Implosion at Marquette

UNO gets swept by Northern Michigan this weekend, losing 4-1 last night and 3-2 tonight. Not only did that knock UNO out of the CCHA playoff chase, but it also may prove to be a mortal wound in UNO's NCAA tournament chances. Their PairWise rating plummetted to 14th, which puts them on the outside of the NCAA tournament bubble.

UNO still might find a way to sneak in, though they will need help over the next week. Lots of scenarios out there that can help UNO's strength of schedule and also hoping that teams below UNO in the PairWise ratings don't win their conference championships and get automatic bids.

In many respects, UNO is in the same predicament as Creighton; blowing chunks in their conference tournament and hoping and praying that somehow they might still get in the tournament. At least Creighton knows they will play again, as there is an NIT in basketball.

Speaking of basketball and the NIT, the Husker basketball team sure made things interesting down at the Big XII tournament by beating both Missouri and #19 Oklahoma before sucumbing once again to Kansas. It now looks like Nebraska is in the NIT, which will delay the anticipated coaching change a little while longer. I've heard rumors on all sides, but the strongest ones seem to indicate that Barry Collier has agreed to a buyout of his contract.

Jerad Kaufmann's Biggest Save

Last summer, Mav fans all over town were anxiously awaiting this hockey season. A 4th place finish in the league with a team loaded with talented freshmen and sophomores led to visions of greatness for this season.

Then the New York Rangers came in and made goalie Chris Holt an offer he just couldn't resist. Hard to blame Holt, but it sure put UNO in an awkward position. The only returning goalie for UNO had a rough freshman year. So all eyes were on the goaltender position as the season opened up.

Sophomore Eric Aarnio started the season, but was injured after his second game. True freshman Greg Barrett, signed after Holt left, played inconsistently in his first few games. Then, against Bowling Green, coach Kemp gave freshman Jerad Kaufmann a shot, and he grabbed hold of the position. He played well enough to keep the starting job through November and December.

Then came January, and hit his stride, shutting out Ohio State in Columbus. His hot streak coincided with UNO's hot streak, and UNO rode Kaufmann up the standings to where they are today. While Hobey Baker candidate Scott Parse is clearly the star of this squad, Kaufmann is the unsung hero.

In today's Omaha World-Herald, Chad Purcell covers Kaufmann's journey from his recruitment as the "practice goalie" (door opener???) to leading UNO into the NCAA tournament.

Let's compare Kaufmann's numbers in his rookie year to his predecessors final year, who have both played in the NHL:
Dan Ellis (2002-03) 11-21-5, .900 save percentage, 3.18 goals allowed/game
Chris Holt (2004-05) 19-14-4, .903 save percentage, 2.88 goals allowed/game
Jared Kaufmann (2005-06) 17-8-6, .907 save percentage, 2.72 goals allowed/game

Exceeding expectations would be a quite an understatement. Kaufmann's biggest save was with UNO's dream season.

Haven't we seen this before?

Northern Michigan's Puckheads are busy trolling the Maverick nation in preparation for this weekend's 2nd round of the CCHA playoffs. Northern practically needs to clinch the Mason Cup to advance to the NCAA tournament, while College Hockey News feels UNO is a lock to get a bid at this point.

Thanks to the CCHA's tie-breaker mechanism, this series is in Marquette instead of Omaha. 4 week ago, UNO travelled to Northern Michigan and swept the Wildcats 2-1 then 8-3. The Puckheads point to their subsequent sweeps of Lake Superior State and Ohio State as evidence that the Wildcats have turned it around.

Only problem with that logic is that the Lakers and Buckeyes tanked down the stretch; the Lakers going winless in their last 7 (losing 6) and the Buckeyes losing 8 out of their last 10.

The Olympic sized ice at NMU is an advantage to UNO's high flying offensive players. Scott Parse, the nation's leading scorer, scored 4 points a month ago, and freshman Tomas Klempa is back in the lineup after missing the first series.

Creighton Brie Whining on the Hilltop

I see Creighton has already started the whining up on the Hilltop as they watch their NCAA tournament chances fading away. Limping through the month of February after Josh Dotzler's injury, they now hope to sneak into the NCAA tournament on the new-found respect for the Missouri Valley conference.

Is that respect earned? It depends. In the Valley's defense, they are a pretty good mid-major conference. Maybe the best of them. But after watching some of that conference tournament and some selected games this season, it's pretty obvious that the Missouri Valley is not on the same level as the "BCS Conferences". And was that championship game between Bradley and Southern Illinois tough to watch or what? Dennis Dodd summed it up best:

"Everybody's favorite mid-major topped off a weekend of physical, ugly and almost traumatic basketball with more of the same."

I've watched the Missouri Valley tournament for years, and thought the sights of fans jumping around in a mostly empty Saavis Center with their silly "Missouri Valley Champs" signs was pretty humorous. It's nice to win your conference title, but let's face it, the Missouri Valley is still a mid-major conference. A very improved Valley, that's for sure. But, the RPI gives the Valley much more respect than they deserve. And Monday morning, I bet the brass at CBS were thinking the same thing.

Creighton is pinning their hopes on their victories of George Mason (who? They lost in the semis of the Colonial Conference tournament), Nebraska, and Xavier (tenth in the A-10). Well, shoot, if we're going to name drop, Nebraska beat Marquette (4th in the Big East) and Oklahoma and we know Nebraska isn't even remotely close to the tournament.

I really admire what Dana Altman has done at Creighton. He's one of the best coaches in the country. He did an excellent job with his best player out for the season, and his next-best player out for the past month. But, Creighton is what Creighton is. A decent team in a mid-major conference. Last year, they had to win the Missouri Valley tournament to get in. This year, their hopes are fading.

Are we setting up for another NIT rematch of Nebraska and Creighton? Hard to say, especially since the NIT is now set up with brackets and seedings. In the past, they tried to set up matchups like NU/CU to sell tickets, but with the NCAA running the show, that might not be in the cards for this year.

More Bulletin Board Material from Billy C

This morning, Bill Callahan decided to put some reading material up on Kansas State's bulletin board at the Special Olympics breakfast:

“We want players who want us, because we feel Nebraska’s a special, special situation,” Callahan said during his keynote speech at a Special Olympics fund-raising breakfast in Omaha. “If you’re a prima donna, if you’re a drama queen, there’s no room for you at Nebraska. You can go to Kansas State.”

Compared with some of his previous comments (Hillbillies, Dumbest Team), this one is pretty mild. And while I agree that Nebraska is a special place, there's no need to keep bashing Josh Freeman. This is Nebraska, and losing a quarterback recruit to Kansas State isn't worth getting worked up over. We're bigger than that.

This is Nebraska. Let's act that way.

Barf: Expecting a Collier Resignation?

In this morning's World Herald, Lee Barfknecht writes that several basketball "boosters of substance" (Bill Byrne's words, not mine or Lee's) expect Barry Collier to resign at the end of the season with a negotiated settlement.

Barf also mentions Northern Iowa coach Greg McDermott as a candidate for the Nebraska job. Northern Iowa recently gave McDermott a raise, even though their athletic director seems to be encouraging McDermott to move to Nebraska. McDermott started his coaching career at Wayne State.

Hobey Baker!

UNO completed their sweep of Bowling Green tonight with another 4-2 victory. In the 3rd period, Hobey Baker

candidate Scott Parse teamed with linemate Bill (L or "Hot Sauce", your choice) Thomas to score a sweet highlight reel goal that ended up being the deciding score in the game.

Next up for UNO is Northern Michigan in Marquette, Michigan; last month, the Mavs went up to Marquette and swept sending NMU Puckhead Emeritus Mojo into the hospital. Here's hoping for a repeat, except of course that the only heart problems Mojo has is a broken heart...

UNO's loss last week at Western Michigan looks a little better after the Broncos went to Sault Ste. Marie and swept Lake Superior State. But, more and more, it looks like the trend of playing up or down to the perception of the opponent continued last week and to some extent, last night. If that trend holds, UNO should be in good shape; they won't be seeing anybody that UNO could "play down to" from here on out.

The sweep of the Falcons, combined with the Nanooks sweep of Notre Dame boosted UNO's PairWise rating back to a tie for 5th with Michigan State. UNO may have just punched their NCAA tournament bid tonight, though there's still 2 weeks of hockey left to prove it. (And not to mention their seeding...)

And let's go back to the man of the evening: Scott Parse. With his sweet goal in the 3rd, Parse became UNO's all-time leading scorer, passing David Brisson.

How Many Licks Does It Take?

Hockey fans know that there is NOTHING like playoff hockey; everything gets kicked up a few notches. And these 2 teams already are 2 of the top 3 scoring teams in the league: UNO with 133 goals and Bowling Green with 120 goals. The big difference is in defense; UNO has given up 116 goals while the Tootsie Rolls have given up 139.

Back in early November, Bowling Green swept UNO, and they hope to repeat that feat. However, things have really changed in the last 4 months. In the Friday night game, Bowling Green blasted freshman Greg Barrett for 6 goals in the first 2 periods. Saturday night, freshman Jerad Kaufmann got to make his first start for UNO and lost 4-3. Since the Christmas break, Kaufmann has become a solid goaltender, putting up numbers similar to his predecessors Dan Ellis and Chris Holt, both who have seen action in the NHL.

Meanwhile, both teams feature players in the top 10 in scoring in all of college hockey. Hobey Baker candidate Scott Parse leads the nation, while BG's Alex Foster is tied for 2nd. The Mav's Bill Thomas and BG's Jonathan Matsumoto are tied for 8th.

UNO's weakness this season has been against the tight defensive teams, while they have flourished when the ice opens up. And with offenses like this, things will definitely open up.

Speaking of the NHL, they've noticed UNO stepping things up this season, ranking them #10 in the country and featuring them in an "On Campus" story.

How many licks does it take to the Tootsie Roll center and pop the BG bubble? One Friday night, and one Saturday night. Go Mavs!

Brokeback Falcon

The average sports fan in Omaha probably wouldn't name Bowling Green as a rival. Heck, most aren't even aware where the heck Bowling Green is.

And when UNO applied to join the CCHA, they certainly weren't a rival.

But something happened along the way. Namely, Scott Hewson decided to goon up the Civic Auditorium and "welcome" the Mavs to the CCHA back in the 1998-99 season. And the rivalry was on.

The rivalry intensified in the Mavs inaugural season in the 2000 CCHA playoffs "play-in game" when UNO defeated Bowling Green to qualify for the CCHA semi-finals in a game forever memorialized as "Tuesday Night"; quite possibly the loudest sporting event ever held at the Civic Auditorium.

Then last year, 7 Bowling Green players were suspended after a team hazing incident where a teammate was photographed naked with profanity and racial slurs written across the victim's body. They were reinstated just in time to play UNO. Hence, the birth of the "Where's my Sharpie???" chant.

Remembering 5 years back to that memorable run, it featured defeating Bowling Green in Omaha, and Northern Michigan in Marquette, MI en route to the Joe Louis Arena and the CCHA semi-finals. Will history repeat itself?

The Barry Collier Conundrum

I imagine that it would be easy to assume based on my postings about Barry Collier that one would assume that I'm advocating his firing. Which I'm not; however, I'm not sure I'm defending him anymore. Here's my take on the "Keep Barry/Fire Barry" argument:

Keep Barry

• Currently in 6th place in the Big XII, and only 1 game out of 4th place (and the first round bye in the Big XII tournament with 2 games to play)
• A winning season at 17-10.
• A fairly young team with some talented young players (Aleks Maric, Marcus Walker, and Jamel White)
• Playing better ever since Joe McCray left the team

Fire Barry

• RPI of #105
• Lowest attendance in years
• Creighton 70, Nebraska 44
• Kansas 96, Nebraska 54
  

In all fairness, I haven't seen much of Nebraska basketball this season. With the diminishing interest in Husker hoops, no Omaha TV station carries the games so except for an occasional ESPN or FSN game, I only go by what I read and hear. I'm torn; Barry's teams are much better than the final few Danny Nee teams, and their actions don't embarass the school or the state. But, on the other hand, you'd like to have seen a little more progress.

But it really doesn't matter what I or most other fans think.

I'm focusing my analysis on what I think will happen, not what should happen. And in my mind, I think Barry Collier is on his way out. Some people think that having a successful season will prevent Steve Pederson from firing Collier, but that's never stopped him before. Some people think Nebraska is just a football school, but then how do you explain Texas and Oklahoma? Some people think that Nebraskans don't care about basketball, but then how do you explain the sellouts at Devaney in the early to mid 90's, or the 13,000 that regularly attend Creighton games?

I may very well be wrong, but I think Barry Collier is going to be fired, based purely on the deafening silence from above. In fact, I think he knows it as well. And remember, I'm not saying "should be" either.

Husker Information Minister doing a little Name Dropping

This morning on KFAB, Husker Information Minister Jim Rose followed up a story about Indiana's Senior Day by commenting to remember the name "Mike Davis". He said "that's all I'm going to say about it."

Gee, I wonder what he might be referring to?

Lousy Weekend Wrapup

Last night's loss has the Nebraska-Omaha fan base in an ugly mood; probably a natural reaction to an ugly game with an ugly result. Time to turn that foul mood towards something positive; namely squeegeeing the fresh ice at the Qwest Center with Bowling Green this weekend.

It was a weird weekend in college hockey. Wisconsin got swept by Minnesota-Mankato. The Weasels of Michigoon tied, then lost, to Ferris (Bueller!) State.

UNO is still 7th in the PairWise ratings, so they are still in position to make the NCAA tournament with a good showing in the CCHA playoffs. Everything UNO wanted to accomplish is still possible; as far as the CCHA playoffs goes, it's just going to take more work. No need to hit the panic button yet.

Husker hoops followed up a very impressive victory against Colorado with an off performance at Texas A&M. Aleks Maric got into early foul problems, Nebraska fell behind quickly by 10, and that's pretty much the way the game played out.

Johnny Dorn pitched much better today, giving up 3 runs in 5 innings today against St. Johns for the Husker baseball team. Huskers won 12-4 after losing to Rice 3-2 yesterday.

Thud.

Going into this weekend, UNO only needed one win against last place Western Michigan, or a loss from both Lake Superior State and Northern Michigan.

It didn't happen.

Last night, UNO had a 3 goal lead late in the 3rd period, but the Broncos came back to tie it up. Then tonight, the Broncos jumped to an early lead, and UNO had to play catchup all night. And Northern Michigan got the sweep against Ohio State.

This one hurts. UNO's 10 game unbeaten streak came to a crashing halt.

UNO has to put this weekend behind them in a hurry. There's no point crying over the lost first-round bye. It's gone, and Bowling Green is coming in.

Where's my Sharpie???

YostBuilt Analysis

Interesting read from the Evil Empire on last weekend's Michigoon/Nebraska-Omaha series. Despite not even listening to the games, he correctly predicted that on 3 out of 4 UNO goals Friday night, a Weasel defenseman "screwed up".

Speaking of Jack Johnson, lots of commentary there about the Weasel's talented goon. The speculation is that he'll only play one season in Ann Arbor. You can see his talent, but his lack of discipline is going to inhibit his development.

Husker fans might enjoy their take on the Alamo Bowl as well.

Here we go again

In today's Omaha World-Herald, Nebraska executive associate athletic director Marc Boehm was interviewed regarding Barry Collier:

"We're not going to discuss the job status of any employee - head coach or any employee - unless that job status changes."

Sound familiar? It sure reminded me of previous statements by Steve Pederson that he doesn't talk about coaches in-season.

Only problem with that policy, is that Pederson and company don't always follow that policy.

In the uproar that followed last season's 40-15 thrashing by Kansas, Pederson sent a letter to boosters - violating that very policy that they cited today:

"I did some interviews earlier this week where I was asked about the coaching staff, the team, and the future of Nebraska football. I told them that I've seen dramatic improvement in practice and on Saturdays. We are playing a style of football that is attracting the nation's top young talent. Our coaching staff has the trust of our players and together they are improving. Our prospects for recruiting another strong class are great."

Perhaps Barry Collier has already been told he's going to be fired. But if he hasn't, this continued dangling in the wind is just delaying the inevitable. If you aren't going to live by the no-comment rule when Bill Callahan is in the cross-hairs, then don't use it regarding Barry Collier.

Boehm's "no comment" is about as close to "he's fired" as you can get. If you really want to dispel these rumors, you'd say something along the lines of "There are still 4 games left in the season, and we're in the upper division in the Big XII conference standings. Our focus is on finishing this season strong." Last Saturday's loss hurts, but the Huskers are still in position to get a first round bye in the Big XII tournament.

Monday Morning Quarterbacking - President's Day Edition

UNO's 3 points this weekend all but wrapped up home ice and a first round bye for the boys in the CCHA playoffs. They just need a win against last place Western Michigan, or a loss by Lake Superior State (against Michigan State) and Northern Michigan (against Ohio State).

Michigan State's sweep of Miami this weekend shook up USCHO's PairWise ratings; UNO is now in a 3-way tie for 4th place. This still projects them out to the east coast for the NCAA tournament, but now as a #2 seed.

Just like college football fans bitching about the BCS, hockey fans bitch about the PairWise ratings as well. We'll hear the same complaints next month in college basketball from somebody who ended up in the NIT instead of the NCAA basketball tournament.

All in all, it was a shame that this series conflicted with the Nebraska High School wrestling tournament. The Civic is a great barn for college hockey, but this series could have drawn 9,000 or more to the Qwest Center when you consider lost skybox and club tickets, plus a walkup crowd that the sellout turned away. It did get incredibly loud at the end of Friday night's game; nobody heard the horn go off at the end.

Meanwhile, in Lincoln, a big crowd showed up to watch Barry Collier's team take on Bobby Knight. Problem was that Aleks Maric picked up two quick fouls in the first half and spent the rest of the half on the bench, which ended up erasing the momentum Nebraska brought from their win at Iowa State. When Maric sat, Nebraska was up, but by halftime, Tech was up. This was another loss that has Husker fans shaking their heads.

Husker baseball got started this week, with Joba Chamberlain on fire but Johnny Dorn getting rocked. No radio coverage will begin until after basketball season, since all of Pinnacle's staff is busy with hoops. (Rose is the PA announcer at men's basketball games.) This is where Pinnacle's decision to fire John Bishop last year really hurts the Huskers. Husker baseball is huge right now, and baseball games will probably get better ratings than basketball. Heck, 1620 the Zone carried 3 Creighton baseball games this past weekend, and they've hired Bishop to announce for them.

Saved by an Angell

Amazing the things you notice in a tight hockey game. During the third period of tonight's UNO-Michigoon, my (admittedly uneducated) eyes observed Mav defenseman Phil Angell struggling to clear the puck several times. Once into the bench, several times right into the stick of a waiting Weasel. So as the clock ticked into the final minutes of the game with the Mavs trailing the Weasels 4-3, UNO was looking for a hero. Would it be Hobey Baker candidate Scott Parse? How about Bill Thomas? And don't forget last night's hero, Alex Nikiforuk.

With just over 2 and a half minutes to go in the 3rd, UNO gets control of the puck deep in Weasel territory and the Parse-Thomas-Marshall line is out there. I take a quick glance at the bench and goalie Jared Kaufmann; do you pull him yet? I look back, and I see tonight's hero take a big slapshot from just inside the blue line. The puck whizzes past the Weasel goalie and the lamp lights with 2:02 left in the game.

The hero? None other than Phil Angell, the guy who I could have sworn was struggling earlier in the period.

UNO kills off a penalty that stretched into the overtime, which gave the Weasels several chances to end the game. And with 30 seconds left in OT, Thomas tried to feed Parse with the game winner, but the shot went wide. The game ended as a 4-4 tie, giving UNO 3 points on the weekend and extending their undefeated streak to 9 games.

UNO has also clinched a home ice playoff series; the worst they can finish is 7th place. With next week's series against last place Western Michigan, they can clinch a first round bye with one victory or one loss each by Lake Superior State and Northern Michigan next weekend.

Mavs 4, Weasels 3

UNO's hot run in 2006 continued tonight at the Civic with a thrilling 4-3 victory over Michigoon. UNO jumped out to an early lead in the 1st period, and found themselves up 3-0 in the third period before the Weasels came storming back. Freshman goon Jack Johnson pulled the Weasels to within 1 by scoring with under 4 minutes in the game while both teams were one man short. Then, Matt Hunwick scored his second goal of the period to tie the game one minute later. (Video: WOWT.com)

Did that silence the Mav crowd? For about 2 seconds. By the time the teams lined up for the ensuing faceoff, the crowd was already chanting.

Six seconds later, bedlam ensued.

Alex Nikiforuk took the faceoff and skated straight for Weasel goalie Noah Ruden and buried his shot to reclaim the lead with the game-winner. That had to be quite a shot to the Weasels psyche after fighting back to tie the game and grab the momentum, only to have Niki immediately rip it out of their throats.

Quite a game at the old barn, and should be quite a game tomorrow night to finish out the series.

USCHO: UNO a #1 Seed in NCAA Tournament

USCHO.com's latest "Bracketology" has UNO a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament, if they were to be seeded today. However, as a #1 seed they would get shipped out to Worcester, Mass. Last week, as a #2 seed, they would have been sent to Grand Forks to play at the Ralph...

The Weasels are Coming, The Weasels are Coming!

This weekend has to be the biggest sports weekend in Omaha this year. The Nebraska High School Wrestling Tournament starts tomorrow morning. Creighton plays at 11 pm Saturday night in the ESPN "Bracket Buster".

But the biggest event of this weekend by far has to be the 2 game series between Nebraska-Omaha and the Michigoon Weasels. Why?

It's simple. This series is HUGE. UNO is 5th in the country in USCHO's Pairwise Ratings, 6th in RPI. Michigoon is 8th. Michigan is 2nd in the CCHA; UNO is tied for 4th place. The top 4 teams in the CCHA get a first round bye, so this weekend's winner will likely earn a bye during the first round of the CCHA playoffs.

UNO is one of the hottest teams in the country; they've only lost once (and that was in overtime against Michigan State) in their last 11 games. They feature the nation's leading scorer in Scott Parse, who also leads the fan voting for the Hobey Baker award.

Michigoon is a traditional power, winning 9 national titles. They feature the fifth leading scorer in the country in T.J. Hensick. They also feature one of the roughest players in the game in Jack Johnson, who has over 100 penalty minutes this season.

Both games are almost sold out, and should be epic. This will be the biggest regular season series ever played in Omaha. And without a doubt, the biggest event in Omaha sports this weekend.

Another Steve Pederson Coaching Search underway?

With Lee Barfknecht of the Omaha World-Herald stalking Steve Pederson again, that can only mean that another coaching search is underway. Oh sure, Steve Pederson denies that it was only a casual get-together with an old friend. But when that "old friend" is Rick Majerus and your current basketball coach is under fire, it sure looks like the coaching search is underway. While I think hiring Rick Majerus might allow Steve Pederson to shed his "Enemy of the State" title, I also think that's about as likely as me winning tomorrow night's $300 million Powerball jackpot.

Tom Shatel nails it in today's World-Herald. Even you believe Pederson's latest yarn, it certainly looks bad. Pederson's football coaching search was roundly criticized and satirized, and he's not getting his basketball coaching search off to a very good start either.

Barry Collier isn't fired... yet. Nebraska is 5-5 in the Big XII, good for 5th place. An upper division finish isn't out of the question; heck, it's not impossible for them to work their way to 4th place and a 1st round bye in the Big XII tournament. And don't get me wrong, I'm not advocating firing Collier. Collier's teams are a vast improvement over what we saw at the end of the Danny Nee era.

But, after 6 years, I'm not sure I can defend him all that much anymore. And all the signs seem to point to a firing. In the past week, Jim Rose himself seemed to imply that Collier was history twice: once in an interview with WHB radio in Kansas City and again this morning on KFAB. If the "Husker Information Minister" isn't going to step up to defend him, I'm not sure who will.

Whether I like it or not, it looks like Barry Collier's days in Lincoln are coming to an end. And with that, the circus appears to be back in town.

PS: Speaking of Jim Rose, it looks like the Pinnacle folks are going on retreat, so Kent Pavelka is back behind the microphone for the next two basketball games on radio.

Post "Recruiting Sabbatical" Topics

Did you miss me? Probably not. But here are some odds-and-ends that I've found in catching up after my "recruiting sabbatical"...

As predicted, the recruiting services were not kind to Callahan's 2006 signees. Scout had them around #30, and Rivals had them at #20. No big deal; these rankings are irrelevant and mostly make-believe. But it is fun to watch the recruitniks squirm. Let's check back in a few years and then evaluate these players.

Tom Shatel notes that Kansas was able to raise $31 million for football facilites rather quickly. (more from KU and ESPN) Compare that with the difficulty Steve Pederson is having raising $50 million at Nebraska. (2 years to raise only $21 million.) More evidence that there is a problem in Lincoln that is going to need to be addressed at some point. The additional funds from expanded seating will buy more time, but eventually, this is going to need to be addressed. Denial is not a river in Egypt.

Joe McCray is proving that it takes more than just talent to succeed in athletics. After getting suspended and then dismissed from the Husker basketball team, the team caught fire and won 3 in a row. After a poor finish against Kansas, the Huskers looked pretty good in the first half today against #7 Texas, but wilted at the start of the second half. Sure looks like a case of addition by subtraction at this point.

And finally, the hottest team in these parts has to be the Nebraska-Omaha hockey team. After a poor performance against Notre Dame at the start of January, they've only lost once in their last 11 games - and that was in overtime against Michigan State. This weekend, they went on the road and swept Northern Michigan. Tonight, they got off to a hot start with 4 goals in the opening period and won 8-3. USCHO's pairwise ratings currently have the Mavs as a #2 seed in the NCAA tournament. College Hockey News has UNO a possible #1 seed. Unbelivable!!! Next up for the Mavs - Michigoon.

Leading the way for the Mavs is Hobey Baker candidate Scott Parse, who continues to lead the nation in scoring. And Parse is now aking a commanding lead in fan balloting this week.

One highlight from my sabbatical... last night, I ran into the Colorado men's golf team. A friendly group of guys; they even offered me an extra can of juice from their bag. I think they wanted to take it back. though, when I showed them my Husker duffle bag as I thanked them. Not a happy bunch of Buffies!

It's National Signing Day!!!

Yawn.

Rivals.com: Recruiting Rankings are "Make-Believe"

A footnote to yesterday's posting. Even the folks at Rivals.com don't view their rankings all that highly:

“The whole class rankings is very dangerous,” Rivals.com Big 12 recruiting analyst Matt Malatesta said. “I know that people love to talk about it because it’s the off-season, and everyone wants to talk about it. Everything is make- believe until they hit the field."

Yawn...Fortunately the silly season of recruiting is almost over...

Recruiting Rankings Irrelevant

Stewart Mandel of Sports Illustrated looks at recruiting rankings, and generally found that the rankings don't really mean a lot. Sometimes they are right; sometimes not.

Back in 2004, I looked at Tom Lemming's rankings and found that they really were rather irrelevant in predicting future success. Everybody likes to point to teams that had highly ranked recruiting classes and then had big success with those players, but they never go back and look at all those rankings and evaluate all those rankings.

From 1993 through 1999, only 61% of Lemming's "Top 10" had top 25 football teams 3 or 4 years later, when those "top ten" classes should have been juniors and seniors. Oh sure, teams such as Florida State and Tennessee were both highly ranked by Lemming and had pretty good teams down the line. But there were some major misses as well. Notre Dame had top ten classes 7 out of 8 years from 1993 through 2000, but certainly didn't have much success with those classes. Alabama had top 10 classes from 1998 to 2000, but is just now getting back to prominance. And everybody's poster child for recruiting, USC, ripped off 4 straight "top 10" classes from 1994 through 1997, and couldn't crack the top 25.

Just remember that next week when signing day happens.

Mavs 3, Sparty 2

While not as entertaining from a pure competition standpoint, UNO's 3-2 victory over Michigan State is sure a lot more satisfying. Scott Parse regained the status as the nation's leading scorer with 2 assists last night. The most impressive was forcing the turnover while short-handed, then feeding Tomas Klempa for the eventual game-winning goal in the 2nd period.

Freshman Jared Kaufmann put in another solid performance in goal, only allowing 1 power play goal to one of the hottest teams in the country. He's probably still sore from the whack he took in a second period scrum.

This morning's Pairwise ratings has UNO in a tie for 9th place, which is rather bizarre because UNO currently sits in 9th place in their conference. This weekend is the tough road-trip to Alaska-Fairbanks. They really need to get some points up north this weekend.

I really think it may be easier for UNO to get to the NCAA tournament this season than the Joe (for the CCHA tournament's semi-finals). UNO's non-conference performance, as well as the performance by the rest of the CCHA has elevated the conference's position to the point they may get five teams in the tournament. My guess is that UNO needs to win 3 out of 4 remaining home games (Lake Superior State and Michigoon), then try to split the remaining series at Northern Michigan, Western Michigan, and Alaska-Fairbanks.

Rock Chalk Jayhawk....P U!

In hoops, Kansas blasted Nebraska 96-54 this afternoon; this was the worst loss by the Huskers against the Jayhawks and fourth worst in Nebraska history. I've been a proponent of Barry Collier, but it's looking like he is going to be fired in the next couple of months, barring a turnaround.

The Kansas fans were chanting "Just Like Football" towards the end of the game. Perhaps Collier can turn around the Huskers season like Bill Callahan did...

Sparty 4, Mavs 3: Oh so close

Last night's Michigan State/UNO game was epic; perhaps the best hockey game played in Omaha in years. Michigan State might be the hottest team in college hockey today; their Pairwise rating is 4th in the country, and they are on a 6 game winning streak with a couple of shutouts.

It was high-action hockey on both ends, with each team controlling the play for extended periods with several back and forth opportunities for either team to score. UNO had several chances to win the game at the end of the third period, plus in overtime. Bill Thomas was stopped several times on breakaways, including once in OT. But Sparty fired a nearly perfect shot into the back of the net to win the game in OT, gaining a small amount of revenge on UNO for their OT winner at Munn in November. Great crowd last night; one of the loudest in years.

Game 2 tonight; hopefully the Mavs can get a couple of points to split the series tonight. UNO can choose 2 ways to react to last night: come out even more determined to win, or fold. They really need tonight's game.

Fans who can't make it to the game can catch it on Nebraska Public TV.

Mavs Looking Better than their Record

Two weekends ago, UNO had a horrible weekend against Notre Dame, but last weekend at Ohio State, they bounced back rather nicely, gaining 3 points on the road. Now, USCHO.com has released their PairWise ratings, which attempt to mimic the NCAA selection committee's rankings for the NCAA tournament. And despite what their 12-10-2 record would have you believe, the Mavs would likely be in the NCAA tournament if the season were to end today.

USCHO.com drew up some sample brackets, and right now, they would match up UNO versus the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the Northeastern Regional.

But the NCAA tournament is more than 2 months away; we're barely halfway through the season. This weekend brings the Michigan State Spartans to town. Sparty is playing better as of late, beating the Weasels of Michigoon last night 2-0. UNO swept Sparty at Munn in November, so Sparty will be looking for revenge and extend their five-game winning streak. One factor in UNO's favor is that Tuesday night game. UNO played on Tuesday night 2 weeks ago, and came out flat the following Friday versus Notre Dame. Last week, Ohio State played Miami on Tuesday night, and came out flat against UNO on Friday night. Could the Tuesday night jinx come through again?

Sporting News shows Callahan a little love

Matt Hayes of the Sporting News, like most of the national media, certainly took shots at Bill Callahan during the football season. But, this week, he recognizes that Callahan might be finally pulling the Huskers out of the ditch that Callahan and his boss drove the Huskers into.

That raises an interesting phenomenon that has taken hold in this country over the past couple of years. Honest criticism is viewed by some people as hatred or treason. Sometimes it's over serious topics like Chuck Hagel's criticism of President Bush's Iraq policy. Sometimes it's over something as trivial as Nebraska football. It's a sad state of the polarized nature of this country.

Another example came up today on Big Sports 590. (I prefer Kevin and Mike'l on 1620 the Zone, but I can't get their signal most of the time.) Matt Perrault, the afternoon host, was going to promote the Huskers Recruiting Dinner (YAWN!!!!) until the president of Nebraska's "Touchdown Club" booster organization said that a "Callahan-hater" like Perrault wouldn't be welcome. So, Nebraska loses out on some free positive publicity, and insteads looks more and more paranoid.

Hate is a strong term. But in today's society, it seems that criticism gets morphed into hate. I really wonder what some people will say when they run into real hatred. Will they even be able to recognize it?

14,000 excuses for not taking down the tree sooner

Finally got around to taking down the Christmas tree this weekend. Some people might think this is late, but remember, the "12 days of Christmas" traditionally STARTS on December 25th. And judging by the number of people at the tree recycling center, I wasn't the only one. In the 5 minutes I was there, a half dozen more trees showed up.

The undecorating didn't stop me from catching some of the football and hockey action this weekend. I don't ever remember so many road teams winning in the playoffs before; 3 road teams won last weekend, and 2 more today. And anyone who bothered to watch NBC's coverage of the NHL sure got a treat yesterday. Philadelphia scored twice in the last 3 minutes of regulation to tie the game, but Colorado won in overtime. Then they switched to Boston-Dallas just in time for a shootout.

Props to UNO goalie Jerad Kaufmann for shutting out #20 Ohio State on Friday night. UNO followed that up with a tie on Saturday night, giving them 3 needed points in the standings. Up this weekend is Michigan State at the Qwest Center. UNO swept the Spartans in November at their place; another sweep would help UNO's positioning in both the conference and in the battle for the NCAA tournament. Miami is pulling away in the standings, but the rest of the league is up for grabs. 7 points seperates 2nd place from last place.

Last month, I complimented Steve Pederson for his plan to sell the additional 6,500 Nebraska football season tickets. And, as things look, it turned out even better than expected, as they received over 14,000 requests. Scanning the internet over the last couple of weeks, I was amazed by the number of people who worried that a $250 donation per ticket wouldn't be enough to lock into tickets. Guess a lot of people weren't aware that Husker season tickets have been readily available for the last few years for a $150 donation. That ignorance means more money in the athletic department coffers; this reverse auction may have turned out even better than planned. (I think that's why they cut off requests last week.) Of course, the Huskers performances against Colorado and Michigoon didn't hurt either.

Omaha Royals: Solving their problems

The most positive news about the Omaha Royals this week came out on Friday, and it doesn't involve a new stadium. It's that the Minkers are considering selling their interest in the Royals. I don't know whether these new prospective owners would be able to do a better job or not; they still are from out of town. But, they probably can look at the failures by the current owners and make the necessary changes.

New ownership may still move forward on a new stadium, which may make sense for them. These prospective owners recognize the value of Rosenblatt, and if they decide to proceed on a new stadium, they will probably do a better job of selling it to the people of Omaha. Which, if they want much in the way of contributions from the city, they'll need to do.

Omaha Royals: Rosenblatt is the least of your problems

In today's "State of the City" address, Mayor Mike Fahey announced that the Omaha Royals are working on a financing plan to build a new baseball stadium in "North Downtown" west of the Qwest Center. Since nothing has been disclosed about the plan, it's difficult to comment as to whether this is a good deal for Omaha or not.

Judging from the Royals past comments on the stadium, I get the impression that the Royals were expecting the taxpayers to pay for most of this stadium. That idea simply won't fly; they'll need to better explain the benefits of this stadium to justify a major taxpayer investment.

Many stadium backers point to the Qwest Center as an example of the benefit that could occur. Problem is, unlike the Qwest Center, we already have a wonderful baseball stadium. ESPN spends nearly 2 weeks a year fawning over Rosenblatt Stadium. Before the Qwest Center, the Civic Auditorium was booked solid and Omaha was missing out on major events. The need for a new arena was there; without the Qwest Center, Omaha stood zero chance of hosting U2, Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones, or the NCAA basketball, wrestling, and volleyball tournaments.

The question for the Royals is: what is the benefit to Omaha for the new stadium? Except for anchoring new development downtown, that hasn't been explained.

The Royals talk about how Rosenblatt is too big for the Royals, but fail to explain why a smaller stadium downtown would help them, except to cut down on the number of empty seats. Rosenblatt didn't suddenly outgrow the Royals; in fact, the opposite has happened. Under the mismanagement of the Minker family, the Omaha Royals have alienated fans and discouraged people from attending games.

I've talked to several people who are knowledgable about the Royals situation, and they agree that a new stadium isn't going to help the Royals at all. And depending on how the new stadium operates, it might hurt them even more than it helps.

Rosenblatt Stadium gives the Royals three distinct advantages:

• free parking
• close proximity to Omaha's biggest tourist attraction: the Henry Doorly Zoo
• a $500,000 a year subsidy from the city of Omaha
  

Relocating to North Downtown would eliminate at least 2 of those advantages. The Royals talk about the difficulty in convincing fans to pay $8 for a ticket. That difficulty increases when suddenly you add a $6 parking fee in a downtown lot/parking garage on top of that $8.

The proble with the Royals isn't the stadium, it's the product. They are the top minor league affiliate of one of the worst-managed major league baseball team: the Kansas City Royals. In the 70's and 80's, Kansas City used to have their best minor leaguers in Omaha. Now, Kansas City trades away their best players before their salaries skyrocket, and then call up their prospects straight from class AA Wichita straight to the major leagues, bypassing Omaha.

And the Minker family has been mostly incompetent in promoting baseball in Omaha. Except for radio ads promoting yet-another-fireworks-night, the Royals don't give the average family a reason to attend their games. Periodically, you hear stories of families being harassed at the gate.

A new ballpark will encourage folks to come down and check the new place out. But if they don't give fans a reason to come back (or worse, continue to give folks reasons to stay away), the attendance gains from a new stadium will be extremely short-lived.

If the Royals want to pay for a new stadium themselves, or can come up with a plan using private funds, more power to them. But don't expect the taxpayers to bail them out of the mess they created.

Monday Morning Quarterbacking

Saturday night, UNO managed to pull out a 2-2 tie with Notre Dame to avoid getting swept at home. A very disappointing weekend, but there were a few positives to take away. First of all, larger crowds: almost 14,000 combined over the 2 games. (My prediction that the Mavs would double the average attendance of the Omaha Aksarben Knights is looking pretty good...) Saturday night, 2 players in particular stepped it up to show some heart: Freshman Tomas Klempa and Hobey Baker candidate Scott Parse took their game up a level and showed some grit and hustle in battling the trapping Irish.

While the extra joustling cost Parse a couple of trips to the penalty box (only 12 penalties this season before Saturday), it still didn't keep him from contributing an assist on both goals. Parse is now #1 in the nation in scoring.

The retired publisher of the Omaha daily couldn't help once again misanalyzing the Huskers. In Sunday's column, "Weird" Harold Andersen claimed that Bill Callahan's decision to go for 2 in the 4th quarter of the Alamo Bowl was "a gutsy call" that "got little or no attention". Uh, no, it wasn't a "gutsy call" at all. The reason why it got "little or no attention" was that going for 2 was a no-brainer at that point. If you make the 2 point conversion, you are within a field goal of tying the game. If you miss, you still need a touchdown. At that point in the game, there is little difference between being down 4 versus 5 points, but there is a BIG difference between being down 3 versus 4 points.

Speaking of the Huskers, defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove has been offered the job as linebackers coach for the Minnesota Vikings. I'm no Cosgrove fan, so I'm actually hoping he takes the job. In-laws from the Minnesota/Wisconsin area warned us about Cosgrove when he came to Lincoln, and Barry Alvarez was able to hire his successor at Wisconsin after Nebraska took Cosgrove off his hands.

Who would replace Cosgrove? One candidate comes to mind immediately: Marvin Sanders. Sanders turned down a job with the St. Louis Rams to join the Husker staff in 2003. In 2004, he begged to be included in the new coaching staff, but was turned down. Sanders was a key reason why Nebraska's defense improved so much in 2003, according to Bo Pelini. Hiring Sanders would not only be a great upgrade for the Nebraska coaching staff, it would also help heal the divisions in the Husker fan base by bringing a former player onto the staff. Sanders is an outstanding coach, and is a former Husker who really wants to be part of the Husker program.

Mavs: A Team in need of a Heart Transplant

There is no doubt UNO is a talented hockey team. Junior Scott Parse is 2nd in the country in scoring, while sophomore linemate Bill Thomas is 5th.

But there is one thing that seems to be sorely lacking: Heart.

Tuesday night, they went into the 3rd period at Mankato leading 2-0. They give up a power play goal at the start of the 3rd period, and the implosion begins. 10 minutes later, UNO is down 5-2.

Last night against last place Notre Dame with the largest crowd of the year on hand, they come out sleepwalking in the first period and don't wake up much in the 2nd and find themselves down 3-0 late in the 2nd before scoring just before the end of the period. They end up losing 4-1.

Every Mav fan is frustrated by what they saw last night. This team needs a good dose of grit and toughness. In the early years, UNO didn't have the big-time talent. It was a team built on hard-work. Now we've got some big name talent, but the heart has disappeared.

Could we find some eligibility for a Jeff Edwards, a Derek Reynolds, or Jeff Hoggan?

All Hail the Greatest Team Ever..... oops!

ESPN's premature coronation of the 2005 USC Trojans as the greatest team ever was a wonderful job of marketing. They just forgot one little detail:

USC isn't even the greatest team in 2005.

I wonder how long their ludicrous comparison of 2005 USC to 1995 Nebraska will stay online. Lee Barfknecht of the Omaha newspaper made this same mistake in 2003. Before the Big XII championship game, he tried to claim that the 2003 Oklahoma Sooners were the greatest ever. The Sooners went on to get throttled by Kansas State.

Congratulations to the Bovines. And kudos to the best player in college football this season: Vince Young.

Now, if they'd only quit singing "I've been working on the railroad"...

Scott Parse for Hobey Baker

UNO's Scott Parse ended 2005 as one of the hottest players in college hockey. Thursday night against Alabama-Huntsville, he tallied 5 points. Then, last night, Parse and his linemates Bill Thomas and Brian Marshall teamed up to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat against Yale.

Down 2-1, Parse assisted on Marshall's game-tying goal with 33 seconds left. Then, with the Qwest Center still buzzing at the start of overtime, Parse made an incredible pass to a wide open Marshall streaking down the ice, who buried it for the game winner just 19 seconds into OT.

ConAgra tried to top UNO's last minute fireworks with an impressive choreographed display last night, but nothing could top those 2 goals.

Parse is now #2 in the nation in scoring with 36 points, and leads the nation with his 1.89 points per game average. UNO's first Hobey Baker candidate?

This week, UNO travels to Minnesota State-Mankato for a game Tuesday, then welcomes Notre Dame for a 2 game conference series next weekend. Every conference game is huge; only 6 points seperates 2nd place from 12th.

Taking things WAY too far

Many Husker fans, myself included, were extremely critical of Steve Pederson after the 40-15 loss to Kansas. I even called for him to either resign or be fired, a position I still maintain even after the Alamo Bowl.

Some fans apparantly have gone further. Quite a bit further. Quite a bit UNACCEPTABLY further, in fact. At the Kansas State game, the State Patrol assigned a trooper to guard Pederson after several threats were made, including an incredibly stupid one in the North Platte Bulletin.

Folks, Husker football is a source of pride in this state. It is part of our way of life. But some fans take it way too far and way too seriously. Threatening Pederson or anybody in his family is not only childish and immature, it is also illegal.

I'll go a step further. Threatening ANYBODY over a football team is childish and immature. It's a friggin football GAME. Get a life.

Good Vibrations

A lot of good vibrations are flowing through Husker fans today. And they rightly should. Last night's victory was an impressive victory over a quality opponent; something that had been missing during the Bill Callahan era up to now.

Two things are tempering those good vibrations though today:

LateralGate. It was a comedy of errors on all fronts: Nebraska, Michigoon, and the officials. But, let's face it, it was a desperation play by Michigoon. The laterals were fun to watch now that we know that Michigoon didn't score, and it's fun to watch the replays over and over again, but let's not let this diminish the fact that was a great college football game and a great performance by the Huskers. ESPN Radio was particularly hard on this fact: Michigan alum Dana Jacobson complained about the play for most of her guest-host stint on the Dan Patrick radio show. MSNBC's Keith Olbermann was co-hosting for one hour, and had the bizarre notion that Bill Callahan should have offered to replay the down. Folks, it was a desperation play; if anything, the confusion helped Michigoon more than it hurt them. Until the bobbled lateral, Michigoon was more likely to get a safety than a touchdown as they lost yardage with almost every lateral. It wasn't until confusion broke out that they had a chance to score. Let it go, and enjoy one of the wackier plays you'll see.

Kool-Aid Drinkers. This game has a chance to begin repairing the deep divisions in HuskerNation. Callahan quieted a lot of critics in these last few games. Unfortunately, a few "Kool-Aid" drinkers are quite vocal in their cries of "I told you so!" Let me tell you something, if anything, this game proves that many of your allegations were false. We have had the talent to win many more games than we did over the last couple of years. And as I recall, we were able to defeat a 7-4 Big 10 team 2 years ago with the old staff -- and do it by 2 touchdowns. If you truly believe that Nebraska is about winning championships, not winning games, then you can't be happy with a 4 point victory over an also-ran in the Big 10 conference. So, shut your mouth.

Let's focus on what happened last night: Nebraska came out and played a complete game on national TV. We can all agree on that!

Paging the Trombone Player

In a Husker season filled with bizarre endings, the Alamo Bowl almost topped all of them. Thank goodness for Zackary Bowman's alert tackle at the Nebraska 20; otherwise, HuskerNation might find themselves in shock if Michigoon had managed to score after a half dozen or more desperation laterals as the clock expired.

The game saving tackle certainly allows Nebraska and it's fans to end the season on an extremely positive note. There were numerous inspired performances today, and I'll mention a few that come to mind right away.

Cory Ross. He capped his career in style with 162 yards rushing.
Adam Ickes. Playing with an abdominal injury that may require surgery after the game, he was a warrior on the field and caused a big fumble in the decisive fourth quarter.
Andrew Shanle. He made some huge tackles on Steve Breaston, preventing him from any sort of punt return. Yeah, one got flagged by the refs erroneously, but that hit also rejuvenated this team.
Terrence Nunn. Two huge touchdowns.
Defensive Line. Except for a period late in the third quarter and early in the 4th, they dominated Michigoon, and kept them from establishing any sort of rhythm in this game.
Zac Taylor. His numbers won't look good, but he took a licking all game.

All in all, it was a great effort to end this season. On defense, the Blackshirts dealt the Weasels all they could handle, and with the notable exception of about 20 minutes at the end of the first quarter and the first part of the second half, the offensive play calling was balanced with a fine combination of Cory Ross runs and Zac Taylor passes that kept the Weasels guessing what was coming next.

Considering all that has happened over the last couple of years, the players and fans deserved this type of ending.

I feel especially happy for the seniors such as Cory Ross, who have encountered 3 or 4 different position coaches, multiple systems, and taken abuse from some fans. It's great that they can end their careers on a high note. They should be proud of what they have accomplished.

A Tale of Two Programs

About a week after the Alamo Bowl matchup was announced, I was talking to a casual Michigoon fan about the game. She was surprised that I wasn't talking more trash about the matchup, and I responded by being surprised that she wasn't talking more trash.

Seems that there are a lot more similarities in the two programs than just great tradition and history. Both teams underachieved this year, with Michigan starting the season in the top 5 in many polls and Nebraska struggling to become bowl eligibile. Both teams have been hit hard by injuries this season. And both teams have fans that aren't terribly impressed with their leadership.

If you look at both team's seasons before Thanksgiving, you would have to say that this game looks like a Weasel Rout in the making. And yes, Nebraska has lost Bo Ruud to a broken arm, Wali Muhammad to a suspension, and Dontrell Moore to grades to hurt the Blackshirts more.

But, Michigan was initially extremely disappointed to end up in the Alamo Bowl instead of the Outback Bowl. And Nebraska is extremely excited to be in San Antonio after a 5-6 "Home for Christmas" finish was staring them in the face following the Kansas debacle.

Nebraska's performance against Colorado opened a lot of eyes; for the first time in the Bill Callahan era, Nebraska didn't underachieve on both sides of the ball. Does Nebraska have the talent to compete with Michigan? Hard to say, Michigan is the best team Nebraska has faced this season. If Nebraska can continue the momentum they found against the Buffies, they can play with a team like Michigoon. And if Michigoon really doesn't want to be in the Alamo Bowl, Nebraska can make a statement and solidify the programs status. (Remember what happened to Kansas State in 1998 when they missed out on the National Championship game by losing the Big XII Title Game?)

It should be an interesting game. I have no idea how this one is going to turn out; I have thoughts that can explain a 4 touchdown victory by either team. That's what happens when you have 2 talented teams that haven't played that way.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and
Happy Kwanzaa to all. What the heck, happy Festivus as well. May your holiday season be joyful, no matter how you choose to celebrate!

The 1997 Debate Lives On

Today's Omaha World-Herald looks back at the debate over the 1997 National Championship, split between Nebraska and Michigoon. Initially, I was rather surprised that of the 6 writers, 5 of them picked the Wolverines to win if the two were to meet. Those predictions:
Malcolm Moran, USA Today: M 27, N 16
Tom Dienhart, Sporting News: M 17, N 13
Don Borst, Lindy's: M 20, N 17
Tim Layden, Sports Illustrated: M 17, N 14
Mark Blaudschun, Boston Globe: M 34, N 24
Dennis Dodd, CBS Sportsline: N 35, M 27

But, of course, you have to remember that the writers gave their title to the Goonies, so perhaps this shouldn't be such a surprise. And Dennis Dodd briefly worked for the Omaha World-Herald in the early 90's...

Wolverine fans love to play the comparative score game to stake their claim that Michigoon was clearly the superior team in 1997, but they stop looking any deeper than the scores. Yes, Michigoon beat Colorado 27-3 and Nebraska beat Colorado 27-24. However, those games were two and a half months apart (UM-CU was in early September; NU-CU was the day after Thanksgiving). They also point to the Baylor game: Michigoon 38, Baylor 3 versus Nebraska 49, Baylor 21. But, they forget that both of those games were home games for Michigoon while Nebraska was on the road both times. Also, the scores of both those games for Nebraska were much closer than they really were. Both Colorado and Baylor each scored 2 late touchdowns; in the 4th quarter, it was NU 27, CU 10 and NU 49, BU 7.

Michigoon fans also love to point out the "Miracle at Missouri" when Nebraska tied the game on Matt Davison's diving catch of a deflected pass as time expired. However, they also ignore the last second running off the clock at the Rose Bowl with Washington State at the Michigoon 16. (The clock still read :01 when Ryan Leaf spiked the ball.)

So, what we are left with is a great debate for some. No debate for me, though. Michigan had a great team that year, but Nebraska was the National Champion.

Recruitniks Start to Panic

Well, the Recruitnik Nation (a wholly owned subsidiary of Husker Nation, All Rights Reserved) is all up in arms about recruit Josh Freeman switching his commitment from Nebraska to Kansas State. Predictably, the reaction is furious and lines up along the following lines:

• He was overrated.
• He is a traitor.
• He has no integrity.
• Kansas State has no integrity.
  
• Good Riddance.

Let's be honest; Recruitniks are reacting in anger at being jilted. Freeman was supposed to enroll in Lincoln in 3 weeks; in many respects, this is like calling off the wedding after the shower. And these recruitniks are reacting emotionally, not intelligently.

Only the Freeman family will truly know whether this was the right decision or not; this was their decision to make. Fans who react angrily to Freeman should remember the case of Lydon Murtha, who switched his commitment from Minnesota to Nebraska 2 years ago. It happens on both ways; these are 17 year old kids making the biggest decision of their lives so far. Fans should not have been surprised; Freeman's status should have questioned when he started talking to Oklahoma and Missouri last month.

For those fans still whining and complaining about it: Get over it. This is recruiting, and it happens all the time. Ask Texas about Ryan Perrilloux.

This especially includes you, Mr. Husker Information Minister. Today, you displayed the arrogance that causes so many college football fans to hate Nebraska. It was a pathetic, disgusting diatribe that will probably earn you yet more kudos from the people you work for. It was arrogant. It was pompous. It was vindictive. It was being a sore loser.

He attacked Freeman, he attacked his family. He attacked Kansas State and their new football coach, Ron Prince. He claimed to have pity on Freeman for making the biggest mistake of his young life.

Jim Rose is a disgrace to the Husker football program.

More Nuttery

Two years after using Steve Pederson to get a raise at Arkansas, Houston Nutt has had back-to-back losing seasons for the Razorbacks. In his attempt to save his job, he fired his offensive coordinator and hired a new offensive coordinator: Gus Malzahn.

Malzahn has no coaching experience at the college or professional level. So what makes him qualified to become an offensive coordinator in the Southeastern Conference?

Well, he's won state championships as head coach at Springdale High School in Arkansas.

But maybe more importantly, he's also the high school coach of "5 star" quarterback Mitch Mustain.

Yikes. When Nebraska hired successful high school coaches such as Dan Young and Dan McLaughlin, they started as graduate assistants, not as full-time assistants. And certainly not as a coordinator. Not quite as bad as Gerry Faust at Notre Dame, but this is obviously a desperate hire.

Thank goodness that plane came back empty from Fayetteville 2 years ago.

Recrutniks in a Panic?

Over the last couple of weeks, several of the so-called recruiting experts have expressed the opinion that Nebraska's 2006 football recruiting class is not going to be as highly rated as many fans expect. Now, Tim Cassidy, Nebraska's associate athletic director for football is starting to manage fan's expectations:

"We have to put an emphasis on filling our needs. I don't know where we'll rank this time, but sometimes there's so much hype into some of these guys." He cautioned fans about putting too much stock into the ratings by recruiting services and said Husker coaches have to target specific positions with players they believe best fit the program.

Amen, Tim. I'm sure that this recruiting class will be fine. However, you are about pay the price for feeding the recruting monster during the last couple of years. Nebraska currently has 20 commitments, with about 25 scholarships to offer. Rival's average star rating for this class is 2.95, which if it holds would be Nebraska's second worst over the last 5 years.

And let me repeat this: this recruiting class will be fine. I know that this coaching staff knows more about football players than these so-called experts. As teams below Nebraska start filling out their classes (USC, Michigan, Ohio State, Clemson, Arizona, Tennessee), many of them will pass Nebraska in the rankings. It will be fun to watch some of these recruitniks squirm...

Football Tickets for Sale

Today, Nebraska began accepting applications for the 6,500 new seats being added to Memorial Stadium. Contrary to the perception of most fans, this is not the first time new season tickets have been available for sale. Last season, Nebraska failed to sell out their season tickets before the season began, as I have heard of several people who bought season tickets either just before the season or as late as the Pitt game. And if you had seen the sea of tickets outside the stadium before every home game, you would have to agree that interest in the Huskers last season was lower than at any time since the Devaney era.

With the withering of demand and the addition of 6,500 seats, the sellout streak is probably in the most peril that it has been in the past 35 years. And I'll give Steve Pederson credit for coming up with a fair plan to sell these additional seats.

One factor that helps Nebraska is that there is a perception that there was a 20 year wait for season tickets. This legend is blatently false; I got my season tickets with no donation in 1992. Granted, most season tickets purchased since then have required a donation. Nevertheless, just promoting the availability of tickets is going to stimulate demand.

I like Pederson's plan to set aside at least 1,000 of the new seats for non-donors; not only does it open up seats for fans who aren't able to donate at this time, but it also gives the athletic department the flexibility to sell more seats without a donation if they can't find enough new donors to fill the new seats.

I also like the "dutch auction" on donations; if you want to promise to donate more, you'll stand a better chance of getting tickets. It worked well on the Google IPO. If a lot of people want to donate a lot of money, the athletic department will be a huge winner. If the new donor base isn't that large, it gives them an out to ensure that the sellout streak continues.

I was afraid of what was going to be proposed; I envisioned the possibility of required donations for all seats or non-donors being pushed to the upper reaches of the north stadium. My retired parents have held season tickets in the North Stadium for over 40 years, and I'd hate to see them forced out of the seats they had occupied for so long.

In the end, this is a plan that is fair to everyone.

Former Players Still Uneasy

After last year's 5-6 debacle, a number of players began to express their dissatisfaction with the changes in Lincoln. A meeting between the players, Milt Tenopir, and Steve Pederson was held, and everyone was happy.

Or so the story went.

Over the past year, another story has crept out. By many accounts, Milt Tenopir took control of the meeting, and out of the respect these players have for Coach Tenopir, many of the issues that some players have went unspoken. Hence, the positive post-meeting comments.

That doesn't mean that former players are all on board, though. The Journal-Star talked to many players last week, and found a wide array of opinions. McCathorn Clayton is extremely positive, which shouldn't be a surprise since he works for Steve Pederson. Keith "End Zone" Jones is also on board.

Cory Schlesinger, who has been playing in the West Coast Offense in Detroit for years, chooses his words carefully, but his displeasure is obvious. Micah Heibel doesn't mince any words in his displeasure.

And we all remember Scott Frost's comments.

Another Horrific Weekend

With the exception of the Husker volleyball team (Hi, AJ!), this is turning into a miserable weekend of sports. Oweing to Christmas parties and shopping, I missed most of the UNO Mavericks being swept by Michigoon. I did get to hear UNO take early 1-0 leads on the Weasels, but those leads were short lived. The 3rd period of last night's game sounded particularly nasty; we'll see if that bad blood continues when the Weasels return to Omaha in February.

But I did get to see more of today's Nebraska/Creighton game than I cared to. If the 7-6 Nebraska/Pitt football game set the game of football back 50 years, then today's basketball game must have taken us back to the age of the peach basket. Both teams launched enough bricks to pave I-80 between Omaha and Lincoln. I don't know if Creighton is getting better or Nebraska played that poorly; I'm thinking the latter.

I've been a Barry Collier supporter, but Collier is running out of time to start showing progress. Yes, Danny Nee left the program in the sewer, and at least Collier has put a watchable product out there at times. There's no reason why Nebraska can't put a NCAA tournament team out there occasionally, but what we saw today was a high school class C-2 team.

You could see Collier's frustration on the bench today, so it's not like he's oblivious to the problem. If we see many more performances like this one today, it could be an ugly season.

Put some Metamucil in your Kool-Aid, Harold

Crotchety old Harold W. Andersen, the retired publisher of the Omaha Daily Newspaper saw an opening with the Colorado victory to take on the critics and the media for overbearing negativity. And while Andersen is correct that the tone of many articles about the Huskers is negative, he forgets the main reason why they are negative: The Huskers underachieved for most of Bill Callahan's first 21 games as head coach.

The first mistake that Andersen made was equating criticism with calling for his firing. Yes, there are people calling for a coaching change: http://www.billmustgo.com and http://firebillcallahan.blogspot.com come to mind. But that isn't any sort of strong majority at this time. I've criticized Callahan several times, but I don't think it's time to fire him.

His most serious error was to blame LeKevin Smith for the Texas Tech loss, and "not the coach or athletic director". Oh, so LeKevin Smith called the "bend and break" defense for the first 20 minutes of the Texas Tech game that spotted the Raiders a 21-0 lead? What about that 3-man line that was so effective in allowing Brad Smith to rack up almost 500 yards of offense?

And his final error was in blaming the 2003 staff for the number of freshmen and sophomores who are playing now. First of all, thanks to the 85 scholarship limit, many teams are playing freshmen and sophomores. Oklahoma, for example, is playing more freshmen and sophomores than Nebraska.

My opinion is that there were some recruiting problems at Nebraska; problems that were solved at the start of 2003. That was too late for the 2003 class, but the 2004 recruiting class under the new staff was looking promising. One recruitnik says that Rivals had them around #14 before the firing rumors started scuttling that staff. In any event, the 2003 staff never got a chance to prove themselves.

As for the number of freshman and sophomores playing, don't be so quick to credit Callahan; of the 8 freshman and sophomores who started against Colorado, the majority were recruited by Frank Solich: Corey McKeon, Bo Ruud, J.B. Phillips, Chris Patrick, Nate Swift, and Terrence Nunn were Solich committments.

Now, did Bill Callahan recruit a lot of quality players? Sure looks that way. Were there some problems in recruiting before 2003? Yep, and that was taken care of in 2002.

Looks like Harold's arguments lack a lot of substance... Just like many of the kool-aid drinkers out there.

Hell to the Vermin

The UNO Maverick hockey team finished up an nice 4 point weekend, sweeping Ferris (Bueller) State this weekend. Scott Parse took the lead as the nation's leading scorer with a 5 point performance against the Poodles...

Up next are the Weasels from Michigoon this weekend in Ann Arbor. The Weasels will be playing teams in red quite a bit; UNO plays at Yost in a 2 game series Friday and Saturday night; Saturday night the Husker women visit the Vermin. And now the Alamo Bowl will match up the Huskers and the Goonies on Wednesday, December 28th.

I'm anxiously awaiting AJ's initial volley of hatred towards Michigoon. (Parental guidance highly recommended...) It will be interesting to learn whether he hates the Vermin more than the Huskers; my guess is he'll just hope for a stadium collapse to take out both teams...

Nice win for Husker Hoops over Marquette

I missed the first half tonight, and must admit I was shocked by the halftime score; Huskers by 19 at the break over Marquette. The Golden Eagles are fresh off their Great Alaskan Shootout championship and presented their toughest challenge to this point. (Sagarin rated their schedule #311 out of 334!)

They seemed to relax a bit in the second half, allowing Marquette to close to within 6 points with about 7 minutes to go. Last year, Nebraska seemed to find a way to let those leads slip away at the end, but this game, Nebraska turned it up at the end and won 84-74.

Solich's worst day: Saturday after Thanksgiving

Ohio head coach Frank Solich was arrested Saturday night for drunken driving in Athens, Ohio. No spin here; it was a dangerous and stupid act. Solich immediately pled no contest and was fined, ordered to pay a fine and attend a 3 day intervention program, and recieved a 180 day license suspension.

Solich will discuss the incident at a press conference tomorrow; Ohio University is treating this as a personnel matter, and Solich is expected to remain as the head coach.

When I heard of this situation, the first thing I thought of was that 2 years ago on the Saturday night after Thanksgiving, Solich was fired as the head coach of the Huskers. We may find out tomorrow whether this was a coincedence; my instinct says not.

One man's ego

I think every Husker fan should be elated and excited about Friday's victory. Fans can take a lot of positives out of the performance of the Big Red. And I don't want to take anything away from it. Callahan supporters and critics alike saw clear signs of optimism that indicate the program is finally putting the discord from 2 years ago finally behind.

Then the athletic director reopened all the old wounds, claiming vindication by saying "This is the reason we did what we did." Before the game, Pederson declined to an interview with KETV-Channel 7 to discuss the events of 2 years ago. He knew that the questions would be uncomfortable, and nothing is to be gained by revisiting that decision.

So why do it after the game? Simple. Ego. The folks in Pittsburgh know about it. And at the first sign of progress on Friday, there's Steve Pederson's ego once again on display.

It's now been 104 weeks, and the wounds still haven't been healed. Bill Callahan seems to finally have gotten the embrace of his football team. Many critics of his, including me, recognize that this might be the turning point in the program.

So why does Steve Pederson suddenly want to brag about his 2003 coaching decision? Ego, ego, ego. 2 years ago, with his plans in place to fire Frank Solich in place, Pederson was the invisible man. And as soon as Nebraska seems ready to finally move on, there is Steve Pederson taking center stage to take the credit.

I can think of 38.5 million reasons why Pederson should have kept his mouth shut after Saturday's game, much like he kept it quiet after the Kansas game. But, once again, Steve Pederson put his ego ahead of the athletic department.

Bill Callahan may very well turn out to be a success. I saw something on Friday that indicates that this might work out in the end.

At the same time, I am further convinced that Steve Pederson will NEVER be able to repair his relationship with the fan base he alienated 2 years ago. He has talked about moving on, but Friday night, he refused to "walk the talk." My opinion that he should resign or be fired has not changed.

It finally all clicks...

In the Bill Callahan era, the Huskers have had short bursts of offensive success. And some longer bursts of defensive success. But until yesterday in Boulder, they've never put together a cohesive 60 minutes of football.

Yesterday, it all came together. Every Husker fan has to be amazed by what they saw yesterday. It was a beautiful thing.

I must admit that I was expecting a repeat of the 2001 game, especially after the opening 3-and-out followed by Colorado running a counter play to gain 40 yards early on. But that was it for the CoCo Puffs. From there on out, the Huskers simply dominated.

Credit goes to everyone for this performance. Zac Taylor elevated his game to the next level, making clutch throw after clutch throw. Bo Ruud spent almost as much time in Colorado's backfield as CU quarterback Joel Klatt. And when Cory Ross wasn't picking up a CU blitzer, he was making a big reception.

After the Kansas debacle, I stated that the problem wasn't talent - and yesterday proved it. In the last 2 years, the only team to significantly outtalent Nebraska was Oklahoma. So what changed?

Simple. For the first time since the shakeup, the coaching staff and the players truly were on one page. Sure, they've said the right things at times, but you've never gotten the feeling that all was right in the Husker camp.

Until yesterday.

You could see it in the tears in Bill Callahan's eyes in his post game press conference. You could see it in the Gatorade dunk Callahan received.

It was a masterful performance by both the players and coaches. It's a shame that the Huskers will need to wait another month for another game to build on this performance.

Not the Victory but the Recruiting

I wonder if part of the new building campaign will include an updating of the inscription on Memorial Stadium to reflect the new reality:

Not the Victory but the recruiting
Not the game but the letter of intent
In rivals.com the glory.

Last week, I received a spam-mail from the Nebraska Athletic Department announcing 52 signees in various sports, especially trumpeting their recruiting ratings. And while I look forward to seeing many of these players in Husker uniforms, I can't help but continue to be concerned about the escalation of the recruiting hype machine.

In the past, Husker fans were advised to stay away from recruits. And for good reason; it's not very difficult to comply with NCAA regulations. Earlier this month, I was talking to my former boss, who has a son who is being recruited by several schools, and she was extremely proud of her son. And for good reason. And as we talked, I realized how easy it would be to commit an NCAA rules violation, even though she placed the call to me.

Before the Kansas State game, I was early enough and was underneath South Stadium with a few hundred fans as the team returned to the locker room from warmups. All the fans were cheering, applauding, and encouraging the team as they passed. Great! Wonderful! Go Big Red!

After the team passed, my elation turned to pure disgust. Some fans suddenly went absolutely nuts as the recruits began to follow along to the locker room. They weren't there to cheer on the Huskers; they were there for the RECRUITS! As far as I'm concerned -- completely PATHETIC.

After many home games, I've seen many people asking "Nevermind the game, what did the recruits think?" Like any fan should have the answer; fans run dangerously close to violating NCAA rules by contacting a recruit.

Don't get me wrong. Recruiting is important. But fan involvement in recruiting is an invitation to disaster. Fans can cause nothing but problems when they get involved.

Speaking of recruiting, did anyone notice that USC/Fresno State game on Saturday night? Everybody likes to talk about USC's athletes, and that's part of why they are #1. But it's not the whole reason; USC has always had top rated recruiting classes. It took Pete Carroll to turn it into a national contender. But how do recruitnik's explain Fresno State? Carl pointed it out a couple of weeks ago; Fresno State's last few recruiting classes were rated 53rd, 98th, 111th, and 75th. And they almost knocked off USC in the Mausoleum. Great coaching, good talent, and completely bogus recruiting evaluation.

Rough day for UNO

Yesterday was a bad day all around for UNO; the Mavs were bounced from the Division II football playoffs by Saginaw State, losing 24-21 at home. Then, in hockey, Alaska-Fairbanks took advantage of a couple of bad bounces, a coaching blunder, and an outstanding goalie performance to split the series with the Mavs.

Last night was a frustrating game for UNO; they outshot the Nanooks 34-13. But Fairbanks scored the opening goal on a breakaway after a UNO scoring chance was deflected, then scored the 2nd period on a breakaway as the Nanooks were exiting the penalty box.

The Nanooks 2nd goal was extremely disappointing; the power play goal began at the start of the 2nd period when UNO was penalized for not returning to the ice after intermission. I've been frustrated by Bill Callahan's sideline blunders the last couple of years, but this was inexcusable. This one will knaw at us at the end of the season, though you can drive yourself crazy playing the "what if" game.

One thing though is clear; this team is loaded with talent. Once the goaltending stabilizes, these Mavs will be GOOD. Fairbanks went into Mariucci and kept the Gophers winless last month, and they're the only team to beat Michigan this season. And UNO pummelled them all weekend. And they went into Munn last weekend and swept Sparty.