BlogPoll Ballot: Huskers Disappear Like Blackshirts

Not much change at the top of the ballot, but the second half of the ballot is almost completely new.  I dropped the teams that suffered bad losses over the weekend -- removing them completely.  That includes Nebraska as well; obviously I misread the whole situation with the defense.

Husker Mike's Blasphemy Ballot - Week 2

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Alabama Crimson Tide	--
2	USC Trojans	--
3	LSU Tigers	--
4	Oregon Ducks	--
5	South Carolina Gamecocks	--
6	Georgia Bulldogs	--
7	Florida St. Seminoles	--
8	Oklahoma Sooners	--
9	Kansas St. Wildcats	9
10	Clemson Tigers	--
11	West Virginia Mountaineers	--
12	TCU Horned Frogs	3
13	Michigan St. Spartans	--
14	Florida Gators	6
15	Baylor Bears	10
16	Ohio Bobcats	--
17	UCLA Bruins	--
18	Virginia Tech Hokies	--
19	Michigan Wolverines	-7
20	Louisville Cardinals	2
21	Stanford Cardinal	--
22	BYU Cougars	--
23	Arizona St. Sun Devils	--
24	Notre Dame Fighting Irish	--
25	Texas Longhorns	--
Dropouts: Nebraska Cornhuskers, Arkansas Razorbacks, Wisconsin Badgers, Oklahoma St. Cowboys, Washington Huskies, Utah Utes, North Carolina Tar Heels

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Baylor rides the wave of teams coming in.  Kansas State gets a huge promotion for doing what Nebraska fans only dream of: blowing out Miami (Florida) in your home stadium.  Michigan State finally gets ranked for showing an offense outside of Le'Veon Bell.  Michigan gets penalized a little for looking a little too pedestrian against a Mountain West service academy at home.

UCLA gets on the ballot with their huge performance against the Huskers.  Other new teams are Virginia Tech, Stanford, Arizona State, and most grudgingly, Texas and Notre Dame. I needed teams to insert into the mix, and those were the best available.  Arkansas struggled against a 1-AA team and lost to a Sun Belt team; they don't look like a top 50 team anymore.  Wisconsin has a better case; they lost to a lower-tier Pac-12 team....but they're gone.  Nebraska might have still warranted a vote, but not after this past week's stinker.

UCLA Roasts the Blackshirts In a Tackling Debacle

What a frustrating night for Husker fans.  The first half WAC track meet gave way to a second half defensive struggle that discombobulated down the stretch. Where to begin, where to begin?

I'm going to start with tackling.  It's easy to call it Cosgrovian...too easy, and too flippant.  But the fact remains that the Huskers couldn't tackle worth a darn tonight.  There were issues last week, but tonight, it was an epidemic.  Credit Brett Hundley and Johnathan Franklin for breaking those tackles, but still...so many times Nebraska's defense could have gotten off the field.  And didn't.  Can tackling be fixed?  Absolutely; it's fundamentals.

The bigger problem was up front.  Nebraska's offensive line was OK in run blocking...but in pass blocking, Nebraska tackles were getting beat regularly on the edge.  And by the end of the game, even the guards were getting beaten.  Take away those passing lanes, and rush Taylor Martinez to make throws quicker than he'd like, and boom, you have a 17 for 32 passing performance.

But the flip side was even worse; UCLA only needed to send four to penetrate our backfield while Nebraska needed to send five or six to get pressure.  And when you send five or six, that leaves seams to be exploited...and exploit is exactly what UCLA did.  KOZN's Mike'l Severe has been sounding the alarm about the lack of playmakers up front, and tonight that message was driven home like a nail through the skull.  What's the solution?  Is it time to get Aaron Curry and Avery Moss more playing time and get them developed under fire?  The redshirts are burned, and so you might as well play them.  Occasionally Jason Ankrah made a play, as did Eric Martin...but that was about it.

I'm not quite as down on Taylor Martinez as some fans probably are.  Did Martinez make some mistakes tonight?  Absolutely.  But he didn't have a lot of help at times; we saw a few more drops this week.  Martinez ran the ball well at times, though he was hung out to dry on that zone read out of the end zone.

I saw a few things to be optimistic (or maybe less pessimistic) about in the secondary.  Josh Mitchell plays bigger than his 155 pounds, and Daimion Stafford did an admirable job trying to cover Joseph Fauria.  Stanley Jean-Baptiste seemed to make a few play late in the game.

Ameer Abdullah had a great time running the ball for the most part, but that turnover to open the second half put the defense in tough spot.  Tim Beck is going to get ripped for his game plan and play calling, but some of that is a little excessive.  If anything, Beck seemed to go to the well a few too many times.  On that drive at the start of the fourth quarter, I was waiting to throw a play-action pass into the end zone, but instead, it was all on the ground.

Nebraska had plenty of opportunities to win this game, and failed.  Bottom line.  They failed.

In the fog of disgust, there will be a lot of wailing and moaning.  But let's make it clear that Nebraska wasn't alone in sucking today.  Michigan may have had the best victory in the Big Ten today, and that was an unimpressive 31-25 victory over Air Force.  Northwestern's victory over Vanderbilt isn't far off.  Iowa only managed two field goals at home.  Penn State lost a winnable game at Virginia.  Illinois and Wisconsin were exposed badly.  Nebraska won't see an offense like UCLA's again this season, in all likelihood.

Was this Pelini's "hairball" game for the season?  We can only hope.  Nebraska fans should be disappointed with what they saw tonight...but that's true of most B1G teams tonight.

A Must Win Game for the Huskers? Or a Must Not Lose Game?

I didn't have the opportunity to watch UCLA's game last week at Rice; we don't get CBS Sports Network on our cable and I wasn't home anyway. I can only base my opinions on the stat sheet and my summer preview of UCLA posted to CornNation.  Needless to say, I was surprised when the betting line for tonight's game opened at just five points.  I was even more surprised by the number of national prognosticators picking UCLA to win outright tonight at the Rose Bowl.

At face level, I don't see it.  Sure, Rex Burkhead is questionable to play, and doubtful to contribute.  I could see Burkhead playing just the opening play to keep his consecutive games streak alive and see how it actually goes.  But even without Burkhead, I still think Nebraska should be favored.  But many disagree.

I'm not going to try to refute that argument.  They very well might be right; UCLA isn't so out-manned that they cannot win. But I think part of the argument for the UCLA upset is past Nebraska failings:  the Capital One Bowl and Wisconsin last season.  Texas A&M and the Big XII Championship game in 2010.

Oh, and the "Pelini Hairballs" where Nebraska inexplicably lost:  Iowa State and Texas Tech in 2009, Washington (Holiday Bowl) in 2010.  Northwestern in 2011.

I think Nebraska should win today, and win fairly comfortably. My CornNation game prediction is NU 38, UCLA 14.  I think I'm alone in thinking that the Blackshirts can hold UCLA to just two scores; I'm on an island here.  But that's what I see.  Rice wasn't much of an opponent; note that Kansas is a 10 point favorite over the Owls today.  They had one of the worst defenses in college football last season, and probably aren't going to be much better this year.

This isn't a game Nebraska must win so much as it is a game that Nebraska must not lose. Tom Osborne once noted that any game you lost suddenly became a big game after the fact. A victory over UCLA won't impress most college football experts (unless the score gets out of hand, which I don't expect)...but a loss to UCLA adds even more traction that the Huskers are not anywhere near the upper echelon of the football world.  Remember that summertime talk that Nebraska might only win eight games this season?  This comes from that perception.

If Nebraska is to break that perception, Nebraska cannot afford a loss tonight in the Rose Bowl. It's a game Nebraska must find a way to win, because failure to win becomes just yet another example of Nebraska's not back.

Day by Day!
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A Team That Can't Be Beat:

WON'T BE BEAT!

BlogPoll Ballot: 'Bama #1, Any Questions? Didn't Think So.

Now that we've moved beyond the opening week of the season, actions on the field take precedence over preseason perceptions.  And so, teams that played well against opponents perceived to be good take precedence over teams that struggled against not-so-good opponents.  Got that?

In short, Alabama goes to #1.  Southern Cal moves to #2 with a blowout of Hawaii.   After that, well, it's a muddled mess at this point where we have to start using perception.  Oregon looked good in the first half, then mailed in their second half.  South Carolina looked somewhat meh against a meh opponent. Florida State blew out a nobody while Oklahoma struggled with UTEP.

Husker Mike's Blasphemy Ballot - Week 1

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Alabama Crimson Tide	--
2	USC Trojans	--
3	LSU Tigers	--
4	Oregon Ducks	--
5	South Carolina Gamecocks	--
6	Georgia Bulldogs	--
7	Florida St. Seminoles	--
8	Oklahoma Sooners	--
9	Nebraska Cornhuskers	--
10	Clemson Tigers	--
11	West Virginia Mountaineers	--
12	Michigan Wolverines	--
13	Arkansas Razorbacks	--
14	Wisconsin Badgers	--
15	TCU Horned Frogs	--
16	Ohio Bobcats	--
17	Oklahoma St. Cowboys	--
18	Kansas St. Wildcats	--
19	Washington Huskies	--
20	Florida Gators	--
21	Stanford Cardinal	--
22	Louisville Cardinals	--
23	Utah Utes	--
24	North Carolina Tar Heels	--
25	Baylor Bears	--

SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings »

So then comes the homer pick: Nebraska at #9. Yep, that's right...#9.  Southern Miss was a bowl team and C-USA champs last year and got beat badly.  There aren't a lot of teams that played an opponent like that in week one and beat that opponent like that.  So I'm putting the Husker there for now.  We'll see if they stick there, especially when they play Arkansas State in two weeks followed by Idaho State.  Those won't be impressive opponents.

Ohio at #16?  Yeah, that's a sentimental pick...but they did rack up 499 yards against Penn State, and while the Nittany Lions lost all of their offence from last year, the defense last year was solid and should be decent this season.  No Ohio State?  Yep...NCAA sanctions.  No Michigan State?  Yep... the Spartan offense was down right offensive considering Boise State only had two returning starters on defense.  Michigan at #12?  That might be a little high, but my take is that Alabama may be that good.  And let's be honest...if we want matchups like Alabama/Michigan, we can't penalize teams for losing and then reward teams like Oklahoma State for running up the score on Savannah State.

Wisconsin #14?  Well, they probably shouldn't even be rated after that performance against Northern Iowa, but I decided to leave 'em in based on perception.

Taylor Martinez Shows Progress to Doubters and Southern Miss

All spring and summer, story after story talked about Taylor Martinez's work with quarterback guru Steve Calhoun. Some people believed it, some didn't.  And some people chose to ignore it. The story line for some people on a national basis:  Taylor Martinez regressed last season (false) and it's probably too late to reclaim his career.  Nebraska will never go anywhere as long as Taylor Martinez is playing quarterback.  Sheesh.  He's not good.  The Huskers need to find someone else.

Well, the haters might want to start hedging their bets.  From my vantage point high above the south end zone, I really couldn't judge all of his mechanics all that well.  Taylor Martinez is no Tom Brady or Peyton Manning, but it's absurd to expect him to suddenly become that kind of quarterback after just a few months of work.  But let's make it clear:  Taylor Martinez is a much improved passer.  How improved?

26 completions in 34 attempts for 354 yards and five touchdowns.  Remember that talk about Martinez's hoping to complete 70% of his passes this season?  Well, he's at 76.5% after one game.  Suddenly that goal doesn't seem quite as crazy as it might have a month earlier.  And two of Martinez's incompletions really should have been wiped out by blown pass interference calls...that would have moved Martinez's completion percentage over 81%.

Martinez wasn't perfect.  His passes were more accurate, and he showed decent touch on several throws. Receivers saved a couple of errant throws, including Kyler Reed's 18 yard touchdown.  And Deron Miller broke on Martinez's pass to Kenny Bell and nearly intercepted it with nobody between him and the end zone. But he was better than he's ever been as a passer.  So much so that he didn't even really try to run the ball today; only six carries, one of which was a sack by future NFL'er Jamie Collins.  Martinez was one-dimensional today, and the folks at ESPN are probably shocked at what they saw.

The receivers get a lot of credit for making catches today; granted, it's easier when the ball is closer to the mark, but they did a great job just the same.  My favorite was Quincy Enunwa's first quarter catch where he drug half of Southern Miss' defense 10 yards down the field.  Boom.  10 different Huskers caught passes.  Jamal Turner had the long passing play on the day with a 36 yard catch and run.  He wasn't a liability away from the ball like he was at  times last season; on Rex Burkhead's long run, he was downfield blocking like the rest of the receivers.

Burkhead's sprained knee is the biggest downer on the game. Ameer Abdullah did fine in relief, but I wouldn't mind seeing a little more of Braylon Heard if Burkhead is going to be out for an extended period.

The defense was a bit of a disappointment. I had hoped to see more from the defensive line. They did a better job after halftime, but they struggled to contain Desmond Johnson and Anthony Alford at times. Truth be told, Southern Miss had a good rushing attack and with 4 returning starters on the offensive line, you need to give the Eagles credit for what they did. I get the feeling the defense tried to be somewhat vanilla today with a new coaching staff that changed offensive coordinators in June.  The secondary wasn't really tested much today, so I'm not sure what to make of them.

Special teams were pretty much a disaster today. Two missed field goals, a shanked kickoff and punt, and giving up a 101 yard touchdown return is something that had better get fixed - and fast.  Hopefully Brett Maher got all his yips out of his system; he was so good last season it's a surprise he struggled like he did.

All told, it was a good opening game.  Defense looks a little shaky, but the offense looks explosive. But it's just one game; remember how good Nebraska looked against Nevada in 2007?  We know what happened after that, and while I don't think a collapse like that is in the cards, it points out the need to not go overboard after just one game.

This first weekend of the college football season was not a good one for the Big Ten. Ohio State's 56-10 win over Miami-Ohio was impressive, but the Redhawks aren't half the team Southern Miss is. Purdue blew out a 1-AA team, and Illinois had a decent win over Western Michigan. Michigan State's inexperience in the passing game showed in their game against a Boise State team that only had two returning starters on defense.  Iowa managed to pull one out against a MAC team in the closing minutes, while Wisconsin nearly choked against 1-AA Northern Iowa.  And Michigan?  Well, we'll learn over time if Alabama is as good they seemed today.

Prelude to the 2012 Husker Football Season

Once again another season of Husker football is upon us. I'll admit it, I'm optimistic about the Huskers this season. I don't buy into the talk of 7-5 or 8-4, and frankly, I don't think the doubters have much of a case for their pessimism, other that "Nebraska lost 3 regular season games and should have lost to Ohio State."

All that is true, but I still go back to, at it's core, I think Nebraska can defeat anybody on their schedule this season. Wisconsin doesn't have Russell Wilson, and the game is in Lincoln.  Michigan still has Denard Robinson, of course, but caught quite a few breaks last season. And almost nobody believes that Northwestern was really better than Nebraska. I'm not predicting 14-0, mind you.  I think they'll lose a couple of games this season and finish the regular season at 11-2, and hopefully go back to the Rose Bowl with a B1G trophy.

Some people say I look at Nebraska with rose-colored glasses; they may have a point. But I also don't look at everything with a negative bias either - even during the Bill Callahan days. Heck, I even sensed a quiet optimism about that horrible 2007 season; boy was I wrong there.

Bo Pelini mentioned playing for championships this morning at the Big Red Breakfast, which reminds me of the 2007 talk about playing for a national championship. Granted Pelini didn't use the "national" context, but what's wrong with talking about playing for championships?  Shouldn't that be the goal?  And the Big Ten championship is something that certainly is in reach for this year's squad.  It's a tough schedule, mind you...but there's nobody on that schedule that the Huskers cannot beat.  (The reverse is also true: outside of Idaho State, there isn't anybody on that schedule that the Huskers cannot lose to.)

I'm not feeling down about Taylor Martinez; he improved dramatically in his game management abilities at the end of last season.  If his ankle is finally recovered and he's improved his fundamentals for his passing, he can seriously be the best quarterback in the conference.  (Martinez's numbers aren't that much behind Denard Robinson.)  I want to see if Jamal Turner is finally ready to show us all of the talent that wowed us in the 2011 spring game. It sounds like he's ready to be a full-time player and not to be a liability without the ball.

Will we see depth evolve on the offensive line?  Will I see the second-teamers able to spell the first-teamers in the second quarter?  Keeping guys fresh up front builds depth and wears down defenses. Will we see Imani Cross at I-back?   Can Ameer Abdullah or Braylon Heard be trusted to give Rex Burkhead a break during games?

Last year's biggest problem was the defense, in my opinion.  I don't think Pelini has forgotte how to coach defense, but something wasn't right last year.  Even without Lavonte David, I think this team could be better on defense if only because I think they'll be better coached.  I'm anxious to see what the Rich Kaczenski and Terry Joseph bring to the table.  Kaczensi has an impressive record of turning out NFL talent at Iowa, and with last year's injury plagued bunch, I'm looking for a major jump in production up front.

In the secondary, it just seemed that Corey Raymond just never clicked with Pelini or the players. Players were out of position too often.  Can Joseph fix that?  I think he's built a better relationship with his players, and I'm excited to see the new guys.  Everyone knows about Mo Seisay, but I'm more curious about the Jacksons.  Harvey caught my eye in last year's spring game, and Charles is an up-and-coming youngster.

Tomorrow it all begins. I'm still on record wishing that the season didn't begin until the week after Labor Day, but that's just me.  I'd love to have one final long weekend before football begins, but if the money says we have to start this weekend, start this weekend we will.

I picked Southern Miss to beat Nebraska, because I wanted to pick a real upset. timesnews.net/article/905106…
— Ralph D. Russo (@ralphDrussoAP) August 29, 2012

I'm not buying Ralph Russo's prediction; with Southern Miss starting a quarterback who's never thrown a college pass and a few questions on defense (outside of defensive end Jamie Collins; watch for #8), I'm predicting a 38-9 Nebraska victory.

The Meaningless 2012 Preseason BlogPoll Ballot

I really hate preseason polls; they are meaningless predictions at best...but those preseason predictions become the baseline for future polls. In the past, I've tried to ignore it, but this year, I'm throwing in my meaningless ballot to counteract some of the misguided hype I read elsewhere.  So this is a bold ballot and mostly a crapshoot. But I'll tell you why I've ranked some teams where they are.  Disagree if you want. Better yet, tell me why.  I'll reflect on it and take it into consideration when the polls start for real next week.

Husker Mike's Blasphemy Ballot - Week 1

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Oregon Ducks	1
2	Alabama Crimson Tide	1
3	USC Trojans	2
4	LSU Tigers	-3
5	Oklahoma Sooners	-1
6	South Carolina Gamecocks	1
7	Georgia Bulldogs	-1
8	Florida St. Seminoles	6
9	Wisconsin Badgers	-1
10	West Virginia Mountaineers	2
11	Arkansas Razorbacks	14
12	Michigan Wolverines	-3
13	Nebraska Cornhuskers	4
14	Clemson Tigers	4
15	TCU Horned Frogs	1
16	Oklahoma St. Cowboys	3
17	Stanford Cardinal	-2
18	Kansas St. Wildcats	-8
19	Florida Gators	-6
20	Washington Huskies	--
21	Ohio Bobcats	--
22	Louisville Cardinals	-1
23	Auburn Tigers	--
24	Utah Utes	--
25	North Carolina Tar Heels	--
SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings »

On all of these, I stand to be corrected.  Oregon is #1.  Why?  Just a hunch, and only that.  A lot of hype went to USC and I'm not sure Alabama is a lock to repeat.  I'm wishy-washy here, but I'll throw some love towards someone who isn't getting any.  Once the season actually kicks off, this will almost certainly change.

LSU still #4?  Honey Badger don't care...and the Tigers have enough talent to overcome his special teams magic.

Nebraska #13? I think a lot of people are dismissing Nebraska because they seem to disappoint each year.  Yet we see other recent disappointments like Texas and Notre Dame getting votes...and sometimes ranking them higher than Nebraska.  Have a little consistency folks; just what has Texas done to warrant a top 15 preseason ranking?

Ohio #21?  Hey, some call them a BCS darkhorse. They have just as much right to be here as the Bovines.

Who's not here?

Michigan State.

Ahh, Sparty.  The great defense, led by freak William Ghoulston...and defense wins championships.  True.  But you've got to have some offense, and the Spartans don't have one.  Or at least one that's played college football.  Andrew Maxwell hasn't even seen much garbage time at quarterback  Their top returning wide receiver caught four passes last year after switching from cornerback at midseason.  Yeah, Le'Veon Bell and four starters return on the line, but let's be honest.  Calling the Spartans inexperienced on offense is being generous.

Boise State

Kellen Moore and company are long gone.  They might be ranked eventually, especially if they take down Sparty.  But not for now.

Texas

Give me a reason other than "recruiting" and we'll talk.

Ohio State

Probation.  I have to learn to be more consistent about either including them or not.  They're out for now.

Friday Lunchtime Thoughts: Solich & Ohio in the BCS

Sports Illustrated's Holly Anderson says that the Ohio Bobcats are not only her pick to win the MAC, but also could be a candidate to sneak into the BCS this year. That's right...Frank Solich's team is the consensus pick to win the MAC, and if they can knock off Penn State next Saturday, could set themselves up for a run as a BCS buster.

Can you imagine the carnage in some circles (I'm thinking the BRB insiders still cloistered in their parents' basement, holding seances to channel Bill Callahan here...) if Solich gets Ohio to a BCS bowl.  More seriously, does that put additional pressure on Bo Pelini if the Huskers can't get to a BCS bowl this season?

Best answer to that is to remove all doubt and win this year.  Then hopefully we'll see both the Huskers and the Bobcats in BCS bowl games.  (Preferably not the same, unless it's the second game in Miami...)  (H/T to NET/BTN's Kevin Kugler for this one.)

Well, we're four weeks from the apparent kickoff of the Omaha Nighthawks season, and can't you buy tickets yet, we still don't even know where the games will be played.  We know that the Nighthawks have started to hold tryout camps, so something is definitely happening.  But can the Nighthawks actually pull everything together in the time remaining? Five weeks ago, they announced they were playing and now halfway to the season opener, we still don't have any idea where or how to get tickets.

If you were looking for a plan to show the people of Omaha this is going to work out long term, well, this ain't it.

The rumor mill is heating up over at MavPuck that a new arena announcement for Nebraska-Omaha could be forthcoming in the next couple of months.  Many UNO fans are ecstatic with the news; I'm more concerned than enthusiastic at this point.  I've grow increasingly concerned that UNO is building an arena for the wrong reasons:  escape MECA and downsize capacity.  Downsizing capacity means fewer hockey fans paying more to attend games.  That's a huge negative to me.

Maybe UNO has figured out a solution to build an appropriately sized arena (10,000 capacity) without fleecing Maverick fans.  But I'm skeptical because the rumor mill hasn't indicated that the past plans for a too-small arena have been fixed.  The devil is in the details, of course.  I simply don't find news of a UNO arena to be "good" or "positive" until I finally hear that UNO isn't just building whatever they might be able to afford.  When UNO hockey is averaging 8,000 fans a game downtown, who in their right mind thinks a 7,500 seat arena is sufficient?  (Ooh!  Ahhh!  Smaller than the Knights place!)

Sharp & Peter A Morning Upgrade for 1620 AM

It's a little premature to cast a verdict on the KOZN-1620 AM radio's new morning show after two weeks, but so far, it's looking like a huge upgrade for "The Zone".  For starters, I love having local sports talk on the AM drive.  I've never understood why Omaha's sports talk radio stations have gone with the national shows in the morning.  Mike and Mike, I kind of understand, but the revolving sewer of total tripe that Fox Sports flushes across the nation's radio waves makes it difficult to understand why nobody hasn't tried to go after the morning drive.

The new combination of Gary Sharp and Jason Peter have a lot more substance than their predecessors, Matt Schick and Nick Bahe. "Schick and Nick" sometimes seemed to veer towards goofball "Morning Zoo" radio, which some people seemed to enjoy.  After a while, it got tiring though.

The real judge will be in September once football season starts. Neither Sharp nor Jason Peter are known for pulling their punches, so it'll be interesting to hear their takes once the season starts. Peter apparently had a reputation from his Lincoln radio days of being excessively negative, but so far, he's seemed to justify his criticism in his negative comments so far.

Speaking of Lincoln radio, Nick Bahe has found a new radio home in Lincoln on 93.7 FM "The Ticket" on the afternoon drive. (Is there a market for talking Creighton and Kansas basketball in Lincoln? I jest, I jest!) So essentially, Omaha traded Bahe to Lincoln for Jason Peter. I think that's a major upgrade for Omaha personally.

And I would be remiss if I didn't also mention that ESPN formally introduced Matt Schick as the primetime studio host on ESPNU during college football season on Saturday nights. Since I don't get ESPNU, I'll have to take others opinions about Schick's performance on the national stage.

Tuesday Night Beer: Husker Depth Chart

Many Husker fans are treating Tyler Moore's departure from Lincoln as an indictment of assistant head coach Barney Cotton. Of course, almost all of them already had a negative opinion of Cotton.  I understand why; the offensive line has been inconsistent while he's been at Nebraska.  He could blame some of that on his predecessors originally, but now we're in year five.  The statute of limitations on blaming Bill Callahan and his staff has passed.

But when you read Brian Moore's comments to the Lincoln Journal-Star, this situation might actually give Cotton some job security:

"But I will say this, he loves Bo (Pelini) and he loves Coach (Tim) Beck, and we're still in regular contact with Bo and Coach Beck trying to work through this whole thing.”

It doesn't take much to read behind the lines...and that's the rub. Ideally, the Moores and the Nebraska coaching staff can resolve any issues and Moore returns to Lincoln int he spring.  But what if the problem is, in fact, his position coaches?  (Barney Cotton haters need to remember that John Garrison and Brendan Stai also coach the offensive linemen.)  Would Bo Pelini dismiss his assistants because a highly recruited player didn't like him?

Of course not. That would be an incentive for any player who has an issue with his assistant coach to threaten to leave in an attempt to force the coach out of a job.  No player should have that power - especially in college, where recruiting has led many players to have a sense of entitlement.  And thus, Moore's public comments only give Pelini more reason to keep his assistants instead of changing his staff.

That being said, if there are true issues with the assistant coaches, Pelini will need to act.  But pressure from players cannot be a factor in that decision.

In any event, it sounds like Brent Qvale was certainly pushing Tyler Moore, and may have actually passed Moore on the depth chart in the early part of preseason practice.  We'll see if that's a good sign or not next month.  No matter what you think about Cotton, Nebraska's offensive line needs to make a jump forward this fall.

Speaking of the depth chart, it seems that true freshman Tommy Armstrong is pushing Brion Carnes to be the backup this fall.  That's a good news situation, because it's always good to have depth...especially at quarterback when you are asking a quarterback to run the ball a lot.  But what does that say about Carnes, who supposedly turned the corner this spring?  The fact that Armstrong is doing this after just one week of practice is not a good sign for Carnes.  Maybe this is a sign that the distance between Taylor Martinez and Carnes is even greater than we thought.

And if that's the case, that makes last season's call for Martinez to be benched even more absurd.  Somewhere in central Nebraska, there's a city missing it's idiot.  Not that he cares, he's positive he's a smart guy !

Of course, this could all be coach speak to give Armstrong some confidence and push Carnes. We won't really know until we see them both in a game.  And that might not be until Idaho State...and even then, maybe not. Should Armstrong play in some garbage time or redshirt this season. The answer might depend on how healthy the coaches think Martinez will be this season, and how solid the coaches think Johnny Stanton is committed to the Huskers.

Quoting Pelini Out of Context Getting to Be A Pattern for the World-Herald

Dirk Chatelain had some good observations in today's World-Herald about Bo Pelini's recent comments about his players dealing with the hype that surrounds Husker football in Nebraska. He's absolutely right that Nebraska football dealt with even greater scrutiny in 1995, especially with the Lawrence Phillips controversy. He's absolutely right that the scrutiny that top college football teams face today is even greater than that.

And it's the job of Bo Pelini to train his players to deal with that.  Absolutely spot on.

But you know what's funny about all that?  If Bo Pelini were to actually read that comment, he'd probably agree.  In fact, he'd probably say something like "in other news, water is wet and it's effin' hot in Nebraska this summer."

Chatelain was likely referring to this quote from Pelini at Big Ten Media Days in July:

“You tell your players: Don’t read the blogs, don’t do this and that. But they’re human, they hear it, they see it.“I as much worry about it when things are going good as when things are going bad … because they ride the waves.You guys know. Not just the media, but I’m talking with the fan base, or in town. You play good and you’re the ’85 Bears. You lose and the sky is falling. Or you don’t play well and the world’s coming to an end. There’s not a lot of middle ground.”

But he missed this one that his co-worker Sam McKewon provided:

“That is a challenge here. But it's just the way it is. It's not going away. The fans' passion for it, and media, that's a positive. But there are issues with that, too, that relate to our football team and how you keep them focused.” 

Both Chatelain and World-Herald columnist Tom Shatel disregarded Pelini's statement that fan passion is a positive...and wrote the exact opposite.

I never read Chatelain's original blog post from last week; I simply don't read Chatelain anymore. At times, he just writes some of the most ridiculous and absurd things. But I do subscribe to the daily World-Herald, and they recapped it in Sunday's print edition, and stumbled into the headline before realizing it was Chatelain's work.  The headline in the paper was "Fan passion not a disadvantage", which frankly isn't that different from "the fans' passion for it, and media, that's a positive," but Chatelain tried to spin it to be different.

Unfortunately, a lot of people do read the Sunday World-Herald, and now, for the second week in a row, the World-Herald has taken something Pelini said out of context and twisted it 180 degrees from what was actually said.

Was this mistake a coincidence? Is it merely trying to manufacture a controversy?  Or is this sour grapes for Pelini's dressdown of Chatelain after the Ohio State game?  No matter how you look at it, the World-Herald's attempt to double-down on this bogus storyline really makes the daily fishwrap look bad.

And if you come across a Husker fan who only read the World-Herald's version of this report, do what Chatelain and Shatel didn't, and give them the rest of Bo Pelini's comments on the situation.

In 2013, the Cox Classic Moves to Berkshire Weekend?

Tom Shatel reported yesterday that next year's Cox Classic is moving to the spring to avoid the Senior US Open...specifically the first weekend in May.  He talked about how the party would change with it running on the same weekend as the Kentucky Derby.

That's all fine and good...but it won't be the big thing in Omaha that weekend.

The first weekend in May is the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting.  Hotels and restaurants in town are jammed as upwards of 40,000 shareholders come to experience Omaha.  That's probably not a big deal for the golf course, but how would Omaha handle two major events simultaneously?  Sure, Omaha hosted the Olympic Swim Trials and the College World Series simultaneously this year, but that was a combined crowd of 37,000.  Berkshire Weekend is an all-weekend party, much like the Cox Classic...and the Berkies outnumber the combined swim and baseball attendance by themselves.

I don't know what the hotel requirements are for the Cox Classic, but hotel rooms are in short supply during this weekend.  Flights out after the event will also be an issue as the Capitalists will be departing at the same time as the golfers.

Maybe that's the only opening on the tour next season, but other than during the College World Series, I'm not sure you could find a worse weekend to move the golf tournament to.

Omaha Nighthawks Have a Schedule (& Maybe a Coach)

 The UFL announced an eight week season for 2012, with all games televised by CBS Sports Network.  (That's the cable network formerly known as CBS College Sports and CSTV, not the over the air network you see on KMTV-Channel 3.)  Omaha will play home games against Virginia twice, and will travel to Las Vegas twice.  Here's the schedule, with all times central:

Friday Sept. 21: Virginia, 6 p.m.
Friday Sept. 28: at Sacramento, 10 p.m.
Wednesday Oct. 3: at Las Vegas, 8 p.m.
Friday Oct. 12: Virginia, 6 p.m.
Wednesday  Oct. 17: Las Vegas, 8 p.m.
Tuesday Oct. 23: Sacramento, 8 p.m.
Wednesday Oct. 31: at Las Vegas, 8 p.m.
Friday Nov. 9: at Virginia, 8:30 p.m.

With the television contract, it's no surprise that games won't be played on Saturday.  Obviously the game times are set by CBS; I'm sure Virginia fans are excited for a 9:30 pm kickoff locally

We still don't know where the Nighthawks will play for sure, but all signs point towards TD Ameritrade Park downtown. Both MECA and the UFL indicate that's what's being discussed...but it's not finalized yet. Frankly, it would be a major fail for both institutions to not come to an agreement. It's not like the baseball stadium is in use for anything else, and there really isn't another viable option in the area.  Both organizations kind of need the other, so it's likely going to happen.

And without a stadium, you can't sell tickets.  And with the first game 7 weeks away, that's a daunting task. They won't be able to raise prices this season...and probably need to offer season ticketholders a price advantage to buying the full slate.  Why would someone buy season tickets after the fiasco of the previous season?  I'd suggest setting season ticket prices back at 2010 levels, with single game prices higher.  The UFL needs quantity of fans to bring back the mojo of 2010.

Mixed news on the coaching front. It's reported that offensive coordinator Bart Andrus is being promoted to head coach, which shouldn't be a surprise.  Not that the Nighthawks had a great season in 2011, but they frankly don't have the luxury of looking around to find another coach.  Andrus previously was a head coach in the CFL and NFL Europe.  In 2009, Andrus went 3-15 leading the Toronto Argonauts.  From 2001 through 2007, Andrus coached the Amsterdam Admirals, going 34-36 and winning the 2005 World Bowl.  The Admirals lost the 2006 World Bowl.  NFL Europe folded after the 2007.  Andrus also was an assistant with the Tennessee Titans from 1997 through 1999, and then again in 2008.

So we'll have pro football somewhere around Omaha this fall.  But will the fans return?  The excitement of 2010 is long gone, and the stench of 2011 still lingers.  Fans will need a lot of encouragement to put there heart and wallets behind the Nighthawks, and there isn't much time for the UFL to convince fans that this is a long term proposition.

Jayson Megna Leaves UNO for NHL

Sophomore forward Jayson Megna announced on Friday that he's planning to sign with one of three NHL teams and will not play for the UNO Mavericks this upcoming hockey season. That's a blow for UNO as Megna would have been the Mavs second leading returning scorer next season. As a freshman, Megna scored 13 goals and 31 points, earning him a spot on the WCHA all-freshman team.  Among the teams pursuing Megna are Boston, Pittsburgh, and Winnipeg. That's the second high-profile defection from the Mavs this offseason; captain Terry Broadhurst signed with the Chicago Blackhawks in the spring.

Megna told the Omaha World-Herald it'll be tough to leave his brother Jaycob behind in Omaha, but he's been told he has a chance to open the season on an NHL roster. Hard to criticize that decision in that light.

Wisconsin hockey blogger Chuck Schwartz also reports that assistant coach Brian Renfrew is also planning to leave UNO for the NHL.

Another hit for Nebraska-Omaha. Assistant coach Brian Renfrew is leaving the program to become a scout with the Winnipeg Jets.
— Chuck Schwartz (@UWChuckSchwartz) July 28, 2012

All these defections point out the double edged sword UNO hockey has been facing under Dean Blais; highly talented people are coming to the program, but they don't always remain. The paranoid in me wonders if something is up behind the scenes in the program.  None of these moves by themselves really look out of line by themselves, but it's more the sum of all of the parts. It's irrational speculation, mind you...but it still makes you wonder.

Dean Blais' comments to the World-Herald are a little more concerning; suggesting that the Mavs could "still be respectable" this season. I think UNO fans are hoping for something more than "respectable", though in Blais' perspective, "respectable" might still be better than anything UNO has seen before.

Sunday Night Dessert: Nighthawks Say They'll Play...But Where? Plus Penn State: Pinkel & Hockey

The Omaha World-Herald confirmed that the Nighthawks plan to play this fall, but the story is light on details.  An unidentified source tells the paper that an announcement will be made in the next few days as to "the schedule, where they'll play, and who'll be on the staff."  Well, that says a lot.  We know Sacramento will be in the league, but that's about it.  With Joe Moglia now at 1-AA Coastal Carolina, we know there will be a new head coach.  But "where they'll play"?  Is that a question?

Apparently it is. We can't assume that they'll play at TD Ameritrade Park apparently. Reasons why not range from it's too big (wasn't a problem in 2010), MECA charges too much (compared to what?), and Ameritrade is set up as a baseball facility.  Fair enough.  But where else would the Nighthawks play?  My best guess is that it would be a high school stadium; probably Millard's Buell Stadium or Omaha Burke.  Burke handles crowds of 10,000+ for the state track meet, so it might be the best alternative.  UNO is currently converting Al Caniglia Field to a soccer layout, so that's no longer an option. I've even heard that the Trailer Park might be an option?  A quick scan with Google maps indicate that a football field might physically fit in at BFE, though it probably would be tight.  (Think what happened when Northwestern and Illinois played at Wrigley Field in 2010.)  A bigger problem at BFE might be the capacity; I'd think the UFL needs more than 6500 seats to be viable.

A friend suggested that perhaps a temporary stadium could be set up, like at tennis and golf matches.  An interesting idea...and the best location might be the Nighthawk's training facility at South Omaha's Kroc Center.  It has a full football field with artificial turf. Add seating, porta-potties, and concession stands, and you've got a stadium.  And with their own facility, the Nighthawks could keep the concession revenue.  Of course, one hangup would be alcohol sales.  I wouldn't expect the Salvation Army to allow beer sales.  Same problem at high school fields as well.

But if the Nighthawks don't play downtown, it just adds to the perception that the UFL is barely scraping by and hasn't really resolved their core issues.

In other quick takes:

The NCAA will announce sanctions against Penn State tomorrow morning.  I'm torn on this.  I don't think this is an NCAA issue; I think it's a criminal issue that needs to be resolved there first. And the administrators at Penn State need to be held accountable in criminal court.  But the outcry is so high for the Big Ten or NCAA to do something, they are acting.  We'll find out just what tomorrow morning.

It'll be interesting how severely Penn State will be penalized.  One question I have is whether Penn State will still be able to start their hockey program.  Would the NCAA prevent them from starting another sport with an athletic department having such problems?  With the "unprecedented" sanctions, can Penn State still afford to start a hockey program?  The implications of that go beyond Penn State.  Without Penn State, the Big Ten only has five hockey programs - not enough for an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.  Would this send the Big Ten teams scurrying back to the WCHA and reopen the entire college hockey realignment debate?

AJ the former Huskerh8er is back with an SEC blog. Today, he took on the Penn State situation and calls for the death penalty for Penn State.  Fine.  But he really gives Gary Pinkel a pass for his oblivious statements defending Joe Paterno last week.  Remember when AJ was in his prime and it was Tom Osborne, Bill Callahan, or Bo Pelini jamming his foot all the way into his colon via his pie-hole?  You think he'd say something like "apologize and move on"?

Yeah...right. Maybe it's just rust, rather than pulling his punches when it's his own coach that opened up the 55 gallon barrel of worms.  Where's the outrage?  Where's the venom?  Where's the hate?

Sacaremento Owner Says The UFL Is Back This Fall; Does that Mean the Omaha Nighthawks as well?

Sacramento Mountain Lions owner Paul Pelosi told Fox40 that the UFL team will play this fall.  They'll move to Raley Field, a 14,000 seat baseball stadium that's the home of the PCL's Sacramento River Cats.  KOZN's Mike'l Severe tweets this morning that a league announcement could come as soon as tomorrow.

Severe implies that Omaha will still be part of the league, and that rumor is also posted on the UFL's Facebook page by a fan.  Mind you, the UFL hasn't updated Facebook in months, and their web site hasn't been updated since last year.

That raises the question:  Can the UFL rebuild teams, find sponsors, and sell tickets to play this season?  My take is that it's too late to make this work this fall; it's going to be a slapped-together effort that doesn't inspire confidence in the long term viability of the league. The league already suffers from the perception that it's a joke, and a last-minute announcement only reinforces that.  Frankly, I think the league could do more damage to itself with this plan, but I could be proven wrong.  (It's happened before.)

But, hey, that's probably what Gary Sharp is going to be the announcer for. Let's hope that it works out better than 2011.  Hope for the best...but fear for the worst.

1620 Loses Schick, But Gains Sharp and Bishop

Yesterday, KOZN-1620 AM announced that Matt Schick won't be replacing Kevin Kugler after all.  The former channel 7 sportscaster is instead leaving "The Zone" to join ESPNU.  Instead, John Bishop from KLIN-1400 AM is moving to Omaha to become the co-host of "Unsportsmanlike Conduct".  (NRG Media owns both KOZN and KLIN.)  In addition, 1620 also announced that Gary Sharp is returning to Nebraska and will co-host a morning show with "Double Nickel" Jason Peter.

I'm personally excited by the return of Gary Sharp, who left Nebraska in 2004 after being removed from the Pinnacle Sports Network broadcasts during Steve Pederson's Reign of Error.  I thought he was the best host they've had on their "Sports Nightly"/"Sports Day Mid-America" broadcasts, and it's great to have him back in Nebraska.  Even better is that the show will start at 7 am...during the morning drive into work. My kids may not appreciate sports talk in the morning during the drive, but I will.

Bishop should be an adequate replacement for Kugler in the afternoon.  Bishop has improved dramatically since a painful first season as the postgame host on the Pinnacle broadcasts in 1996.  He was very good on Sports Nightly and the "Big Red Reaction" show as well as with baseball broadcasts for both Nebraska and Creighton.

According to the Lincoln Journal-Star, Sharp will also do play-by-play and color commentary on game broadcasts, which makes me wonder what else is up at 1180 and 1620 AM as far as additional broadcasts. While rumors periodically appear about the Nighthawks still returning this season, that's now about as likely as winning the Powerball jackpot.  And if I had my preference, I'd take the Powerball jackpot.  But what could 1620 broadcast?  UNO basketball would seem to be the most likely target as they begin their first season of Summit League play.  Sharp also has a background covering Lincoln Stars hockey, and he would be a huge upgrade over Greg Ahlers on UNO hockey broadcasts.  Problem is that I kind of like the game broadcasts on 96.1 FM, and I don't see UNO replacing their sports information director from their broadcasts.  An even bigger problem with UNO hockey broadcasts moving to 1620 would be Terry Leahy, the long-time color commentator recently laid off by 1620.

I'm curious what Schick's role at ESPNU would be.  My instinct would be as a studio host or sideline reporter, but you never know.

Of Cubs & Politics: Wrigleyville to NoDo?

The Future Home of the Cubs?
That's absurd.

One of the most ridiculous ideas I've heard in a while is the notion of the Chicago Cubs threatening to move to Omaha because Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel won't talk to the Ricketts family about improvements to Wrigley Field. Could TD Ameritrade Park be expanded to handle a major league baseball franchise?  Possibly.  But could the Omaha market support a major league baseball franchise?  Very doubtful.  And would Major League Baseball let a franchise that consistently draws over 3 million fans a season move from the third largest market in the country to Omaha?

Bahahahaha.

The Oakland A's moving to Omaha is a borderline crazy idea. The Chicago Cubs moving to Omaha is batshit crazy.

That's not happening, no matter how ridiculous things get in Chicago.  The situation is absurd on both sides of the aisle.  Mayor Emanuel is incensed at former TD Ameritrade chairman Joe Ricketts over a plan by Ricketts political action committee to fund millions of dollars in ads against President Obama.  The Ricketts family owns the Chicago Cubs, and wants the city of Chicago and state of Illinois to subsidize millions of dollars in upgrades to Wrigley Field, the second oldest ballpark in major league baseball.  Ever since the plans of the Ricketts plan were revealed, Emanuel won't talk to the Ricketts, even though every member of the Ricketts family have since disowned the plan.

Is Emanuel being thin-skinned?  Yep.  It sure gives credence to conservatives who claim that Democrats aren't really interested in talking to conservatives, only brow-beating them.  Fair enough.

But the hypocrisy of the Ricketts family is even worse.  The name of the Ricketts PAC is the "Ending Spending Action Fund" and their stated position is that "government spending is out of control."

The same Ricketts family is simultaneously asking the city of Chicago for $150 million in tax money to refurbish the baseball stadium they bought three years ago.  (They also want $150 million more from the state of Illinois.)  Let me get this straight:  they dislike the President because he apparently spends too much money, yet they want the government to subsidize the remodeling of their privately owned baseball stadium?

Oh the irony.  Oh the hypocrisy.  The Ricketts have plenty of money to play political games, but not for their own baseball stadium.  Or players to prevent the Cubs from losing over a hundred games this season for that matter.  (David Glass must be so proud of them!)

Government subsidies for professional sports has always bothered me; witness my objections to the Sarpy County boondoggle that I call the "Trailer Park."  Everybody who's been out to BFE raves about the new ballpark on the fringe of the Omaha area, but that was not my point. My point was always that it was a bad investment for government, especially since Sarpy County never admitted how they'll pay for the stadium.  Still hasn't.  And won't unless someone forces them to.

So the idea of government paying for most of a Wrigley renovation rubs me wrong at the start.  Add in the hypocrisy of a "cut government spending" guy demanding government funds for their baseball team, and it's an easy proposition to lambast.

Should Emanuel talk to the Ricketts?  Absolutely.  Should the city of Chicago subsidize Wrigley Field?  Well, that's a decision for Chicago to make.  I'm not familiar enough with Chicago and it's needs, but chances are, there are more important things for the city of Chicago to spend money on than Wrigley Field right now.

But the Ricketts family probably should walk their talk.  Put your money into your ballclub, or put the ballclub up for sale if you've changed your mind.  Or if you based your purchase on the wild idea that the government would bail you out after you made the purchase. 

Farewell to Kevin Kugler

Omaha sports radio suffers a loss today as Kevin Kugler departs his regular show on KOZN-1620 AM. He'll still show up from time to time with interviews (and probably a fill-in appearance here and there), but he won't be on daily. After surviving Steve Pederson's attempt to run him off the air, Kugler's career skyrocketed as he went national. Now he's going to do even more broadcasting nationally, which is great for him.  He'll be missed locally though.

Replacing him on "Unsportsmanlike Conduct" is Matt Schick. Not quite sure how I feel about this replacement.  Schick is an engaging, humoring radio host, though I'm not sure about giving Schick a bigger role. He had an axe to grind against Bo Pelini (presumably for having the audacity to be outraged at Dirk Chatelain over his muddled "Bench Martinez because Brion Carnes isn't ready" article), and let that take over.  He's quick to take offense at Pelini, yet gave Creighton's Greg McDermott a free pass for much worse.

I haven't listened to Schick and his current co-host Nick Bahe much in recent months. Bahe is leaving radio, apparently to work for Creighton.  The morning show on KOZN will now be hosted by former Husker defensive lineman Jason Peter and a new co-host to be named later.  Peter isn't afraid to ruffle feathers, so it could be interesting radio.  I say "could" because I don't know how that translates to radio, as I could never pick up Peter's old Lincoln radio show in Omaha.

Who would be the co-host?  Unknown at this time.  Some scuttlebutt indicates it might be Jack Mitchell from KLIN-1400 AM.  I personally thought it might be David Gustafson (currently working for a Columbus radio station) initially.  Some people have suggested that Gary Sharp would be a nice name to bring back to the local airwaves.  Sharp formerly worked for Pinnacle in the early 2000's as a sideline reporter, talk-show host, and baseball announcer on Husker broadcasts before being dismissed.  He's now working for the Fort Myers Miracle baseball team. 

I also thought of Kent Pavelka as a potential candidate as well.  Not sure how being a Husker basketball broadcaster would work on a station that doesn't have the rights to the games, especially considering that that restriction carries over to interviews with the coaches.  Personally, if I was trying to increase interest in Nebraska basketball, I'd not only encourage KOZN to hire Pavelka, but find a way to get Tim Miles onto the other Omaha radio stations on a regular basis.  That runs counter to the exclusive arrangement that the "Husker Sports Network" has with the University, but that arrangement may be penny-wise but dollar-foolish with respect to basketball.