Saunders
Heisman Trophy Winner
Iowa-Nebraska boiling over
When Nebraska accepted an invitation to join the Big Ten beginning with the 2011 sports season, there’s was hope from the league office the Cornhuskers could develop an all-sports rivalry with Iowa.
The teams were placed in the same football division and Big Ten officials scheduled their game for the regular-season finale, which then was moved to Black Friday. The first installment in Lincoln went over like flat champagne. But it recent years the series has simmered to a boil.
Neither side is ready to call it a rivalry, but the friction from not doing so has chafed both sides raw. Nebraska fans are loathe to consider it a rivalry because many don’t consider Iowa worthy of that status. Historically, Nebraska ranks among college football’s elite programs with five national titles. Iowa has a share of one — back in 1958.
But unlike many of Nebraska’s old Big Eight foes, Iowa fans won’t accept the arrogance with a smile. The Hawkeyes have long-standing rivalries with Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa State. So if Nebraska thinks it’s too good to be Iowa’s rival, then Iowa has no interest in kissing the ring to make it so.
In effect, this series is about to boil over.
More Iowa-Nebraska
When trying to contrast the programs, among the most difficult issues is where to position the figurative goal posts. If you include Nebraska’s three national titles in the 1990s (which was a great decade for those of us who experienced it), then just forget any kind of comparison. But is Nebraska’s 1990s success relevant to a 2017 comparison with Iowa?
Likewise, if Iowa cherry-picks the data from 2002 onward, it’s mostly in the Hawkeyes’ favor. So the best way to compare the schools is to begin in 2011, especially now with six years of data. To do so is to agree Nebraska has a rich tradition, and the 2000s were kind to Iowa.
Since Nebraska joined the Big Ten, the Cornhuskers are 52-27 overall and 31-18 in Big Ten play. Iowa is 46-32 overall and 29-20 in the league. Both have won one divisional title and suffered one losing season. Nebraska finished its first two Big Ten seasons ranked in the top 25 (24th, 25th). Iowa finished the 2015 season ranked ninth.
The teams have split their six meetings, but Iowa has outscored Nebraska 154-117. That disparity came from the Hawkeyes’ 40-10 thrashing last November.
If we go back to 2000, Nebraska has eight top-25 finishes and Iowa has six. The Cornhuskers have two top-10 finishes (but none since 2001) and the Hawkeyes have five (but none before 2002). Iowa participated in 14 bowls (it had a 6-6 season in 2007 but didn’t compete in the postseason), while Nebraska has played in 15 (counting its 5-7 season in 2015). The Huskers own a 146-75 record since 2000, while the Hawks are 134-82.
So where does it go from here? We’ll find out this fall when they battle for the Heroes Trophy on Nov. 24 in Lincoln.
https://www.landof10.com/iowa/iowa-nebraska-series-sizzling-toward-rivalry-status-midfield-logo-addition-necessary
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