Some ppl need to calm down a bit

[Hammerhead]

No-one said it was going to be a overnight fix like what some ppl where hoping for.

Four years isn't overnight, and I'd argue that the Huskers are worse in year 4 of the Frost era than we were in year 1.  

It's not about the transfer portal, or the refs, or the media, or any other external factor you can use as an excuse.  It's about building a winning program.  What did you see on Saturday that even remotely suggested to you that we're moving in that direction?

 

[BigRedBuster]

The sun came up this morning. Took a nice walk with the dog. Decided to look for bright spots from yesterday that can be nurtured into hope.

That didn't go so well.

I see people who want to give props to an improved defense. But I saw a team that came out of the locker room rested, recharged and just a touchdown behind immediately give up an 8 minute touchdown drive to the second-string quarterback of Illinois. Then give up another, so our already challenged offense had to play from 21 points behind. Those awesome QB sacks in the first quarter are way in the rearview mirror. That's because other teams adjust and do things better. 

The two big errors and 9 point giveaways from senior captains Adrian Martinez and Cam Taylor-Britt were bad at face value, but they also lose massively on style points: Martinez wasn't fighting for yards, he looked stumbling and helpless. It wasn't just Cam's blatant strategic error fielding the ball, it was that panicky attempt to throw the ball ahead -- something a 10 year old might do.

This is a team that gets punched in the mouth and doesn't punch back. They wander around in a daze. 

Although there was plenty of time on the clock and an Illinois team perfectly capable of collapsing, I never for a moment expected Nebraska to win. 

And just to show me I wasn't being overly cynical, Connor Culp misses his second PAT of the game.

The most fervent optimists on HuskerBoard are claiming that had 12 plays gone a little differently, Nebraska could have won. 

These televised games are absolute poison for recruiting. 

The only bright spot?  Nobody in the rest of college football really cares about Nebraska vs. Illinois. 

Jesus.

I thought maybe I could come up with some form of counter argument. 
 

Then I realized…..I got nothing. 
 

There is absolutely no redeeming  qualities about what we saw yesterday. I was beginning to think our defense is awesome.  (Still think the roughing the passer was BS. That play would be on a highlight real from the 90s. Instead, now it’s a 30 yard penalty). But, when they come out of the locker room at half time and give up a drive like that?  It washes away all my positive thoughts. 

 

[Farms]

The sun came up this morning. Took a nice walk with the dog. Decided to look for bright spots from yesterday that can be nurtured into hope.

That didn't go so well.

I see people who want to give props to an improved defense. But I saw a team that came out of the locker room rested, recharged and just a touchdown behind immediately give up an 8 minute touchdown drive to the second-string quarterback of Illinois. Then give up another, so our already challenged offense had to play from 21 points behind. Those awesome QB sacks in the first quarter are way in the rearview mirror. That's because other teams adjust and do things better. 

The two big errors and 9 point giveaways from senior captains Adrian Martinez and Cam Taylor-Britt were bad at face value, but they also lose massively on style points: Martinez wasn't fighting for yards, he looked stumbling and helpless. It wasn't just Cam's blatant strategic error fielding the ball, it was that panicky attempt to throw the ball ahead -- something a 10 year old might do.

This is a team that gets punched in the mouth and doesn't punch back. They wander around in a daze. 

Although there was plenty of time on the clock and an Illinois team perfectly capable of collapsing, I never for a moment expected Nebraska to win. 

And just to show me I wasn't being overly cynical, Connor Culp misses his second PAT of the game.

The most fervent optimists on HuskerBoard are claiming that had 12 plays gone a little differently, Nebraska could have won. 

These televised games are absolute poison for recruiting. 

The only bright spot?  Nobody in the rest of college football really cares about Nebraska vs. Illinois. 

Jesus.

Couldn’t have said it any better man. It’s absolutely brutal to watch.

 

[gobiggergoredder]

It's year 4.  Our 4 year starting QB?  Outplayed by a back up who got beat out by Noah at Rutgers.....75 of our yards came on 1 scramble.....Our alleged vaunted run game, abandoned to the tune of less than 60 yards between 3 backs...TE? Non-existent....OL whipped at the point of attack (5 sacks).....

Frost is simply over his head.  When the HC after a loss says "we guessed wrong" that's a problem.  The inability to adjust is a problem.  Keeping this stack intact for another year is a problem.

Our running game is what it is because defenses have no respect for the QB position.  It’s been this way for years.  
 

This season has everything in place for another disaster.  They simply will do nothing on offense but score for the other team.  The defense will keep them in several games, but it won’t be enough.  

 

[Hammerhead]

I thought maybe I could come up with some form of counter argument. 
 

Then I realized…..I got nothing. 
 

There is absolutely no redeeming  qualities about what we saw yesterday. I was beginning to think our defense is awesome.  (Still think the roughing the passer was BS. That play would be on a highlight real from the 90s. Instead, now it’s a 30 yard penalty). But, when they come out of the locker room at half time and give up a drive like that?  It washes away all my positive thoughts. 

That's what frustrates me so much about this team.  They do something great, like having a drive where they get sacks/TFLs on defense or putting together a nice drive on offense, then the very next series they fall apart.  The only time the team is consistent is when they play poorly.

 

[Caliborn72]

The sun came up this morning. Took a nice walk with the dog. Decided to look for bright spots from yesterday that can be nurtured into hope.

That didn't go so well.

I see people who want to give props to an improved defense. But I saw a team that came out of the locker room rested, recharged and just a touchdown behind immediately give up an 8 minute touchdown drive to the second-string quarterback of Illinois. Then give up another, so our already challenged offense had to play from 21 points behind. Those awesome QB sacks in the first quarter are way in the rearview mirror. That's because other teams adjust and do things better. 

The two big errors and 9 point giveaways from senior captains Adrian Martinez and Cam Taylor-Britt were bad at face value, but they also lose massively on style points: Martinez wasn't fighting for yards, he looked stumbling and helpless. It wasn't just Cam's blatant strategic error fielding the ball, it was that panicky attempt to throw the ball ahead -- something a 10 year old might do.

This is a team that gets punched in the mouth and doesn't punch back. They wander around in a daze. 

Although there was plenty of time on the clock and an Illinois team perfectly capable of collapsing, I never for a moment expected Nebraska to win. 

And just to show me I wasn't being overly cynical, Connor Culp misses his second PAT of the game.

The most fervent optimists on HuskerBoard are claiming that had 12 plays gone a little differently, Nebraska could have won. 

These televised games are absolute poison for recruiting. 

The only bright spot?  Nobody in the rest of college football really cares about Nebraska vs. Illinois. 

Jesus.

Very well said. I’m still out of +1s from yesterday but will get you later with one.

I spent the morning thinking about the defense in the same light as you. I think Chins has gotten an unfair rep and don’t mean to pile on him because I think there’s more accountability on that side of the ball and they’ve certainly been far from the main reason we’ve been losing games these last two years. There were moments in that first half where not only did they look tough, they were FUN.

With that all said, they still managed to let us down badly when we needed them to step up. Is that unfair to say? I know the offense continually let them down and it was ridiculously hot on the field. But when we scored to go up 6-2, the common thought (myself included) was “whew, we might be able to win this 6-2, I’m not sure Illinois can score 5 with their backup QB.” And then they scored 3 TDs - even if one was fueled by a rough penalty- including an impressive 8 minute drive. And my main concern is, what else does Chin need? If THIS defense can’t completely stifle THAT offense, then woof. We brought back everyone and have all-conference calibers at every level of the defense.

 

[The Dude]

The sun came up this morning. Took a nice walk with the dog. Decided to look for bright spots from yesterday that can be nurtured into hope.

That didn't go so well.

I see people who want to give props to an improved defense. But I saw a team that came out of the locker room rested, recharged and just a touchdown behind immediately give up an 8 minute touchdown drive to the second-string quarterback of Illinois. Then give up another, so our already challenged offense had to play from 21 points behind. Those awesome QB sacks in the first quarter are way in the rearview mirror. That's because other teams adjust and do things better. 

The two big errors and 9 point giveaways from senior captains Adrian Martinez and Cam Taylor-Britt were bad at face value, but they also lose massively on style points: Martinez wasn't fighting for yards, he looked stumbling and helpless. It wasn't just Cam's blatant strategic error fielding the ball, it was that panicky attempt to throw the ball ahead -- something a 10 year old might do.

This is a team that gets punched in the mouth and doesn't punch back. They wander around in a daze. 

Although there was plenty of time on the clock and an Illinois team perfectly capable of collapsing, I never for a moment expected Nebraska to win. 

And just to show me I wasn't being overly cynical, Connor Culp misses his second PAT of the game.

The most fervent optimists on HuskerBoard are claiming that had 12 plays gone a little differently, Nebraska could have won. 

These televised games are absolute poison for recruiting. 

The only bright spot?  Nobody in the rest of college football really cares about Nebraska vs. Illinois. 

Jesus.

At this point I just feel bad for the people who have desperately tried to convince themselves the defense is getting good because we've played so many crummy offenses in a row now.  The fallout from the Oklahoma game is going to be brutal.

 

[Crusader Husker]

I am calm, I am calm because there is exactly zero to get excited about.

The sellout streak will be over, I am pretty calm about it.

We may be the worst team in the West, still calm.

I was not angry, mad, or disappointed, after yesterday's game; I was clam.

I am waiting for the day that I am not calm, but excited again.

 

[Guy Chamberlin]

I am calm, I am calm because there is exactly zero to get excited about.

The sellout streak will be over, I am pretty calm about it.

We may be the worst team in the West, still calm.

I was not angry, mad, or disappointed, after yesterday's game; I was clam.

I am waiting for the day that I am not calm, but excited again.

If by "clam" you mean sealing yourself off in a hardened shell to avoid pain, I'm right there with you.

 

[Hagg]

I think we need a forum called "What the boosters are saying"

I don't know if we need a forum for that, but I'd sure like to know what they are saying.

 

[BaytownHusker]

Lets be real. if frost was still at UCF the past 4 years he would would have a total of 5-6 losses. Hes a good Non power 5 coach. He has an eye for the talent that can win down there.  He wont have any 8-9 win seasons here. He cant build us that way lol..

And lets be honest. Ohio State giving 5 stars cars and we car giving sandwiches. The rich getting richer. We wont be able to come close to recruiting whats needed to win 10 games a year now.

 

[Husker66]

This forum and this program became a broken record 15 years ago...and the music on that record is really bad...

Gave up 10 years ago.

 

[GamingGlen]

I think I prefer the offseason talk now.  

 

[lo country]

Remember when Corey Raymond said look at them and look at us after losing to Carolina......Dude was not wrong then and isn't wrong now.....Only it's not the players, it's the staff.  I have been better on Chin last year, but allowing an 8 minute drive with a back up QB......And allowed him go 12-15(16?)  WTH........That's not a good defense.  

How do we have top 20 classes and lose like we do and have for the past 4 years......Illinois twice in the past 2 years.  Not since the 1920's.....Lost our 1st August game after going 14-0........And Frost just looked whipped before the opening KO.....

Good thing is, no way this staff survives to be here next season.  At least not intact.  Maybe they pull their collective heads out of their a$$es and commits to runing 12/13 personnel, lean on a running game we have seen since 2018, use the TE's, Manning, Betts and Martin......Get HH in and sit AM.  If we keep AM, PA passing, roll him out....Use his legs.  Often and a lot.

 

[JJ Husker]

There is nothing to get excited about so I am calm as can be.

It is now absolutely clear that Frost was/is not the answer. Most of us hoped he would be but yesterday confirmed beyond a doubt that this just isn’t going to work.  The ceiling is maybe, possibly, luckily making a bowl game. I think that even that is beyond reach this year, I could be wrong. This looks to be yet another sub .500 atrocity that Frost has misrepresented as some sort of improved version of dog sh#t. I think this staff thought they could do it and tried their best to do it but this is real big boy football, not the AAC. They are in way over their head and it so readily apparent, this will be their last season in Lincoln .

Unfortunately we are staring down the barrel of yet another staff change. The prospects of which do not look good. The small handful of coaches who could effect change in Lincoln is extremely limited and even more doubtful we could hire them for any amount of money. Anybody stupid enough to take this job would have to be doing it primarily for the Golden parachute contract and not out of any desire to actually accomplish a true program resurrection.

At this point, this is what Husker football is and will be for a long long time. This is the price of all that has transpired since the Tom Osborne era. Solich, Callahan, Pelini, Riley, Frost….the way and timing of each of those actions has a price and the program can’t escape them. I understand many won’t accept that. I also understand that the program has to keep trying to return to relevance. The status quo is not acceptable. Something, anything has to be attempted. But I have no hope whatsoever. The absolute top end would be returning to the Peliniesque 9 wins with no wins of significance. Some fans may like that. It does very little for those of us who experienced the Devaney & Osborne eras. Yes, 9 wins is better than only 3 or 6, but it is not excellence. It is no substitute for regularly competing for conference and national titles.

The sad news is, I want to give up. I don’t want to care. I am currently as apathetic as can be. I don’t really care if Frost is ever replaced or not. Nor do I care who the next coach will be. I don’t think it will make any difference. I’m tired of the rinse and repeat of the last 25 years. But this thing is an addiction, a seemingly inseparable part of my life. For inexplicable reasons I will tune in and watch the Fordham (yes lowly Fordham) game next week and hope we resemble the dominant team of years gone by.