The State of Husker Football

[mwj98]

I have seen and heard alot surrounding our program over the past few weeks. This has been a wacky season. When have you ever seen Kansas vying for a National Championship???? Hell has officially frozen over. But here are some of my thoughts....

 

The whole parity discussion in College Football is overrated. You will have teams from smaller conferences beat higher ranked teams from time to time. Heck, it just happens. Then you will see those smaller conference teams ride off into the sunset. The cream always rises to the top. And what is with this crap about cold weather being a factor in recruiting athletes. Are you serious???? Look at our history. We have had athletes from everywhere. Ask them why they chose Nebraska. Has nothing to do with weather. It's the atmosphere, the life, the fans....again.....the culture. It's the biggest name in the STATE!!!

 

Nebraska has the best fans in colllege football period. Why? Because we support our team no matter what. It's a culture, a way a life and it is an honor to play for the Huskers. How many other teams can say that? This whole Callahan debacle will be over soon. The guy tried to put a square peg in a round hole, and it backfired....mightily. Pedersen tried to get away from tradition. Backfired. Why would you put into storage the history of Nebraska Football. Arrogance? Ignorance? Take your pick.

 

I have heard folks say that TO will no bring us back to dominance. At this point, we are looking for stability, in a inconsistent program. Will we start winning National Championships immediately?....probably not. Will there be immediate improvement? Hell yea. Why? This team has given up and so have the coaches.

 

I hear alot of recruiting and 5 star athletes. That crap is way overrated. Trust me. Out of one recruiting class, you might get a handful of productive players. The rest will never make it to the level that the Tom Lemmings of the world predicted.

 

One last thing, and take this to the bank. Osbourne will bring stability back to our beloved program. He will get someone in here who will understand what it means to wear the scarlet and cream. You have to understand the tradition and embrace it. He will re-establish the walk-on program (I have heard it mentioned before about no letting every walkon on the team. They have to try out. Trust me, I have seen it), reach out to the former players and pissed off fans, and get this thing going in the right direction.

 

Once he steps down, he will try to ensure we don't experience this same kind of crap again. Every program goes through a transition. We, as Nebraska fans are different. We are the program. How many times have you heard, "Nebraska Football and the Nebraska Fans"??????

 

I would like to know everyone's thoughts. If you agree or not.

[MUTigerFan]

I

Nebraska has the best fans in colllege football period. Why? Because we support our team no matter what.

 

 

 

How then do you explain the thousands of people leaving the Texas A&M game at half-time?

[captain obvious]

I

Nebraska has the best fans in colllege football period. Why? Because we support our team no matter what.

 

 

 

How then do you explain the thousands of people leaving the Texas A&M game at half-time?

 

 

That game was 16-14 at halftime. You know, it is common for people to go to the restroom or perhaps buy a hot dog at halftime. Then they return to their seats.

[MUTigerFan]

I

Nebraska has the best fans in colllege football period. Why? Because we support our team no matter what.

 

 

 

How then do you explain the thousands of people leaving the Texas A&M game at half-time?

 

 

That game was 16-14 at halftime. You know, it is common for people to go to the restroom or perhaps buy a hot dog at halftime. Then they return to their seats.

 

 

My mistake. I meant OSU. And they didn't come back. It was on every newscast.

[Tiger In SC]

I

Nebraska has the best fans in colllege football period. Why? Because we support our team no matter what.

 

 

 

How then do you explain the thousands of people leaving the Texas A&M game at half-time?

 

 

I can understand why some of the fans left that game. When you have such affection for your team and a program it is painful to sit and watch the demise of that program.

 

There have been many times that I wanted to leave MU games, in fact, I left one, losing to KU in the Stull era... I had enough.

 

I don't think that is representative of anything but fans couldn't bear to watch it anymore. Hurt them too much.

 

 

Nebraska will be back.. I think they need to bring a "Nebraska" man in to run the program. Osborne no doubt will take care of that problem.

 

Good Luck to the Huskers this week

[HuskerTrucker]

One can only take so much pain, man....

 

Besides, everyone had to park out in the boonies....had to make sure they didn't get their car tires slashed by celebrating fans....lol.

[captain obvious]

I

Nebraska has the best fans in colllege football period. Why? Because we support our team no matter what.

 

 

 

How then do you explain the thousands of people leaving the Texas A&M game at half-time?

 

 

That game was 16-14 at halftime. You know, it is common for people to go to the restroom or perhaps buy a hot dog at halftime. Then they return to their seats.

 

 

My mistake. I meant OSU. And they didn't come back. It was on every newscast.

 

I watched that game on TV, and remember thinking that the stands looked surprisingly full after the pokes hung 38 on us in the first half.

 

The fans all showed up the following week, anyway.

[LAHusker]

We will definitely be back. Will we win 3 NC's in 4 years again? Maybe not, but I doubt any 'warm-weather' school will do that anytime soon either.

[Glendower]

I

Nebraska has the best fans in colllege football period. Why? Because we support our team no matter what.

 

 

 

How then do you explain the thousands of people leaving the Texas A&M game at half-time?

 

I think we're considered to be the best fans (by other fans and schools) because we aren't jerks to the *other* teams and fans.

[NPhusker]

And what is with this crap about cold weather being a factor in recruiting athletes. Are you serious?

 

Actually i do think this has something to do with recruiting, but the bigger factor is that these kids would rather jsut stay in their home state. You think it is jsut coincidence that you get atleast one team from each Florida, Texas, and California, in the NC hunt every year. They are good because all the kids would jsut rather stay in there home state where they are comfortable, and the weather is very nice.

 

However dont worry about that weather crap, according to Al Gore Global Warming is changing that whole thing.

[TripleOption]

Great post!

 

I'm dying for that stability again and I agree that we should be able to win it back... I grew up through the '80's with Husker football, and while I typically think of the '90's these days, it wasn't always so rosy for TO or our beloved program. It took a long time for us to get another real shot like we had in '83...

 

But we were the very model of stability anyway. We fought, we lost, we won, but we were a team that we could all easily believe in and love. These last four years were alien, wrong and (now) thoroughly depressing.

 

I can't wait for the Huskers to be back in the game. It can't happen soon enough, TO.

 

GBR!

[BIGREDIOWAN]

I'm a little off topic here, but have any of you been to a game here recently? I'm going to game this weekend with my father and it's his first game so I'm concerned about how the fans are going to react to the team and I don't want his experience ruined.

[IlliniHusker]

BRI - I attended the Texas A&M game. I'm from Illinois so have made only 1 game/yr from the last 3 years. My observatiions of the fans:

* Fans before the game were buying a lot of stuff from the Big Red store just west of the stadium (across the street). The place was absolutely jammed.

* Stadium filled early and it was greating seeing the band play, tunnel walk displayed on jumbo screen, jets flying over and crowd support of team.

* Early in the 3rd Qt it was obvious that we were going to lose again because our defense had no answer to their QB option play. Sam and offense kept battling however.

* Fans around me were unhappy and sarcastic, but -

* NEVER heard anyone cursing out the players or making an ass of themselves. Also,

* No one was drunk or obnoxious. Just disheartened fans who love the team and were sick about the play.

 

I think you will have a good experience. Hope NU beats KSU.

[KentuckyFan]

I would like to give you another point of view ... from the team that has dominated basketball for the past 70 years. My two great loves in life are UK Basketball and Nebraska Football...I was born and raised in Kentucky but my dad is from Nebraska so I've always considered myself 1/2 Cornhusker. My one and only trip to see a game was in 99. I went to a tailgate party and someone asked me if I'd ever seen anything like Nebraska football before, Yes, it's Kentucky Basketball...I tell you this because in the past few years we've watched our beloved Cats fall from national prominence. The media has been relentless... decrying the "end" of UK basketball and criticizing the fans with unrealistic expectations...Sure we lost 10 games the last few seasons, something most teams would kill to achieve! But we weren't winning the games that mattered and most importantly we looked like we didn't care. The games were boring, the team played with no enthusiasm and gave up when they got behind. It was obvious that the playing style of the coach was not working, not with the players and not with the fans. The coach had to go. He's a nice, decent guy but....we needed someone who respected that blue and white uniform and respected that tradition. Nebraska needs the same thing, not someone to sell you snake oil but someone with fire in their belly who worships at the altar of what is Nebraska football...I am not so sure it has to be a Nebraska person, just someone who "gets" it. UK's new coach came from Texas A & M ... never coached at UK or in the SEC, but he grew up understanding the tradition. It was obvious from the moment he was introduced as head coach that things were about to change. So don't be afraid to look beyond the season, to find a coach with the right fire who will make this team want to win and turn things around. Go Big Red!

[TripleOption]

I would like to give you another point of view ... from the team that has dominated basketball for the past 70 years. My two great loves in life are UK Basketball and Nebraska Football...I was born and raised in Kentucky but my dad is from Nebraska so I've always considered myself 1/2 Cornhusker. My one and only trip to see a game was in 99. I went to a tailgate party and someone asked me if I'd ever seen anything like Nebraska football before, Yes, it's Kentucky Basketball...I tell you this because in the past few years we've watched our beloved Cats fall from national prominence. The media has been relentless... decrying the "end" of UK basketball and criticizing the fans with unrealistic expectations...Sure we lost 10 games the last few seasons, something most teams would kill to achieve! But we weren't winning the games that mattered and most importantly we looked like we didn't care. The games were boring, the team played with no enthusiasm and gave up when they got behind. It was obvious that the playing style of the coach was not working, not with the players and not with the fans. The coach had to go. He's a nice, decent guy but....we needed someone who respected that blue and white uniform and respected that tradition. Nebraska needs the same thing, not someone to sell you snake oil but someone with fire in their belly who worships at the altar of what is Nebraska football...I am not so sure it has to be a Nebraska person, just someone who "gets" it. UK's new coach came from Texas A & M ... never coached at UK or in the SEC, but he grew up understanding the tradition. It was obvious from the moment he was introduced as head coach that things were about to change. So don't be afraid to look beyond the season, to find a coach with the right fire who will make this team want to win and turn things around. Go Big Red!

 

Thanks! Great post.

 

It's great to hear that you could see the difference in coaching staff right away. I really hope this is the case for us. I honestly never felt quite right about Solich after he took over. The play calling was all out of whack right off the bat. And I didn't have quite the confidence in him as a person, if you know what I mean.

 

All of that seemed like a small complaint when we got Callahan on board though. It felt very, very wrong from day one. I never understood the guy, where he was coming from, or what he was trying to do. It was a bad fit for him here in Lincoln, and I think it hurt him as much as us (ok -- not as much, but it has hurt him and his career even if I don't care about that anymore).

 

The right coach, the right fit for our tradition, should feel right from the get-go. We'll always have doubts and bad moments even if we make the perfect choice. But we'll know pretty darn quick if we got the right man, regardless of the record as he starts to remake the team.