/v1yter3q #2: 1993 Nebraska: Record: 11-1 Rank: 3rd (AP), 3rd (Coaches) Conference Record: 7-0 Coach: Tom Osborne (11-1) Points For: 437 Points/G: 36.4 (7th of 106) Points Against: 194 Opp Pts/G: 16.2 (13th of 106) SRS: 20.31 (3rd of 106) SOS: 5.48 (23rd of 106) Bowl Game: Lost Orange Bowl 18-16 versus Florida State Notable Players: Tommie Frazier, Trev Alberts, Calvin Jones Notable Games: vs. #20 Colorado (W, 21-17), vs. #16 Oklahoma (W, 21-7) #7: 1965 Nebraska Record: 10-1 Rank: 5th (AP), 3rd (Coaches) Conference Record: 7-0 Coach: Bob Devaney (10-1) Points For: 349 Points/G: 31.7 (1st of 120) Points Against: 129 Opp Pts/G: 11.7 (23rd of 120) SRS: 17.55 (8th of 120) SOS: 2.55 (57th of 120) Bowl Game: Lost Orange Bowl 39-28 versus Alabama Notable Players: Fred Duda, Frank Solich, Wayne Meylan Notable Games: vs. #6* Missouri (W, 19-17), vs. Colorado (W, 38-13) The dichotomy between these two teams is fascinating: their statistical measures are relatively even, save for '65's relatively low SOS. They both suffered their only losses in the Orange Bowl, and they both finished in the top 3 in the polls (AP in '65 notwithstanding). Also, take a peak at the PPG that the '65 team averaged: 31.7 PPG was the #1 ranked offense in '65. (A note on statistics: all stats are taken from sports-reference.com. SRS refers to a Simple Rating System, described here: https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/about/glossary.html#srs. SOS refers to Strength of Schedule, described here: https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/about/glossary.html#sos) *Missouri's final AP ranking

Your nominations have been tallied, and we have a tournament! First up in the BHTtNWaNT tournament: 1983 Nebraska vs. 2009 Nebraska. Here's the bracket: https://challonge.com/v1yter3q. Now, to the tale of the tape! #1: 1983 Nebraska: Record: 12-1 Rank: 2nd (AP), 2nd (Coaches) Conference Record: 7-0 Coach: Tom Osborne (12-1) Points For: 654 Points/G: 50.3 (1st of 112) Points Against: 217 Opp Pts/G: 16.7 (26th of 112) SRS: 22.61 (2nd of 112) SOS: 3.84 (37th of 112) Bowl Game: Lost Orange Bowl 31-30 versus Miami, FL Notable Players: Mike Rozier, Turner Gill, Irving Fryar Notable Games: vs. #4 PSU (W, 44-6), vs. #5 Miami, FL (L, 31-30) #8: 2009 Nebraska: Record: 10-4 Rank: 14th (AP), 14th (Coaches) Conference Record: 6-2 Coach: Bo Pelini (10-4) Points For: 352 Points/G: 25.1 (75th of 120) Points Against: 146 Opp Pts/G: 10.4 (1st of 120) SRS: 11.41 (19th of 120) SOS: 2.69 (36th of 120) Bowl Game: Won Holiday Bowl 33-0 versus Arizona Notable Players: Ndamukong Suh, Jared Crick, Roy Helu Notable Games: vs. #13 Virginia Tech (L, 16-15), vs. #3 Texas (L, 10-9) A matchup of perhaps the best offense in school history vs. perhaps the best defense. One team littered with stars on offense vs. one with a singular juggernaut on D, surrounded by professional talent. '83 benefits from having a much more well-rounded team; one of the greatest "What Ifs" in program history will be "what if 2009 had a capable QB?". The sky might have been the limit with that type of defense. This one might seem like an easy choice, but that O vs. that D would have been a sight to see. (A note on statistics: all stats are taken from sports-reference.com. SRS refers to a Simple Rating System, described here: https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/about/glossary.html#srs. SOS refers to Strength of Schedule, described here: https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/about/glossary.html#sos)