Friday Flakes: Is Investing in Food the New Advantage for Division One Athletics? Also the Corn Nation Book Club

Derek Saul, writing for Forbes.com compiled a list of the the Universities which spent the most money feeding their respective student-athletes.

As Nebraska fans we have long heard about the Nebraska Training Table which sounds like it would have been a dream for most college students. It had the best food.

Saul said, “schools are required to report how much they spend on feeding their student-athletes, excluding what was spent during travel, under the “Student-Athlete Meal Expense.” category.” He said he got the financial reports from all of the school who are considered to be in the tops in regards to worth when looking at Football and Basketball programs.

Who do you think is number one? This is from the article:

Totaling more than $7 million dollars in 2016-2017, the two most recent years that reports are available from most programs - the University of Arkansas spent the most of any public school on student-athlete meals. Housed in the new $23 million, 55,000-square-foot Jerry & Gene Jones Family Student-Athlete Success Center, Arkansas’ sports nutrition department spares no expense in feeding its athletes. Members of any sports team, even those not on scholarship, are provided two meals a day, in an effort to “fuel and refuel” the athletes.

Guess who else spends over $2 million in the same two-year period which round out the top five? Ohio State. Michigan and Iowa.

So among all of the power five schools, where does Nebraska rank? Outside of the top 20 according to his list.

I would be interested to see what the cost-per-student-athlete would be and see if Nebraska would still rank outside of the top 20. Until then, it appears spending money on feeding student athletes could be an area which needs to be addressed for the Nebraska athletic department.

The Lower Forty-Eight

Ex-NFL star Albert Haynesworth hospitalized, needs kidney
Albert Haynesworth has been hospitalized with kidney failure and is reaching out on social media for help.

The former NFL defensive tackle who made two Pro Bowls with the Tennessee Titans posted an image of himself in a hospital bed on Instagram Wednesday with the plea for help with a kidney transplant.

David Griffin lays out why Celtics backed off in Anthony Davis trade talks
Remember all that reported acrimony between the New Orleans Pelicans and the Los Angeles Lakers over Anthony Davis trade talks at the deadline?

Apparently none of it mattered.

Pelicans executive president of basketball operations David Griffin, who joined New Orleans in April, traded Davis to the Lakers anyway in June, leaving other suitors like the Boston Celtics out in the cold.

Tuioti talks status of Husker defensive line
Nebraska defensive line coach Tony Tuioti went through his first spring in Lincoln, and said he likes where his defensive line group stands with the start of fall camp a few weeks away.

Speaking during an appearance on Sports Nightly on Tuesday, Tuioti went through his group and discussed how he challenges his players to reach their potential. Tuioti’s group features twins, another set of brothers, and a mix of veterans and young players who will work to help Nebraska improve on the five yards per carry the defense gave up last season.

As NU continues investigation into softball program, ex-Huskers show emphatic support for Rhonda Revelle | Softball | journalstar.com
Tori Tyson's softball career at Nebraska came to a close in 2012, but the relationship with her head coach was just beginning.

Playing for Rhonda Revelle helped inspire Tyson to get into coaching, and with Revelle's help, Tyson landed an assistant coaching gig at Cal State Fullerton in her home state.

Former Husker QB signee Starling gets first MLB crack with Royals | Life in the Red | journalstar.com
Bubba Starling is a big leaguer.

The former Nebraska quarterback signee’s long trek through the minor league ranks is over for now after he was called up from Triple-A Omaha to the Kansas City Royals ahead of post-All Star break play resuming Friday.

Projecting preseason AP Top 25 college football rankings
It's almost that time of the year, folks.

A few weeks away from college football's first Associated Press Top 25 rankings of the 2019 season, we have a good idea how voters will slot the nation's perceived best teams — at least most of them — ahead of several much-anticipated openers.

The 10 Most Intriguing Huskers of 2019: No. 3 Adrian Martinez | Hail Varsity
Derek Peterson has a 10-man list of the most intriguing Huskers. Two new names a week, leading up to Big Ten Media Days in July. Adrian Martinez is next at No. 3.

Nebraska's defense, not offense, will be key in living up to preseason hype - CBSSports.com
Nebraska is an offseason darling this offseason after a 4-8 season in 2018. The Huskers lost their first six games under Scott Frost last year, including a home loss to Troy, but rebounded to win four of their final six.

That was good enough for a fifth-place finish (they held the tie-breaker with Minnesota) in the West Division of the Big Ten. They also showed enough to convince nearly everybody that Nebraska will be one of the teams to beat in the West in 2019.

Wide Receiver Position a Wildcard for Huskers in 2019 | Hail Varsity
The Year 2 bump at Central Florida is a common topic when discussing what to expect from the Huskers in Year 2 under Scott Frost. Nebraska certainly changed a lot during Frost’s first year, but the offense — the trademark of Frost’s teams — didn’t quite replicate what Frost built down in Orlando.

CU Buffs football opponent preview: Nebraska takes high hopes in year No. 2 with Scott Frost – The Denver Post
Coming into the 2018 season, there was so much excitement about the beginning of the Scott Frost era at Nebraska that it was almost cruel to Cornhuskers fans that they had to wait an extra week.

How Kevin Durant ensured his exit would sting the Warriors even more
Within Brian Windhorst’s free-agency deep dive for ESPN is an interesting nugget: Kevin Durant forced the Golden State Warriors to add a protected first-round pick to the sign-and-trade deal that sent him to the Brooklyn Nets for D’Angelo Russell.

Odell Beckham challenges Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes to throw-off
How talented is Cleveland Browns receiver Odell Beckham Jr.? Apparently, he’s talented enough to call out players who don’t even play his position.

MLB to experiment with stealing first base in Atlantic League
Baseball trivia buffs better take note because the answer to “how many ways can a batter reach first base?” might be changing. Major League Baseball will allow hitters in the Atlantic League to steal first base in the second half of the Atlantic League season, according to the Washington Post.

“STICK TO SPORTS!” Nah.

Tornado Safety - What to Do During a Tornado
It's tornado season, and according to the National Severe Storms Laboratory, nearly 1,200 tornadoes will touch down in the U.S. alone in 2019. While many will take place in the infamous Tornado Valley in the central U.S., many tornadoes often find their way outside this tumultuous zone as well.

In The Final Minutes Of His Life, Calvin Has One Last Talk With Hobbes.
“Calvin? Calvin, sweetheart?”

In the darkness Calvin heard the sound of Susie, his wife of fifty-three years. Calvin struggled to open his eyes. God, he was so tired and it took so much strength. Slowly, light replaced the darkness, and soon vision followed. At the foot of his bed stood his wife. Calvin wet his dry lips and spoke hoarsely, “Did… did you…. find him?”

Farmers Stockpiling Corn in Response to Tough Growing Conditions - WSJ ($)
A costly tug of war has broken out over what is usually one of the Farm Belt’s most ubiquitous commodities: corn.

This Is Great Coaching

We have skill work for our basketball players in the morning during the summer, and lets just say that our coaching in regards to shooting jump shots has exceeded anybody’s wildest dreams

Narrator: The sensor needed to be reset

The Corn Nation Book Club

Like I have done in the past, I will take book suggestions on twitter and in the comment section, and then either the following week or the week after I will share all of the book suggestions. As always, I reserve the right to not suggest a book especially if it is going to start a firestorm in the comment section.

So nevertheless, here are the books I have read since the last time we did the Corn Nation Book Club and whether I recommend them or not. If I recommend them, then they are in bold.

1. A Beautiful Boy: A Father’s Journey Through His Son’s Addiction by David Sheff
2. The Five Love Languages of Children by Gary Chapman
3. Good Friday on the Rez: A Pine Ridge Odyssey by David Hugh Bunnell
4. Every Dead Thing by John Connolly (Charlie Parker #2)
5. Preparation for Death by Saint Alphonsus Liguori
6. The Hatching by Boone Ezekiel (Book 1)
7. Skitter by Boone Ezekiel (Book 2)
8. Zero Day by Boone Ezekiel (Book 3)
9. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
10. Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams by Dr. Matthew Walker
11. The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance by Timothy Gallwey
12. Dark Hallow by John Connolly (Charlie Parker #2)
13. The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton
14. Blood River: A Journey to Africa’s Broken Heart by Tim Butcher (Currently reading)

The two books of these I recommend the most are Preparation for Death by Saint Alphonsus Liguori and Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep by Matthew Walker.

So please give me your recommendations and I will do my best to keep track of them and put them in the next article. I took recommendations from last time and put them on my book list so I hope to get to them soon. Thanks!

The Best Things I Saw On the Internet This Week

Have a great weekend and thanks for reading!