Hey members of the Corn Nation! It’s been a while since I’ve chimed in, but with Turkey Day behind me, I look forward to stepping out into the sunshine and chatting with you all more often. The team was looking at Colorado with a lot of attitude and swagger (swagger like us, (swagger) swagger like us) which I’m glad to see, but I think that dipped into the dangerous level of overconfidence. Still, after being down 14-0, I at no point felt that all was lost. I think we’ve reached a point where a 14 point deficit does not scare fans anymore barring that there’s not 35 seconds left in the fourth quarter.
The seniors get to go out on a positive note and while the game was incredibly entertaining (read: tight) and came down to two fantastic plays (thank you Alex Henery and Ndamukong “Yeah, I do this every week” Suh), I would’ve liked to have seen Beau Davis get a few snaps in just to make up for the Massacre in Lubbock back in 2004. Seriously, the guy’s stuck through the program knowing he was more than likely never going to get a shot. Isn’t that worth a snap or two in junk time?
I give Colorado all of the credit in the world. They came to play and they had to. Their team was dinged up, a bowl bid was on the line much like last year and also much like last year Nebraska was standing in their way. Unfortunately, 2008 Nebraska feels a little bit better about themselves than 2007 Nebraska.
Roy Helu gets the start and it was bittersweet as while Roy is the future and a guy I think has the potential to be Nebraska’s next great I-Back, Marlon Lucky, a guy who has done a ton for the program and a guy who, in my opinion, will never get the props he deserves had to stand on the sidelines with turf toe. A big thank you goes out to both Roy and Marlon, the former for his performance on the field and the latter for everything he has done as a Husker. I sincerely hope that we get to see them both in the bowl game.
On that note...BOWL GAME! Now, where are the Cornhuskers going to end up? I’m going to perch myself on the limb and say the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville where they face FSU. A great throwback game, FSU usually puts up a good fight in their bowl games (pay no attention to what you saw against Florida please) and beating a Florida team, especially one of the Big Three, in Florida would be a major recruiting tool in the off-season.
Regardless of where or whom the Cornhuskers play, there’s no doubt that Bo will be working his charges as if they’re playing for the national title. A 9-4 season would be a fantastic opening campaign for Pelini and again a great recruiting tool. Yes, I’ve mentioned recruiting twice and there’s a reason for that. In the upcoming weeks and months, I plan to focus a little bit more on recruiting than anything else because not only do I have a passion for it but it allows me to slack until early February regarding what to write.
This regular season has had its ups and its downs, but overall, much like the past two home games against Kansas and Colorado, it’s been a fun rollercoaster.