Did the Big Ten change your expectations?

[4skers89]

 

I think the whole era of doninant Nebraska Football started changing when we got hosed on divisional setup in the Big 12. We went from overpowering everything to playing an even weaker schedule. We didn't have to fight as hard to win a division and that started reflecting on the product we put out.

 

By the time we realized it Kansas, KSU and Mizzou were routinely thumping us. We took it back but it was too late. The conference was dying and we had to move on. Unfortunately for us we didn't have a coach with enough experience recruiting and our transition into a stronger league has been much harder than it had to be. Bo held the ship together during the move, but he didn't do much for us long term towards winning the league.

That is interesting.

 

Someone told me that the formation of the Big 12 hurt our recruiting. The logic being that we benefited from the Texas recruits having a choice between going to a Big 8 school and getting a lot more national attention or playing in the SWC which really only had a regional following. If most CFB games weren't currently televised nationally I'd think that the downsizing of the Big 12 into the Texas league would once again benefit us.

[NUinID]

I never had much respect for the members of the Big Ten. I thought the games were slow and boring. When NU joined the conference, I thought NU would have no problem beating teams like Northwestern, Iowa, and Minnesota. It's upsetting that NU is basically at the same level as Northwestern, Iowa, and Minnesota and a level below Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Michigan State. I think Michigan will soon be at the top tier level with those schools, as long as Harbaugh coach there. I have serious doubts if Riley can get NU to the level of those teams. It will be interesting to see if Wisconsin can stay at that level under Chryst, and if Penn State can get to that level under Franklin.

 

That is because it doesn't compute with you that they could and can play good football. We are Nebraska, we have always been better than those teams and we will always be better than those teams.

 

It would be no different if we were still in the big 12 beating TCU, Baylor, Okie St, W. Va. should be no problem. This is what all the Texas fans are saying right now.

 

I already said it, NU is not as good as they used to be. combine that with other teams being better and you have what you have. The football world has changed. The worst thing that happened to Nebraska was TO retiring.

[ColoradoHusk]

 

I never had much respect for the members of the Big Ten. I thought the games were slow and boring. When NU joined the conference, I thought NU would have no problem beating teams like Northwestern, Iowa, and Minnesota. It's upsetting that NU is basically at the same level as Northwestern, Iowa, and Minnesota and a level below Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Michigan State. I think Michigan will soon be at the top tier level with those schools, as long as Harbaugh coach there. I have serious doubts if Riley can get NU to the level of those teams. It will be interesting to see if Wisconsin can stay at that level under Chryst, and if Penn State can get to that level under Franklin.

 

That is because it doesn't compute with you that they could and can play good football. We are Nebraska, we have always been better than those teams and we will always be better than those teams.

 

It would be no different if we were still in the big 12 beating TCU, Baylor, Okie St, W. Va. should be no problem. This is what all the Texas fans are saying right now.

 

I already said it, NU is not as good as they used to be. combine that with other teams being better and you have what you have. The football world has changed. The worst thing that happened to Nebraska was TO retiring.

 

But, are Iowa, Northwestern, and Minnesota playing a lot better football? Not really. It's not like they are TCU or Baylor and jumping into the top 5/top 10 in the country. Iowa, NW, and Minny are in the top 20-40 teams in the country

 

NU has declined to the level of the 2nd tier/3rd tier Big Ten teams, and that's what sucks to see.

[teachercd]

I feel like the Big Ten just brings down your play! All the games seem like they are on at 11am (I know they are not) and the stadiums are half full (Except at NU, PSU, OSU and Michigan) and it is always so gray! ha!

 

A few years ago when OSU was ranked #1 and heading into Illinois to play the Illini they asked Herbstreet how the Illini could pull off the upset...he said something like "Hope that OSU is sleeping, the game will be at 11am, it will be cold and gray outside and the stadium will be empty, the Buckeyes might not be awake"

[BIG ERN]

IF Riley and co. can recruit well and change some things up I could see the B10 looking just like the B12 was.

 

North (West)

1. Nebraska

2. Missouri (Wisconsin)

3. Kansas State (Minnesota)

4. Colorado (Iowa/NW)

5. Iowa State (Illinois)

6. Kansas (Purdue)

 

South (East)

1. Texas (Ohio State)

2. Oklahoma (Michigan/Michigan State)

3. Texas A&M (Penn St)

4. Oklahoma St (Maryland)

5. Texas Tech (Rutgers)

6. Baylor (Indiana)

[RADAR]

Franks laziness in recruiting started the downward spiral, We have never recovered from that 7-7 season. Callahan had us on the right track recruiting wise, we were getting some high ranked talent back in the program, but before he could put it on the field, he lost his team and then lost his job. 408 rode the same coattails that Frank did. He squandered good talent that he inherited, but was to lazy to recruit his own. Riley has the plan and the staff in place to bring us back to elite status.

 

My expectations are the same now as they were 30 years ago, be competitive with everyone we play and win most of those games. Good bowl games every year, Strive to be a champion.

[teachercd]

IF Riley and co. can recruit well and change some things up I could see the B10 looking just like the B12 was.

 

North (West)

1. Nebraska

2. Missouri (Wisconsin)

3. Kansas State (Minnesota)

4. Colorado (Iowa/NW)

5. Iowa State (Illinois)

6. Kansas (Purdue)

 

South (East)

1. Texas (Ohio State)

2. Oklahoma (Michigan State)

3. Texas A&M (Penn St)

4. Oklahoma St (Maryland)

5. Texas Tech (Rutgers)

6. Baylor (Indiana)

Why do you hate Michigan?

[teachercd]

Franks laziness in recruiting started the downward spiral, We have never recovered from that 7-7 season. Callahan had us on the right track recruiting wise, we were getting some high ranked talent back in the program, but before he could put it on the field, he lost his team and then lost his job. 408 rode the same coattails that Frank did. He squandered good talent that he inherited, but was to lazy to recruit his own. Riley has the plan and the staff in place to bring us back to elite status.

 

My expectations are the same now as they were 30 years ago, be competitive with everyone we play and win most of those games. Good bowl games every year, Strive to be a champion.

 

I hope that Riley has that plan in place to bring in top 15 classes each year!

[ColoradoHusk]

 

IF Riley and co. can recruit well and change some things up I could see the B10 looking just like the B12 was.

 

North (West)

1. Nebraska

2. Missouri (Wisconsin)

3. Kansas State (Minnesota)

4. Colorado (Iowa/NW)

5. Iowa State (Illinois)

6. Kansas (Purdue)

 

South (East)

1. Texas (Ohio State)

2. Oklahoma (Michigan State)

3. Texas A&M (Penn St)

4. Oklahoma St (Maryland)

5. Texas Tech (Rutgers)

6. Baylor (Indiana)

Why do you hate Michigan?

 

Michigan is Oklahoma in that scenario. Michigan State is A&M. A&M won a few divisions and a fluky conference championship in the Big 12, but have never been players on the national level.

[NUinID]

 

 

I never had much respect for the members of the Big Ten. I thought the games were slow and boring. When NU joined the conference, I thought NU would have no problem beating teams like Northwestern, Iowa, and Minnesota. It's upsetting that NU is basically at the same level as Northwestern, Iowa, and Minnesota and a level below Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Michigan State. I think Michigan will soon be at the top tier level with those schools, as long as Harbaugh coach there. I have serious doubts if Riley can get NU to the level of those teams. It will be interesting to see if Wisconsin can stay at that level under Chryst, and if Penn State can get to that level under Franklin.

 

That is because it doesn't compute with you that they could and can play good football. We are Nebraska, we have always been better than those teams and we will always be better than those teams.

 

It would be no different if we were still in the big 12 beating TCU, Baylor, Okie St, W. Va. should be no problem. This is what all the Texas fans are saying right now.

 

I already said it, NU is not as good as they used to be. combine that with other teams being better and you have what you have. The football world has changed. The worst thing that happened to Nebraska was TO retiring.

 

But, are Iowa, Northwestern, and Minnesota playing a lot better football? Not really. It's not like they are TCU or Baylor and jumping into the top 5/top 10 in the country. Iowa, NW, and Minny are in the top 20-40 teams in the country

 

NU has declined to the level of the 2nd tier/3rd tier Big Ten teams, and that's what sucks to see.

 

 

I knew when I wrote this that would be your response. No, TCU and Baylor are playing at a very high level right now. Actually TCU has been doing it for a while. I am not going to disagree with that, but it is the same perception no matter what. Minnesota and Northwestern are playing a lot more competitive football than they historically have lately because they have good coaching and are building programs.

 

Coaching is the equalizer TCU, Baylor, Minnesota, NW have good coaching. NU has had decent coaching. I would never say that BP wasn't a good coach, but he wasn't the right coach for Nebraska. NU needs to find that coach again. We just happened to luck into 35 years of great coaching.

[BIG ERN]

 

IF Riley and co. can recruit well and change some things up I could see the B10 looking just like the B12 was.

 

North (West)

1. Nebraska

2. Missouri (Wisconsin)

3. Kansas State (Minnesota)

4. Colorado (Iowa/NW)

5. Iowa State (Illinois)

6. Kansas (Purdue)

 

South (East)

1. Texas (Ohio State)

2. Oklahoma (Michigan State)

3. Texas A&M (Penn St)

4. Oklahoma St (Maryland)

5. Texas Tech (Rutgers)

6. Baylor (Indiana)

Why do you hate Michigan?

 

 

Ha updated. Point being the North was a lot weaker than the South and I see the same for the West and East. We should make the conference chip pretty consistently.

[RADAR]

 

Franks laziness in recruiting started the downward spiral, We have never recovered from that 7-7 season. Callahan had us on the right track recruiting wise, we were getting some high ranked talent back in the program, but before he could put it on the field, he lost his team and then lost his job. 408 rode the same coattails that Frank did. He squandered good talent that he inherited, but was to lazy to recruit his own. Riley has the plan and the staff in place to bring us back to elite status.

 

My expectations are the same now as they were 30 years ago, be competitive with everyone we play and win most of those games. Good bowl games every year, Strive to be a champion.

 

I hope that Riley has that plan in place to bring in top 15 classes each year!

 

Me too, he is getting talent to visit that 408 said he could never get here. I think it will pay off in February.

[True2tRA]

When we refused to shift in the direction of a defense that focuses on stopping the run, I expected some struggles. Now that we are building a defense that focuses on stopping the type of competition we face, my expectation for the future have risen.

 

Stop the run, win the West. Yes, pass defense could improve a bit, and I'm sure it will, but the focus is in the right area now IMO.

[84HuskerLaw]

I think the question is very intriguing indeed? Another way to ask it might be "Did joining the Big Ten change your expectations?" or another aspect could be "Has the Big Ten Changed since we joined it to the poiint where it has changed your expectations for Nebraska's success in football?" I answer both Yes but there are differences certainly. I felt when we joined the Big Ten we were dropping down a notch in the level of conference status wise. That is, the Big Ten was a lesser conference in football terms than the Big 12 and SEC and even the Pact 12. I felt the Big Ten was the fourth best conference overall and in that sense we moved from an elite football conference to a mediocre one. This could have been, arguably, a mistake from a national image and reputation standpoint. It was like we moved into a run down, poorer part of town. At the time, I felt it should have helped Nebraska to immediately become more likely to win a conference title because the competition was significantly weaker. Initially I think this was true so my expectations for winning a title immediately went up but realistically having a chance for a National title went down, although I felt Nebraska still had a strong underlying reputation and that image carryover from the Big 12 would give us the benefit of the doubt. I also felt getting away from Texas was best because we were not going to get a fair shot at winning in the big 12 with Texas running the show generally.

 

That was then, and this is now! Today, the big ten has grown stronger without question. I personally believe Nebraska joining the Big Ten immediately changed the overall perception of the Big Ten and helped all teams in the Big Ten to recruit, etc. Conversely, Nebraska (and other teams thereafter leaving the Big 12 weakened it and as a result hurt their overall standing nationally. Now the Big Ten has overtaken the big 12 nationally in overall strength and perception. OU and Texas falling down has also reduced the status of the Big 12 as teams like TCU and Baylor (dormat teams a decade or more ago) are NOT UT or OU or Nebraska image wise. The Big 12 is not as good as it once was in terms of national image and power perception. Thus, OSU gets in the playoff and Baylor/TCU does not. Perception matters.

So, ironically, I believe Nebraska would have a better chance to win the conference title in the Big 12 nowadays than the Big ten. Isn't it strange that wherever Nebraska goes, good football comes; even if Nebraska is not the team actually playing it! Isn't that ironic?

[DomiNUs]

I think the whole era of doninant Nebraska Football started changing when we got hosed on divisional setup in the Big 12. We went from overpowering everything to playing an even weaker schedule. We didn't have to fight as hard to win a division and that started reflecting on the product we put out.

 

By the time we realized it Kansas, KSU and Mizzou were routinely thumping us. We took it back but it was too late. The conference was dying and we had to move on. Unfortunately for us we didn't have a coach with enough experience recruiting and our transition into a stronger league has been much harder than it had to be. Bo held the ship together during the move, but he didn't do much for us long term towards winning the league.

I think you bring up a good point. I thought we got hosed on the divisional alignment in the Big 12 as well. I was happy when we moved to the B1G because we were doing something to fix that, and then I think we just got hosed again with the re-alignment of the B1G. We need at least one stable and nationally relevant team, besides ourselves, in our division to give us a measuring stick each and every year. We had Oklahoma in the Big 8. Since then, the slide has continued. We should have fought hard to be aligned with either Michigan, Ohio St. or Penn St. But we lost out on that as well. Now our main opposition is Wisconsin, which is nothing to sneeze at, but they aren't the competition we need.