Sunday, November 15, 2009

Sunday Night Beer: Not Underestimating the Wildcats

I caught a little bit of yesterday's Missouri/Kansas State game, and I'm not sure that Husker fans should take too much solace in Missouri's margin of victory over the Wildcats.  If it wasn't for Danario Alexander, that game would have been quite a bit different...and I don't think Nebraska has an Alexander on the roster.  Niles Paul can make some of those plays, but Alexander makes it consistently with regularity.  Plus, K-State coach Bill Snyder thought the Wildcats might have been looking ahead, playing a little "fat and sassy" after beating cross-state rival Kansas last week.

That won't happen this week.  It's do or die for the purple.  They need one more win to become bowl eligible, as Kansas State can only count one of the victories over 1-AA UMass and Tennessee Tech towards the six required for bowl eligibility.  Bottom line is that it comes down to Nebraska playing the way they need to down the stretch; if they do that, they'll be fine.  You have to love how Nebraska finished the Kansas game to seal the victory.

Once again, I'm hearing criticism of Bo Pelini's sideline demeanor, though it seems to be lacking in substance.  The "appearance" of Bo Pelini reacting angrily after Keith Williams tripping penalty is the latest example.  The cameras show Pelini, but nobody reports what Pelini is saying.  I go back to Pelini's talk to high school coaches back in 2007, and just have the feeling that unless Pelini is a hypocrite, Pelini's reaction is to the mistake, not the player.  And if Pelini was a hypocrite, I think players would have recognized it by now and have turned him off.  That hasn't happened anywhere, so once again, I think it's much to-do about nothing.  It's a matter of perception from the outside, and not based in reality.

Didn't get a chance to check out UNO hockey this weekend, but the Mavs split against Lake Superior State.  A solid performance on Friday night resulted in a 4-0 victory, but the Lakers stormed back on Saturday night to win 3-1 in a disappointing manner.  Not concerned too much at this point; these were the growing pains I expected early this season.  If UNO continues this inconsistency in January and February, then I'll be alarmed.

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