Roundball Shaman
Four-Star Recruit
Think back to all the expressions of joy and happiness and anticipation expressed by the vast majority of Husker Nation when Scott Frost was hired as Head Coach. As would be well expected. Husker football has been in such a drought for so long that any sign of quenching rains out on the horizon was cause for celebration. And Frost was part of the last group of dominating Husker teams that are so beloved. It all looked so right.
And then... life happened. Reality happened. Huskers didn’t become great overnight. No magic wand to wave, or the (darn) thing wasn’t working right. Husker problems turned out to be deeper than many thought. A couple years into it now, and everyone is struggling to find the positives.
What’s wrong with this picture? Expectations were out of line with the reality of the Husker situation. Except for trying to hire one or two of the mega-big name coaches (whose names you well know) things were not going to turn around quickly. And those coaches were never coming to Nebraska.
So where does that leave things? We can back off of any grand ideas about where the Huskers will be in the near term and center on what the Huskers can be for sure. Huskers can become more united as a team. They can stop with the losing attitude. They can learn to quit making so many mistakes. They can quit trying to live up to a legacy that’s back in the past and continues to haunt instead of inspire. They can be who and what they are, for better or worse. And Husker Nation can reset its expectations for what this team is capable of doing with what they have.
Husker football can and will give a better accounting of itself going forward. It can and will be more competitive. It won’t be Alabama or Clemson or Ohio State level caliber anytime soon if ever, but it will be more representative of The Nebraska Way of giving a good effort and representing a great legacy program. These past two years are the lowest point of the overall process.
The quickest fix that Frost can make is to help these guys begin to think like winners. The losing attitude has to go. Attitude and dedication doesn’t require a great recruiting class or spending any money. It means to lead with the team passion and sell your vision of giving a winning effort on every single play and not looking frustrated when things go wrong. If the positive message isn’t getting through now then he needs to find a better way to deliver it.
Losers look for reasons why they lose. Winners are those who leave the field at the end of a game and know they gave their best effort and had some fun along the way. And hug their teammates because they did the same thing. It’s sometimes not as hard as some people try to make it.
Keep your heads up, Huskers and fans. Husker pride is the way back to the Promised Land.
And then... life happened. Reality happened. Huskers didn’t become great overnight. No magic wand to wave, or the (darn) thing wasn’t working right. Husker problems turned out to be deeper than many thought. A couple years into it now, and everyone is struggling to find the positives.
What’s wrong with this picture? Expectations were out of line with the reality of the Husker situation. Except for trying to hire one or two of the mega-big name coaches (whose names you well know) things were not going to turn around quickly. And those coaches were never coming to Nebraska.
So where does that leave things? We can back off of any grand ideas about where the Huskers will be in the near term and center on what the Huskers can be for sure. Huskers can become more united as a team. They can stop with the losing attitude. They can learn to quit making so many mistakes. They can quit trying to live up to a legacy that’s back in the past and continues to haunt instead of inspire. They can be who and what they are, for better or worse. And Husker Nation can reset its expectations for what this team is capable of doing with what they have.
Husker football can and will give a better accounting of itself going forward. It can and will be more competitive. It won’t be Alabama or Clemson or Ohio State level caliber anytime soon if ever, but it will be more representative of The Nebraska Way of giving a good effort and representing a great legacy program. These past two years are the lowest point of the overall process.
The quickest fix that Frost can make is to help these guys begin to think like winners. The losing attitude has to go. Attitude and dedication doesn’t require a great recruiting class or spending any money. It means to lead with the team passion and sell your vision of giving a winning effort on every single play and not looking frustrated when things go wrong. If the positive message isn’t getting through now then he needs to find a better way to deliver it.
Losers look for reasons why they lose. Winners are those who leave the field at the end of a game and know they gave their best effort and had some fun along the way. And hug their teammates because they did the same thing. It’s sometimes not as hard as some people try to make it.
Keep your heads up, Huskers and fans. Husker pride is the way back to the Promised Land.
