OWH: Huskers Win More but Urgency Remains

[Mavric]

NU is practicing nearly as often as it can — in physical workouts, sometimes top units pitted against each other — during the weeks when players have their final exams. Players get the weekend, including graduation Saturday, to rest before plunging back into practice Monday.

There’s an urgency to a program that just won three, and could win four, more games than it did in 2015, seemingly the same urgency NU felt after it back-doored its way into a bowl game last season. A sense of atonement, which may seem odd in a season where the Huskers briefly reached the nation’s top 10.

Spectacular flameouts in two road games — a 62-3 loss at Ohio State and a 40-10 drubbing at rival Iowa — fuel the urgency. The loss at OSU could be wiped away, perhaps, as a bad night against a more talented team. But the Iowa loss couldn’t — and wasn’t.

“It’s funny, because we won nine games,” coach Mike Riley said last week of the mood around the program. “But when you lose like that at the end? I’m just so thankful we have another game.”

True. Nebraska (9-3) has one last chapter to write on this season, and the team deems it a big chapter. The Husker players and coaches desire the same momentum heading into 2017 they enjoyed after their Foster Farms Bowl win over UCLA last season. NU could win 10 games for the first time since 2012. It could avoid having at least four losses for the first time since 2003.

OWH

 

[BoNeyard]

9 wins don't cut it around here, so don't act surprised.

Even 10-3 seasons around here get old quick.

Competing against the elite and being considered one of the elite is where we want and should be.

 

[JJ Husker]

9 wins don't cut it around here, so don't act surprised.

Even 10-3 seasons around here get old quick.

Competing against the elite and being considered one of the elite is where we want and should be.

I agree except you have to go back to 2003 to find a season where we lost less than 4 games. So, 10-3 really wouldn't be "old". It would be a feat we haven't accomplished in 13 years. Unfortunately it's not looking likely.

 

[Making Chimichangas]

9 wins don't cut it around here, so don't act surprised.

Even 10-3 seasons around here get old quick.

Competing against the elite and being considered one of the elite is where we want and should be.

I disagree. If Nebraska is continuously 9-3 or 10-2, and routinely in the talk for legit conference and national championships, and we win a few along the way, say in a 10 year span, I doubt anyone will be saying 9 wins ain't good enough.

The key is, we gotta at least be winning conference titles every now and then. In a 10 year period, say 2017-2026, if we can win 2-3 conference titles and consistently in the mix nationally, I'd be perfectly happy with that.

 

[JJ Husker]

9 wins don't cut it around here, so don't act surprised.

Even 10-3 seasons around here get old quick.

Competing against the elite and being considered one of the elite is where we want and should be.

I disagree. If Nebraska is continuously 9-3 or 10-2, and routinely in the talk for legit conference and national championships, and we win a few along the way, say in a 10 year span, I doubt anyone will be saying 9 wins ain't good enough.

The key is, we gotta at least be winning conference titles every now and then. In a 10 year period, say 2017-2026, if we can win 2-3 conference titles and consistently in the mix nationally, I'd be perfectly happy with that.

Pretty sure that was implied. Nobody is complaining about winning 9 or 10 games. The problem is ONLY winning 9 or 10 against the worst of our schedule and nothing more to go with it. Of course losing a couple of those 3 or 4 losses in spectacular fashion doesn't help either.

 

[Redux]

I couldn't care less about slavaging the season at this point to be completely honest. We won the Oregon game, I saw it live, will always be epic to me. But we lost in heartbreaking fashion to Wisconsin and let Iowa embrass us. To top it off, tOSU made us look like a Division II squad.

Winning the bowl game isn't about salvaging the season. It's about salvaging the recruiting class.

 

[Making Chimichangas]

9 wins don't cut it around here, so don't act surprised.

Even 10-3 seasons around here get old quick.

Competing against the elite and being considered one of the elite is where we want and should be.

I disagree. If Nebraska is continuously 9-3 or 10-2, and routinely in the talk for legit conference and national championships, and we win a few along the way, say in a 10 year span, I doubt anyone will be saying 9 wins ain't good enough.

The key is, we gotta at least be winning conference titles every now and then. In a 10 year period, say 2017-2026, if we can win 2-3 conference titles and consistently in the mix nationally, I'd be perfectly happy with that.

Pretty sure that was implied. Nobody is complaining about winning 9 or 10 games. The problem is ONLY winning 9 or 10 against the worst of our schedule and nothing more to go with it. Of course losing a couple of those 3 or 4 losses in spectacular fashion doesn't help either.

Re-read @Boneyard's reply above.

 

[Making Chimichangas]

I couldn't care less about slavaging the season at this point to be completely honest. We won the Oregon game, I saw it live, will always be epic to me. But we lost in heartbreaking fashion to Wisconsin and let Iowa embrass us. To top it off, tOSU made us look like a Division II squad.

Winning the bowl game isn't about salvaging the season. It's about salvaging the recruiting class.

Is the recruiting class in trouble?

 

[Redux]

I couldn't care less about slavaging the season at this point to be completely honest. We won the Oregon game, I saw it live, will always be epic to me. But we lost in heartbreaking fashion to Wisconsin and let Iowa embrass us. To top it off, tOSU made us look like a Division II squad.

Winning the bowl game isn't about salvaging the season. It's about salvaging the recruiting class.

Is the recruiting class in trouble?

It looked better a month ago.

 

[marko polo]

I couldn't care less about slavaging the season at this point to be completely honest. We won the Oregon game, I saw it live, will always be epic to me. But we lost in heartbreaking fashion to Wisconsin and let Iowa embrass us. To top it off, tOSU made us look like a Division II squad.

Winning the bowl game isn't about salvaging the season. It's about salvaging the recruiting class.

Is the recruiting class in trouble?

Could still turn out good but it is looking unlikely. We will prob end up rank wise just about where we have been.

 

[cornstar]

I couldn't care less about slavaging the season at this point to be completely honest. We won the Oregon game, I saw it live, will always be epic to me. But we lost in heartbreaking fashion to Wisconsin and let Iowa embrass us. To top it off, tOSU made us look like a Division II squad.

Winning the bowl game isn't about salvaging the season. It's about salvaging the recruiting class.

I pretty much agree with you except for the Oregon game. I understand that you and many others really enjoyed it, but they were a bad team this year.

Seemingly all of the Key-Gebbia momentum is gone. If things don't turn around quickly I have a bad feeling about the direction of the program.

 

[Redux]

How Oregons season turned out and how our season turned out will never take away from the atmosphere of that game and crowd.

 

[Making Chimichangas]

I couldn't care less about slavaging the season at this point to be completely honest. We won the Oregon game, I saw it live, will always be epic to me. But we lost in heartbreaking fashion to Wisconsin and let Iowa embrass us. To top it off, tOSU made us look like a Division II squad.

Winning the bowl game isn't about salvaging the season. It's about salvaging the recruiting class.

Is the recruiting class in trouble?

It looked better a month ago.

Could you fill me in? I just don't follow recruiting. Too many ups and downs.

 

[Redux]

I couldn't care less about slavaging the season at this point to be completely honest. We won the Oregon game, I saw it live, will always be epic to me. But we lost in heartbreaking fashion to Wisconsin and let Iowa embrass us. To top it off, tOSU made us look like a Division II squad.

Winning the bowl game isn't about salvaging the season. It's about salvaging the recruiting class.

Is the recruiting class in trouble?

It looked better a month ago.

Could you fill me in? I just don't follow recruiting. Too many ups and downs.

Losing out on our big CB target. Lost a DE commit, could possibly lose the other. Our top OT target is almost out of reach. TE possibly decomitting.

 

[JJ Husker]

9 wins don't cut it around here, so don't act surprised.

Even 10-3 seasons around here get old quick.

Competing against the elite and being considered one of the elite is where we want and should be.

I disagree. If Nebraska is continuously 9-3 or 10-2, and routinely in the talk for legit conference and national championships, and we win a few along the way, say in a 10 year span, I doubt anyone will be saying 9 wins ain't good enough.

The key is, we gotta at least be winning conference titles every now and then. In a 10 year period, say 2017-2026, if we can win 2-3 conference titles and consistently in the mix nationally, I'd be perfectly happy with that.

Pretty sure that was implied. Nobody is complaining about winning 9 or 10 games. The problem is ONLY winning 9 or 10 against the worst of our schedule and nothing more to go with it. Of course losing a couple of those 3 or 4 losses in spectacular fashion doesn't help either.

Re-read @Boneyard's reply above.

I know what that one comment of his says. But, I think I've read enough of his other posts to know that the tune would be different, if like you said, we were regularly in contention for winning the division and conference and sniffing at the playoffs even once in awhile. We all complain about 9 wins because, around here, that is code for the pinnacle of what this program has accomplished over the past way too many years. Not too many (although there are a few) who are satisfied with the lack of meaningful wins and championships. It's not the 9 or 10 wins per se that are the problem but the complete lack of anything more.