Husker Flashbax Series: Kansas

As far as “payback” for 2007, I don’t really see a point in the vindictive nature of since seeing as how Fatman is no longer head coach. Why embarrass Gill and his players because Fatman was shooting for BCS brownie points?

Really, had Nebraska not blew a giant whale penis that year, those 76 or whatever points would not have happened.

Now, here’s to Nebraska kicking some ass this weekend and playing down to their opponents level…like they tend to do.

First memory of Kansas- Sometime when I was a little kid, maybe like 2nd grade, my Dad took me to my first ever Husker game. It was against Kansas and a night game, and I remember we sat behind some guy who looked and acted like Biff Tannen off of Back to the Future. He wouldn’t sit down or shut up and I’m pretty sure he was drunk. Then I remember the score was like 42-0 at halftime or something like that. I wanted to go to the top of the stadium and look down (Memorial Stadium seems a lot bigger as a 3rd grader), and so my Dad took me to the top, and then we left early because it was 50 something to 0. I fell asleep on the way home, and even though my Dad was pretty pissed off at Biff Tannen, I had the time of my life!

Second memory- I was in 6th grade (1999) and the game after Nebraska lost to Texas we were losing to freaking Kansas at halftime. In my lifetime I had never seen Nebraska lose to Kansas, and my brain could not comprehend what was happening. I didn’t know we could lose to Kansas. Even though we won that game, it was really the beginning of a decade of learning that the Huskers really could lose to anyone.

Third memory- 2008. It was the first year of Pelini, and the year after that 76 point debacle. Kansas came to Lincoln and even though they weren’t quite as good as the year before and we weren’t quite as bad, I think we were still underdogs. That was the game where Suh caught a touchdown pass after lining up at fullback. As we all know, we beat Kansas, and I think that was the game that I really started to believe in Pelini and staff to bring Nebraska back.

Oh yeah, believe it. My brother deserves some credit, as well. That was the day that many pansy-ass students failed to show up because it was so cold (it probably didn’t help that Nebraska had just gotten molested by Oklahoma the week before) and the crowd just didn’t seem to be very energetic. I knew going in that this game would be a dogfight, but I also knew Nebraska was capable of pulling it off. I was in West Stadium, and if I felt things were too quiet, my brother and I would jump up to our feet and start shouting as loud as we could. It worked, because once I let up for a bit, I could hear that most of the stadium had joined in. Whether the Jayhawks struck back or not, I kept it up. It went on like that until Nebraska pulled off the win, and I was vindicated the next day when I read in the paper that one of our players had observed that the crowd had really started getting into it late in the game. I was like: “yeah! And it’s all thanks to me!” haha

Also, Sipple had this gem in his article, the next day:

“The home crowd was louder than usual, of that I’m certain. Bless those hearty souls who braved the howling 25 mph gusts. Those folks who came and stayed and roared to the end are examples of why the Nebraska program has glory days in the first place and probably will again someday.”

Why thank you for the kind words, Sip. Those words ring true, especially now.

That was just a great day all around, and easily my best time at Memorial Stadium in memory. Sure it was cold as shit, but I had dual-layered pants and triple-layered shirts, so I was just fine. I also went to a corporate-sponsored tailgate party before the game (courtesy a friend of a friend) and enjoyed free Raising Cane’s and an open bar. Oh baby, what I’d give to go to something like that again…

First trip was in the ‘90s with the CMB. Been there at least twice since then. Lawrence is a great college town, and KU is a BEAUtiful campus, unless you’re lugging a sousaphone up and down all those frigging hills.

But my KU-NU memory is of a game I never saw. I’m sorry to note that you’re wrong about the “first time in forever” loss being in 2007, Mr. Corn – it was 2005. My wife and I were out moving some furniture and taking care of errands that day, and I’d just gotten my first internet-capable cell phone. Having blithely assumed we’d handle Kansas with little trouble that day, I didn’t make plans to watch the game or anything, and while we were out, I remembered to check the score. Had I been driving I’d have damn near driven off the road. Called my brother, who had listened to the game, and heard the story. I think that was the first real question I had about the Callahan regime in Lincoln. To that point, it had seemed an experiment worth trying – who knew how bad things could get at that point? But losing to Kansas by 25 was just unfathomable to me. Even though 2006 gave us hope things would get better, something told me NU, especially on defense, was going to be in trouble. Thankfully, better days are upon us now.

I spent a weekend in Lawrence once….. Nebraska beat the crap out of Kansas while we watched the game on top the hill. I drank way too much (there’s a shock for you). Probably was in ‘84. There wasn’t all that much to remember about the game.

Later that night, we went out. I remember waking up on the floor of a frat house at about 2:00 am, with some guy screaming at me. I stole a frat boy hoodie and ran out the door and into campus. Everyone else I was with had just left me there.

I wandered around campus because I had no idea where the people were that I was staying with. Ended up wandering through the art building looking at all the stuff the students were doing when I was picked up by a campus cop, and taken to the police station. They told me to call my friends, and I called the guy I was staying with, Doug, on the phone. It’s about 4:00 am and he answers…. except that at that moment, I realize the Doug I know in Lawrence doesn’t have a phone.

The cop looks at me and says you better figure out who to call come and get you otherwise you have to go to jail. Well…. another buddy was dating a KU sorority girl, so I remember her house name, and call there, explain my situation. A little while later, two of her sorority sisters show up, pick me up, and take me to where I’m supposed to be.

And the next day, I got the hell out of Lawrence, Kansas, and haven’t been back since!!!!!!