Maybe the covid thing earned some respect, but other than that, not much there. Only given them a game twice, beating their worst team in 20 years miraculously, and pushing them, should have beaten them, in 2018. I get your point though.
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Is it time to go home?
- Thread starter Huskerphin
- Start date
I miss the Big 8 with the ability to drive to games. The Big XII eroded a lot of the character of the conference. It was an arrangement of convenience. I have little desire to return to the Big XII. The Big XII only looks more stable than it once did because the PAC 12 turned in to a flaming dumpster fire. I am not convinced the Big XII is all that stable. Depending on Texas for stability isn't really a good long-term solution. They'll bolt if they ever find a situation they think is more to their advantage. OU will find a good landing spot and might take OSU along with them. The rest of the league would be scrambling. The promise of stability caused us to move to the B1G and it's still the reason to stay.
Having said that, the B1G is an odd fit for NU and I don't think it has much to do with football or athletics. It would certainly be more fun if we were winning but we're looked down on because we are perceived to be the academic misfit. I believe UNL serves the state of Nebraska well but NU is not in position to set a 27 on the ACT as the benchmark for enrollment and the University would not be serving its clientele well if it did. We're going to be the red-headed stepchild of the league for the foreseeable future. I think what we may have failed to calculate in the move was what the culture of the league might be like in the absence of Jim Delaney. We saw the ugly and arrogant side of the B1G presidents/chancellors and their puppet commissioner last fall. That probably won't get better, as I doubt the presidents are inclined to allow someone like Delaney to accumulate more power than the presidents and chancellors again anytime soon.
The best hope for stability and a better cultural fit would be for the Power 5 to break away from the NCAA and to reorganize in a more coherent fashion. That might afford the opportunity to align teams according to geography. Most of the real rivalries are regional in nature so the traditional conferences could serve as the backbone for that. Eight eight-team pods that each get one slot in a playoff would be fun. Maybe we get the old Big 8 back then (one can dream, right?).
Having said that, the B1G is an odd fit for NU and I don't think it has much to do with football or athletics. It would certainly be more fun if we were winning but we're looked down on because we are perceived to be the academic misfit. I believe UNL serves the state of Nebraska well but NU is not in position to set a 27 on the ACT as the benchmark for enrollment and the University would not be serving its clientele well if it did. We're going to be the red-headed stepchild of the league for the foreseeable future. I think what we may have failed to calculate in the move was what the culture of the league might be like in the absence of Jim Delaney. We saw the ugly and arrogant side of the B1G presidents/chancellors and their puppet commissioner last fall. That probably won't get better, as I doubt the presidents are inclined to allow someone like Delaney to accumulate more power than the presidents and chancellors again anytime soon.
The best hope for stability and a better cultural fit would be for the Power 5 to break away from the NCAA and to reorganize in a more coherent fashion. That might afford the opportunity to align teams according to geography. Most of the real rivalries are regional in nature so the traditional conferences could serve as the backbone for that. Eight eight-team pods that each get one slot in a playoff would be fun. Maybe we get the old Big 8 back then (one can dream, right?).
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Top notch post. Very well stated and all absolutely spot on. You hit the nail on the head regarding the instability of the B12 at the time of our departure and that risk still exist because, as you noted nobody is the conference can trust Texas and they would throw the entire conference under the bus if they thought it would benefit them at all. Culturally and geographically it was a better fit. But we had to get out and we can never go back under the current structure.
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Since they joined the B1G I have been able to see every game each season on TV without having to do PPV. Love it.
C
Yeah, people forget how horrible the Big 12 tv deal was. It has gotten better but it's still not as good as the Big 10. I forget what year it was,but NU-KSU was a ppv game. And I believe it was the third ppv game of the season for NU at $40 a pop.
No thanks.
Looking at conference affiliation only through the lens of football is myopic. The Big 10 is the best conference in the country for men’s basketball, for women’s volleyball, by a lot in both instances. It’s the best academic affiliation available for a major sports conference, and has brought collaboration and prestige to Nebraska research.
But look at football alone for a moment, and the Big 10 is better than the current Big 12 by a lot, too. The Big 12 has a much higher chance of being snubbed for the championship 4, and are only rescued by how inept the PAC 12 has been. Nebraska getting its house in order as a competitive member in football and basketball has nothing to do with the conference and everything to do with bad decisions made in the past. The Big 12 would be much better served by the Huskers returning than Nebraska would be. The same problems that drove Nebraska out of that league bear sway even still. Going back is a lazy daydream and a poor substitute for the hard work of rebuilding men’s basketball and football.
But look at football alone for a moment, and the Big 10 is better than the current Big 12 by a lot, too. The Big 12 has a much higher chance of being snubbed for the championship 4, and are only rescued by how inept the PAC 12 has been. Nebraska getting its house in order as a competitive member in football and basketball has nothing to do with the conference and everything to do with bad decisions made in the past. The Big 12 would be much better served by the Huskers returning than Nebraska would be. The same problems that drove Nebraska out of that league bear sway even still. Going back is a lazy daydream and a poor substitute for the hard work of rebuilding men’s basketball and football.
JonnyV
Recruit
I had actually forgot about those years....they were so average in the conference for so long you tend to forget they were ever good until the past few years...minus this one of course.
Exactly. you think Iowa (and the rest of the league) gives us crap now about not beating them. If we run back to the B12 it will be nothing but ......."So you you couldn't play with the BIG boys and you tucked tail and ran"Moving back & living in our parents basement - because they gave our old room to the weird step children/cousins (TCU & West Virginia :confused: ) - sounds way worse than making this commitment / marriage work.
This B1G chick is loaded, sure her family's nasty & mean, but our other siblings left the nest & seem to be doing ok... time to stop feeling sorry for ourselves & make this work.
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Man you make a whole lot good points. Agree the Midwest has a different mindset than most of the schools and all that brings to the table. I know the other schools are set in a different city with a different culture than Lincoln. Maybe with the exception of Iowa.
I would love to see us back in the Big12 but the dollars won't let that happen. I would rather see us fit in well with less money but that is just IMOP
March is on the clock.......
Long-term stability is the biggest detriment to the Big XII. It's currently the OU-UT conference. If either Oklahoma or Texas bolts, there's nothing left but tinfoil and duct tape holding the conference together. The Big Ten, meanwhile, could stomach losing Ohio State, Michigan or Penn State -- maybe even two of them -- and still remain a strong conference.
That was a different story several years ago, but the Big XII ran off Nebraska, Colorado, Mizzou and A&M. They ran off FOUR of the top six teams in the conference. So they're left with the Sooner-Horn Two-Step and then a bunch of career underachievers like Kansas and Baylor. Whoopie.
To put it in perspective, imagine that the Big Ten scared off Penn State, Michigan State, Wisconsin, and Iowa. You're left with the entire conference hanging on Ohio State and Michigan for relevance, because let's face it, nobody really cares about the annual Rutgers-Illinois matchups.
Or picture the SEC runs off Georgia, Florida, LSU and Auburn. Gotta hope that annual Alabama-Tennessee game can pay the bills for the whole conference because nobody's getting rich off Kentucky-Ole Miss. Or if the Pac-12 ran off Washington, Oregon, USC and Arizona State. OOOOH BOY, I can't wait for that big Stanford-Oregon State game!!!!
That was a different story several years ago, but the Big XII ran off Nebraska, Colorado, Mizzou and A&M. They ran off FOUR of the top six teams in the conference. So they're left with the Sooner-Horn Two-Step and then a bunch of career underachievers like Kansas and Baylor. Whoopie.
To put it in perspective, imagine that the Big Ten scared off Penn State, Michigan State, Wisconsin, and Iowa. You're left with the entire conference hanging on Ohio State and Michigan for relevance, because let's face it, nobody really cares about the annual Rutgers-Illinois matchups.
Or picture the SEC runs off Georgia, Florida, LSU and Auburn. Gotta hope that annual Alabama-Tennessee game can pay the bills for the whole conference because nobody's getting rich off Kentucky-Ole Miss. Or if the Pac-12 ran off Washington, Oregon, USC and Arizona State. OOOOH BOY, I can't wait for that big Stanford-Oregon State game!!!!
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Penn St actually won the B1G in 1994, which I believe is the first year they were in the conference.
People pining for a move back to the Big 12 are remembering all the fun it was to drive to Lawrence, Manhattan, and Ames with 25 thousand fans, take over the stadium, and win the game by 35 points and then drink all the bars out of beer. That was fun, but the only thing that would be happening now moving back to the Big 12 would be the drive.
Ibone&countertrey
Recruit
That would just look like Nebraska is running away. I would like to see a dominating stretch 3 to 5 years then Nebraska give them the finger personally..
id rather be poor and happy winning then rich and not winning.
