The Husker Prayer

Dear Lord, the battles we go through life,
We ask for a chance that's fair
A chance to equal our stride,
A chance to do or dare

If we should win, let it be by the code,
Faith and Honor held high

If we should lose, we'll stand by the road,
And cheer as the winners go by

Day by Day, we get better and better!
Til' we can't be beat...
WON'T BE BEAT!

Many fans weren't familiar with this prayer until they were used in the 2005 Tunnel Walk. Words of inspiration for the team, they represent well the tradition of Nebraska football.

But how well do the fans follow these words? Do we hold our honor high? When we lose, do we cheer as the winners go by?

Certainly last year we watched the winners go by quite often. Way too often. But did fans hold up their end of the bargain? Did we cheer the winners? Or did we suddenly turn to hate for those winners?

AJ the Huskerh8r certainly has fun pointing out the absurdity of Husker fans...and the sad fact is, when it comes to Husker fans, he's right. If you read the comments on his blog, it proves his point over and over and over again. (His point about the Huskers going 4-8 in 2008 is another matter entirely.) Husker fans can, and do, act like jackasses at times. Not all of them, mind you. Whether it's calling in death threats to Kevin Cosgrove or taking out our frustrations on the fans of other teams, it's not in keeping with the program's tradition. Just like it wasn't in our program's tradition to rub 60-3 into other's faces back in the day.

The 2008 season starts on Saturday. It's an opportunity to start over for the players and fans alike. Maybe one objective for fans this season would be to simply try to follow the middle part:

If we should win, let it be by the code,
Faith and Honor held high

If we should lose, we'll stand by the road,
And cheer as the winners go by