The Battle for NU

[huzkerbob]

I was at that game in San Antonio. Happened to get tickets in a group of NWestern fans , who were pretty obnoxious the first part of the game. I guess evidently the NW players were also a little obnoxious , as Solich told his team to take the gloves off and we really put it to them after awhile. The NWestern fans were saying things like "send them back to the CornFields" at the start of the game. Of course when NU went WAY out in front , I replied within earshot " send them back to the slums" !

 

I think Nebraska showed Northwestern who really deserves the "NU" title when we met in the 00' Alamo bowl game.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18eM2DKC-y8

 

This game was an embarrassment to NW and should never have been played in the first place. An NU/ Oregon St Fiesta Bowl could have been one a hell of a ball game. But thanks to ND's Uncle Enus exemption, CFB fans where given the pleasure of watching two lopsided, god awful match-ups instead of a bowl season with well contested games that fans could actually get excited about. O what could have been... Seriously though does anyone else remember, didn't ABC cut the end of the Alamo Bowl because the whooping had gotten that bad?

 

As for the poll question. No the NU "battle" isn't worthy of a rivalry game, because Northwestern isn't worthy of one.

[irafreak]

I have the tv version...I'll have to check. I personally loved the beatdown...

[okaive]

No, no no. UNL is alot better the Neb though. That seems to much like high school for me. But NO to the trophy idea.

[knapplc]

So my question to those of you voting in favor of Iowa in the first poll: What makes Iowa more worthy of being a "rival" than Northwestern?

 

I'll admit to the silliness of the poll question, but I did it to show how silly it is to designate Iowa (or Indiana or Minnesota or Northwestern) as a rival.

[Enhance]

So my question to those of you voting in favor of Iowa in the first poll: What makes Iowa more worthy of being a "rival" than Northwestern?

 

I'll admit to the silliness of the poll question, but I did it to show how silly it is to designate Iowa (or Indiana or Minnesota or Northwestern) as a rival.

Iowa is a more natural rival with Nebraska for reasons you already know, I'm sure. When these two schools play there is a lot of hype even if the game is meaningless on a national scale. Furthermore Nebraskans and Iowans already have much distaste for each from a football stand point. Iowans dislike us for our success and our continued reliance on it in arguments, and we dislike Iowans because of their peskiness and their recent success.

 

As far as I'm concerned, Northwestern and Nebraska have nothing against each other that compares to Nebraska and Iowa, other than Northwestern still being sore about their epic defeat against us over a decade ago.

 

All of that said, it is completely silly to designate either a rival so I understand your point and the subtle sarcasm of the situation. If anything, Iowa isn't a rival to me but more of a "I wish we beat them so they'll shut up" kind of deal. A real rivalry will develop eventually, but I think a lot of people 'expect' it to be Iowa over any other school, because there is already rival bad-blood there.

[huskerscott]

So my question to those of you voting in favor of Iowa in the first poll: What makes Iowa more worthy of being a "rival" than Northwestern?

 

I'll admit to the silliness of the poll question, but I did it to show how silly it is to designate Iowa (or Indiana or Minnesota or Northwestern) as a rival.

Cause its right across the friggin river. It just naturally to have rival like Iowa if your Nebraska, they hate us, we hate them. Listen 1620 in afternoon, there is people calling all the time hating on Iowa. They are just like Mizzou, bad mouthing Nebraska and claiming there program is so great based on the very little success they had a dozen years ago. Have they even won a conference championship yet in another sport beside wrestling???

 

Atleast Colorado had a couple of conference championship they can brag about.

[knapplc]

So my question to those of you voting in favor of Iowa in the first poll: What makes Iowa more worthy of being a "rival" than Northwestern?

 

I'll admit to the silliness of the poll question, but I did it to show how silly it is to designate Iowa (or Indiana or Minnesota or Northwestern) as a rival.

Cause its right across the friggin river. It just naturally to have rival like Iowa if your Nebraska, they hate us, we hate them. Listen 1620 in afternoon, there is people calling all the time hating on Iowa. They are just like Mizzou, bad mouthing Nebraska and claiming there program is so great based on the very little success they had a dozen years ago. Have they even won a conference championship yet in another sport beside wrestling???

 

Atleast Colorado had a couple of conference championship they can brag about.

 

Hah! You obviated your own point with Missouri. Proximity doesn't make a rivalry. If it did Iowa State would be a rival, since they're only slightly less successful over the years than Iowa. Same goes for Kansas State, Kansas, Missouri or those fake "rivals" in Colorado.

 

Here's a tip - every team's fans bad-mouth Nebraska. Just because you folks along the Missouri or in Omaha hear about Iowa more doesn't mean Husker fans in California, Tennessee, Florida, New Jersey or anywhere else care about them. Same goes for most folks who live 20 or more miles from Iowa, who don't interact with Iowegians regularly.

 

It's just not a rivalry. No more so than it would be for Northwestern.

[huskerscott]

So my question to those of you voting in favor of Iowa in the first poll: What makes Iowa more worthy of being a "rival" than Northwestern?

 

I'll admit to the silliness of the poll question, but I did it to show how silly it is to designate Iowa (or Indiana or Minnesota or Northwestern) as a rival.

Cause its right across the friggin river. It just naturally to have rival like Iowa if your Nebraska, they hate us, we hate them. Listen 1620 in afternoon, there is people calling all the time hating on Iowa. They are just like Mizzou, bad mouthing Nebraska and claiming there program is so great based on the very little success they had a dozen years ago. Have they even won a conference championship yet in another sport beside wrestling???

 

Atleast Colorado had a couple of conference championship they can brag about.

 

Hah! You obviated your own point with Missouri. Proximity doesn't make a rivalry. If it did Iowa State would be a rival, since they're only slightly less successful over the years than Iowa. Same goes for Kansas State, Kansas, Missouri or those fake "rivals" in Colorado.

 

Here's a tip - every team's fans bad-mouth Nebraska. Just because you folks along the Missouri or in Omaha hear about Iowa more doesn't mean Husker fans in California, Tennessee, Florida, New Jersey or anywhere else care about them. Same goes for most folks who live 20 or more miles from Iowa, who don't interact with Iowegians regularly.

 

It's just not a rivalry. No more so than it would be for Northwestern.

 

Knapp, what does make a rivalry since proximity cant be factored into the equation.

 

Other teams may bad mouth us, beat atleast some had respect. I hated OU but I have the upmost respect for the program, cant say that about Texas or Mizzou.

[Haspula]

We aren't known as NU by others b/c there's no such thing as Nebraska University. I'd stick with NEB

[knapplc]

Knapp, what does make a rivalry since proximity cant be factored into the equation.

 

Other teams may bad mouth us, beat atleast some had respect. I hated OU but I have the upmost respect for the program, cant say that about Texas or Mizzou.

 

I don't know that respect is necessary. I think we had a very different kind of rivalry with Oklahoma in that both teams had respect for each other, although the animosity could become heated in that rivalry, too.

 

It's hard to say what exactly makes a rivalry. I would think ingredients would include:

 

Teams that are somewhat equally matched, both now and in historic accomplishments. This is not always true, since the Cubs and Cardinals are bitter rivals even though the Cards have won a jillion titles and the Cubs are... well, they're the Cubs.

 

I think the "other team" in the equation has to occupy a position, or hold some form of respect or significance that "we" want. As in OU/NU, we wanted to own the Big 8 title, and go to the Orange Bowl. Often that battle included a chance to play for the national championship.

 

It cannot be forced, and I think everyone recognizes this when they think of the Colorado "rivalry" that wasn't. That's my biggest opposition to the Iowa rivalry.

 

There must be a history between the two teams. Great games won and lost, critical losses, glorious wins, games won by stars and champions - at least in Nebraska's case. I recognize that Eastern Polytechnical State and Northwest B.F.E. Tech have never won a title in anything, but they can still be rivals. But in Nebraska's case, a program with a championship pedigree, a program whose halls are adorned with trophies and honors won by some of college football's greatest players, we can't be rivals with Kansas State, a team that for decades occupied a spot in The Bottom Ten.

 

Of course this isn't a comprehensive list. It's just off the top of my head. But these are some of the ingredients that make up rivalries, at least on Nebraska's scale. Feel free to fill in or debate what I missed or got wrong.

[redblooded]

So my question to those of you voting in favor of Iowa in the first poll: What makes Iowa more worthy of being a "rival" than Northwestern?

 

I'll admit to the silliness of the poll question, but I did it to show how silly it is to designate Iowa (or Indiana or Minnesota or Northwestern) as a rival.

 

I figured this is what you were getting at after I replied the first time and then you made it a poll. I've gone back and forth on the Iowa "trophy game" and "rivalry" (it isn't, yet, who knows what will happen) but the trophy idea is admirable at least, even if the name is dumb. To be honest though, even in the "rival" poll I think Iowa was just the easy answer. I don't think anyone is thrilled about it, but nobody from Ohio State/Michigan/Wisconsin is really on here with a chip on their shoulder. Can't say the same about Iowa fans. They've always had a chip on their shoulder and an inexplicable need to explain to husker fans how good they are when we don't care. We haven't played a game in the big ten yet... but if the poll would have been worded "which team do you want to beat down so bad their fans will shut up" it would have been Iowa. We simply don't have interaction with any other big ten team's fans on a regular basis, yet.

 

Like I said above, I view Iowa as a team I'd like Nebraska to clobber on its way to conference championships, same as KU, Mizzou, Colorado, or Kstate (although I think NW is the Kstate already). I really do hope as far as natural rivalries we are looking at the best teams in the conference, and beyond that the SEC, because I'd rather win the big one then Ohio State it multiple times. That'll happen over time though, so I guess I don't understand the big issue with the desire for instant gratification to shut Iowa fans up. At least until we get some meaningful close games under our belts in the league.

[knapplc]

By the way - the two of you who replied that Cornell is the real Big Red, please identify yourselves so we can volunteer you to be EMart's tackling dummies in practice.

[HuskerfaninOkieland]

By the way - the two of you who replied that Cornell is the real Big Red, please identify yourselves so we can volunteer you to be EMart's tackling dummies in practice.

Drowning and Maudfather...they did it. I seen't dem do it

[jsneb83]

By the way - the two of you who replied that Cornell is the real Big Red, please identify yourselves so we can volunteer you to be EMart's tackling dummies in practice.

Drowning and Maudfather...they did it. I seen't dem do it

Well they are the Big Red, aren't they? I picked NU, but those two people aren't wrong. Smart a$$es, maybe.

[huskerscott]

Knapp, what does make a rivalry since proximity cant be factored into the equation.

 

Other teams may bad mouth us, beat atleast some had respect. I hated OU but I have the upmost respect for the program, cant say that about Texas or Mizzou.

 

I don't know that respect is necessary. I think we had a very different kind of rivalry with Oklahoma in that both teams had respect for each other, although the animosity could become heated in that rivalry, too.

 

It's hard to say what exactly makes a rivalry. I would think ingredients would include:

 

Teams that are somewhat equally matched, both now and in historic accomplishments. This is not always true, since the Cubs and Cardinals are bitter rivals even though the Cards have won a jillion titles and the Cubs are... well, they're the Cubs.

 

I think the "other team" in the equation has to occupy a position, or hold some form of respect or significance that "we" want. As in OU/NU, we wanted to own the Big 8 title, and go to the Orange Bowl. Often that battle included a chance to play for the national championship.

 

It cannot be forced, and I think everyone recognizes this when they think of the Colorado "rivalry" that wasn't. That's my biggest opposition to the Iowa rivalry.

 

There must be a history between the two teams. Great games won and lost, critical losses, glorious wins, games won by stars and champions - at least in Nebraska's case. I recognize that Eastern Polytechnical State and Northwest B.F.E. Tech have never won a title in anything, but they can still be rivals. But in Nebraska's case, a program with a championship pedigree, a program whose halls are adorned with trophies and honors won by some of college football's greatest players, we can't be rivals with Kansas State, a team that for decades occupied a spot in The Bottom Ten.

 

Of course this isn't a comprehensive list. It's just off the top of my head. But these are some of the ingredients that make up rivalries, at least on Nebraska's scale. Feel free to fill in or debate what I missed or got wrong.

 

Good points Knap, I think what other teams feel they had a rivalry with Nebraska (ie Colorado) was because of success Nebraska was having. Some of those "rivalry" game were manufactured by the schools themselves because beating Nebraska was a great feat even the program was down when they did it.