• You do not need to register if you are not going to pay the yearly fee to post. If you register please click here or log in go to "settings" then "my account" then "User Upgrades" and you can renew.

HuskerMax readers can save 50% on  Omaha Steaks .

Locked due to no posts in 60 days. Report 1st post if need unlocked 2015 Reset My Expectations

Status
Not open for further replies.

DuckTownHusker

Blackshirt Sith Lord
10 Year Member
Last season was dismal. Or so I thought.

Husker fans had long been accustomed to winning - and winning big. I don't need to summarize the string of success under Devaney, Osborne and even into Solich's tenure. And after Callahan was terminated, it showed us that Husker nation doesn't accept losing for very long. Pelini brought us a sense of stability, notching 9 or 10 wins consistently.

But something else happened. I got complacent. 9 wins was no longer enough, yet 9 wins was somehow enough to overlook the blowout losses to Wisconsin or Texas Tech. For a stretch, the only coaches in FBS to consistenly hit the 9+ win mark each and every seasons were Chip Kelly, Nick Saban and... Bo Pelini. On paper, Nebraska appeared to be headed in the right direction.

With Riley's painful debut, my expectations were reset. Under the past regime, each and every loss was painful. Hard to defend. An ugly scar to be forgotten. Say what you will about coaching, Pelni definitely created a culture at Nebraska. His "Us versus Them" mentality was well-documented and I feel in many ways stretched into the fanbase, even if the fanbase was part of Pelini's "Them." I started to find myself defensive about losses, quick to remind people that he was still winning 10 games and we had great talent like Suh, Helu or Amukamara.

Riley, through a combination of a terrible season and his completely un-terrible demeanor, showed me that football can still be a lot of fun. In 2016, I entered the year with cautious optimism, thinking that maybe we had a chance to make a good bowl game. Maybe we could beat Oregon. And now, seven games later, maybe we could beat Wisconsin, Ohio State or Iowa. Or maybe even the Big Ten East Champ.

We've yet to lose - and likely, a loss or two is still coming - but for now, I'm thoroughly enjoying each and every win, opposed to the past where I dreaded any potential loss.

Thanks, Coach Riley.
 
I've come to the realization thru Riley's short tenure that I don't really mind loosing, but I hate getting beat. A hard fought battle on the gridiron is exhilarating and the challenge is exciting, a close fought loss is still a loss but it's outcome is more easily accepted as a result of tough competition and fair play. Riley has a way of keeping the team focused to where they keep grinding until the very end..... and that is all, I as a fan, can ever ask. GBR
 
Before the season I thought a 9-3 regular season with a decent bowl and a top 15 finish would be a very good season for the Huskers. It is hard to imagine the team NOT hitting 9 wins at this point. I would have never thought we would hear even the most optimistic people wondering if the Huskers could actually make the playoffs this season.
 
Last season was dismal. Or so I thought.

Husker fans had long been accustomed to winning - and winning big. I don't need to summarize the string of success under Devaney, Osborne and even into Solich's tenure. And after Callahan was terminated, it showed us that Husker nation doesn't accept losing for very long. Pelini brought us a sense of stability, notching 9 or 10 wins consistently.

But something else happened. I got complacent. 9 wins was no longer enough, yet 9 wins was somehow enough to overlook the blowout losses to Wisconsin or Texas Tech. For a stretch, the only coaches in FBS to consistenly hit the 9+ win mark each and every seasons were Chip Kelly, Nick Saban and... Bo Pelini. On paper, Nebraska appeared to be headed in the right direction.

With Riley's painful debut, my expectations were reset. Under the past regime, each and every loss was painful. Hard to defend. An ugly scar to be forgotten. Say what you will about coaching, Pelni definitely created a culture at Nebraska. His "Us versus Them" mentality was well-documented and I feel in many ways stretched into the fanbase, even if the fanbase was part of Pelini's "Them." I started to find myself defensive about losses, quick to remind people that he was still winning 10 games and we had great talent like Suh, Helu or Amukamara.

Riley, through a combination of a terrible season and his completely un-terrible demeanor, showed me that football can still be a lot of fun. In 2016, I entered the year with cautious optimism, thinking that maybe we had a chance to make a good bowl game. Maybe we could beat Oregon. And now, seven games later, maybe we could beat Wisconsin, Ohio State or Iowa. Or maybe even the Big Ten East Champ.

We've yet to lose - and likely, a loss or two is still coming - but for now, I'm thoroughly enjoying each and every win, opposed to the past where I dreaded any potential loss.

Thanks, Coach Riley.
I've come to the realization thru Riley's short tenure that I don't really mind loosing, but I hate getting beat. A hard fought battle on the gridiron is exhilarating and the challenge is exciting, a close fought loss is still a loss but it's outcome is more easily accepted as a result of tough competition and fair play. Riley has a way of keeping the team focused to where they keep grinding until the very end..... and that is all, I as a fan, can ever ask. GBR
Both of these posts remind me of a thread I started last year called "Why am I not upset?' http://forum.huskermax.com/index.php?threads/why-am-i-not-upset.76705/
It is the same basic thought. If the team fights hard and still comes up a little short it is different then just getting blown out. The only game that I was really upset after last year was Purdue. That was mainly because we looked so bad for much of that game.
 



DUCK, so well said, that was worth reading a 2nd time, I wish I would have said it first.... nice thoughts on how so many people could re-evaluate their expectations
 



:Rolleyes:
No what he is saying is that, " "Not the victory but the action; Not the goal but the game; In the deed the glory." something every NE fan should have memorized and enblazened upon their soul.
Well, at least you said it. Everybody else was like, "I'm okay with losing, as long as we don't get blown out!"
 
No hes just saying theres a bit more to it than win at "any and all costs" ... we still want to win badly, as bad as anyone, but not at the expense of turning into the kind of fans that colo had a decade ago, or becoming a "miami" kind of team, neither of those are worth it.
 



It's revealing that you didn't not ice its a question.

6-anchorman-quotes-burgundy.gif
 

Status
Not open for further replies.

GET TICKETS


Get 50% off on Omaha Steaks

Back
Top