Husker Freshman Fumble Away the Big Ten's West Division to Michigan State

It only took three plays to establish the storyline of today's game between Nebraska and Michigan State.  Ameer Abdullah rushes for eight yards.  Kenny Bell catches a pass for four yards.  Then Terrell Newby fumbles a pitch from Tommy Armstrong.

Spartans ball.

The Husker defense steps up and holds Michigan State to a field goal.  OK, so Nebraska got that out of their system, right?  Hardly.  Next drive, same thing.  Abdullah runs for 10 yards.  Bell catches an 8 yard pass.  And then Armstrong throws the ball directly to Spartan safety Kurtis Drummond.

Remember that 2009 game between Nebraska and Iowa State?  Five turnovers?  Are you kidding me?  What the heck is going on in Lincoln?

Freshmen.  Jordan Westerkamp muffs a punt.  Armstrong adds two more fumbles.  All those turnovers by freshmen.  And most of them self-inflicted by Nebraska; gifts from the the newest players on the Big Red roster.

Freshman mistakes. Throughout the history of college sports, a common meme is the freshman or rookie mistake. It happens.  And unfortunately, it happened in this game.  Nebraska certainly didn't intend to have to play this many freshman this season.  (Taylor Martinez haters excepted, of course.)  Injuries have forced Nebraska's hand on offense.

And unfortunately, that negated a great performance from the rest of the offense.  If you still waste your Saturday morning watching ESPN GameDay, you probably saw Desmond Howard predicting that Ameer Abdullah would be held in check by Michigan State's invincible defense.  (I didn't watch; I had more important things to do...like mow the yard.)

Desmond Howard just said Ameer Abdullah with rush for MAYBE 40 yards...thoughts? Mine..LOL!
— Ben McLaughlin (@bmclaughlin4) November 16, 2013

Michigan State's defense was only giving up 41 yards per game.  Abdullah tripled that by himself.  Heck, backup Imani Cross topped the Spartans defensive average. Prior to this weekend, Michigan State had only allowed 391 yards rushing on the ground.  Nebraska rushed for 182 today alone.  They were only allowing 1.62 yards a rush, nearly a yard per carry less than the next team.

Nebraska averaged 5.7 yards per carry.

If not for the turnovers, Nebraska wins this game.  Probably handily.  The defense played well enough early to win this game.  41 points by Michigan State? How the heck does that happen?  It's easy when the Spartans get the ball on the NU 40 (field goal), 8 (touchdown), 22 (touchdown), and 3 (touchdown) yard line.  24 points off of turnovers.

Husker fans agonize over every loss.  Bad losses to Wisconsin, Ohio State, and UCLA have rightfully raised questions about the defense.  This one was different; the defense isn't the problem at this time. Nebraska's defense seems back on track to playing Blackshirt style defense.

But that nagging turnover problem?  No, benching Taylor Martinez didn't fix that.  Problem is, I don't know this does get fixed, other than work on it. Ameer Abdullah has been better this season holding onto the ball.  Martinez was better at ball security this season as well. I suspect that Armstrong and Westerkamp will be better in the future.

Frustrating as heck.  But what are you going to do?  Press the panic button?  Call for another Steve Pederson?  Haters are going to hate.  The rest of us are only going to wonder what this season might have been like if Martinez had been healthy all season long.  Doesn't change the fact that Nebraska is now 7-3 and out of the Big Ten's west division race, unfortunately.

Ralston Arena Scoreboard Fails As UNO Basketball Tops the Century Mark

Two nights after Creighton beat Missouri-Kansas City 96-70 in basketball, UMKC traveled across town to play UNO.  And got throttled again, losing 101-71 at the Ralston Arena.  That was the official score in the book.  The scoreboard in Ralston said something completely different at the end of the game.

Photo Courtesy of Tim McMahan/Lazy-I

Yep, UMKC 71, UNO 1 was the final on the Ralston Arena scoreboard

Seriously, you have to wonder how a basketball scoreboard could not be programmed to handle triple digit scores.  That's a somewhat common occurrence in basketball. Most every high school gym has a scoreboard that can handle 100's.  And this is a video board, which should remove any physical limitations over what can be displayed.

Not sure who should get the blame: Daktronics, who I believe supplies the video boards for the Ralston Arena, the folks in Ralston, or UNO.  Or everybody...because that's simply embarassing.

That shouldn't take away an impressive performance by UNO's basketball squad, who were led by C.J. Carter with 16 points. The transitive property doesn't typically apply in sports, but it is worth noting that UNO defeated UMKC by a larger margin than their more-well-known cross-town counterparts from the Hilltop.  (Of course, when your star player is none other than Dylan McDermott, of course more people are going to flock to your games.)

I wonder if Kevin Kugler got autographs for his wife and kids?

B1G Power Poll Ballot, Week 12

Not much change at the top...or the bottom...this week, but judging from the rest of the ballots on the

CornNation.com PowerPoll, the middle has gravitated towards my ballot a bit this week.  Nebraska upsetting Michigan in the Big House has a way of making that happen.  My ballot for this week:

1. Ohio State
2. Wisconsin
3. Michigan State
4. Nebraska
5. Michigan
6. Minnesota
7. Iowa
8. Northwestern
9. Penn State
10. Indiana
11. Illinois
12. Purdue

Yes, Minnesota beat Nebraska.  But Michigan stomped Minnesota. As did Iowa.  Do I believe in Iowa?  Heck no, at this point.  And what game is the odd-ball result that I have to disregard?  I'm diminishing that Minnesota victory over Nebraska for now.

Am I right or wrong to do that?  We'll know Saturday night...

Reenacting the Disputed Michigan Goal from the 2011 NCAA Hockey Tournament

With UNO facing Michigan for the first time since that infamous 2011 NCAA Tournament game, Michigan folks are once again indignant that anybody believes that UNO got hozed by the referees call at the end of the game.

@YostBuilt @JoeMeloni The refs in the booth had a kid in his Mom's basement blowing up one frame from a 200 foot camera angle? Conclusive!
— The Red Army (@RedArmyUNO) November 13, 2013

To refresh everybody's memory, here's what happened.
Keep in mind that the original call was no goal, and the decision to award Michigan the victory came from the instant replay.  Michigan fans have taken video shot from the far end of the ice, blown it up to where pixels are about the size of a puck as some sort of definitive proof that the puck was in the net.

It's not definitive.
All those images that Michigan fan produces showing ice between the puck and the goal line are not definitive without proof that the puck is actually on the ice.  Could it have been a goal? Absolutely.  In fact, I'd concede probably. But it's not definitive, as the above reenactment indicates.  "Probably a goal" is not a goal.

UNO Splits Hockey Series with North Dakota

UNO broke North Dakota's three game winning streak over the Mavs on Saturday night with a 4-2 victory, but fell to the former Sioux on Sunday evening.  Due to the unluck of the schedule makers, I was only able to see the final two periods of the Sunday game.  I arrived just after UNO tied the game at 1-1, only to watch the Sioux take the lead on two goals that frankly should never have happened.  On North Dakota's second goal, UNO defenseman Michael Young inadvertently knocked in the rebound of Michael Parks shot.  The third goal probably would have been overturned if the instant replay system were working properly.  North Dakota's Rocco Grimaldi's shot was deflected by Blake Caggiula's skate. It should have been overturned for both the kick as well as Caggiula being in the crease ahead of the puck...but the goal stood.

UNO's Josh Archibald managed to cut the North Dakota lead to 3-2 in the closing seconds of the second period, but UNO couldn't manage to score again.  Down the stretch, the game got very physical with numerous scrums.  Just after North Dakota's Derek Rodwell was sent off for tripping, Grimaldi drilled UNO's Ryan Walters into the boards head first. It should have been a five minute major for Grimaldi, but the infamous Brian Aaron and his partner Brian Thul didn't have the backbone to toss the 2012-13 WCHA all-rookie forward.

Despite the loss, UNO remains tied for first place in the NCHC, which is actually a pretty good position for UNO considering their preseason selection to finish last. This weekend, #2 Michigan returns to Omaha for a non-conference series.  The next week is #8 Miami.  It's a brutal schedule for UNO, though it got off to a pleasantly surprising start by sweeping the Gwoz-less Denver Pioneers on the road.

Blackshirts Dominate Michigan As Armstrong Comes Of Age Late

Over the last two seasons, the images of Nebraska's defense getting scorched in big, nationally televised games has been seared into Husker fans retinas.  And by the end of the B1G Championship Game, it was seared into the retinas of anybody who follows college football.  Heck, it even became a meme.

/WisconsinScoresAgain

I've had my theory on the problem last year.  Nebraska simply didn't have the horses in the front seven last season.  Recruiting failures in Bo Pelini's early classes had led to a talent deficit up front.  Pelini recognized the problems early on, and replaced his recruiting coordinator after the 2010 season.  The problem with recruiting is that there is a long latency on fixing problems in college football.  There are no free agents; there are no trades.  So you hit the recruiting trail hard, and try to rebuild.

Last season, Pelini had a few elements of the solution, but gambled that he could redshirt them in 2012. Almost worked too, until Baker Steinkuhler went down in the Iowa game. So this year, we had a full group of true freshmen and redshirt freshman on the line.  They had some issues against Wyoming.  Looked pretty good against UCLA - in the first half...until Brett Hundley somehow evaded a sack just before halftime.  The youngsters lost their focus, got tentative...and got absolutely roasted in the third quarter.  Looked incredibly shaky early against South Dakota State.  But that is youth and inexperience for you.

Things looked a little better against bottom feeders Purdue and Illinois, but then more inexperienced mistakes doomed the Huskers against the surging Minnesota Gophers.  (Who are proving to be a not-so-bad team themselves now.)  And the first quarter against Northwestern as well.  But then something happened.

Pelini and John Papuchis leveled with their youngsters, cleared the air, and reset the defense. And ever since, we've seen defense that's worthy of the terms Blackshirts.  From that point forward, Northwestern punted on 11 of their final 13 possessions. Another drive ended with an interception.  The 13th drive?  Yeah, the Blackshirts gave up a field goal...but the Wildcats only gained three yards after taking over with a first and goal.

Today, the Blackshirts set the tone on the opening possession and except for the opening drive of the second half, never let up.  No matter how broken the Michigan offense may be, holding ANY opponent to -21 yards rushing is impressive.  What's more impressive is that this wasn't a 1-AA or Sun Belt opponent...but the team that was the preseason favorite to win the Big Ten's west division.  Randy Gregory will be claiming Big Ten defensive player of week honors this week, and the rest of the defensive line played well.  It was a high risk/high reward approach as Nebraska put the pressure on early and often.  Michigan quarterback Devin Gardner was beat to a pulp last week by Michigan State, and the Huskers ripped those scabs off and reopened those wounds.

Let's compare those two games for Michigan.  Against Michigan State, Michigan rushed for -48 yards and passed for 216.  Total offense: 168 yards of offense.  Against Nebraska, Michigan rushed for -21 yards and passed for 196.  Total offense: 175 yards of offense.  Granted, Michigan State softened up Michigan for the Huskers, but the fact that Nebraska went on the road and performed like the Spartans on defense is a major accomplishment...especially after all the previous defensive breakdowns of the last few seasons.

And that defensive performance was sorely needed now that the offense has been decimated by injuries.  Kenny Bell and Jake Long were back on the field, but then Jeremiah Sirles left with a knee injury.  So that's three offensive linemen (one all-American) and an all-conference quarterback who's not on the field. In that light, Nebraska's offensive issues are a little more understandable.

Ameer Abdullah's performance today might also be named Big Ten offensive player of the week after rushing for 105 tough yards against a pretty solid Michigan rush defense. Of course, the biggest was that five yard option reception for the game winning touchdown, because the pitch went forward. Tommy Armstrong came of age on that final drive as he completed those clutch passes.  How about that 26 yard throw to Kenny Bell on fourth and two?  I'd have been seriously tempted to call on Mauro Bondi to kick the long field goal, but that's why I'm a blogger, not a coach.

Last week's hero nearly became this week's goat, as Jordan Westerkamp's muffed punt nearly cost Nebraska the game. I say nearly, because (1) the Huskers won the game and (2) it's a team game.  Westerkamp is going to make plenty of plays in the future for Nebraska; today's muff might just be the last time he doesn't make the catch, considering his reputation of having some of the best hands on the team.

And he's a freshman.  Just like Tommy Armstrong, who was cool and collected driving Nebraska to the winning score.  He didn't turn the ball over today.  Just like Avery Moss and Greg McMullen, who had great games at defensive end.  And just like Alonzo Moore, who had the critical block to spring Abdullah into the end zone.

The boo-birds are justifiably unhappy with Nebraska's two losses this season...but when you consider the whole situation, there's a lot of things to be excited about in Lincoln, both short-term and long-term.  Short-term, Nebraska still is in the drivers seat to get back to Indianapolis.  Beat Michigan State next Saturday, and every goal is still in front of this team.

And long-term, there are a lot of young players starting to emerge on both sides of the ball in Lincoln. Just something to remember when the critics start complaining the program is stuck in neutral. Injuries have forced  2013 into a transition year, and this transition is going better than fans had a right to expect.

B1G Power Poll, Week 11

I noticed that last week I didn't drop the Huskers as much as many of my co-horts over at CornNation.  So I'm going to be the outlier again this week.  Here's my ballot for this week, which probably still has the same discrepancy.

1. Ohio State
2. Wisconsin
3. Michigan State
4. Nebraska
5. Michigan
6. Iowa
7. Minnesota
8. Northwestern
9. Penn State
10. Indiana
11. Illinois
12. Purdue

I didn't watch the Wisconsin/Iowa game, so I have to infer a lot.  Wisconsin played the game without Chris Borland, and Iowa never scored a touchdown.  And the game was in Iowa City.

I do suspect that I have Michigan rated waaaay too high.  That'll work itself out.  Is Nebraska too high? Maybe, but that too will work itself out. With over half of the starters on offense sidelined last week, the Huskers get the benefit of the doubt.

Just Another Ordinary Nebraska Victory Over Northwestern: OMFG! RK3-to-1!

I admit it. I lost faith in my Huskers as the closing seconds ticked away in the fourth quarter. I had thought that Nebraska and Northwestern were heading to overtime...that is, until Tommy Armstrong unleashed yet another freshman mistake.  First and goal, Northwestern with just three minutes to go.  I couldn't criticize those fans who started heading for home. Things looked awfully bleak.  Nebraska seemed destined to be 5-3. The boo-birds were going to be out for Bo Pelini, and things were going to get ugly.

But then some little things occurred that reminds you that there is no quit in Nebraska football.  The Blackshirts (yes, I used that term) held on for a goal-line stand to limit the damage to a field goal.  Ameer Abdullah somehow getting 16 yards on fourth and 15.  And then the most incredible of incredible finishes as Jordan Westerkamp and Ron Kellogg III ensure a place in Husker history.

We've known that Westerkamp has the best hands of a pretty good receiver corps.  We've known that Kellogg probably has the best fundamental arm on the team, but still, the idea that this was the winning combination blows the mind...because that describes the Nebraska situation on offense.

Nebraska's all-Big Ten quarterback, Taylor Martinez, was up in the press box with injuries to his hip and foot.  The Huskers best receiver, Kenny Bell, left the game early and finished the game in sweats after suffering a groin injury.  The most electric playmaker, Jamal Turner, was out with a hamstring injury.

So when Nebraska was on offense, there was Tommy Armstrong throwing passes to Alonzo Moore, Westerkamp, and Sam Burtch.  And yes, that offense had some issues. Northwestern dared Nebraska to throw the ball, sometimes stacking ten defenders in the box.

Tommy Armstrong was really sharp in the first half, completing 10 of 14 passes for 124 yards and rushing for 52 more. Third quarter, not so much. 4 for 9 passing with an interception. Fourth quarter, six passes, zero completions, two interceptions.  That's the freshman coming out.  He'll get better over time with experience. It's just something to keep in mind for people who wanted to see Armstrong inserted into a game when the chips are down.

Ron Kellogg was just the opposite.  1 for 5 passing for 13 yards and an interception in the first half, earning him a spot on the bench for the third quarter.  And deservedly so.  But with Armstrong struggling in the fourth quarter, I wondered whether Bo Pelini and Tim Beck would turn to Kellogg and his arm with under four minutes to play.  They didn't...and Armstrong threw his third pick.  It looked like "game over."  But Kellogg rewrote his stat sheet: 6 for 8 passing for 91 yards...and THE touchdown.

With all the talk about receivers and quarterbacks, we almost forgot the heart and soul of the Nebraska offense:  I-back Ameer Abdullah who's putting together one of the great seasons in recent years for a Nebraska I-back.  24 carries for 127 tough yards against a defense that was selling out to stop him. And on that final drive, Abdullah caught the first three passes for 31 yards, including that oh-so-important 16 yarder on fourth down. Watch the replay again as he breaks three tackles to move the sticks.

Defense was a mixed bag: a really rough start, and a finish that sustains my hope for the future.  Northwestern put three of their first four drives into the end zone, giving the Wildcats a 21-7 lead on the road. Although I didn't hear it in my seats in the north end zone, others heard the complaints.  Was this 2007 all over again? Not in my book.  Against Oklahoma State, Nebraska was listless on both sides of the ball enroute to a 38-0 deficit.  That wasn't the case today.

There were, however, more missed tackles.  David Santos had a rough first half, especially trying to cover "superback" Dan Vitale.  Michael Rose had a couple good plays, but a bunch of whiffs and horrible reads at middle linebacker. In came Josh Banderas to stem the bleeding.  Second half was much, much better.  104 yards of offense.  On 13 Northwestern drives from the midway point of the second quarter on, Nebraska forced 11 punts and one interception. The other drive?  A field goal despite holding Northwestern to just 2 yards and no first down.

Is that the Blackshirt defense we want at Nebraska?  I won't go there...but it's a heck of a lot closer. I saw a lot to like on the defensive line today, especially with the ends.  Avery Moss with the pick-six.  Randy Gregory with two quarterback hurries.  Even Jason Ankrah had a sack.  We saw Vincent Valentine escape off of the milk carton and be a little bit disruptive as well.

Ciante Evans was huge on run support, with five tackles for loss and playing much bigger than he is.  Saw some good things from Corey Cooper as well.  Stanley Jean-Baptiste almost put the game away, narrowly missing an interception with nobody between him and the end zone.

The victory makes Nebraska bowl eligible.  There are issues without a doubt, but let's not forget the following fact:

How good is any current top ten team after losing the starting QB, TE, 2 starting guards and 2 of the top 3 receivers?
— Samuel McKewon (@swmckewonOWH) November 3, 2013

Everybody has injuries. Heck, Northwestern had to insert their sixth string running back after Treyvon Green left the game. (Has Iowa finally transferred the curse of AIRBHG to jNWu?)  But gutting out a victory without three of your top offensive playmakers and finishing the game with more than half of your projected preseason offensive starting lineup means something.

Maybe Nebraska is not where fans want them to be. But let's drop the psychobabble of the team "giving up" or being "mentally weak".  Mentally weak teams that give up don't win games like this one.  Focus on this:  while Nebraska has issues, we saw players step up. Plays were made when the chips were down.  We saw depth emerge at receiver. We're going to need depth to step up on the offensive line down the stretch.  Nebraska's still in control of their destiny in the Big Ten west division.

Big Ten Power Poll, Week 9 Ballot

When Nebraska loses to a team that they shouldn't, they fall. Maybe not as much as some people would think, until it's validated by other losses.

So with that, here's my ballot for the CornNation Power Poll this week:

1. Ohio State
2. Wisconsin
3. Michigan State
4. Michigan
5. Nebraska
6. Iowa
7. Penn State
8. Minnesota
9. Northwestern
10. Indiana
11. Illinois
12. Purdue

Why Nebraska still fifth? I'm still not a believer in Iowa.  We'll see if the Minnesota game was an aberration or not; I suspect it is.  If it's not, we'll know for sure in three weeks.

Gophers Pound the Blackshirts in 34-23 Husker Loss

Other than being unable to block, catch, and tackle, Nebraska had a decent game against Minnesota. Except for the fact that blocking, tackling, and catching the ball are just a wee-bit important in football.

And yes, that's sarcasm.

We'll start right off the bat with what was good today.  Ameer Abdullah, except for that fumble.  Unquestioned leader of the offense.  And many Husker fans' favorite pincushion, Taylor Martinez.  Is he 100%? No.  But whether he's 70% or 80%, he's clearly Nebraska's best quarterback.  We didn't see Ron Kellogg or Tommy Armstrong take a snap, but Martinez still made enough plays by himself that the other quarterbacks can't.  Take that 35 yard zone read run.   Take some of that presence to step up in the pocket and deliver a pass.

Problem is that Abdullah and Martinez didn't have much help.  Quincy Enunwa had multiple drops that could have kept drives alive.  Kenny Bell had a couple of drops, but those probably belong on Martinez for a pass that wasn't perfectly thrown.  And that's to be expected, with Martinez spending the last six weeks in a boot on the sideline.  Could Armstrong have made those throws?  Maybe.  But more than likely not, especially when you remember that ridiculous catch Kenny Bell had to make against Illinois that should have been intercepted, in all honesty.

Ra'shede Hageman earned some serious money today, though he won't be able to cash in until next summer. He was disruptive enough in the pass rush to keep Nebraska out of sync offensively.

But the biggest problem of the day for Nebraska was the inability to stop the Gophers running the ball. Minnesota wisely scouted last year's Big Ten championship game and saw how Nebraska discombobulated defending the jet sweep.  The Gophers don't have anybody that could match Wisconsin's Melvin Gordon, so they didn't actually hand the ball off that much.  They didn't need to, not when just the jet sweep action was enough to provide enough of a distraction to allow David Cobb to find a seam.

Minnesota read the book on Bo. Switch personnel every play. Shift. Motion. Play action. Young LBs are lost. #Huskers
— Blake Lawrence (@Blake_Lawrence) October 26, 2013

This will sting Nebraska: Minnesota OC Matt Limegrover says Gophers built game plan somewhat based off film of B1G title game last year.

— Mitch Sherman (@mitchsherman) October 26, 2013

Combine that with poor tackling, and you have the makings of a debacle on defense.  Late in the fourth quarter, ESPN showed Cobb with 94 yards after contact.  Almost assuredly, he topped the 100 yard mark on yards after contact.

Ball game.

Frustrating as all hell. We had hoped that the defensive improvement we saw earlier in October was real, but today was a huge step backwards. Credit Minnesota for exploiting Nebraska's youth on defense, and Nebraska's young linebackers were all too frequently suckered out of position.  Who's fault is that?

That falls on Bo Pelini and his coaching staff.  We've seen this coming as Nebraska tried to recover from recruiting mistakes in 2010 and 2011.  Now we're feeling the pain of the youth movement.  Sometimes they play well, sometimes they don't.  And today they didn't.

Many people are going to be out there calling for Bo Pelini's head this weekend.

Do I need to say anymore?
— Tommie Frazier (@TouchdownTommie) October 26, 2013

I'm not going to join that call, as I've seen enough from this young defense to see things to be optimistic about down the line. That doesn't mean that I'm excusing what happened today.  That doesn't mean that I'm happy about this.  That doesn't mean that I don't think that changes are needed in Lincoln.

I just don't think that firing Bo Pelini, a consistent winner, is the answer.

Cornell Scores Three in Third in 5-3 UNO Loss

Three third period goals gave #19 Cornell the comeback victory over UNO in hockey tonight. Unfortunately (or fortunately, as the case may be), I missed the third period as my youngest son was too tired to stick around to the end of the game.  For a while there, I thought UNO was going to get a hard-fought victory against an eastern hockey team, but it was all for naught as UNO's nemesis, the ill-timed penalty, burned UNO. Two Brock Montpetit penalties led to the game-winning and game-clinching power play goals.

Since I wasn't there, I don't know what happened on either penalty.  UNO sports information director Dave Ahlers said on the radio that it was hard to argue over the first penalty when Montpetit was standing there with a shattered stick. And after the game, UNO's Red Army made the frustration over a senior's play down the stretch crystal clear.

Brock Montpetit.
— The Red Army (@RedArmyUNO) October 26, 2013

After Dean Blais told the World-Herald's Rob White that dumb penalties are killing the Mavs this season, look for Montpetit to be a healthy scratch for Saturday night's game.

“If they take many more, they won't be playing,” Blais said. “They'll be sitting up in the stands. How many times do you have to tell them, show them, that it's a bad penalty? And if they take it ... what else is there that they'll understand?”

Archibald scores on the penalty shot to tie the game

It's a shame that the game turned on that, as the Mavs battled against the bigger Cornell team, who had a burst in their season opener.  The Mavs outshot the Big Red all night long, but it seemed Cornell had the edge much of the night in play. In the second period, UNO's team speed started to show, especially when Cornell's Cole Bardreau hauled down UNO's Josh Archibald on a breakaway. Archibald was awarded the penalty shot, and on a great deke, beat Cornell goalie Andy Iles just under the crossbar on the glove side.

And with just over two minutes left in the second period, Ryan Walters buried a rebound past Iles to give UNO a 3-2 lead going into the final period.  A lead that UNO couldn't hold in the closing 10 minutes.

Frustrating.  That's about the only thing to say about this one.

B1G Power Poll, Week 8 Ballot

If anything, Nebraska looked better this week for not playing.  Wisconsin gave up quite a few points to Illinois, and Michigan State's offense reverted to ineptitude at home against Purdue.  That's just one week after the Huskers used a backup quarterback to slice, dice, julienne, and smash the Boilermakers on the road.

So here's my ballot for this week's poll at CornNation.

1. Ohio State
2. Wisconsin
3. Nebraska
4. Michigan State
5. Michigan
6. Penn State
7. Iowa
8. Northwestern
9. Minnesota
10. Indiana
11. Illinois
12. Purdue

Most of the changes were in the second half; Michigan State's offense and Michigan's defense both had horrible weeks.  Iowa moves up mostly due to Northwestern's tailspin.  That, and Indiana getting into a boat race with Michigan.  Keeping it competitive with Ohio State counts as well.

I can come up with any number of reasons to shuffle numbers 6 through 11 around, so I'm going with gut feel here.  I'm not impressed with Indiana or Illinois at this point, and I have to figure that eventually Northwestern is going to turn it around.

I just hope it's not until after November 2nd.

B1G Power Poll - Week 7 Ballot

Here's how voted in this week's Big Ten Power Poll at CornNation:

1. Ohio State
2. Wisconsin
3. Nebraska
4. Michigan State
5. Northwestern
6. Michigan
7. Penn State
8. Indiana
9. Iowa
10. Illinois
11. Minnesota
12. Purdue

Nebraska moved up, partially because of a strong defensive performance, but more importantly, because of the poor showing by Northwestern.  Yes, Kain Colter and Venric Mark were injured, but even so, Wisconsin shouldn't have dominated the Wildcasts like that.  Michigan State makes the biggest jump, mostly due to the emergence of an actually productive offense.

And yes, I know that on the field, the games say Indiana > Penn State > Michigan.  I attribute those results to the "any given day" phenomenon. So I'm going with my gut for now.

Easiest choice is to put Purdue at #12. Nobody is going to argue that point until they actually beat somebody.  Best chance might be on November 23rd when Illinois comes to West Lafayette.

Blackshirts Derail Boilermakers As Armstrong Struggles

The most annoying meme in Nebraska football in recent weeks has been the "Tommy Armstrong is better than Taylor Martinez" viewpoint. If it was limited to a few crackpots, it would be fairly easy to dismiss. But it's not; people who should no better have signed onto the "Tommy Armstrong in 2013" bandwagon.  Even when the evidence is in scant supply.

No doubt that Tommy Armstrong runs the option better than Taylor Martinez.  He also has better fundamentals throwing the ball.  But he's also a redshirt freshman, who's fairly inexperienced.  He's done well in a simplified offense against inferior competition.  The competition heats up in November, and Armstrong isn't playing anywhere near the level that Martinez is capable of. Not only isn't Armstrong the best quarterback in Lincoln, he hasn't even established himself as the best available quarterback. 

That's led many people to bring out the black helicopter theories from the grassy knoll as to why Armstrong and Ron Kellogg III are splitting snaps in both practices and games.

Let's call this what it is & what @RealMikeWelch called it today on @937theticket: Politics. Don't want Tommy to look too good! #Huskers
— John Gaskins (@937JohnGaskins) October 9, 2013

Today, reality hopefully hit home like Ndamukong Suh hits quarterbacks. For all the talent and potential Armstrong has, he's still inexperienced. And it showed today... 18 passes thrown, six caught by Huskers, three intercepted by Purdue. And as the game went on, Armstrong got worse.  In the second half, Armstrong threw five incompletions, one interception, and no completions.  One "should've" been caught by Quincy Enunwa, but others could have been intercepted...but weren't. Suffice it to say that Purdue isn't a very good team in 2013.

And Armstrong is a freshman.  It happens. And when the freshman is struggling, sometimes you have to pull him. And it's a heck of a lot easier to do when you are already alternating quarterbacks... especially when quarterback 1-A IS playing well.  I understand the narrative that when you play two quarterbacks, you don't really have a quarterback.  Well, Nebraska doesn't really have a healthy quarterback, so you play what you've got.

And based on today, if Taylor Martinez isn't ready to go against Minnesota, Nebraska's starting quarterback in Minneapolis should be Ron Kellogg III.  Doesn't mean that Armstrong shouldn't play in that game...but Kellogg should be rewarded with the start for a better performance today.  Armstrong is young; he'll bounce back.

Fortunately, all that was moot on a day when Nebraska imposed their will from the opening play of the game. Aaron Curry started the game with a five yard sack of Purdue's true freshman quarterback Danny Etling, and the rout was on.  Etling might be a good quarterback down the line after they build a offensive line, but today, the Boilermakers were overwhelmed by the Nebraska defense.  Don't make the mistake of saying the Blackshirts are somehow back; Purdue is exactly the type of team that a Bo Pelini defense excels against. Without the threat of a run by the quarterback or running back, the defensive line could attack and the secondary could worry about covering.

The Blackshirts simply did their job today, and did it well.  Randy Gregory was disruptive much of the day, and even Thad Randle and Jason Ankrah got into the mix.  Isn't it time to give Gregory that Blackshirt? I thought the secondary played pretty well in the first half...not quite so much in the second half, especially at cornerback. Josh Mitchell had his problems, and Stanley Jean-Baptiste spent the second half in the locker room after being ejected.

Should Jean-Baptiste have been ejected? By the letter of the new rules, yes.  Earlier this summer, I had an opportunity to listen to Big Ten official Tripp Sutter discuss the new targeting rules, and it's crystal clear. If defenders aim for the belly and below, they'll probably be fine.  Aim at the shoulders, and the risk of being ejected is great. The officials have no choice in the matter; the call is clear, and if the officials fail to  make the call, they'll be disciplined.  Fair or not, the official called it correctly.

The most disappointing play of the day on defense had to be the last one, with Jonathan Rose losing coverage on DeAngelo Yancey to end the shutout bid.  Offensively, the biggest disappointment had to be losing all-American offensive guard Spencer Long to a knee injury. Bo Pelini didn't want to say it in the post-game press conference, but it sounds an awful like a season-ending ACL tear, if you read between the lines.

His loss really shook up the continuity on the offensive line, and that's something that could be devastating if he's out as long as it sounds like it could be.

Bottom line is that Nebraska played well enough today to beat an overmatched opponent. That might not be enough in November against Michigan and Michigan State, but if the defense continues to improve and Martinez is back and reasonably healthy, it might be enough.

Big Ten PowerPoll, Week 6

The top five remain unchanged this week.  I can't drop Northwestern for losing to the best team in the conference. 

1. Ohio State
2. Wisconsin
3. Northwestern
4. Nebraska
5. Michigan
6. Michigan State
7. Penn State
8. Iowa
9. Indiana
10. Illinois
11. Minnesota
12. Purdue

The first big move is Michigan State.  We know their defense was tops, but their offense was horrid.  Nice breakout game for the Spartans on offense, but can they do it again?  Penn State stayed where they are, mostly because I wasn't sure I could move anybody else up.  Indiana hasn't been THAT impressive to this point, but if they play like that again, they could move up.

Not sure what to make of Minnesota...they hung in for a while with Michigan, but eventually fade out.  One thing is clear, the line between the top 6 and bottom 6 is becoming more and more distinct. And I can make a case for anybody in the top 6 to win in Indianapolis.

McKewon Says Martinez is a "November QB"; Armstrong isn't yet.

In his weekly rewind of the previous Saturday's game, Sam McKewon of the Omaha World-Herald look a closer, critical look at Tommy Armstrong's performance against Illinois.

There's so much to like — the shake-bake, the willingness to hold himself in the pocket and dare the defense to flush him out, the “court sense” on option plays — and not much to fret over. But Beck's done a good job of protecting Armstrong and putting the load on Abdullah and the offensive line.

Pretty good for a redshirt freshman...and good enough against Illinois. Certainly good enough against a struggling Purdue team. And probably Minnesota as well. But beyond?

But Armstrong would have to make a decent leap in the rest of October to be a full-on November quarterback who can beat three of the Big Ten's five best defenses. Don't kid yourself: As rickety as this Husker thing has looked in 2013, coach Bo Pelini has designs on winning them all. Twelve passes won't beat Michigan. Won't beat Michigan State.

 And Taylor Martinez, for all the arrows thrown at him, made “the leap,” at the very latest, last year, when he beat those defenses, often with second-half comebacks.

David McGee / CornNation

Husker fans should be excited for the future with Armstrong, or perhaps Johnny Stanton at quarterback. Next year. For 2013, though, Nebraska's best quarterback is still clearly Taylor Martinez, when he's healthy.  Will he be healthy by Minnesota?  That's a good question. Some wonder if a turf toe injury can be healed sufficiently at all this season.

McKewon points out that Beck's game plan set up Armstrong perfectly for success on Saturday. With Martinez, the offense does much, much more, and that's why Martinez is still the best quarterback for Nebraska.

Beck designed a game plan in Nebraska's 39-19 victory against Illinois that gave quarterback Tommy Armstrong easy throws from start to finish. Most of them off play-action. All of them provided Armstrong — who usually threw on his toes without following through with his lead foot — an open option down the middle or to his strong, right side.

The push by some to create a quarterback controversy is purely a result of "Martinez fatigue".  Let's be honest... some people simply don't like Martinez.  He's not a perfect quarterback by any means, but some people simply aren't willing to look past his past faults, especially the ones from his freshman and sophomore seasons.  Not all of them have been fixed, but not all of them still apply either.  And it's clear that some people simply have an agenda against Martinez. And so are their friends...

This is a joke, right? RT: @ESPN_BigTen: Get ready for QB drama in Lincoln http://t.co/8B3jS3H0zS
— Husker Mike (@Husker_Mike) October 5, 2013

Bottom line is that the only question that can honestly asked about Nebraska's quarterback situation revolve around Martinez's toe. Everything else is pretty much revisionist thinking, tailored to your personal biases.  Armstrong didn't have the best day throwing the ball against Illinois, and Bo Pelini pointed out today that if it wasn't for Kenny Bell's incredible catch of the year, that pass was probably going to be an interception.

Bo says he felt for Illini safety on Bell 1-hand grab: "I think safety thought he had a pick. Having played the position, I've been there."
— Eric Olson (@ericolson64) October 7, 2013

I'm not down on Armstrong. I just want to keep the hype in check. Same way I held back on Martinez and the Heisman hype in 2010.  Armstrong is doing OK as the backup, but when Martinez is ready to return, it's clearly Martinez's job.

Anybody who says different is simply letting their personal biases cloud reality.

Abdullah Torches Illini as Blackshirts Show (A Little) Progress

I sensed a lot of concern from Husker fans in recent days over Nebraska's game with Illinois. At a superficial level, it was easy to see:  Nebraska's defense has been porous for all season, and the Illini torched Miami (Ohio) last weekend.  Of course, most fans probably didn't realize that Miami's defense was the second worst in division 1-A.  Heck, I'm not sure that Enrico Blasi's hockey squad at Miami couldn't have done better job slowing Illinois than the Redhawks' football team.  So I wasn't quite so concerned, especially when I realized that the Illini defense was playing nearly as poorly as Nebraska's this season.

It was sure nice to see Nebraska seize command of today's game right from the start. Earlier this season, I-Back Ameer Abdullah seemed a little off.  A little slow, a little sluggish...I couldn't say for sure in the first two games against Wyoming and Southern Miss.  That was then, this is now...and Abdullah is now running at an all-Big Ten level. 21 touches for 240 yards, and it all started with the second play of scrimmage.  After the first of many errant Tommy Armstrong passes (more on that later) to open the game, Abdullah ripped off runs of 11, 3, 30, and 2 yards to give the Huskers the lead that would never be relinquished.

Abdullah's backups weren't anywhere near as effective. Terrell Newby had an 11 yard run to open the second quarter, but had a fumble in the third quarter that might have killed a drive.  Imani Cross had two fumbles (one lost), and even worse, got nailed for a safety in the second quarter.  That safety appeared to be a bad call to me; Cross got nailed inside the 2 yard line and pushed back into the end zone, where he was tackled.  Normally, the call is forward progress stopped at the 2, and that's where the ball is spotted.  Not here.

That wasn't the first of the bad calls.  Cross was also the victim of a horse-collar tackle that wasn't called.  Neither was intentional grounding on Nathan Scheelhaase for a fourth quarter throw that fell two yards shy of the line of scrimmage. But they did manage to flag Jared Afalava for pushing Scheelhaase out of bounds.  Not to mention Kenny Bell for shh-ing the student section.  And all game long, they allowed Illinois to snap the ball without allowing Pelini to get his substitutes into the game.

While the officials were wrong, it's ultimately Bo Pelini's responsibility to recognize the way the officials were handling the game, and to stop the situational substitutions.  No excuse to bull-headedly continue to be caught with players not in position, or even worse, have 12 (or more) defenders on the field.  Save the protest for the conference office; you have to play the way the game is being called.

Kenny Bell's acrobatic one-handed touchdown catch will show up on every highlight reel, but it was a symptom of Armstrong's errant throws all day.  Undoubtedly, the wind made it tough to throw the ball today, but even short throws (like that fourth and goal pass) were off target.  Only great efforts by Quincy Enunwa, Bell, and Sam Cotton turned incompletions into completions.  Am I being overly tough on Armstrong?  Yes, when you consider he's a freshman. But not at all, when people still insist that there is a quarterback controversy at Nebraska.  Armstrong wasn't too bad today, but the reality is no matter how much some people dislike the senior, Taylor Martinez is Nebraska's best quarterback.  Or at least, when he's healthy. Will he be healthy next week?  Don't know.  Will he be healthy in three weeks against Minnesota?  Hope so.  How about in a month against Northwestern?  That's the big question, and he better be.

On the defense, we saw a revamped lineup up front with several surprises.  I was pleased to see Aaron Curry start, but I expected him to replace Thad Randle instead of Vincent Valentine. Valentine played later in the game, and caught my eye a few times getting some penetration into the backfield, so I'm hoping this was a motivation thing.  Michael Rose had a big day on the stat sheet replacing Zaire Anderson (out with a bone bruise) and Nathan Gerry.  That being said, with the number of times Illinois running back Josh Ferguson got into the Nebraska secondary, there's going to be some painful video study this weekend for Nebraska's linebackers.

Randy Gregory did have another monster game at defensive end, and you get the feeling that he's starting to get comfortable with his role. This is where we remember that he's just a sophomore...and going to get even better.  Did linebacker play improve with Michael Rose and Jared Afalava in the game?  A bit, but there were still a few too many misreads with guys seemingly out of position.  Andrew Green had a strong performance today at safety; I'm still not prepared to say that the other safety position opposite Corey Cooper is solved.  Le Roy Alexander looked OK at times in relief, but sometimes it was more of the same problems that Nebraska's had all season long.

Bottom line is that it was a win, and a better win than Vegas oddsmakers and some pessimist fans expected.  And that makes it a good win.

Why Must Politics Interfere Unnecessarily With Sports?

Barring some sort of mass influx of sanity into Washington, the effects of the federal government shutdown will include two college football games this Saturday. If Congress fails to find a compromise by noon Thursday, games between Air Force and Navy plus Army and Boston College could be cancelled.

Why?  Because a handful of Tea Party conservatives are so infatuated with stopping health care reform that they are willing to hold the entire federal government hostage. Nevermind the fact that opponents of health care reform have continually lost vote after vote to try and stop health care reform. Nevermind that much of what became the Affordable Care Act (aka ObamaCare) originated with the conservative Heritage Foundation (and RomneyCare).  Nevermind that only gerrymandering of Congressional districts have allowed the GOP to control the House of Representatives.  Since the previous 42 attempts to undo this have failed, the Republicans have upped the ante in their Don Quixote-like assault on the windmills of ObamaCare.

The Democrats aren't exactly blameless in this matter. Whether it's shutting down web sites or college football games, some things being shut down are being done to make it more painful instead of conserving government funds. Football games are revenue generators, so cancelling these games cost the government far more than will be saved.

So how far will this go?  Can enough people in the middle rise up and say "enough"?  I fear not, not with the polarized views espoused on the talkshows aired by Faux News and MSNBC.

Eventually, cooler heads will prevail.  The Republicans are destined to lose this battle eventually; the only question is when, and what will the repercussions be?  And will it be in time to save a couple of college football games this weekend?

Big Ten Power Poll, Week 5

With so many teams on a bye week, not a lot of movement this week, except at the top.

1. Ohio State

They aren't invincible...but they've earned their place on top of the B1G tire fire.

2. Wisconsin

Had their chance to pull off the upset on the road.  Just needed some better clock management.

3. Northwestern

Doesn't suck to be undefeated, that's for sure.

4. Nebraska

Fix the defense, please!

5. Michigan

Why is Nebraska ahead of the Weasels? Simple: Wyoming is a better team than Akron or UConn.

6. Penn State

The NCAA is giving Bill O'Brien a break in the future...Penn State will be back eventually.

7. Iowa

I thought the Squakeyes would fumble Floyd away to the Gophers. Instead, the Gophers got stomped at home.

8. Michigan State

I think Nebraska's defense is fixable. I'm not sure Michigan State's offense is.

9. Illinois

The Illini looked good against the #115 scoring defense and #123 scoring offense. They should have.

10. Minnesota

This was why the Gophers can't have nice things, other than TCF Bank Stadium.

11. Indiana

Basketball practice has begun!

12. Purdue

This locomotive is off the tracks.

Big Ten Power Poll, Week 4

The big news is that Michigan finally fell from their perch atop my Power Poll ballot, as submitted to CornNation.com.  Their season opening victory over Central Michigan now looks like an abberation after close calls against Akron and winless UConn.  And their win over Notre Dame doesn't look all that great after watching the Irish struggle with Purdue and then Michigan State.  So now my new #1 team in the Big Ten is Wisconsin.

1. Wisconsin

They got hozed by the refs at Arizona State. They've been the most consistent team in the Big Ten, in my opinion.

2. Ohio State

Why not Ohio State on top?  Buffalo scored 20, Cal scored 34.  We'll learn more this Saturday.

3. Northwestern

They are winning. Maybe not the toughest competition, but they've been winning.

4. Nebraska

Tough call between Michigan and the Huskers. Both teams have their issues, but Wyoming is way better than Akron, while South Dakota State is probably comparable to UConn.  And Michigan hasn't played anybody like UCLA to this point.

5.  Michigan

I suspect that Oklahoma is going to go Boomer Sooner all over South Bend this weekend, and that week two victory by the Weasels over Notre Dame isn't going to look nearly as good.

6. Penn State

Their loss against Central Florida might not be as bad as it looked.

 7. Michigan State

I wish Nebraska could play the Spartans next...the Blackshirts need a boost of confidence, and the Spartans offense is so anemic, it could be that spark the Big Red needs.

8. Minnesota

Gophers are 4-0.

9. Iowa

Nice win against Central Michigan.

10. Illinois

The loss against Washington wasn't that bad, really.

11. Indiana

Slapped around by Mizzou.  Really?

12. Purdue

102nd in passing offense, 106th in rushing offense, 117th in points scored, 94th in points allowed.  That's bad football. And this team nearly upset Notre Dame?

Blackshirts Struggle While Offense Rolls In Huskers Blowout of South Dakota State

About all we knew about South Dakota State going into this game was that they were a pretty good division 1-AA team with a heck of a running back.  Today, the Blackshirts made Zach Zenner look even better, as Zenner rushed for 202 yards on just 21 carries. You'd like to think it was a long time since Nebraska gave up a 200 yard rushing day, but it hasn't.  (/Wisconsin scores again)

Take absolutely nothing from Zenner, who rushed for 2,044 yards last season and has 742 yards in four games this season.  He was a 1-AA All-American last season and seems headed in the same direction in 2013. But Nebraska's defensive line sure allowed Zenner to make it look easy.  Bo Pelini after the game criticized his defense for being unable to get off blocks, and that started right up front. That's very disappointing after the defensive line started to look promising the first three weeks of the season.

I knew Zenner was going to get some yards, but what really depressed me was quarterback Austin Sumner's ability to sit back in the pocket and find wide open receivers, especially early on. Yes, that starts up front, but the secondary didn't help much either.  I noticed in the second half that Pelini inserted redshirt freshman LeRoy Alexander, who caught my eye a few times.

Offensively, the Huskers were pretty much unstoppable - except when they stopped themselves with turnovers.  Quarterbacks Tommy Armstrong and Ron Kellogg were efficient, combining to complete 20 of 25 passes for 305 yards. Armstrong looked poised and comfortable in his first game action with the game on the line; a very solid debut.  In fact, it was so solid that some people think Nebraska should have a quarterback controversy.

Wait.  Stop.  If you said that Taylor Martinez should be benched in favor of Armstrong, walk that statement back right now.  Hit the delete key if it's not too late.  Armstrong looked good...but it was still against a 1-AA program that has never defeated a 1-A opponent.  The last time they played a 1-A opponent, they lost to Charlie Weis and Kansas in 2012.

And this is a 1-AA opponent that doesn't have a very good defense.  Last week, Southeastern Louisiana completed 28 of 37 passes for 322 yards against South Dakota State.  The week before, North Dakota's two quarterbacks completed 28 of 45 passes for 437 yards.  The Jackrabbits are very good on offense, but they have some defensive issues.  They've got a lot to work on before North Dakota State comes to visit next weekend.

What we did see was that Armstrong throws a really nice ball and can be efficient in the quarterback run game. He's better than Martinez running the option, but then again, Iowa State's Marv Seiler was better than Martinez running the option.  Martinez is still clearly Nebraska's best overall quarterback when healthy.  He's got the experience and he still has the breakaway speed and intangibles that will keep him atop the depth chart once his foot is ready.

I suspect that Martinez will be ready to play in two weeks; heck, I suspect that if Nebraska were playing Illinois this week, Martinez would have started. It just didn't make sense to play Martinez when his foot was obviously bothering him last week.  Go ahead and rest him for a week or two, and see if that foot gets healthy.  In the meantime, Armstrong gets even more preparation for 2014.  He's going to be a good one down the line.  Just don't read too much into his performance against a bad 1-AA defense.  South Dakota State ranked 106th out of 114 teams in 1-AA in pass defense prior to today for a reason.

That's not 106th in 1-A with schools like Alabama and Texas.  That's 106th in 1-AA with schools like Stephen F. Austin and Weber State.  Frankly, if Armstrong and Kellogg DIDN'T put on a show today, Husker fans should have been alarmed.  Great game for Martinez's two understudies, but let's not go overboard.

Now Nebraska has a bye week with plenty of things to work on.  It all starts with the defense.  One change I'd like to see is to move Avery Moss to the other side of the defensive line and let both Moss and Randy Gregory start.  Find somebody - anybody - to man the other safety spot next to Corey Cooper who isn't a liability.  Maybe it's finally Charles Jackson time.

Bottom line is that if the defense doesn't get fixed in the next month, it won't matter what Shawn Eichorst and Harvey Perlman really thought about "AudioGate".

A Letter to the NU Board of Regents over Increased Costs for the UNO Hockey Arena

Today's Omaha World-Herald brings us a report that UNO is going back to the Board of Regents to approve an $11.6 million increase in the cost.  I've long been opposed to this arena, but I'm finally motivated to write to my NU Regent to express my concern.

Dear Regent Hawks:

I am writing to you as a long-time season ticketholder of UNO's hockey program to express my reservations over UNO's hockey arena. I've grown increasingly discouraged as to the lack of transparency regarding how UNO will pay for this arena, as well as it's reduced size relative to the crowds that follow the Mavericks.  Today's World-Herald reports that the capacity will remain at 7,500 seats, though rumors earlier this summer indicated that it may have fallen to as little as 6,800.  This contrasts to average crowds that were 7,864 in 2012 and 7,994 in 2011.

Why would UNO build a facility smaller than their fan base?

I'm also concerned about how UNO plans to pay for this facility.  I understand that rent at the CenturyLink Center is expensive, but I find it hard to believe that it's cheaper to own a facility you need for two dozen or so dates each year. The only conclusion I can make is that UNO intends to use the reduced supply of tickets as an excuse to increase ticket prices significantly for their existing fans, with no consideration being made to growing the fan base.  This building essentially crams UNO hockey into a too-small facility for the next 30-40 years.

Now I see that the cost of the arena has increased even further.  I understand that a lot of work has already begun on the arena, but  the building isn't completed yet.  I really question how UNO can make this building viable.  Council Bluffs built an arena 10 years ago that sits virtually empty, losing money.  Rumors are that the new Ralston arena is also losing money.  How does another arena become viable in the Omaha area.

I realize that you've already approved this project in previous votes; I'm hoping that you'll reconsider this project while it's still possible.

Thank you for your time.

Not sure it'll make a difference, but I at least have to try. 

Bo Pelini's "AudioGate" Is Over . . . Or Is It?

On Wednesday, NU Chancellor Harvey Perlman and Athletic Director Shawn Eichorst accepted Bo Pelini's apology over the released audio from the aftermath of the 2011 Ohio State game, declaring it over:

Coach Pelini has given us his assurance that he understands the seriousness and inappropriateness of his comments. We believe he is sincere in his apology and in his regret. We are prepared to put the matter to rest.

But is it really? If anything, the story got more bizarre on Tuesday into Wednesday morning as Perlman said he was still reflecting on the situation:

“I’m not going to talk about football today,” Perlman told the Omaha World-Herald, adding, “We’re disappointed and we are reflecting on the situation.”

Why leave the coach hanging?  Is the idea to make him squirm?  Were they actually considering firing the coach over this?  Who knows... But then the story took a couple more left turns on Wednesday.  First, they acknowledged that Tom Osborne already handled the situation last year:

Former Director of Athletics Tom Osborne became aware of these comments and the existence of a recording more than a year ago, and addressed the matter with Coach Pelini. We have observed, and many others have commented, that Coach Pelini’s demeanor has significantly improved since the time of this incident.

If Osborne already took care of the matter, then why the 40 hour delay between the two statements? Why not announce this Monday night and put this whole ugly situation to bed?

There are no answers, just questions.  It's probably safe to say that Perlman and Eichorst didn't know about Osborne's actions on Monday. Why not?  Shouldn't Eichorst have gathered his staff to discuss the situation?  Since Nebraska associate athletic director Chris Anderson was identified early on as a voice on the tape, shouldn't she have been asked about what she knew of the situation?  And certainly wouldn't she have told Eichorst about her conversation with Osborne last year?  Osborne told the World-Herald tonight that he learned about the audio from Anderson.

So we're left with two possibilities:  Perlman and Eichorst never really bothered to look into this situation, or they were looking for an opportunity to dismiss Pelini only to have Osborne foil their plans.

Either option reflects rather badly on the current leadership at the University of Nebraska.  Pick your conclusion: incompetent, out-of-touch, indecisive, confused, wishy-washy.

And if Perlman and Eichorst's plan was indeed the latter possibility, then this situation isn't over.  Not in the least.
 

Bo Pelini Haunted By the Ghost of 2011's Ohio State Game

On Saturday, Bo Pelini thought his players "had seen a ghost" when Brett Hundley went nuts in the third quarter, enroute to a 41-21 victory. Today, Pelini was haunted by some comments he thought he had made privately just prior to his postgame radio interview - two years ago.  Somebody sent the audio to Deadspin, who posted it on their web site today.  The money quote was "F*** the fans"...and that has many people in an uproar. Chancellor Harvey Perlman and "Director of Athletics" Shawn Eichorst (isn't the traditional title "Athletic Director"?) had to issue statements of concern, while Bo Pelini issued an apology.

In all of the reporting, much of the context of that quote seems to be lost.  So let's review what happened.  After Nebraska lost to Wisconsin badly in the Huskers' first game in the Big Ten, a lot of criticism fell onto Taylor Martinez.  Omaha World-Herald commentator Dirk Chatelain wrote a scathing article afterwards, suggesting that Martinez should be benched if he had just one more bad performance. Nevermind that due to injuries and transfers, the best available alternative was struggling freshman Brion Carnes, who has since transferred and is a backup at 1-AA Northern Iowa.  Considering the fact that Nebraska didn't really have a viable alternative to Martinez (a point that Chatelain even admitted), I felt that Chatelain's piece was a "muddled mess".  Steve Sipple of the Lincoln Journal-Star called it "unfair".

In the rain against Ohio State, Nebraska fell behind 27-6 early in the third quarter.  Fans start leaving the stadium; some even boo. Martinez was actually playing pretty well at that point, compared to his teammates.  Lavonte David strips Braxton Miller of the ball, and then Miller has to leave the game.  Joe Bauserman can't hit the broad side of a barn, and Martinez led the school record comeback to win 34-27.  It was an extremely emotional post-game celebration as Pelini gave his embattled quarterback a game ball.
Next, Pelini heads to his post-game press conference where none other than Chatelain proceeds to ask a bunch of Taylor Martinez questions. Considering the source of the questions, Pelini gives Chatelain a piece of his mind, drawing applause from athletic department people looking on and outrage from Chatelain's friends in the media.

Fresh off of that, Pelini heads to the offices for his post-game radio interview with Greg Sharpe of the Husker Sports Network.  Prior to the interview, Pelini lets loose with his opinions, thinking that he's finally in private and can vent a little about Chatelain, Tom Shatel, and the fans who left early and booed.

But apparently Pelini wasn't in private.  Someone recorded Pelini's comments, and has held onto them for nearly two years.  Who isn't clear; obviously, it's someone with an axe to grind who also had access to the inner sanctum of Nebraska athletics that night.  Whether that's the athletic department or the network can't be determined, though.  I believe many members of the media knew of the existence of these comments for quite some time, as I've heard veiled references to it in the past.

Was Bo wrong to drop a bunch of "f-bombs"? Yes, but I understand why he felt that way.  It was an emotional win.  He felt wronged by Chatelain, and even more importantly, he felt that his quarterback was wronged. Pelini is immensely loyal to his players and assistant coaches, and he'll stand up for them whenever possible.  And he likely felt miffed by the fans who left early and booed.

But he wasn't alone.  I'm in absolute agreement with Pelini's comments that night; I nominated both Chatelain and the fans who left for the CornNation "Cobs of the Week" as the worst of the weekend.  I wasn't alone.  Chatelain won the "Cob" with 36% of the vote; the fans who left got 26%.

So are Pelini's comments all that bad?  Not to me. The language, yes...but we already knew Pelini liked to swear. How can I criticize Pelini for saying essentially the same thing I said at the time, albeit more colorfully.  If I criticize him now, that makes me a hypocrite. That being said, it's part of a larger environment of Husker football.  Pelini first and foremost has to fix the defense.  I think he's making some progress, others disagree.  I see progress when I see talented first-year defensive players being disruptive in the first half; that's more than we've seen as of late.  But the issues have emboldened Pelini's critics.  Tommie Frazier called for him to be fired on Saturday, and many media members took to Twitter to take Pelini out of context at his press conference while it was underway.

It's clear that many people have an axe to grind and are getting more dirty laundry to air.  This is what came out today; who knows what comes out in future days.  Could this lead to Pelini's dismissal?  Earlier today, I thought not.  But after tonight, I'm not so sure.  After all, who really knows what Perlman and Eichorst are really thinking.

Are Husker Fans Calling A Code Red After UCLA Bombs the Blackout in Second Half

When Nebraska took a 21-3 lead over UCLA late in the first half, I was starting to feel the power of #teamSunshine permeating the Nebraska football program.  #teamSunshine is the term used at CornNation to point out that there are a good things going on in the Husker program.  I almost tweeted something about it, in fact.

I'm glad I didn't.

From that point on, #operationRaincloud became the dominant opinion.  Four of Nebraska's next five drives went three-and-out.  All told, after Nebraska took that 21-3 lead, Nebraska had just eight first downs and 146 yards of offense.  And most of that occurred after UCLA flipped that 18 point lead to a 17 point deficit.

I suspect most fans are upset about the defense; I'm not as worried about that.  In my opinion, Nebraska's offense is it's biggest issue right now.  We knew the defense was a rebuilding project, but the offense was supposed to carry the team.

That isn't really happening.  The running game is average, at best.  The real disappointment is the passing game.  This offseason, I've felt Nebraska had the best receiving corp in the Big Ten.  I still think that.  But for some reason, offensive coordinator Tim Beck seems content to just throw screen passes to them.  High percentage passes, I suppose.  But it doesn't stretch the field, and frankly, when you do it over and over, it encourages defenses to stack the box...and it only makes it more difficult to run the ball.

Taylor Martinez wearing boot on left foot. Says he's fine but that injury is something that happened prior to today's game.
— Rittenberg/Bennett (@ESPN_BigTen) September 14, 2013

Today's offensive ineptitude probably was magnified by Taylor Martinez's ankle; after the game, it was in a boot, which probably explains why Martinez lost 13 yards rushing today.  Martinez pretty much was one-dimensional today, which makes Nebraska much easier to defend.  So why on earth do you call that many option plays (which Martinez doesn't run particularly well to begin with) when he's obviously injured?

I'm not as down on the defense as it seems other fans are.  I see good things from the young defensive line and linebackers.  Avery Moss and Randy Gregory each had eight tackles, and were disruptive at times.  (How he missed Randy Hundley on that one scramble in the third quarter is an amazing testament to Hundley's ability.)  The secondary is a huge disappointment.  Stanley Jean-Baptiste had another interception, but that seemed to be it.  Ciante Evans got schooled at times, and Andrew Green is just as out of position at safety as he was at cornerback.  Harvey Jackson missed a couple of tackles that enabled that third quarter meltdown, and while Corey Cooper led with tackles, his personal foul for a late hit led to a touchdown instead of a field goal.

So which is the real Nebraska:  the one that led UCLA 21-3, or the one that got blown out 38-0 over the last 35 minutes?  I lean towards the 21-3 version, personally.  Open up the passing game and utilize those "best receivers in the Big Ten".  Loosen up the secondary to allow Ameer Abdullah and the other backs to get some yards.  Get some first downs and get the young defense off the field.

My e-mail is full of calls for tar and feathers.  People comparing 2013 to 2007.  Folks, it's September 14th.  UCLA might turn out to be a pretty good team.  But in my opinion, Southern Cal wasn't what got Bill Callahan fired.  It was the narrow escapes against Ball State and Iowa State.  It was the blowouts by Missouri, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, Kansas, and Colorado.

And despite all of that suckage, Bill Callahan stayed to the end of that bitter season.  So no, Bo Pelini isn't going to be fired tonight.  Or tomorrow.  Or Monday.  No matter how many people scream on Twitter, CornNation.com and on Big Red Overreaction. Now, if Bo Pelini can't start giving us more football like the first half and less (much less) like the second half, we'll have that conversation after Thanksgiving.

But not before the autumnal equinox.

UNO Starts Asking for Donations for New Arena

Yesterday, many UNO fans received a postcard encouraging them to donate the athletic department in preparation for the move to the new arena.

Dear Maverick Supporters,

As work continues toward the opening of the Community/UNO Multi-Purpose Athletic Facility in 2015, we want to let know that the athletic department is creating a point system that will allow our top supporters to have access to priority seating, parking and other amenities.

While the system has not been finalized, it will reward and be the most considerate of Maverick donors and season ticket holders for their current support, as well as their past contributions.

In order to enhance your priority, please consider becoming a hockey or men's basketball season ticket holder and a donor to The One Fund. If you have any questions regarding season tickets or donations, please contact the ticket office at 402-554-6287. Go Mavs!

Short on details, of course. Heck, we don't even have many details about the new arena, other than it may have shrunk from the originally reported 7500 seat down to as few as 6800 seats. Nature abhors a vacuum, and in the lack of information, rumors fill the void.

But when we combine what we do know with the letter, we can draw a few conclusions.  With UNO setting capacity slightly below the Mavs' average attendance, UNO is counting on fewer fans moving forward.  That means that if this is going to be a success, UNO needs to get more money from their remaining fans - and that can be done two ways.  First, is to ask those fans to donate more, and offer those donors perks:  parking privileges, better seating, and other amenities.  The second is to raise ticket prices.  The first option begins with this postcard; the second is inevitable and we'll learn of it over the next couple of years.

Some fans still believe that this project will pay for itself merely by diverting concession revenue from MECA (operators of the CenturyLink Center) to UNO. But that revenue likely pales in comparison with the expense of managing a building 365 days a year.

I remain unconvinced that this arena is the right choice for UNO.  I think the cost is too high, and the capacity is too low for UNO hockey.  I simply don't see the need for a fourth hockey arena in the Omaha metro area.

Many of my fellow UNO fans disagree.  They feel UNO absolutely needs this arena, and they cannot wait for it to open, let alone for construction to begin.

I just hope they are prepared to pay the price for it.

B1G Power Poll, Week Two

I've heard some complaints about other media members (especially at BTN) putting Nebraska in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten standings.  Well, I did the exact same thing this week.  I can't, in good conscience, put Nebraska any higher than fifth. This week is the acid test though; Nebraska hasn't done anything to warrant a higher ranking to this point.  Beat UCLA, and all bets are off.  A good solid victory might be reason to vote Nebraska as high as #2.  A loss, on the other hand, likely moves Nebraska down the list. Nebraska is unproven at this point, so middle of the pack is all it is worthy of at this point.

So here's my ballot after week 2.

1. Michigan
Solid opening week performance against a nobody, then a win against Notre Dame. Nobody else has that resume at this point.

2. Wisconsin
Played two nobodies, throttled two nobodies.  This week against Arizona State counts for much more.

3. Northwestern
Two BCS conference opponents, two victories. Maybe a little closer than they should be against teams that will likely be way down the standings this season, but that's still a better resume than anybody else in the Big Ten.

4. Ohio State
Didn't look great against a bad Buffalo squad to open the season.  Looked better against San Diego State, though.

5. Nebraska
Wyoming may be better than originally thought after their 42-10 win over Idaho.  This week is the mid-term exam for the Huskers.  Nebraska doesn't need this game to win the West division this season, but Nebraska desperately needs to win to break the national perception of getting beaten badly in big games.

6. Penn State
Putting together a solid season.

7. Michigan State
The defense is great.  The offense is simply horrible.  Michigan State has scored two offensive touchdowns against teams that couldn't even win a home game against a 1-AA opponent.  They get a 1-AA opponent of their own, and then reality sets in. If the offense can't find a way to become merely mediocre, the Spartans won't even make it to bowl eligibility.

8. Minnesota
Not terribly impressive, but lacking a reason to rank them any lower.

9. Illinois
Last week after a scare from 1-AA Southern Illinois, the Illini pounded Cincinnati.  Which one is the real Illinois?  Keeping them at #9 for now.

10. Iowa
Losing to Northern Illinois is probably forgivable.  Having a bad Missouri Valley team hanging around in the fourth quarter is not.

11. Indiana
Navy isn't bad...but it tempers the optimism from blowing out Indiana State.

12. Purdue
After Illinois blasted Cincy, that season opening loss to the Bearcats looks even worse.

Stanley & Ciante Are All Nebraska Needed to Defeat Southern Miss

Stat of the night: Blackshirts 14, Southern Miss 13.

The old football adage is that teams show the most improvement between their first and second games. And after three games where the Blackshirts got roasted for over a mile of total offense, Nebraska needed to show major improvement tonight.  And improvement is what Husker fans got.

Maybe Southern Miss is a shadow of their former "Anyone.  Anywhere.  Anytime." selves.  A fourteen game losing streak is proof of that.  But holding the Golden Eagles to 284 yards is still noteworthy.

Despite the first quarter defensive touchdowns by Stanley Jean-Baptiste and Ciante Evans, Southern Miss did total 132 yards of offense in that opening quarter.  Honestly, was that much of an improvement?  Hard to argue that, though the Pick-Six's left the defense on the field to get worn down on a warm evening.  I also got the feeling that Nebraska has depended too much on the dime defense and blitzing their way into generating pressure.  In the second quarter, we saw Zaire Anderson replace Mohammed Seisay, and frankly, the defense got better.  And frankly, I don't think Nebraska needs to blitz as much to get pressure on the quarterback.  Tonight, Randy Gregory had four official quarterback hurries, and I think he probably deserved double that unofficially.

And it's worth noting that Southern Miss only totalled 152 yards the rest of the game.  True freshman Josh Banderas started in place of David Santos, who apparently fell to third-string behind Michael Rose at middle linebacker.  Banderas only had three tackles, but seemed to be better in making the calls on the field. 

Offensively, it was another slow start for Nebraska, and I'm growing increasingly concerned about the offensive line. 20 rushes for 96 yards in the first half isn't going to cut it.  That was covered up by Taylor Martinez's passing, who completed a perfect 6 of 6 passes on third down tonight, converting five first downs in the process.  Fortunately, as the game went on, the heat wore down the Southern Miss defense, and the yards started flowing for "Two Men and a Truck", as Damon Benning has coined them.

In the second half, we saw Tommy Armstrong make his long awaited debut at quarterback. Many people wonder why Tim Beck bothers with option plays in his playbook.  Yes, Taylor Martinez doesn't run them very well.  But Armstrong does, and does it very well.  Ron Kellogg III also saw plenty of action, and frankly looked the best he's ever looked in his relief role.  Maybe that goes more on the Southern Miss defense, especially after they got wore out late.

So against Southern Miss, Nebraska took an inferior team behind the woodshed and beat them down as the game progressed.  It's probably what Nebraska fans expected from this game prior to last Saturday night.  Maybe that Wyoming game was just a bad night.  Or maybe Wyoming is actually a decent team; while Nebraska was blasting the Golden Eagles, the Cowboys beat Idaho 42-10.  Brett Smith threw for 295 yards and four touchdowns while Shaun Wick rushed for 110 yards.

Either way, we'll get a better idea how good Nebraska is next Saturday when UCLA comes to Lincoln. The good news is that the weather probably won't be nearly as hot, especially since Nebraska will be wearing those black uniforms for an 11 am kick.  The Weather Channel currently calls for an afternoon high of 79, which sounds downright refreshing after the first two games.

Week One Big Ten PowerPoll Ballot

I'll agree with Bo Pelini that Nebraska "left a lot on the table" against Wyoming on both sides of the ball.  But the only time I can primarily use "potential" or "expectations" in ranking is on the preseason ballot.  So I've got one performance from each team to look at, and that's what I used in voting on this week's Big Ten Power Poll.  I still have to use expectations for determining the relative strength of the opponent, though.

1. Michigan
Easily (and unfortunately as well) the Big Ten's best performance on opening week.

2. Wisconsin
Badgers were also dominant.  I think Central Michigan is probably better than UMass, though...hence, advantage Weasels.

3. Northwestern
Road win against BCS conference opponent with your starting quarterback out?  Even if Cal may not be very good, that's a good opener.

4. Penn State
True freshman quarterback getting the start in the Meadowlands.  Now, can you consider the new AAC a BCS conference?  Technically they are.

5. Ohio State
When you have to resort to two-point conversions and still can't beat the spread against a bad MAC team, you've got issues.

6. Nebraska
Offense was inconsistent, and the defense from the safeties and linebackers were atrocious. If Bo Pelini can find fixes there with the youngsters, all is not lost.  We saw major improvement on the defensive line, so it's not the same problems as last year.

7. Michigan State
The defense is scary good.  The offense has regressed even further.  I rank the Huskers ahead of Sparty because I think Nebraska has more room for improvement than Michigan State, and because I think Wyoming is going to be a much better team in 2013 than Western Michigan.

8. Minnesota
Defense is improved, and offense isn't nearly as as bad as Michigan State's.

9. Indiana
Big numbers on offense...but against a 1-AA opponent.

10. Iowa
Probably being harsh here for losing to a BCS bowl team, but it's still a loss at home.

11. Purdue
Got absolutely wiped out by Cincinnati.

12. Illinois
Southern Illinois had the ball on the Illinois three yard line when the game ended.  If they could have scored and converted a two-point conversion, the 1-AA team would have sent Illinois to overtime.