HuskersHQ

Playing the scheduling game

2009-07-01T05:49:00.000-07:00

The Sporting News Today is in the midst of publishing a nine-part series looking into the strength of non-conference football schedules for BCS-conference schools.

It's interesting that while the Big 12 Conference does a decent job of avoiding the total patsies (the league was fifth with 19 percent of its non-conference games scheduled against I-AA teams), it isn't exactly fond of taking on the big boys, either. The Big 12 is last among BCS conferences when it comes to scheduling non-league games against fellow BCS schools (23 percent) and is first (58 percent) in scheduling non-conference games against non-BCS conference programs.

Also of note, TSN Today ranks Georgia as having the country's most difficult non-conference schedule. The Bulldogs play at Oklahoma State and Georgia Tech and host Arizona State and Tennessee Tech.

The rest of the top 10 for non-conference schedule strength: Virginia Tech, USC, Florida State, Washington, Oregon, Oklahoma, Miami (Fla.), Stanford, Illinois. Virginia Tech vs. Alabama at Atlanta is ranked by TSN Today as the best non-conference game, while the Nebraska-Hokies contest is No. 9.

TSN ranks Big 12 non-conference slates

2009-06-19T14:18:00.001-07:00

Nebraska’s 2009 non-conference football schedule ranks No. 7 in the Big 12 Conference in terms of difficulty, according to The Sporting News Today.

Oklahoma’s non-conference slate of BYU (at Dallas Cowboys Stadium), Idaho State, Tulsa and at Miami (Fla.) ranks No. 1 with Colorado (Colorado State, at Toledo, Wyoming and at West Virginia) second.

The Cornhuskers, whose non-league slate includes home games against Florida Atlantic, Arkansas State and Virginia Tech, were likely saved by their Sept. 19 road date with Virginia Tech. TSN Today ranked the NU-Hokies matchup as the second-best non-conference Big 12 game this season behind Georgia at Oklahoma State.

The easiest Big 12 non-conference schedule? TSN Today gave that distinction to Kansas State, which will host Massachusetts and Tennessee Tech and travel to Louisiana-Lafayette and UCLA.

Sadler: More players may head to Europe

2009-06-16T14:31:00.000-07:00

During Tuesday's teleconference with the Big 12 Conference's men's basketball coaches, Nebraska's Doc Sadler said that he views the trend of young players going to Europe to play professionally as something that's probably here to stay.

“With my background, I’ve been at different levels and it has been probably seven to 10 years ago that most kids went to junior college and most kids who didn’t qualify or whatever went to prep schools and now I think this is going to be the third option," Sadler said. "I do believe that this is probably going to be here to stay.
“Unfortunately, I think there are a lot of people out there who believe that kids can go overseas and just make all kinds of money and the fact of the matter is their economy is hurting as much as ours and you see so many teams go under, but I don’t know that the kids — more importantly, I don’t think the people who are involved with kids — ever think that option is going to be a bad option for them.
“So just as prep schools became a huge, huge player in college basketball, I do believe that kids going overseas now is fixing to be a huge factor, also.”

Sadler said he hasn't had much experience with potential recruits opting to go overseas to play professionally, but figures it could come up in the future.

“It’s a Catch 22," Sadler said. "You hope you have players who are either good enough to go professionally in one way or another, but at the same time, you just hope the kids make good decisions. I haven’t had that situation yet.
“Aleks Maric, when I took over the job here, strongly considered playing in Europe, but thankfully, he came back to us.”

Huskers Illustrated ranks NU at No. 19

2009-06-10T08:59:00.000-07:00

Huskers Illustrated magazine released its 2009 pre-season top 25 poll and pre-season All-Big 12 teams Tuesday. Five Big 12 teams cracked the top 25, while three Big 12 South teams were picked in the top 10. Nebraska is ranked No. 19 after entering the season unranked in 2008.

The rankings are included in the 2009 Huskers Illustrated Football Yearbook, which hits newsstands on Friday, June 12 for $9.95. The Yearbook is available at ShopHuskersIllustrated.com or as part of a 19-issue annual subscription for $51.95.

Florida was nearly a unanimous No. 1 pick, receiving 11 of the 12 first place votes. Texas (receiving the only other first place vote), Oklahoma, USC and Virginia Tech rounded out the top five. Oklahoma State, despite being picked third in the Big 12 South was ranked ninth and Kansas the Big 12 North favorite, 16th

Huskers Illustrated’s rankings reflect top 10 votes from Huskers Illustrated writers and other media members familiar with college football.

Husker senior nose tackle Ndamukong Suh, HI’s pick for Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, is featured on the cover of the magazine’s 500th issue after forgoing the 2009 NFL Draft. The 160-page magazine is the 500th issue in Huskers Illustrated’s 29-year history and includes a comprehensive season preview, including outlooks on every Big 12 team and each of Nebraska’s non-conference opponents.

Suh is one of three Nebraska players to earn first-team All-Big 12 honors, joining offensive lineman Jacob Hickman and kicker Alex Henery. 2008 Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford of Oklahoma was named the preseason Offensive Player of the Year.

2009 HUSKERS ILLUSTRATED PRE-SEASON TOP 25
1. Florida (11)
2. Texas (1)
3. Oklahoma
4. USC
5. Virginia Tech
6. Ohio State
7. Ole Miss
8. Alabama
9. Oklahoma State
10. LSU
11. Penn State
12. Boise State
13. Oregon
14. Georgia
15. California
16. Kansas
17. TCU
18. Georgia
19. Nebraska
20. Iowa
21. Utah
22. Florida State
23. Georgia Tech
24. Notre Dame
25. Oregon State

HUSKERS ILLUSTRATED PRE-SEASON ALL-BIG 12
FIRST TEAM OFFENSE
POS. PLAYER HT. WT. YR. SCHOOL
WR Dez Bryant 6-2 215 Jr. Oklahoma State
WR Dezmon Briscoe 6-3 200 Jr. Kansas
WR Jordan Shipley 6-0 190 Sr. Texas
TE Jermaine Gresham 6-6 261 Sr. Oklahoma
OL Russell Okung 6-6 305 Sr. Oklahoma State
OL Adam Ulatoski 6-8 320 Sr. Texas
OL Chris Hall 6-4 300 Sr. Texas
OL JACOB HICKMAN 6-4 295 SR. NEBRASKA
OL Trent Williams 6-5 308 Sr. Oklahoma
QB Sam Bradford 6-4 218 Jr. Oklahoma
RB DeMarco Murray 6-1 205 Jr. Oklahoma
RB Kendall Hunter 5-8 190 Jr. Oklahoma State
PK ALEX HENERY 6-2 175 JR. NEBRASKA
KR Perrish Cox 6-0 195 Sr. Oklahoma State

FIRST TEAM DEFENSE
POS. PLAYER HT. WT. YR. SCHOOL
DL Auston English 6-3 253 Sr. Oklahoma
DL NDAMUKONG SUH 6-4 300 SR. NEBRASKA
DL Gerald McCoy 6-4 295 Jr. Oklahoma
DL Sergio Kindle 6-4 239 Sr. Texas
LB Travis Lewis 6-2 232 So. Oklahoma
LB Joe Pawelek 6-2 240 Sr. Baylor
LB Sean Weatherspoon 6-2 245 Sr. Missouri
DB Jordan Lake 6-1 210 Sr. Baylor
DB Darrell Stuckey 6-1 205 Sr. Kansas
DB Dominique Franks 6-0 189 Jr. Oklahoma
DB Cha’pelle Brown 5-7 170 Sr. Colorado
P Derek Epperson 6-3 240 Jr. Baylor
PR Dez Bryant 6-2 215 Jr. Oklahoma State

Offensive Player of the Year: Sam Bradford, Oklahoma
Defensive Player of the Year: Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska

Huskers third in spring-game attendance

2009-05-18T06:15:00.000-07:00

The final numbers are in and Nebraska has finished third among BCS-conference schools in attendance for the Cornhuskers' annual Red-White spring football game, drawing 77,670 fans to Memorial Stadium.

Ohio State led the way in 2009, setting a spring football game national attendance record of 95,722, according to SportsBusiness Daily. That figure marked an increase of 25.4 percent from the 76,346 Buckeye fans who turned out for their 2008 spring game.

Alabama was second with an attendance of 84,050. After Nebraska, the rest of the top 10 in spring attendance included: Penn State (76,500), Florida (65,000), Tennessee (51,488), Michigan (50,000), Auburn (45,381), Texas (44,000) and Georgia (42,458).

Athlon ranks Huskers preseason No. 16

2009-05-14T12:35:00.000-07:00

Athlon magazine is counting down its preseason college football top 25 and has Nebraska checking in at No. 16.

Does anyone else think that seems a little high? The Cornhuskers obviously have a lot of momentum going after last year's 9-4 season, but breaking in a new starting quarterback and returning the second-fewest number of starters in the Big 12 Conference won't be an easy chore.

Early feedback on our prediction that Nebraska will finish 8-5 in 2009 is running 50-50. One e-mailer says that prediction is not nearly optimistic enough and that the Huskers will at least be 10-3. Another e-mailer chided us for thinking NU has a chance to get wins in three swing games against Missouri, Texas Tech and Colorado. "Take off the rose-colored glasses" was his request.

NU in the mix for ex-Hurricane Marve?

2009-05-12T08:13:00.000-07:00

Sporting News Today lists Nebraska as the 10-1 second choice to gain the services of former Miami (Fla.) quarterback Robert Marve, who will be eligible to play in 2010.

As for Marve's potential for ending up in Lincoln, the online publication wrote: "A training camp duel next summer with Cody Green, an early enrollee this winter, would mirror Marve's competition with Jacory Harris at Miami."

Of course, that analysis might seem instantly shaky to Cornhusker fans, who have been told by head coach Bo Pelini that Zac Lee is clearly ahead in the race to nail down the starting quarterback job for the 2009 season opener as a junior. This seems to presume that Lee won't be around for his senior season.

For what it's worth, Sporting News Today lists Purdue as the 3-2 favorite to get Marve's services. Arizona State (15-1) and South Florida (15-1) are apparently also in the running.

Ex-Husker Keller suing NCAA, EA sports

2009-05-08T06:05:00.000-07:00

Interesting news from Friday's edition of USA Today as former Nebraska and Arizona State quarterback Sam Keller is suing the NCAA and video-game partner EA Sports for their unpaid use of the likenesses of college football players.

According to USA Today: "The class-action antitrust suit, filed this week in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, claims the games make illegal use of football and basketball players' names -- through the download of team rosters -- and unidentified but scarcely hidden likenesses and that the NCAA condones the practice in violation of its own rules."

Keller's lawsuit is seeking unspecified damages for every football and basketball player on an opening-game roster whose jersey number appeared in an EA game, according to USA Today.

What I'm really curious about is the genesis of this lawsuit. From what we knew of Keller during his time here at Nebraska, this move just seems a little curious.

Perhaps the most ironic part of the whole situation is that many of the guys who play college football also love playing EA Sports' college football game -- Husker players talk about it frequently -- and can't wait to see how their likeness is rated.

Cowherd's advice for Nebraska football

2009-05-06T07:44:00.001-07:00

The Nebraska football program received some advice from ESPN Radio’s Colin Cowherd during Tuesday’s program.

In a discussion about the differing talent levels in college football, Cowherd suggest that if the Cornhuskers want to be great again, they should go back to the option-based offensive style that helped them win three national championships in a four-year span from 1994-1997 under Hall of Fame coach Tom Osborne.

Just as opposing coaches always used to say about Nebraska at the time, Cowherd said having an unusual offense would make the Huskers difficult to prepare for. He also wondered why the Huskers wouldn’t try to recruit the best option quarterback in the country as opposed to trying to land the fifth-best passing QB in the country.

Here’s guessing there’s a segment of Husker Nation that would agree.

NU's Suh ranked as Big 12's sixth-best

2009-05-04T06:45:00.000-07:00

ESPN.com Big 12 Conference writer/blogger Tim Griffin has published an interesting list of the best players in the league for this coming season.

Not surprisingly, 2008 Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford of Oklahoma tops the list, followed fellow quarterback Colt McCoy of Texas. Oklahoma State wide receiver Dez Bryant is third, Oklahoma tight end Jermaine Gresham is fourth and Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin rounds out the top five.

The amount of preseason expectations that have been built up for Nebraska defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh was evident as he was the top defensive player on the list at No. 6. I-back Roy Helu was the only other Cornhusker to crack the top 40, checking in at No. 20.

NU's Suh earns high praise from TSN

2009-04-24T07:01:00.000-07:00

In its look ahead to the 2010 NFL Draft, The Sporting News included Nebraska defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh among five "rising seniors who could be top picks next year."

As for why Suh will be a first-round pick, TSN wrote: "After an amazing junior season, Suh could have challenged B.J. Raji as the top tackle in this year's draft. He has the power to jolt linemen off their feet and the agility and burst to beat them with quick moves."

In regard to the question of how high Suh could go in the 2010 draft, TSN wrote: "If Suh produces at the level he did in 2008, he will go in the top 10. Improved technique and finishing ability could elevate him tot he top overall pick."

A pretty lofty prediction, no doubt.

NU's Pelini deserves salary bump

2009-04-02T08:34:00.000-07:00

The results of an online poll taken on The Independent’s Web site and published in Thursday’s edition of the newspaper were predictable.

Of the 467 respondents, 54 percent voted that they did not agree with the 68-percent pay raise given to Nebraska head football coach Bo Pelini on Monday, bumping his annual salary to $1.851 million. The tag-on statement to the poll question option was “These salary figures are really out of control.”

Sure, it’s understandable how some -- especially in this current economic climate where people are losing jobs and others are taking paycuts and/or losing benefits -- could disagree with giving a $700,000 salary increase to someone already making more than $1 million a year. But when you explore the situation a little deeper, it’s obvious the opinion that Pelini is somehow overpaid shows a complete lack of understanding of the job and the pressure and responsibility that comes with it.

In Nebraska, the head football coach is arguably the state’s most important and most-scrutinized person as well as the biggest celebrity - - all wrapped up in one.

If you count Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy’s new proposed $2.2 million deal, Pelini’s annual salary still has him ranked in the bottom half of the Big 12 at No. 7. Bob Stoops of Oklahoma ($3.8 million per year), Mack Brown of Texas ($2.91 million), Mike Leach of Texas Tech ($2.54 million), Gary Pinkel of Missouri ($2.3 million), Mark Mangino of Kansas ($2.3 million) and Gundy all make or are scheduled to make more.

Forget the impressive dollar figures for a second and consider this: Does anyone who lives in this state really think that Cornhusker fans will be satisfied with having the seventh-best football program in the Big 12? Didn’t think so. Yet that’s the level Nebraska’s football coach is being paid at.

Newman: Nesseth's return to bullpen a no-brainer

2009-03-21T08:10:00.000-07:00

With the emergence of Casey Hauptman and Jordan Roualdes as starting pitchers and Nebraska’s early season bullpen struggles and an elbow injury to projected closer Erik Anderson, the decision to move ace starting pitcher Mike Nesseth back to the bullpen was a no-brainer, Huskers' coach Eric Newman said.

“When we evaluated it, Mike was obviously our best starting pitcher, but from a team standpoint, we really needed somebody at the end of the game that could get it done,” Newman said. “Mike had shown last year that he was that guy and able to do that. So when we realized that (finishing games) had become a little bit of a problem, it became a pretty easy decision.”

Newman said he expects Nesseth to serve as the closer for the Huskers for the remainder of the season, barring any unforeseen circumstances.

“He doesn’t look at this as a demotion, and I certainly don’t, either,” Newman said of Nesseth. “I look at it this way: We were putting the best closer in the conference back into his natural role.”

It was a role Nesseth was clearly comfortable in last year as a freshman. The 6-foot-5, 220-pounder from Windom, Minn., made 27 relief appearances in 2008, recording four saves and striking out 53 batters in 37 2/3 innings, while opponents batted just .201 against him.

Nesseth certainly doesn't seem to mind.

“I’d love to stay in the bullpen,” Nesseth said. “Obviously, I’m going to pitch whenever they tell me to pitch, but I think if it works out best for the team with me as the closer, I’d like to stay there.”

TSN Today analyst throws support for Lee

2009-02-25T07:03:00.000-08:00

Also from TSN Today, college football analyst Matt Hayes writes that he believes quarterback Patrick Witt’s departure will have “very little” impact on Nebraska’s football program.

“Witt likely saw where this offense is headed and realized he wasn’t part of the plans,” Hayes wrote. “The Huskers want to use more of a run game with the quarterback and Witt is more of a traditional pro-style quarterback. The positive reverb from Witt’s departure: incoming freshman Cody Green will likely get more reps with the No. 1 offense.”

Hayes is also bullish on the talents of quarterback Zac Lee, who now might look to be the front-runner heading into spring practice, noting that Lee beat out Jeremiah Masoli in 2006 for the starting job at City College of San Francisco.

“Masoli blossomed late last year at Oregon, and will be one of the nation’s top players next fall,” Hayes wrote. “This tells us, at the very least, Lee has some ability.”

Not so Swift?

2009-02-23T07:13:00.000-08:00

It comes as no surprise to Nebraska football fans that former Cornhuskers’ wide receiver Nate Swift came away from last week’s NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis with less than glowing reviews of his physical abilities.

According to The Sporting News Today, “scouts timed (Swift) between 4.66 and 4.69 seconds (in the 40-yard dash) and he did not show the necessary explosive ability. Swift didn’t look at quicker or faster in drills. He remains a likely free-agent prospect.”

What pro teams might do well to notice is that despite his supposed deficiencies, Swift is Nebraska’s all-time receptions leader (166) and ranks second in career receivers yards (2.476) while playing in the Big 12 Conference. Surely, those numbers should count for something.

ESPN.com has Nebraska No. 19 for 2009

2009-02-09T11:20:00.000-08:00

Since it's virtually college football season 365 days a year here in Nebraska, there's really no such thing as a time that's too early to talk about the upcoming season for the Cornhuskers. With that in mind, ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach has NU No. 19 in his revised preseason rankings for 2009.

In his commentary, Schlabach writes: "In his first season as Nebraska's coach, Bo Pelini went a long way toward restoring the pride in the Cornhuskers' defense. Nebraska will have to worry more about its offense going into the 2009 season after losing quarterback Joe Ganz, tailback Marlon Lucky and receivers Todd Peterson and Nate Swift. Patrick Witt and Zac Lee will battle to replace Ganz, and Roy Helu looked like Nebraska's best running back at times during the 2008 season. Seven starters should be back on defense, including Ndamukong Suh, who returned to school instead of entering the NFL draft. The Big 12 schedule might set up nicely for the Cornhuskers, who will play Texas Tech and Oklahoma at home and won't play Texas during the regular season."

As for the top five, Schlabach has Florida No. 1, followed by Oklahoma, Texas, Alabama and Virginia Tech. Nebraska will travel to Blacksburg, Va., to play the Hokies next September.

Pelini would prefer limited number of jucos

2009-02-06T18:04:00.000-08:00

LINCOLN — Shying away from a trend that seemed to be becoming popular with Nebraska's previous coaching staff under Bill Callahan, the Cornhuskers signed just two junior college players in their 2009 recruiting class Wednesday. The two jucos inked included defensive back Dejon Gomes, who comes from City College of San Francisco, and wide receiver Brandon Kinnie from Fort Scott (Kan.) Community College.

“We'd rather move toward high school athletes because you get a chance to get them into your program, into your culture right from the start and develop them right from the beginning,” Nebraska coach Bo Pelini said. “It's a thing that's going to help us down the road.”

When Nebraska does sign junior college players, Pelini said he prefers them to be players who have either three years of eligibility remaining or three years to play two for the Huskers.

“When we do take junior college kids, we're going to look into it and specifically know what we're getting,” Pelini said. “I thought these were two young men we felt that could come in and have an impact on us and were the right kids for our program. Not everybody is.”

Diaz planning to redshirt this season

2009-01-29T09:00:00.000-08:00

LINCOLN -- Nebraska coach Doc Sadler said Wednesday night after his team's 68-62 loss to Kansas that 6-foot-11 post player Brian Diaz has decided to redshirt this season.

Sadler said that the 19-year-old Diaz, who arrived from Puerto Rico less than two weeks ago, told him that he didn’t think he was ready and that he wasn’t in good enough shape to be able to help the team at this point

“I told him I disagree with him because I think he can help the team, but ultimately, I didn’t get him in school when I told him I was going to get him into school,” Sadler said. “I got him here late and I’m not going to penalize him, and it’s nobody’s fault. We just didn’t get a test score.”

Sadler being praised by Big 12 peers

2009-01-21T14:18:00.000-08:00

The coaching job being done by Nebraska’s Doc Sadler so far this season apparently hasn’t gone unnoticed by his peers in the Big 12 Conference.

Sadler, coaching a squad that was recently documented as the shortest team in the country, has the Cornhuskers 12-4 overall and 2-1 in conference play heading into Wednesday night’s 8:05 p.m. (ESPNU) game at No. 6-ranked Oklahoma (17-1, 3-0 Big 12). Nebraska is coming off a 73-51 home victory against Kansas State last Saturday, moving Sadler’s team into a four-way tie for third place.

While NU’s first three Big 12 opponents — Missouri, Iowa State and Kansas State — aren’t necessarily the strongest teams in the league, count Wildcats’ coach Frank Martin among those impressed by what Sadler is getting out of his under-sized crew.

“Doc Sadler has won championships in high school, junior college, won 27 games at UTEP — his teams are going to compete as hard as anybody’s in the country, consistently,” Martin said. “It’s what he does. They’ve got a lot to be proud of up there.”

Huskers fall short of top-25 ranking

2009-01-09T08:36:00.000-08:00

The final polls came out late Thursday night/early Friday morning and Nebraska was left on the outside looking in at the top 25 of both the Associated Press media poll and the USA Today coaches' poll.

Despite a 9-4 record and a Gator Bowl victory over Clemson, the Cornhuskers wound up No. 29 in the AP poll and No. 30 in the coaches' poll. Four-loss teams that did make the AP top 25 included Mississippi, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Missouri, Iowa, Florida State, Georgia Tech, West Virginia and Michigan State. Those teams and California were four-loss teams that finished inside the top 25 of the coaches' poll.

In the end, after last year's 5-7 season, Nebraska's season probably lacked the kind of signature victory needed to recapture the attention of national voters -- something that could've happened if NU had been able to pull off an overtime upset at Texas Tech. Of the Huskers' nine wins this season, only one of them came with coach Bo Pelini's team as the underdog (Clemson).

Truth be told, Nebraska still has a lot of momentum heading into the offseason with its four-game winning streak and a ranking in the lower part of the top 25 would've been nice for the Huskers, but doesn't take away from what they accomplished.

Peterson not discounting Oklahoma defense

2009-01-08T13:51:00.000-08:00

Todd Peterson put his personal experiences to work recently as the former Nebraska Cornhuskers’ wide receiver played the role of college football analyst for a national sports magazine.

In a bowl preview for The Sporting News, Peterson provided his analysis of Thursday night’s BCS national championship game between Oklahoma and Florida. Of course, Peterson has first-hand knowledge of the Sooners, who beat Nebraska 62-28 on Nov. 1 in Norman, Okla.

“I played against Oklahoma’s defense and I’d say they don’t really have a weakness,” Peterson told TSN. “They’ve got athletes all across the board.”

Peterson discounts the notion frequently pushed forward by national media types that Oklahoma’s defense is suspect. The Grand Island native contends that the talented offenses in the Big 12 Conference have skewed people’s perception.

“We’ve put up outrageous offensive numbers, and I know the defensive guys don’t like to hear how we don’t play defense in this conference,” Peterson said. “I know Oklahoma played a tough non-conference schedule, and I think they played well defensively in those games.”

Offensively, Peterson told TSN that the Sooners obviously possess a host of weapons — led by Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford at quarterback.

“It will be a fun game to watch because Florida is the same way,” Peterson said. “It’s just a matter of who can limit the big plays because they’re both such explosive offenses.”

Carl Pelini grades his little brother

2009-01-02T12:01:00.000-08:00

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- After last year's 5-7 record, it's probably safe to say that that most Nebraska football fans -- at least the realistic ones -- would've been thrilled if they were told in the preseason that the Cornhuskers would come back and post a 9-4 record and win a New Year's Day bowl game.

That's exactly where Nebraska stands following Thursday's 26-21 victory over Clemson in the Konica Minolta Gator Bowl. Considering the rebuilding job that coach Bo Pelini and his staff undertook -- particular with the team's confidence -- it's safe to say that this group has earned high marks in its first season together.

So, what's defensive coordinator Carl Pelini's take on how his little brother, Bo, handled his first full season as a head coach?

“I think he would say that we’re not perfect, but I’ll tell you what, as a program and instilling the qualities that you need to win championships -- the fortitude he talked about, the perseverance, the work ethic, the accountability, the trust -- all those things are in place now as we move forward," Carl Pelini said. “Bo’s a modest guy. He doesn’t have a lot of ego and I think he probably would say that he failed in certain respects at times, but for me, I look at it and say I can’t think of too many things that I wish we had done differently.”

Gator Bowl prediction

2009-01-01T09:39:00.000-08:00

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The warm weather the Nebraska football team has enjoyed throughout its stay here as given way to slightly cooler temps as it's 57 degrees 10 minutes prior to kickoff at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium.

The Cornhuskers will be wearing a round black sticker on the back of their helmets, showing the initials "AP" to honor the late Anthony Pelini, who died last week at the age of 85. Pelini was the father of Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini and defensive coordinator Carl Pelini.

While the win would obviously be meaningful for the Pelinis after going through some rough times in the last week and a half, Bo Pelini said Wednesday that winning the Konica Minolta Gator Bowl against Clemson is not about him or his family. Nebraska's players seem to think otherwise. Huskers' quarterback Joe Ganz said he and his teammates would like nothing more than to give their head coach and his brother a victory.

As for the game, it will be a battle of strength on strength when Nebraska's offense takes the field against Clemson's defense. While not statistically impressive, the Husker defense and Tiger offense made improvements in the closing weeks of the season, so that will be worth watching as well.

If there's one matchup that favors Nebraska, most figure it's the Huskers' defensive line against the Clemson offensive line. However, Carl Pelini warned several times this past week that the Tigers have solidified up front and not to put too much stock in the notion.

In the final analysis, this looks like a typical bowl-game toss-up and whoever can make a few big plays and avoid costly turnovers will come out on top. Oddsmakers list Clemson as a 2 1/2-point favorite, but we'll take Nebraska to win 27-24 on an Alex Henery field goal. Why not? After all, it's Henery's 57-yard kick against Colorado that got the Huskers here in the New Year's Day Bowl in the first place.

Remembering Woody's final punch

2008-12-29T10:19:00.000-08:00

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- There was an interesting story in Monday's Florida Times-Union about this year's Konica Minolta Gator Bowl being the 30th anniversary of the infamous sideline punch that ended the career of Ohio State coaching great Woody Hayes.

The story quotes former Clemson nose guard Charlie Bauman, who was on the receiving end of Hayes' fateful blow, and clearly doesn't seem to appreciate that he's the answer to the trivia question. Bauman intercepted an Art Schlichter pass with 1:59 remaining to all but seal a 17-15 victory for the Tigers over Ohio State in the 1978 Gator Bowl.

As a result, Hayes resigned as head coach of the Buckeyes the following morning before even leaving Jacksonville. Hayes, who died in 1987, finished his career with a 205-61-10 coaching record with the Buckeyes, including winning three national titles and 13 Big Ten championships.

NU gets physical in first on-site practice

2008-12-27T20:21:00.000-08:00

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Nebraska’s coaching staff didn’t wait long to set the tone for Gator Bowl practices, pitting the No. 1 offense against the No. 1 defense in a 10-minute scrimmage in the first team period of Saturday’s session.

NU offensive coordinator Shawn Watson said his team’s intensity was “real good” for the Huskers’ first practice since arriving in the Jacksonville area Friday afternoon. Outside of some dropped balls by receivers and a few timing issues, Watson said he was pleased with the two-hour workout at Hodges Stadium on the campus of the University of North Florida.

“They’re really fresh,” Watson said of the Huskers. “It looks like day one of fall camp in terms of legs and how fast they’re going.
“I think that there’s a level of expectation that has developed. They understand what it takes to win and how hard you’ve got to work to win -- and at that, there really are no guarantees -- so you’ve really got to put everything into it.”

Members of Nebraska’s coaching staff informed the players there would be a brief scrimmage Saturday morning.

“The kids enjoyed that,” Watson said. “We wanted to get back to hitting each other, our offense attacking and our defense actually tackling.
“There was a lot of spirit in practice. They played hard and they played physical, so it was a good way to start.”