What does a victory over Wisconsin do for you?

Past history of Riley tells you that his teams respond when playing better teams. He has coached teams to wins over Top 10 ranked teams. Neither Bo nor Callahan could ever do that. So I think given Riles record vs Top teams, this team could win 6 more games this season and play in a decent bowl game.

Even though I seem to be fighting for Riley right now, I also don't know for sure if he can do what Pelini couldn't do. I don't know if Riles can lead Neb to a West Dv title. I don't know if he can win a piece of the Big 10 crown. I think any coaches first season should be viewed and looked at based on if the team improved thru out the season. This is Riles first Big 10 football experience. We all know that Big 10 football is different than Pac 12. Styles are different, talent level is different. Even though we all are unsure of Riles at this moment, we need to stay on board. Don't forget, 1992 I watched a monster team go to Ames and lose to Iowa St who was awful. Bad losses do happen. They happen to alot of really good teams every season. I think everyone here would admit that BYU and Miami are acceptable losses, not that we like them, but they weren't Iowa St either. Illini was a bad loss, but I think in the last few years, weve had these losses every season to someone.

Win this weekend, erases that loss last weekend and maybe makes the season ahead look more optimistic. A loss this weekend, and the flood gates will open and we start losing all the players currently on hand and those looking at come to Neb next year.

 
If Riley can recruit better than Pelini, it follows that his teams should be able to achieve more than Pelini's.

 
IA State Husker said:
junior4949 said:
IA State Husker said:
EVERY win means a lot. This is college football, for christ sake!

regardless of Wisconsin's perceived strength or weakness, we should want and need to beat them every year. They are a divisional opponent, if nothing more.

They ARE more, though. They have had our number, and need to be put back in their place.
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What is their place? Aren't we the new kids on the block in the B1G? I'm not even sure I understand the comment about Wisconsin needing to be put back in their place. They were a good B1G team long before we joined.

A win against Wisconsin this year really doesn't mean much to me other than it's a win. It's just another game. A win against Michigan State on the other hand would mean a lot because of where they are ranked. I highly doubt Wisconsin finishes the season ranked, so the win will mean nothing more than just another win.
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I suppose i should have worded it "put in their place" rather than "put back in their place". That would be more accurate, but really you are just nitpicking about semantics.

My point is that Nebraska SHOULD and WILL own the Big Ten West Division. Wisconsin has done well with their system over the last 15 years or so, but there is no reason Nebraska shouldn't be dominating our series with them. Nebraska has had a more talented roster than Wisconsin for decades. They have had stability of system, and that has been their edge, but them owning us regularly is NOT acceptible to me.

Do you think we should just assume that Wisconsin SHOULD BE dominant over Nebraska?
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Wisconsin over the past decade has just been better than us. They've won the B1G. They've played in BCS bowls. They've just been flat better. I'm not seeing the day we own the B1G West. I see us occasionally winning the West, but I don't see a day when you just pencil us into the B1G Championship. Wisconsin shouldn't be dominant over us, but they will win their fair share of the games against us over the next decade I have no doubt.

 
A win over Wisconsin is a must. Theoretically, we would still have a chance at winning the division and going to the CCG. A loss would make us 2-4. At that point the season would be pretty much over. I don't see us beating Michigan State. That would give us 5 losses. I don't know if we would even be bowl eligible. A win over Wisconsin offers us hope for the rest of the season. A loss will, from my perspective, have me concentrating on next year.

 
A win will make me happy for the kids, the staff and Coach Riley.

I can deal with either, still to young in this run to have any idea how it will turn out. This information about the past coach talking with them, bothers me, but until it is a proven, I am hoping that it was positive conversation.

HCMR is still trying and working on changing the culture of the program, to use a buzz word for the sport. I am sure there are kids still upset for what happened. If there weren't Bo was not doing his job as head coach. He needed them to buy in to. Just hope it is more fun for the kids, which normally will make it more fun for the fan base.

Some are way too concerned with 18-22 year old kids making their life better.

Our mottos/logos say we are different, it would make a step in getting some to live by them I think/hope.

Still a lot of games, let's work on them one at a time and keep moving forward.

 
We have to get rid of the ghosts of Wisc past
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out of the system. They have dominated the series since we ented the Big 10 in every way possible except for one win by NU. In the same way we had to exorcise the OU sooner magic ghost - we have to do the same here. Might as well start wt this game. Both teams are down - I'd like us to be one on the rebound. Wins build confidence and that is what we need. Time to flush our record
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wt them and start over on the win side

 
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IA State Husker said:
EVERY win means a lot. This is college football, for christ sake!

regardless of Wisconsin's perceived strength or weakness, we should want and need to beat them every year. They are a divisional opponent, if nothing more.

They ARE more, though. They have had our number, and need to be put back in their place.
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Put back in their place? What if their run of dominance over us IS their place and to continue the analysis, also shows us OUR place in this conference?

We aren't competing well against the top teams in this conference, hell, we haven't done that in any conference for a decade and a half. So, what is our place? And looking at recent history, what is it that makes us feel entitled to act like conference champions? Champions have to win championships.

 
StPaulHusker said:
beorach said:
If Riley can recruit better than Pelini, it follows that his teams should be able to achieve more than Pelini's.
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Riley hasn't done that, yet
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That's why I went with "if," yes. I just think a lot of the gloom and doom is coming from people who seem to think our team has more talent than they do. Going into the first game, I think it was reasonable to dub Jordan Westerkamp our best player. That TD that came from reversing the field had me questioning why that worried me during the BYU game. Tommy Armstrong has largely impressed since...but then you have a guy like Daniel Davie who hasn't. One of my favorite moments of this college football season was Kyle Whittingham (sp?) telling the likes of Matt Leinart and Dave Wannstedt how recruiting is the most important thing in college football (after his Utes beat Michigan and they were giving him a chance to crow about his coaching prowess following their having gushed over He-who-wears-the-khakis-and-sometimes-spectacles all night). Growing pains are part of a change and, so long as we see growth in time, I'll be positive about the future.

 
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junior4949 said:
Wisconsin over the past decade has just been better than us. They've won the B1G. They've played in BCS bowls. They've just been flat better. I'm not seeing the day we own the B1G West. I see us occasionally winning the West, but I don't see a day when you just pencil us into the B1G Championship. Wisconsin shouldn't be dominant over us, but they will win their fair share of the games against us over the next decade I have no doubt.
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Frustrated said:
Put back in their place? What if their run of dominance over us IS their place and to continue the analysis, also shows us OUR place in this conference?


We aren't competing well against the top teams in this conference, hell, we haven't done that in any conference for a decade and a half. So, what is our place? And looking at recent history, what is it that makes us feel entitled to act like conference champions? Champions have to win championships.
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Thanks for not reading the thread before posting, as I was having the exact same conversation with junior.

Perhaps I should have stated it differently, but I am tired of playing second fiddle to Wisconsin. I think most Husker fans are, too.

If it was Michigan, or Ohio State that consistently humiliated us on the field, I think we would be vengeful too, but at least we could rationalize that the team we lost to was just better. I don't get that same feeling with Wisconsin.

Is that arrogant? Maybe.

Is there a past history of us owning them? No. We never played them much before now.

I don't care. I still feel that we should be beating them fairly regularly. We aren't there yet, but isn't that what most of us want?

 
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It's on ABC/ESPN and Wisconsin is the girl who's already been kissed, so I'm guessing a victory against them won't do that much for me. It'll take three or four solid games to convince me we're on the right track. No last minute ABC theatrics will convince me of that.

 
3-3 would feel so much better than 2-4. A win would reignite my hopes for a bowl game. A loss....really wouldn't effect me like last week.

My gut is telling me we will win this game but i refuse to get my hopes up. In fact my expectations are pretty low, if not nonexsistant. I'm in full on last year of Callahan mode. I'll watch the game, compartmentalize each play and root for the kids like one them was mine. I'll keep an eye on stats. Internally celebrate each yard gained, and tackle made.

 
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