Season Predictions

[GBRFAN]

The patience I'm referring to is the people who are saying "well, 7-5 would be an acceptable level of improvement," not the patience shown after 6-7.

7-5 would be an utter failure with this roster and against this schedule. It would be a sign that this staff can't get it done at the championship level people expect. It's wholly inconsistent to say that the previous coaches should have been fired, but that a 7-5 season would be anything other than disastrous.

As to recruiting, it appears statistically impossible that this 2017 class will finish in the top 20, even if it breaks entirely NU's way in terms of uncommitted targets choosing a school. On 247, we are currently 32nd and 9th in the B10. Based on average star numbers versus # of commits, NU could probably move up 10 spots if all goes well. On the flip side, three or four teams behind us have fewer recruits and higher average stars, so they could pass NU. All that said, I see this class finishing somewhere around 20th to 25th, which is consistent with most of the previous NU classes.

Personally, I think averaging classes in the 20s should be plenty good enough to compete for and win B10 championships if you run a good system, but to argue that we are somehow recruiting better than we have previously seems like pinning false hopes to misinformation.

You know, this making excuses thing works both ways.

Who's making excuses the other way?

The guy who claimed Riley inherited Top 10 talent from a predecessor who coached them to unranked irrelevance, who claims the Big 10 is easier to win now than when Riley's predecessor failed to win it, who claimed the new coach at Youngstown State deserved a pass after inheriting a winning team then delivering a 5-6 record (transitional year!), and who has consistently gone out of his way to discredit any positive recruiting story attributed to Riley.

That's off the top of my head.

I've never quite figured out your standard for determining "talent" but it seems pretty malleable and aimed almost entirely at making Mike Riley guilty for squandering it.

Always trying to create a picture in my mind of who each poster is and what they might look like or where they came from.... After reading this post I have a much clearer picture of CM

 

[Cornhole]

So, you're pretty much inventing everything off of the top of your head.

Or creating false equivalencies like expecting better than 7-5 meant that a top 10 ranking was expected.

Got it.

And I've explained and linked to (and others have links to) the evidence about NU's talent relative to its opponents.

We've been through this before. I take the time to go back and find the posts where you say exactly what I've claimed, then you find something irrelevant and distracting to say. Let's save us both the time.

If you're actually hanging your hat on a poster or two suggesting a 7-5 season might not be so bad....whatever.

This team is as deep as 90 to95% of teams in the country. So it should be able to finish in the top 5% to 10% and no worse than top 20% this season, even with injuries.

Name a season where the previous HC's who won at least 9 games didn't lose a key contributor or more to injury.

#tiredoftheexcusemaking

Like this?

The top 20% of the 128 FBS teams is a #26 ranking.

During the past several years, the 25th team in the nation (AP poll) has finished with an average of a 9-4 record.

So, yes, I stick to the contention that this team should finish no worse than the top 20% of CFB this year against this schedule.

I also think that it has the POTENTIAL to have an even better record (i.e., 11-2 or better) if it can beat all the teams it "should" beat and one or two that it "shouldn't."

Do you even disagree with me? Or do you just not like that I don't have a strong faith in a .500 staff with 0 championships suddenly "figuring it out"?

I agree that the team should go 9-4 and finish ranked around 25.

I don't agree that this team is top 13 in talent and should finish in the top 13. You stated above that this 2017 class should end up where Nebraska has the past few years: somewhere between 20-25. I think that's probably a fair assessment of where the talent ranks right now, but that's just my opinion.

I don't agree that there are only two teams we "shouldn't" beat (i.e., I think there will be more than two games where we aren't favored). However, it's hard to say now because we're simply guessing as to how good Oregon, Iowa and Wisconsin are compared to Nebraska.

I'm not bitter about your lack of faith in this coaching staff, and I'm not going to argue that they're going to figure it out this year, because I don't know. Our biggest disconnect is regarding talent.

Just my two cents. Regardless, I'm excited for the projections to stop and for the playing to begin.

 

[BigRedBuster]

Who are you addressing BRB? hope it's not me, because if it is, you've misunderstood my feelings toward the program and definitely toward the players.

The aptly named Husker Psycho

That would be correct.

 

[Husker Psycho]

Who are you addressing BRB? hope it's not me, because if it is, you've misunderstood my feelings toward the program and definitely toward the players.

The aptly named Husker Psycho

That would be correct.

LOL

You two guys feel free to come back when you have something to say.

 

[Redux]

So, you're pretty much inventing everything off of the top of your head.

Or creating false equivalencies like expecting better than 7-5 meant that a top 10 ranking was expected.

Got it.

And I've explained and linked to (and others have links to) the evidence about NU's talent relative to its opponents.

We've been through this before. I take the time to go back and find the posts where you say exactly what I've claimed, then you find something irrelevant and distracting to say. Let's save us both the time.If you're actually hanging your hat on a poster or two suggesting a 7-5 season might not be so bad....whatever.

The flaw in his logic is that he read that 7-5 would be acceptable....then quit reading. I'm sure whatever was said by whoever (probably me), was preceeded or followed by a logical explination to the statement.He keeps glossing over thr fact that no one, and I do mean NO ONE, on this board would be happy with Nebraska going 7-5 this year.

I know you wouldn't be happy. No one thinks you would be.

But you'd think it was excusable because it's year 2. And probably put a lot of blame on Tommy. And "inexperienced players."

My contention is that a 12-12 start in the ref seasons for this staff would be (a) inexcusable, and (b) a torpedo to the efforts to maintain a program with any shred of relevancy.

I say lets just wait and see what happens. But that also includes not laying down foundations for why the players will be to blame if we have another clunker of a season and how "2017 will be the breakout year."

If I am indeed one of the posters who said 7-5 would be acceptable, please refresh my memory where and what I said so i can clarify it for you and put this whole mess to rest.

I stand by 2017 being the staffs breakout year regardless of this seasons results good or bad.

So you can have a breakout yr. that is bad? So that means we win less than last yr.?

Reading is hard?

 

[marko polo]

So, you're pretty much inventing everything off of the top of your head.

Or creating false equivalencies like expecting better than 7-5 meant that a top 10 ranking was expected.

Got it.

And I've explained and linked to (and others have links to) the evidence about NU's talent relative to its opponents.

We've been through this before. I take the time to go back and find the posts where you say exactly what I've claimed, then you find something irrelevant and distracting to say. Let's save us both the time.If you're actually hanging your hat on a poster or two suggesting a 7-5 season might not be so bad....whatever.

The flaw in his logic is that he read that 7-5 would be acceptable....then quit reading. I'm sure whatever was said by whoever (probably me), was preceeded or followed by a logical explination to the statement.He keeps glossing over thr fact that no one, and I do mean NO ONE, on this board would be happy with Nebraska going 7-5 this year.

I know you wouldn't be happy. No one thinks you would be.

But you'd think it was excusable because it's year 2. And probably put a lot of blame on Tommy. And "inexperienced players."

My contention is that a 12-12 start in the ref seasons for this staff would be (a) inexcusable, and (b) a torpedo to the efforts to maintain a program with any shred of relevancy.

I say lets just wait and see what happens. But that also includes not laying down foundations for why the players will be to blame if we have another clunker of a season and how "2017 will be the breakout year."

If I am indeed one of the posters who said 7-5 would be acceptable, please refresh my memory where and what I said so i can clarify it for you and put this whole mess to rest.

I stand by 2017 being the staffs breakout year regardless of this seasons results good or bad.

So you can have a breakout yr. that is bad? So that means we win less than last yr.?

Reading is hard?

My apologies mis read it.

 

[Black:X:Shirts]

8-4

Fresno State-W

Wyoming-W

Oregon-L

Northwestern-L

Illinois-W

Indiana-W

Purdue-W

Wisconsin-W

Ohio State-L

Minnesota-W

Maryland-W

Iowa-L

 

[VectorVictor]

09/03 FRESNO STATE (W)
09/10 WYOMING (W)
09/17 OREGON (W)
09/24 @ NORTHWESTERN (W)
10/01 ILLINOIS (W)
10/15 @ INDIANA (L)
10/22 PURDUE (W)
10/29 @ WISCONSIN (W)
11/05 @ OHIO STATE (L)
11/12 MINNESOTA (W)
11/19 MARYLAND (W)
11/25 @ IOWA (W)
12/03 BIG TEN CHAMP. vs. Michigan (L)

10-3, loss to Michigan in B1G Title Game, but we get the top spot for the B1G bowl tie-in since Michigan will go to the Playoffs (couldn't remember if that's the Rose Bowl this year or if the Rose Bowl gets one of the Playoff games).

I'm trying to be optimistic, and as long as Riley and Langsdorf can be taken at their word to not pull the crap they did last year vs. BYU, Illinois, and Pur-f******-due, we'll do better and our offense can help our defense out until that D-Line can come together.

 

[Redux]

We are gonna go 1-11 this season, only win coming in the form of a 68-0 shutout in the horseshoe vs Ohio State.

 

[marko polo]

I think the team comes together after the loss of Sam Foltz and comes out hot. But the end of the season is rough due to lack of experienced depth along the defensive line and we lose a few games.

9-3 regular season with a Big Ten title game appearance.

Injuries could devastate this team. We aren't deep enough to overcome normal attrition. We need to be healthier than average this year to have a decent record.

Depends on the position but yeah it really could. We need a solid year from key spots without having to plug holes because of injury or lack of production. To finish atop the West, we need a solid team for 12 weeks.

Excuses no's... 10,678,416... 10,678,417.

Excuses... and more excuses... and more excuses... and more excuses... and on and on and on... never ending...

No more excuses !

What on earth are you talking about?

There are a half dozen teams that will have a meaningful season each year, and five of them will be making excuses about not winning the National Championship.

There's a very good chance Nebraska will not achieve a Husker Psycho level of success this year, and there will probably be very good reasons.

You can call them excuses if you want, but actually they will be "reasons."

You can then take the reasons why Nebraska did not win as many games as you would have liked and compare them to the reasons why Nebraska won as many games as they did, and decide if that counts as improvement. You will join the other 120 college football programs that did not win any meaningful championship and decide if you like the way the program is trending. You can be optimistic and realistic at the same time.

Were there exciting games, memorable moments and highlight reel plays by your favorite players?

That counts for something, too. It's an entertainment business.

As much as we might grouse about our last 15 championship-free seasons, it's similar to or far better than the troughs other dynastic football programs have been through. That's not an excuse. Just a reality.

And nobody --- I mean nobody --- is endorsing a losing culture.

Winning is a lot more fun. We are rooting for the team to win.

Some of us just want to give the new coach a second or third year before totally flipping out.

So it's no longer the Nebraska Football Program...

It's now the Nebraska Entertainment Business.

I've always said that we would know the ultimate point of our downfall... the point of no return... when people started talking nonsense like that.

This is a total betrayal of all those who have come before. All those players and coaches who gave their heart and soul for the sport of football.

Will there now be tap dancing after we have thrown an interception. Will we become Nebraska Dancing With The Stars ? Will we show slow motion replays of lost fumbles and then let the crowd vote with number cards on the players performance during the fumble. If they get up with a big smile on their face do we give them a high rating for their performance ? Hey, why not it's entertaining. Will we show judges with huge smiles on their faces and jaws droped in amazement after we lose a game ? Of course, it's great entertainmemt.

Or will we stop the nonsense and rededicate ourselves to the sport of football... with high athletic an coaching achievement and performance. Will we get back to being a program that cares more about winning football games... recruiting and developing high achieving athletes... and cares nothing about making excuses... I SURE HOPE SO !

As far a giving the coaching staff another year.

Well guess what you goof ? That's exactly what were doing.

We're all still here... and we're all giving the current coaching staff another chance. We'll cheer when we win and we'll be angry when we loose. When the season is over we will re-evaluate what happened this year and combine the results with what happened last year. We will also look at the results of the current staffs third year of recruiting and each and everyone of us will make their own personal decision on what we think... and where we should go from there. And that's a right that each and every one of us has, as loyal Nebraska fans. You cant force allegiance on fans. My allegiance is to the Nebraska Football Program... not any particular coaching staff or athletic director. I want what's best for the program.

Each and every one of us has the right to think for ourselves. Many of us played football and many of us understand the game and coaching. We can see for ourselves what's happening and whether we're headed in the right direction.

Go Big Red

Amen brother!!!!!