It seems to me that Nebraska was at their peak during the big 8. Since the inception of the big 12 we have been falling. This might be more due to the coaching change that happened at the same time as the beginning of the big 12 than anything, but it seems to me that all i ever read about is the struggle we have pulling the big recruits in from Texas now, and how we are a second tier team, very similar to KU, MU, and CU. I wonder if the big 12 has accidentally caused parity in the North. Several reason I think so are outlined below.
Recruiting Battles.
When we were in the big 8 we were the main attraction. We were hated by everyone else and were always at the top. If you were a top tier player in any of the surrounding states, then it was either us, or OU at times. When the Big 12 was formed the recruiting world of the area got turned upside down. Now the biggest recruits are being spread out, and most of them are staying closer to home. This didn't hurt us before, because those recruits weren't with in the conference, so we were able to constantly be on the national stage by competing against programs that couldn't recruit like we did. It was easier for us to win the conference and be in the national spotlight. When the big 12 formed we were battling schools that had recruiting advantages and will always have those advantages. Now we compete with every other school in the North for lesser talent. Therefore, all of us up here come out fairly similar in recruiting. Recruiting is the main reason for all of this, and it seems that we have been battling hard for 2nd tier talent with more schools, and less successfully, since the big 12 began. We compete in conference with the best recruits in the nation. During the big 8, those best recruits that went to Texas and other big 12 schools made us little difference for being in the national spotlight. Now they kill us. And this is a dumb one, but how many times on rivals they talk about athletes having to get the winter coats out to make visits up to see us and if that hurts our chances or not?
Population.
Nebraska has one of the lowest population bases in the conference. Therefore we don't get some of the media coverage of other schools. Also, our population base is probably in the middle to bottom of the North. This puts us at a disadvantage for getting national exposure in a profit-driven media. In the big 8 days, there was a lot more equality in population bases around the conference. Sure, we were still near the bottom, but most schools were very similar to us and our fan support out weighed what we lacked in population directly in the state of Nebraska. It just isn't as profitable for media to cover us as to cover more populated bases.
Competition.
We have to beat ISU, KSU, KU, MU, and CU every year to win. That is easier than what they have in the south, but headlines that read: "Nebraska clinched the north with a win over colorado" just doesn't do the same as the red river rivalry, the playstation offense of Mike Leach, or the tradition of A&M. We should compete for the North every year with the competition up here, so not winning the North is a dissappointment and not nearly as awe-inspiring to win. Down there it is complete glory if you come out on top. We don't have that high level of competition up here. Sure, that bodes well for us in terms of making it to the big 12 championship game, but it doesn't serve us nearly as well in returning to prominence. Playing the big guys from the south every 2 years helps, but we lack that big rivalry game we had during the days of the big 8. With out it, it is hard for us to be as relevant as we used to be.
Not winning the Big 12 North is a big deal.
Obviously, we aren't going to win it every single year. And years that we don't are big because the other schools in the North simply don't have the tradition we do. Therefore, when they win, it is much bigger deal to them and a bigger deal nationally. It is sort of like the playing a super, super pudd schedule before the conference in basketball. If you lose, it kills your chances of making the NCAA tournement, but if you win it doesn't really help you all that much either as far as national prominence.
I know there are a lot of other factors, and that the coaching shake up at Nebraska has made a huge impact on everything around here, but i don't think that our slip from a national powerhouse and the formation of the big 12 is a complete coincidence.
Recruiting Battles.
When we were in the big 8 we were the main attraction. We were hated by everyone else and were always at the top. If you were a top tier player in any of the surrounding states, then it was either us, or OU at times. When the Big 12 was formed the recruiting world of the area got turned upside down. Now the biggest recruits are being spread out, and most of them are staying closer to home. This didn't hurt us before, because those recruits weren't with in the conference, so we were able to constantly be on the national stage by competing against programs that couldn't recruit like we did. It was easier for us to win the conference and be in the national spotlight. When the big 12 formed we were battling schools that had recruiting advantages and will always have those advantages. Now we compete with every other school in the North for lesser talent. Therefore, all of us up here come out fairly similar in recruiting. Recruiting is the main reason for all of this, and it seems that we have been battling hard for 2nd tier talent with more schools, and less successfully, since the big 12 began. We compete in conference with the best recruits in the nation. During the big 8, those best recruits that went to Texas and other big 12 schools made us little difference for being in the national spotlight. Now they kill us. And this is a dumb one, but how many times on rivals they talk about athletes having to get the winter coats out to make visits up to see us and if that hurts our chances or not?
Population.
Nebraska has one of the lowest population bases in the conference. Therefore we don't get some of the media coverage of other schools. Also, our population base is probably in the middle to bottom of the North. This puts us at a disadvantage for getting national exposure in a profit-driven media. In the big 8 days, there was a lot more equality in population bases around the conference. Sure, we were still near the bottom, but most schools were very similar to us and our fan support out weighed what we lacked in population directly in the state of Nebraska. It just isn't as profitable for media to cover us as to cover more populated bases.
Competition.
We have to beat ISU, KSU, KU, MU, and CU every year to win. That is easier than what they have in the south, but headlines that read: "Nebraska clinched the north with a win over colorado" just doesn't do the same as the red river rivalry, the playstation offense of Mike Leach, or the tradition of A&M. We should compete for the North every year with the competition up here, so not winning the North is a dissappointment and not nearly as awe-inspiring to win. Down there it is complete glory if you come out on top. We don't have that high level of competition up here. Sure, that bodes well for us in terms of making it to the big 12 championship game, but it doesn't serve us nearly as well in returning to prominence. Playing the big guys from the south every 2 years helps, but we lack that big rivalry game we had during the days of the big 8. With out it, it is hard for us to be as relevant as we used to be.
Not winning the Big 12 North is a big deal.
Obviously, we aren't going to win it every single year. And years that we don't are big because the other schools in the North simply don't have the tradition we do. Therefore, when they win, it is much bigger deal to them and a bigger deal nationally. It is sort of like the playing a super, super pudd schedule before the conference in basketball. If you lose, it kills your chances of making the NCAA tournement, but if you win it doesn't really help you all that much either as far as national prominence.
I know there are a lot of other factors, and that the coaching shake up at Nebraska has made a huge impact on everything around here, but i don't think that our slip from a national powerhouse and the formation of the big 12 is a complete coincidence.
Last edited by a moderator:
