TGHusker
Heisman Trophy Winner
Many of us have been following Husker football for decades. During our 40 year run of greatness we've had to deal with Sooner Magic, the occasional cockroach that was Colorado and the stint of bowl losses that caused us to realize we need speed and not just beef (which ultimately led to the greatest 6 year run in college football history).
In 1996 we began to see a more persistent problem: Texas. Whether it was the flu (96 CCG), pure luck, bad calls (officials - add one more second) or beating ourselves (fumble crossing the end zone 99 game - prevented us playing and most likely winning the NC, The Terrance Nunn fumble that led to texas winning fg as time expired in i think 2006??, Jamal Lord throwing an explainable pass into the endzone(intercepted) when all we need was a field goal). For some reason Texas had our # even when we were the better team. It was like they were in our heads - which became Jinx like.
Now we have Wisc. This is a different situation. They are obviously a superior program and outside of one win, have had our # since we joined the B1G 10. This may not be a Jinx like what Texas seemed to be. Yet, we seem to have fallen prey to our former self - Wisc beats us by being the old Nebraska.
What feels worse - Losing in all kinds of unexpected ways to the team that distroyed the Big 8 and Big 12 or loosing to a Wisc team that still isn't in the Bama, Clemson, OSU type conversation but consistently dominates NU?
My take: It feels worse to consistently loose to Wisc. It points out how far we have fallen as a program. With those 21 points scored on approx 22 running plays out of 25 plays - Wisc rubbed it into our face - this is what you were, we got it now - smash-mouth is our identity not NU's. Texas (as was Sooner Magic) was like an acute pain. You twist your ankle and it will hurt for a while but you know overall, you are ok and will be better.
Wisc is like chronic pain - like fibromyalgia (my wife has this and I can relate) - constant pain, sometimes bad, sometimes not as bad but always there. It is a reminder that something is deeply wrong throughout the body and there is no quick cure . The NU football program and I dare say men's sports in general are in a chronic situation.
We need a great AD and univ leadership to turn this around. But it won't be a quick fix(Scott Frost notwithstanding). Note: next week OSU will most likely remind us again that at best we are a middle of the road program and at worse if this year plays out - lower division quality. Wisc's constant chronic pain & almost yearly beat downs has made this too evident.
In 1996 we began to see a more persistent problem: Texas. Whether it was the flu (96 CCG), pure luck, bad calls (officials - add one more second) or beating ourselves (fumble crossing the end zone 99 game - prevented us playing and most likely winning the NC, The Terrance Nunn fumble that led to texas winning fg as time expired in i think 2006??, Jamal Lord throwing an explainable pass into the endzone(intercepted) when all we need was a field goal). For some reason Texas had our # even when we were the better team. It was like they were in our heads - which became Jinx like.
Now we have Wisc. This is a different situation. They are obviously a superior program and outside of one win, have had our # since we joined the B1G 10. This may not be a Jinx like what Texas seemed to be. Yet, we seem to have fallen prey to our former self - Wisc beats us by being the old Nebraska.
What feels worse - Losing in all kinds of unexpected ways to the team that distroyed the Big 8 and Big 12 or loosing to a Wisc team that still isn't in the Bama, Clemson, OSU type conversation but consistently dominates NU?
My take: It feels worse to consistently loose to Wisc. It points out how far we have fallen as a program. With those 21 points scored on approx 22 running plays out of 25 plays - Wisc rubbed it into our face - this is what you were, we got it now - smash-mouth is our identity not NU's. Texas (as was Sooner Magic) was like an acute pain. You twist your ankle and it will hurt for a while but you know overall, you are ok and will be better.
Wisc is like chronic pain - like fibromyalgia (my wife has this and I can relate) - constant pain, sometimes bad, sometimes not as bad but always there. It is a reminder that something is deeply wrong throughout the body and there is no quick cure . The NU football program and I dare say men's sports in general are in a chronic situation.
We need a great AD and univ leadership to turn this around. But it won't be a quick fix(Scott Frost notwithstanding). Note: next week OSU will most likely remind us again that at best we are a middle of the road program and at worse if this year plays out - lower division quality. Wisc's constant chronic pain & almost yearly beat downs has made this too evident.
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