What will equal success?

eoltmer

eoltmer

Five-Star Recruit
We all have heard the typical rants and raves of the fan base this year. What I want to know from the fans and even this board is, what is our standard for this team to be considered successful? Period!

We entered the year with rose colored glasses and pitchers of kool aid because of how our schedule was laid out. As usual of any football season things have not played out perfectly for this team by any means. After every game our perseptions change and we reevaluate this team from top to bottom, some more harsh than others.

I personally believe that if this team can win out the rest of this season and win the bowl game it will have been successful. I think the biggest key will be the bowl game.

The teams over the past few years have been fairly competitive in the bowls but have not dominated in any real fashion. If we can win out leading into next season then that might just be the step needed in the right direction to help ease this quarreling fan base.

I honestly do not think that firing anyone(this year) will answer this issue as continuity in a coaching staff allows for progression/growth. Mind you that I have not been a Cotton fan since the hire but he is pretty much been replaced by Garrison.

Before you go off on a rant about firing people stop and think of who we can honestly get to replace them. Be honest with that one as UNL is not a top tier coordinators dream unless your good ole buddy is there to lure you in.

 
double-digit win seasons, bowl wins top 25 rankings, conference titles, top 10 rankings, national titles, those are the measures of success from most necessary to most wanted, but least expected.

 
Competent football. Basic football. No fumbled pitches. No dropping the ball while falling down. AND FOR JESUS'S FRICKIN SAKES, FIND A WAY TO CATCH AND RETURN A DAMN PUNT EVERY NOW AND THEN!!! Just solid, basic football. I can handle losses, but if we just find a way to do those things week in, week out, the rest will take care of itself. The Michigan St game was literally just yet another sick-to-my-stomach giveaway.

 
I think most of us want pretty much the same thing, we just hate each other too much to admit it.

  1. Win conference championships (then we can shoot for national ones)
  2. Beat top ten teams. Bo is currently 0-8 against teams that finished in the Sagarin top 10.
  3. When we lose, don't lose by double digits. And on the very rare occasion that we do lose by double digits, let it be to a really awesome, top 10 team.
  4. Don't lose to bad teams. I know there's parity, but for the best programs, losing to teams outside the top 50 should be a once or twice a decade thing.
  5. Achieve consistent focus. Although to achieve any of the above four, this sort of goes without saying.

 
JTrain said:
I think most of us want pretty much the same thing, we just hate each other too much to admit it.

  1. Win conference championships (then we can shoot for national ones)
  2. Beat top ten teams. Bo is currently 0-8 against teams that finished in the Sagarin top 10.
  3. When we lose, don't lose by double digits. And on the very rare occasion that we do lose by double digits, let it be to a really awesome, top 10 team.
  4. Don't lose to bad teams. I know there's parity, but for the best programs, losing to teams outside the top 50 should be a once or twice a decade thing.
  5. Achieve consistent focus. Although to achieve any of the above four, this sort of goes without saying.
Click to expand...
This sums my feelings up pretty well.

 
JTrain said:
I think most of us want pretty much the same thing, we just hate each other too much to admit it.

  1. Win conference championships (then we can shoot for national ones)
  2. Beat top ten teams. Bo is currently 0-8 against teams that finished in the Sagarin top 10.
  3. When we lose, don't lose by double digits. And on the very rare occasion that we do lose by double digits, let it be to a really awesome, top 10 team.
  4. Don't lose to bad teams. I know there's parity, but for the best programs, losing to teams outside the top 50 should be a once or twice a decade thing.
  5. Achieve consistent focus. Although to achieve any of the above four, this sort of goes without saying.
Click to expand...

Who have we lost to outside the top 50? Not picking at your post just curious, Iowa State is the closest I can think of but even that team had 7 wins and a bowl victory.

 
Landlord of Memorial Stadium said:
JTrain said:
I think most of us want pretty much the same thing, we just hate each other too much to admit it.

  1. Win conference championships (then we can shoot for national ones)
  2. Beat top ten teams. Bo is currently 0-8 against teams that finished in the Sagarin top 10.
  3. When we lose, don't lose by double digits. And on the very rare occasion that we do lose by double digits, let it be to a really awesome, top 10 team.
  4. Don't lose to bad teams. I know there's parity, but for the best programs, losing to teams outside the top 50 should be a once or twice a decade thing.
  5. Achieve consistent focus. Although to achieve any of the above four, this sort of goes without saying.
Click to expand...



Who have we lost to outside the top 50? Not picking at your post just curious, Iowa State is the closest I can think of but even that team had 7 wins and a bowl victory.
Click to expand...

#66 Iowa State

#58 Northwestern

#56 Minnesota

Then basically had a 99% chance of losing going into the last play against #66 Northwestern.

Anyway, the 50 number is arbitrary. Mostly just don't lose to teams we should beat by double digits.

 
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This board seems to be in love with the idea of finding Nebraska's Brady Hoke:

1) Knows the culture

2) Gets the fanbase

3) Wins the games he should

4) Had head coaching experience

5) Great with the media

6) Signs five star athletes

7) Doesn't really lose by a lot when they do lose

 
It's not all about national titles, but about the threat of winning national titles. That at least kept it interesting. We put up with going 20+ years without one, because we knew we were capable of doing it or coming very close most years.

I'd gladly put up with a 10 year period like 1978-1987 again, even though we won zero national titles. Why? Because we were in it every year. Even though Oklahoma ruined a few of those, at least we were in a position where an Oklahoma could ruin it. We had a title stolen from us in '82, and we missed it in '83 by fractions of an inch.... but the window was open.

We had a nice run of Sugar Bowls and Fiesta Bowls alongside the Orange Bowls.

Is being in the conversation once in awhile too much to ask for?

 
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Win the next two games and the bowl game. Next year, PREPARE FOR EVERY GAME!! Not just the big ones. No matter who we're playing, the coaches must take every game seriously whether it's South Dakota State or Michigan State. Honestly, we could have won every game we played this year. That's what hurts the most. Knowing we had the players and the ability to win but didn't-blah! I really believe that if the coaches would've prepared for UCLA and Minne like we did against Michigan we would've won those games. Michigan State: Man! I don't know. I think the coaches had a good plan, our boys just didn't follow through.

I also think that we need more staff to take care of Special Teams. Having one coach multi-task is not working. We need a dedicated coach just for Special Teams. I also don't like the idea of firing anyone just yet either. It takes time for a group of individuals to get to know each other, work through the kinks, get to know their players. If we fire everyone and start over we may lose some of our best players who came here to play for this group of coaches. I don't want to see that.

 
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for me it is all out effort by every player, every play regardless of score. Having the team in shape, with good cardio and playing like their hair is on fire all game. Playing smart. Not being unprepared mentally, not being confused on the field, not looking lost on the field. making real adjustments on O and D during the game. Not being out-coached at the halftime intermission. Playing with solid fundamentals. decent roster management. Reasonable sideline demeanor. Hanging on to the football.

This is really not too much to ask but is way, way beyond what is and has been happening these past years (a decade, essentially).

 
We pretend like we don't want undefeated seasons all the time but lets face it, we do. That is why losses create so much crying.

That is what makes us fans. We hardly set realistic expectaions and coaches know that, its why they try to downplay wins and accomplishments. It is why Hoke is going to be fired (and might have been fired this year if they would have lost to NW the other day), because he came in saying seasons are a failure if you don't win the big ten.

All of us fans want them to win each game...then if that fails we want them to "win out"

 
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