"High and Mighty" talk from Texas fan

[In the Deed the Glory]

Dear Children of the Corn . . .

 

By Mike Blackwell, Inside Texas Magazine Editor

Posted Jul 21, 2010

Copyright © 2010 InsideTexas.com

 

 

Nebraska

There is no place for anger management in football. And frankly, the term “anger management” is a bit of an oxymoron. Sort of like “Nebraska hope.” Note to the Children of the Corn: as it pertains to Oct. 16, keep hope suppressed. Come early. Wear red. And then, be quiet.

 

Husker fans, we appreciate the passion you show toward your football team. As Texas fans, we have always admired you and appreciated your tradition and class. But you began a dance with the dark side a few years ago by hiring a coach from the Bob Stoops tree. In the old days, your very own Tom Osborne was always college football’s gentleman, and he lived the role and won championships. Sure, Oklahoma and Miami beat you now and again, but would you rather lose a couple of games or would you rather be a Sooner or Hurricane? Yeah, us too.

 

 

But somewhere – say, with about one second left on the clock in last year’s Big 12 championship game – you changed. I don’t recall Osborne ever going into a rage with officials after losing a tough game, and he’s lost a ton of games much bigger than the one you lost to Texas last December. I don’t remember him cussing his opponent, or blaming the referees or money or anything else for a loss. Heck, he’s even friendly with Barry Switzer.

 

 

But that’s not you anymore.

 

 

Since December, when the referees (accurately) “put one second back” on the clock, you’ve become a loud, antagonizing, arrogant, ignorant, fact-ignoring, excuse-riddled shell of a program you used to be. You’ve become Oklahoma.

 

 

Worse – for you – you’ve done something Osborne wouldn’t have dreamed of doing: you’ve publically called out an opponent. As everyone from Lincoln to Austin has heard, the crack group of Nebraska marketers (another oxymoron) decided to produce a video (www.redoutaroundtheworld.com) that encourages fan zaniness with a thinly-veiled ultimate goal: Beat Texas.

 

 

To his credit, Osborne has ordered the ‘Beat Texas’ part of the message deleted, but he is definitely a part of this entire build-up. He’s the director of athletics, and he’s the one who hired the coaching staff. And maybe we shouldn’t be surprised by Osborne’s role in all of this. After all, he’s the one who orchestrated the Huskers’ move to the Big Ten, though he has denied that Nebraska moved primarily because of angst against Texas.

 

 

After his coaching career ended, Osborne spent some time representing his state in Washington, so between rubbing elbows with politicians and Oklahomans, maybe we shouldn’t be altogether surprised by his transformation. It gets pretty muddy in there with the pigs.

 

 

The problem with your newly-discovered petulance is that not only do you not have the tools in the toolbox to complete your task (a.k.a., an offense), but your attempts to drum up support are not only completely unoriginal, but also personal.

 

 

Still, how can we Texas fans not appreciate you imploring your backers to “Be Loud”? After all, Texas came up with that line more than 10 years ago. You’ve also asked your fan base to “Come Early,” which must’ve excited your marketing folks when the idea was first tossed across the picnic table outside the barn. Texas first thought of this in Ricky Williams’ Heisman year, which by the way included a shocking UT win in Lincoln. That shock wore off a long time ago.

 

 

The “red-out” aspect of your promotion is quaint, but unoriginal. Do you really have to tell Huskers’ fans to wear red? Really?

 

 

Here’s the deal: had you won last December’s game (you didn’t), Mack Brown would’ve been the first one to cross the field and shake your coach’s hand. He would’ve been gracious in defeat, as always. The refs wouldn’t have been blamed. Bank accounts would’ve have been blamed. DeLoss Dodds wouldn’t have had to be in the tunnel after the game calming down his coaching staff (Will Muschamp being the possible exception).

 

 

Like you, the Longhorns have suffered painful, gut-wrenching defeats. Oklahoma mocked the Longhorns in the early 2000s. The BCS mocked us in 2008, thanks in part to the voting bloc led by Stoops’ coaching brethren, two of whom lost their jobs last year following player treatment controversies. In Georgia, Bulldogs’ fans still ask: What time is it in Texas? Answer: 10 to 9. We’ve lost to Rice, for God’s sake.

 

 

And like you, the Longhorns will be ready on Oct. 16. A game that would’ve been a great game between a pair of programs with mutual respect has now become a “game to circle” for both teams. The problem for you, though, is simple: you don’t have the players to make your dream come true. Your marketing team certainly has plenty of swagger, but your real swagger – spelled S-U-H – is not walking through that door.

 

 

When next year begins, you’ll beat Western Kentucky and Idaho, and then you’ll lose in Seattle to Washington, to a team with one of the best quarterbacks in the country. You’ll beat South Dakota State, and then you might very well lose also to Kansas State in Manhattan one game before hosting Texas. It’s a very real possibility that you’ll have two losses before your red-out game with Texas. Your video will look silly then; you’ll have burnt orange crop circles in your corn.

 

 

And you’ll lose to a Texas team fueled at least in part by your lack of respect given since last December. Your red throng will file out of the stadium disappointed, again, still bitching about that one second from last year’s title game. But then your hopes will be buoyed with another thought as you click on the radio and begin to listen to a litany of excuses for the ninth loss to UT in 10 tries: the Big 12 North is crummy, so maybe we’ll win the division again and make things right by facing Texas for the championship in Dallas.

 

 

Texas fans would like that very much.

[HuskerJosh]

Yawn.

[TheCheshireCat]

He's justifying the fact that his team got manhandled last year. Yes Suh was a huge part of that, but I recall Gomes, Amukumara, and Hagg getting great interceptions as well. I recall O'Hanlon sweeping in and flattening McCoy. We have talent, and Texas is a constant underachiever. With the talent they have year in and year out they should have more to show for it. They couldn't even beat K-State for like 3 years in a row. Texas may well win, but to say we don't have the personnel for it is just stupid.

[knapplc]

It's funny, because the way he writes all that, it's almost as if he thinks we care.

[captain obvious]

I was gonna say something about a black pot or kettle, or something, but I lost my train of thought...

 

Is something interesting happening here?

[Igetbored216]

We are calling out our opponent with a video? That's funny. I don't recall having anything to do with that video other than watching it. But whatever you say Mr. Texas Writer!

[74Hunter]

Opinions are like a-holes, apparently there are ALOT of both in Texa$$.

[junior4949]

Here's the thing I take from all of this. Landry Jones was a highly touted recruit coming out of high school much like Gilbert. Watching OU last season, it was apparent that Jones went through some growing pains. How does Texas assume that Gilbert won't go through similar growing pains in 2010? OU has similar talent to Texas, so both QB's will have or had similar talent surrounding them. While I agree that our talent strictly from a scout or rivals point of view may be lacking when compared to Texas, we aren't the ones going into the season with a QB with very little experience. I'd put money on OU taking Texas behind the shed this year.

[lilred]

So remind me again which team is supposed to be desperate and frazzled? I am honestly thoroughly baffled by all this outrage coming from Texas. Why do people hate on Nebraska? Of course we want to beat you!

[GSG]

Anybody else getting the feeling that maybe Texas is a little worried about this upcoming season?

[captain obvious]

What I don't understand is the following:

 

1. How can he possibly think that this article makes it look like he's taking the high road?

 

2. When he criticizes us for losing respect for our opponents, and then says "you've become Oklahoma," he's contradicting himself. It's clear that Texas fans have never had/will never have respect for Oklahoma, which is their most widely embraced rival. WTF.

 

3. Is he not concerned about this article "looking stupid" if Texas loses? He's criticizing us for arrogance, yet completely taking it for granted that his team will not lose to Nebraska. Again, WTF.

 

I realize that these questions are probably obsolete in today's internet. But come on. If you're going to criticize somebody for a lack of class, have class.

[carlfense]

What a cute little UT fan. How frustrating must it be for them to do so little with so much? They don't recruit . . . they choose players. They have by far the most money in the nation. They have a blank check for paying coaches. After all of that . . . they have 1 national championship in the last 40 years. I feel sorry for them, honestly.

 

Edit: Really just 3 championships total. 1970 Nebraska didn't have a loss . . . but UT did. Naturally, they still claim the title.

[307husker]

OU is likely to take Texas down the first notch on 10-2-2010. Nebraska may be playing a deflated and whiny bunch of Horns on the 16th. I do believe Texas is worried, as well they should be. OU and Nebraska will both be looking to settle a score from the past and Texas has a lot of talented but inexperienced players at key positions...

[sd'sker]

first, he has a fundamental misunderstanding of the term oxymoron, but demonstrates an intimate relationship with the term moron. second, and more importantly, why is everyone getting so worked up at "calling out an opponent". why is the concept of NU wanting to "beat texas" such a big deal, as if we plan to, at best, tie everyone else; and to presume to beat a team is just outrageous. now say if the slogan was "wear red. be loud. beat a toddler", that would be offensive (mostly to isu fans, because that is what they mostly are). this is college football and we plan on winning every game. we see texas as a team that if we beat, we have proven something. they should be flattered, it is not like we are calling out isu, because we do not care about isu. i do not understand how in a game of tackle football with such high stakes as multi-millions of dollars, conference championships, and bcs bowl games sponsored by multi-billion dollar companies, a saying that involves three simple objectives could make the best fans in the nation all of a sudden turn into missouri fans. now perhaps this is just pent up, misguided hatred finally having some nominal, inconsequential gripe to finally cling to as tightly as tu clings on to their false sense of superiority. i do not get it. it is the assumed goal of every team to beat the other team, but we dare not speak that; just as in the 1950's the 'weird' uncle dare not speak of his "live-in roommate" (i'm looking at you oscar and felix, the "odd" couple, just how odd?). again, yes we called out tu and the gauntlet has been proverbially thrown down, but if anything this is out of respect. we care about one game more than the rest, this is not new. they have the red river shootout... er, sorry, rivalry. is that not a perennial "call out" between those two schools that will last well into perpetuity?

 

their outrage? feigned. my interest? nonexistent.

[RockyMountainOySker]

OU is likely to take Texas down the first notch on 10-2-2010. Nebraska may be playing a deflated and whiny bunch of Horns on the 16th. I do believe Texas is worried, as well they should be. OU and Nebraska will both be looking to settle a score from the past and Texas has a lot of talented but inexperienced players at key positions...

I kinda feel this way as well except the deflated and whiny part. If UT loses to OU it will only motivate them more. They'll be pissed and hungry rather than deflated and whiny (probably still a little whiny). When was the last time UT dropped back-to-back games?