Frost speaks...again

Eric the Red · January 7, 2006

What a Finish

It really is amazing how fortunes can change in such a short time. Now that the bowl season is over I wanted to write one last blog to recap the end of the year and commend the team for a remarkable turnaround. Let me start with the most recent event and work backwards trying to relate everything back to the only subject that matters which is, of course, the Huskers.

-That obviously leads us to the question: Does Nebraska have top 25 talent that makes us only a player or two away from competing for conference titles and BCS bowl games? If you would have asked me before the Colorado game, I would have had my doubts. After seeing the last two games, however, you have to believe that we are not that far away from some of the top teams out there. Michigan was ranked in the top five at the beginning of the year and they were the only ones to beat Penn State who ended up ranked third in the nation. An Oklahoma team that we were not far from beating handled a 10-1 Oregon team, and our conference that everyone considered to be the worst it has been since the inception of the Big XII, won more than its share of bowl games. The road to the top certainly seems a lot shorter than it did in November.

-Now to the subject that really matters. The Alamo Bowl was another huge step in the right direction for our team. It is staggering to see how much different our team has looked in the last two games than it did earlier in the season. Michigan was a quality opponent that had us down two scores. We still managed to come back and beat them. I can’t tell you how happy it made me to see us beat a perennially overrated team from a consistently overhyped conference. Sorry, I still have a little bit of frustration buried in there somewhere. I know it has nothing to do with our split championship, but it’s still fun to see us beat the 1997 Pac 10/Big 10 champions. Anyway, we did look like a complete team again in San Antonio. Our quarterback is a fighter, Cory Ross went out on a high note, and our defense stops the run as well as anyone out there. For the second game in a row we looked like a team that could compete with almost every team in the country. You have to be happy for everyone involved. The coaches in particular deserve our praise. It had to be tough on them with all of the crap that they had to endure the last year and a half. A lot of the heat wasn’t even brought on because of anything they did. I think a lot of it was inherited when they walked into an already hot situation. It was a firestorm in the waiting for anyone who became coach here next because of the way things were handled during the change. Some critcism will still exist, but people will excuse quite a few issues with a coach if the team is winning. At least now the coaches can enjoy an off-season where most everyone will be patting them on the back and optimistic for next year. Things certainly look better than they did when the staff was 10-10 in their first twenty games. I admit I was one of the people who was somewhat pessimistic. Those first twenty games will be quickly forgotten if that is what it took to transform the team into the new system. The future certainly seems brighter.

-As for next year, I would imagine that we will be the favorite to win the Big XII North. Our front four on defense looks really good. Our corners should be more experienced and better play makers, and our linebacking corps will be complete again next season. The defense should keep us in every game next year. On the other side of the ball, Taylor is back and has proven himself to be a tough leader. It’s hard not to like that kid after the hits that he has taken this year. The offensive line looked to me like it made huge strides, especially after the younger players were inserted late in the year. We will need Marlon Lucky and company to step up at running back, and we need a couple of safeties to be ready for next year. I also hope we can find a receiver that can become a game-breaker. All in all we were a young team that has a ton of potential for next year. Let’s hope we can get back to the conference title game. I think that is a great goal for next season.

DaveH · January 7, 2006

Pretty good stuff. One thing that gets me with these things is how quickly people can 'turn coat' so to say. Winning cures most every thing.

next season certainly looks bright, but I would encourage fans to keep a level head. We have a lot of potetnial going in to next season so no doubt between now and then there will be plenty of predictions thrown out there. GBR