Once again, it's time to nominate the worst of the past weekend in college football for the Cob of the week. And as is our custom, when Nebraska doesn't play well, we don't ignore it. They go on this list just like everybody else.
So here are this week's honorees for Cob of the Week:
Jake Cotton
Nebraska's most experienced offensive lineman had a really rough fourth quarter. How rough? You leg whip a guy backside of the play, and cost us a touchdown. You run downfield, what 15, effing yards on a pass play without noticing the linemen next to you backed up in pass protection?
Tommy Armstrong
Even before throwing the 98 yard Pick-Six that energized McNeese State, Armstrong was a candidate for erratic throws to wide open receivers. Some of them turned out to be catches thanks to diving catches in the first half, but by the second half, the balls were hitting the turf as the Huskers only converted two first downs in the final 33 minutes of the game.
Pat Haden
An AD coming onto the field to argue a call is pretty embarrassing for the AD, and for the coach. Casts a bit of doubt on his rational, impartial decision-making ability as a member of the playoff committee.
Michigan
On a bad day for the Big Ten, Michigan was especially cob-worthy by getting shut out. Not by Alabama or Michigan State. That you might understand. No, the Weasels got shut out by friggin' Notre Dame.
Texas
The Longhorns perennially get their choice of the best of what Texas high schools produce. Consistently a top five or ten recruiting class. But more often than not, Texas can't develop those players to excel at the next level. It finally cost Mack Brown his job. Now it's Charlie Strong's job to turn it around, and apparently he's taking the "burn it down to the ground first and start over" approach. BYU came to the Fourty Acres and cruised to a 41-7 victory. I don't think this is what ESPN had in mind when they created the Longhorn Network.
The Big Ten
We know Nebraska barely escaped McNeese State. But the rest of the Big Ten sucked on Saturday as well. Iowa had to score twice in the final three minutes to hold off Ball State. Illinois had to come back in the fourth quarter against Western Kentucky. Central Michigan rolled all over Purdue. Ohio State got beat at home by Virginia Tech's concussed quarterback. And Michigan State allowed Oregon to score 28 unanswered points in the second half to reinforce all of those stereotypes about the B1G, who's now a Power-5 conference in name only.