That's still funny...
Last edited:
-
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 .
Biggest game and/or rivalry
- Thread starter OPHusker
- Start date
I was lumping that comment in with the bigger picture and epidemic of blowouts since Colorado 2001. I know all things are cyclical and every blue blood has had their period of darkness but the one we are mired in really sucks. I would be curious but willing to bet that out of the top 10 schools which we consider college football royalty, there has been no other program that has experienced the flat out blowouts, multiple games of giving up 70 points, multiple giving up 60 points, blow out in Big 10 Championship against a 3rd place team in the other division-it goes on and on. I could never figure out how we could be a 10 or 9 win team under Pelini and have games we just got boat raced. I guess I could do some research but I don't recall Notre Dame, Alabama, Tennessee, Miami, Ohio State, Michigan and the likes getting half a hundred or more hung on them as often as we have. It's depressing and 4-8 last year sticks in my memory as does traveling to Ann Arbor for a game that was over in the first quarter. PLEASE let this season be the breakout and the start of some consistent winning.
Why?
For better or worse, I think that Nebraska's admin has generally been more patient with the coaching staff following multiple blowouts with the exception of Solich being fired. As a general rule there are teams who simply won't put up with being bludgeoned more than once in a blue moon without making a coaching change, and I think that I can name most of them: any SEC team, Texas, Oklahoma, Notre Dame, USC, Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, Florida State, Clemson, and Miami. (Who did I miss?) With the exception of almost all of the SEC teams, those would probably be the teams that most fans would rank as the blue-blood programs over the past 50 years. Iowa, Michigan State, Wisconsin, all of the PAC-12 besides USC, all of the ACC besides Clemson, Miami, and FSU, et al., seem to expect to get publicly de-pantsed and spanked at least 3-4 times per every five years. I think that this was why the B1G West fans thought that Nebraska's fans were being whiny and unrealistic; they're used to bending over and taking it, and saying, "Thank you, sir, may I have another?" Iowa even gives Ferentz a bonus for winning 8 games, even if they get humiliated in 5 other games.
Osborne got spanked occasionally, too, and there were open calls for making changes--they wanted him to fire some assistants--after getting trounced 3x and de-pantsed 2x at the end of the '90 season. We looked better in '91, but still got embarrassed by Miami in the Orange Bowl. We looked much better in '92, but still got embarrassed by FSU in the Orange Bowl. It took the '94 Orange Bowl to fully convince Nebraska fans that, yes, Osborne did know what he was doing, and we were possibly on the verge of greatness. Then again it only took one spanking by Arizona State in '96 for the fans to want to run Frost out of town while looking for their heart medication.
What I want is as much of the following as I can get:
- to consistently beat the teams with less talent;
- to be proud of the effort as we go down swinging when we lose;
- to show signs of steadily moving in the right direction.
When over half your games against Purdue, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Northwestern and Ohio State are a L that is concerning. When getting blown out over half the time by those teams (with the exception of NW) that is unacceptable-I will continue call that A LOT. With the exception of OSU we outspend, out recruit, have better fan support, have better training facilities, have better recruiting (at least according to the experts), have more profit in our athletic department, and more history than any of those schools. It's not even close though Minnesota had a nice run in the 60's. Why should we get ever get blown out by any of those schools? I think you are missing my point. Losses suck and hard fought games in which we don't prevail are going to happen almost every season. It's the multiple blowouts the multitude of opponents hanging half a hundred or more on us that are concerning and we have been plagued with them since Colorado 2001. I would be curious to see but has any other blue blood given up more 70, 60, 50, points scores to the opposition in the modern era than we have? It's like we sold our soul for the 90's success.
My definition of blue bloods is a more elite group: Oklahoma, Texas, USC, Nebraska, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Alabama, Tennessee, and Miami. It could have happened but I don't remember any Kansas, Kansas State, Colorado, Texas Tech, Ohio State, or Wisconsin hanging 70 on any of these elites. If I am not mistaken every one of those teams hung 70 or very close to it on our Huskers.
I think the blow out game is much more common than it used to be when 2 quality opponents get together. I have no statistical data to put forth, just my own opinion. I think the way the game is geared towards offense it is real easy for a team to get down and get down big fast in games anymore.
Two words probably explain most of our disasters the past 20 years and they are... POOR COACHING! Mack Brown had all the talent you could BUY yet only won a single NC in his 16 years at TEXASS. Was it lack of talent at TEXASS or perhaps coaching?
I firmly believe had TO coached another 5 years we'd have stayed a Top 10 program. Maybe won another NC with all the talent that was in Lincoln. IMO Frost is going to prove what happens with a program when there is great coaching, excellent facilities, top notch staffing and recruiting.
Lets review this after the 2019 season and see where Nebraska is.....
I have to hope that there are very few similarities between Frost and Riley but think about this for a moment. In season 1 both lost a gut wrenching opening game and both improved late in the season to give us hopes for a brighter day. Riley won 3 out of his last 4 in his debut season including beating a playoff team in Michigan State and a dominating win against UCLA in the bowl game. His one loss out of those 4 games was by 8 to an Iowa team that was Top 5 when we played. You could argue that all things being equal, Riley had the Huskers playing better at the end of his year 1 than Frost did. He followed that up with7 straight wins to start his season 2. I believe SF is the answer but all I have is hope-maybe I was blind but I had hope after Year 1 and was damn near giddy after the start of year 2 with Mike Riley.
It was the worst I've ever seen but it isn't the worst ever. All NU Coaches
Since I kNow how the HUSKERS did starting with Coach Devaney, the 1st three I checked was;
Bill Jennings (1957-61)
1-9 in 1st
3-7 in 2nd (did beat OU & ended 74 game unbeaten streak)
4-6 in 3rd
4-6 in 4th
3-7-1 in 5th & final
Pete Elliott (only one year - 1956 & only added because he's between Bill & Bill)
1-9
Bill Glassford (1949-55)
4-5 in 1st
6-2-1 in 2nd
2-8 in 3rd
5-4-1 in 4th
3-6-1 in 5th
6-5 in 6th (with a loss to Duke in Orange Bowl)
5-5 in 7th & final
I don't kNow if that's amazing or awesome or both. :confused:
And the next 4 are as bad or worse than these 3. The HUSKERS sure went through some bad times from 1941 thru 1961.
I would agree if not for the fact that we had a bunch of Riley followers that, didn’t like, buy in or whatever, didn't believe in Coach Frost & Co. We all saw the turnaround his 2nd year @ UCF and I think we’ll see the same this year. Don’t get me wrong as I’m NOT predicting a undefeated season. I’d like to see it though.
Frost has something MR never was close to having and that's one of the better QB's in college football...
I think you would be giving some of our players a free pass if you blame it all on coaching. Obviously I can't prove it but in many of those disasters the past 20 years we had players phoning it in. Bo had his share of issues and more than his share of blowouts but I wouldn't call his coaching poor. Once again I can't prove it but some of it had to be mental as with few exceptions we would fold like a cheap suit at the first sign of adversity.
If players are phoning it in... whose fault is that? MR's last season he looked like he phoned in the entire season so why would players be any different? If their players aren't getting it done whose fault is that? Wouldn't it be the coaching staff that recruited those players?
Everything starts with good leadership and good coaching imo. Some or almost all of those qualites have been lacking in our program for a long time.
Last edited:
I haven't missed your point at all. See below for the point I was hoping you would make.
All the money, fans, facilities, history, etc. mean nothing without good coaching.
Thank you HuskerNash. I enjoyed our discussion 'cuz that's what makes this board fun.
Last edited:
I agree but as @cthusker stated, it falls back on the coaches for allowing it in the 1st place. Now, if the players had any pride they would have pushed themselves and each other to be better. They didn't. We now have coaches that are teaching and helping them learn to do that very thing. Oops, guess that falls on coaching, as well. No matter what though, the players do deserve some of the blame.
...and the last few years have been a cluster...
