Hello friends and welcome to a tradition like the one we do during football season! That’s right, the Better Know a B1G series continues and this time we’re looking at Nebraska, a place that has seen plenty of football talent over the years. The staff at SB Nation’s Corn Nation site in Nebraska was kind enough to answer my questions about Cornhusker athletics. So, without further ado, let’s learn more about Tommy Frazier and Ahman Green’s alma mater!
Previous entries are here:
Illinois
Indiana
Maryland
Michigan
state of michigan
UWDP: We talked about this a little on the podcast, but with Matt Rhule’s first year in the books after a rough couple of years with his predecessor (whose name I won’t say), what are you looking for in Year 2?
Patrick: The offensive and defensive lines improved in 2023. The expectation that those areas will improve is anticipated with the return of all the talent. We should also see improvements on special teams and gain an identity on offense. Hopefully, a new quarterback and improved special positions will also be in the cards. Oh yeah, no more one-score losses. Most of us suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.
Nat M: Limit turnovers from the quarterback position. The three quarterbacks combined for 16 interceptions and 10 touchdown passes. It’s almost impressive that Nebraska made it to five wins with numbers like that from the most important position on the football field.
Now, Nebraska is about to start a true freshman at that position unless something changes. The NAIA National Player of the Year is apparently looking to transfer to Nebraska, but there may be an academic hurdle they must overcome. He has played a lot of football at that position, although it is true that he is not at the Power 4 level.
Nebraska also hired a full-time quarterbacks coach who should help.
So what am I looking for in year 2? Immediate improvement in that position that takes care of the ball and is opportunistic. They don’t need to be All-Conference type players, just average and Nebraska should be successful.
jon johnston: WIN! Lots of PROFITS!
Last year was a non-stop hell of wasting games in the worst possible way. Nebraska looks set to go into a bowl game, turning the ball over against Iowa with a minute left, then giving the ball back to them and losing a last second to wipe out our bowl hopes, dreams and desires.
This “rip your heart out, throw it on the sidewalk, and then stomp on it, stomp on it, stomp on it” way of losing has to stop.
UWDP: What have you thought about Rhule during his tenure so far? What do you think is the “upper limit” for wins when Rhule is the head football coach at Nebraska?
Patrick: Matt seems to do, say, and strive to accomplish everything one would expect from a football coach. He gives honest answers and does not twist the facts. Overall, he has been a good addition to the athletic department. The upper limit for this year is 7-8 wins and one bowl game. Looking at his recruitment and the development he’s had under him, he’d say the upper limit overall is around 9 to 11 wins per year, while he’s had 12 wins and semi-regular playoff appearances in college football. This is Nebraska, we’ll wait for him if he really starts to have success.
Nat M: So far, Rhule has impressed me because he hasn’t shied away from tough questions and tackles problems head-on. That’s a breath of fresh air. It’s not uncommon for his press conferences to last more than 20 minutes, whereas before Rhule those press conferences lasted less than 10 at most.
His focus is on developing a physical style of soccer that requires physically demanding practices, which is apparently uncommon these days. He has been upfront with the fact that his practices will likely increase the likelihood of injury, but that it is so important that the cost/benefit analysis leans heavily in favor of physical practices.
I think the Nebraska football program is a sleeping giant. He’s still asleep and just waiting for something to explode. Do I think Nebraska could be dominant like it was in the ’90s? No. Do I think it could be Georgia and Ohio State? Probably not.
Do I think they could be a Missouri, Ole Miss or Utah type program? Absolutely. All of those teams are in the preseason top 10 for 2024. Could they be a Notre Dame? I think that’s the upper limit. However, it would take a special coach who is willing to do things differently and who is opportunistic. To be clear, they are not that program yet and I’m not saying they will get there.
I think the “collective bargaining” process that will come at some point will smooth out some of the advantages and disadvantages of many schools across the country. It will be interesting how Nebraska comes out of this.
jon: Athletic departments that want to compete for championships in this new era of college sports will need to possess a specific quality. That quality is will.
The willingness to accept the changes we have seen in the last 3 to 5 years, the changes we will see in the next 3 to 5 years, and have plans for how to deal with those changes in the future.
I think Nebraska has that will across the board. Matt Rhule has shown that he can change with the times, and for that reason, I don’t think there is an “upper limit” of wins for Matt Rhule at Nebraska.
I’m not declaring that it’s Nick Saban; What I’m saying is this: Since Tom Osborne left, I’ve heard from a lot of people that Nebraska will never compete for another national title. You are wrong.
Nebraska football will be fine in this new world. Matt Rhule is the coach we needed to hire at the time we hired him.
UWDP: Former NBA coach Fred Hoiberg just finished year 5 at the helm of the Cornhuskers men’s basketball team, going 23-11 and winning the Big Ten Coach of the Year award, making him the No. 8 seed in the tournament. What is the status of the men’s team and what do you think they can achieve in the future? On the women’s side, Amy Williams just finished her eighth season, going 23-12, earning her a bid to the women’s tournament and advancing to the second round. What does the future look like for Amy Williams and her Cornhuskers?
Patrick: Fred seems to adapt to the current state of college athletics. He has beaten the transfer portal and seems to still be doing well. This next season will be no different. Unlike football, we have a slightly different view of basketball. Right now, he just needs to win one NCAA tournament game, which I think he will do shortly. He has the talent and the personnel to achieve it.
Nate M: I’m going on record as saying I consider last year Year 2 of the Hoiberg era even though he was hired in 2019. He realized that recruiting five-star kids out of high school wasn’t going to win in the Big 10. . You had to get old and stay old and that’s where Nebraska is now. They are old and try to stay old while supplementing the team with transfers.
I think Nebraska basketball can compete for the Final Four. I know it sounds ridiculous, but NC State, as the 11th seed, did it in 2024. Florida Atlantic, as the 9th seed, did it in 2023. UCLA, as the 11th seed, did it in 2021.
Fred Hoiberg can surely do it, but he obviously has to win Nebraska’s first NCAA tournament game first. Get that monkey off your back and be careful, as Nebraska has a fan base waiting to explode.
As for the women and Amy Williams, they had a great season and will have to replace some production. We’ll see how that goes in the future. They got one of the best players in the country to commit to Nebraska out of nowhere, she seemed like she was an in-state kid.
If Amy Williams can harness this momentum, then the sky is the limit, which is my topic today. Nebraska fans are many things and one of them is that they will come out strong if you build a winner. They will take over arenas and stadiums. You just have to give them a reason to believe.
UWDP: Are there secret rivalries the Cornhuskers have with other schools that Husky fans don’t know about?
Patrick: In basketball, that would be Creighton. His rise in the world of college basketball and his dominance of the series over the last decade has not sat well with the Husker faithful. As for football, I would say Minnesota, as it appears they have the Huskers’ number under PJ Fleck.
Nat M: Agree with Patrick about Creighton. Another part of the Creighton rivalry is the term “Jaysker”, which are people who should rightly be shamed and never allowed in Lincoln again if they are Husker football fans but Creighton basketball fans. They should be sent to Council Bluffs, IA, to live out the rest of their lives.
On the football side, Iowa has really turned into a rivalry even though they’ve won like 6 of the last 7 meetings (I didn’t have time to look up that one).
Jon: Wisconsin Volleyball. They are soulless machines, those Wisconsin volleyball women. Giant, soulless machines. Giant, soulless machines that will eat your children if they get the chance.
UWDP: Besides rifle, volleyball and wrestling, are there any sports that Nebraska is really good at?
Patrick: Women’s bowling. We are a great bowling school. The Husker women have 5 WBIC and 6 NCAA championships under their belt.
Nat M: I would add Lucha Libre to that list. Coach Manning has definitely been pushing that program lately.
jon: We are moving up in athletics. The men’s track and field team finished tied for 13th, with one champion, Darius Luff, in the 110-meter hurdles. The women finished ninth overall.
Thanks Jon, Patrick and Nate, and good luck to the Cornhuskers this season! If you’d like to listen to my conversation with Jon from last week, where we discussed some of these things in a little more detail and I answered questions from Nebraska fans (a passionate bunch, to be sure!), then the link is down . below!
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