October 20, 2009

The More Things Change....

Super busy week with so much going on, yet so little motivation to write. Some have written to me this and asked if I had any comments on Nebraska's newest implosion and subsequent quarterback "controversy". My answer to that is no. There is nothing going on now that I didn't already know this year, last year or the year before. Just as Joe Ganz, Corey McKeon and countless others before them...Husker fans have turned on their own in record time. In this case, it took just 60 minutes for Zac Lee to turn from hero to being-replaced -by-a-freshman-with-horrible-mechanics. Haven't we seen this before? Does this sound familiar?

Even with my own team on the cusp of an 0-3 league start, don't think for a minute that the Husker hating movement is any closer to rising from the ashes. Just as years before have shown us...even the occasional noise is almost always followed by the inevitable "splat".

Been there...said that. No need to go into it again.

* LOTS of crazy stuff going on in the power poll...so here's a bit of an extended view as I see it. REMEMBER, as with any "power poll" you see online, the results are based on who IS THE BEST TEAM RIGHT NOW as I see it. "Best team" is obviously a relative term, but in my opinion...with all factors being the same and taking each teams' resume at face value...How do I see things sorting out? This might be the most convoluted power poll in history, so work with me here.



NORTH

1) Kansas (5-1, 1-1) vs. Oklahoma
The way I see it, there are two ways you can look at Kansas: You can look at them as a 5-1 former BCS team with an outstanding offense and a great QB, who had one bad game on the road. OR....you can see them as a complete sham with three good offensive players and not much else, who have beaten absolutely nobody..including struggles with Iowa State and Southern Miss. That being said, it appears to me the Squaks are about to make their long-awaited meteoric decent into oblivion now that their schedule gets tough. OU is wounded, but Landry Jones may for 900 yards against that horrible defense. Good luck Redleggers

2) Missouri (4-2, 0-2) vs. Texas
Mizzou hangs in with a 2 game losing streak, having lost in the later minutes of a monsoon, and then went toe to toe with a gimpy Quarterback against a very good Okie State team. I'm not ABOUT to say the Tigers are going to upset Texas, and they very well get smeared all over the turf Saturday night. But an easy argument could be made that with a couple breaks...Mizzou could easily be the best team top to bottom in the division and sit at 5-1 or perhaps 6-0. How will they react if Texas plants a boot in their ass? Guess we may see.

3) Iowa State (4-3, 1-2) at Nebraska
Do you people realize how close Iowa State is to being 6-1? A blocked field goal against KSU and a late defensive collapse against Kansas are all that separates Iowa State from being the feel-good story of the year. The clones are rushing at a clip of 214 yards per game and average over 400 on offense. ISU was surprisingly balanced against a bad Baylor team last week, but you have to admit there is progress being made. Now, can they waltz into Lincoln and steal a win? Probably not...but would it shock me if this game is 7-6 going into the 4th quarter? Nope.

4) Colorado (2-4, 1-1) at Kansas State
OK, Tyler Hansen playing quarterback instantly improves the Buffs ten fold. And yes, they did hang with Texas for quite a while in the most hostile environment in the conference. But even before that...a whitewashing of Wyoming and just a 4 point deficit late in the 4th against West Virginia...on the road on a Thursday...tells me there is more progress here than people are giving Dan Hawkins credit for. Actually, if you look at it, Colorado may just be in the North driver's seat with Mizzou and Nebraska still to play at home, and a trip to Stillwater really the only game left where they will be big underdogs. A win over a KSU team that put up 60+ points is a must this weekend in what I think might be the best game you don't watch this Saturday.

5) Nebraska (4-2, 1-1) vs. Iowa State
So let me get this straight..Nebraska has played 12 quarters against non-Sun Belt teams and scored touchdown in just two of them? 57th in the nation in total offense? Sudden quarterback controversy? Bo Pelini snapping at local media? The Huskers are a powder keg waiting to go off yet again...just in time for the most important stretch of games of the year. The hicks could easily polish off ISU with a good defensive performance and things may return to normal....OR...they may play a close game with the Clones and the questions and finger pointing moves up a notch or two or fifty. HUGE couple of weeks for Bo Pelini, who better figure out how to score touchdowns quick. What will happen first? Bo Pelini throws a cup of water at a reporter? Or the Huskers score a rushing touchdown?

6) Kansas State (4-3, 2-1) vs. Colorado
KSU is the ultimate Jekyll and Hyde team to me...losing by 40 points one week and winning by 40 points the next week. However, in looking a little closer, how many of those 62 points put up last Saturday were off turnovers? How do you score that many points when you 69th in the nation in total offense? I must admit, I've only seen KSU one time, and that was against UCLA...however, the wild inconsistencies seem to me a bigger problem than meets the eye. Who knows if Bill Snyder's QB by committee system will work...but a win over an upstart Colorado would be gigantic in terms of moving in the right direction. My jury is still out on the Cats at this point.

SOUTH

1) Texas (6-0, 3-0) at Missouri
Who else are you going to put here? The Horns were relatively unimpressive in the Cotton Bowl last weekend, but in a rivalry game like that, you really can't put much stock in anything other than the W. Colt McCoy is getting grilled in the media this week in terms of "figuring out what's wrong"...which tells me he's about to go OFF on Mizzou's improved but still far from great defense. Lack of a true running game will hurt UT in the end, but in the short term, holding teams to 14 points a game...including 34 in the past 3 weeks is a pretty good accomplishment. The Halloween match up in Stillwater looms large this week.

2) Oklahoma State (5-1, 2-0) at Baylor
Despite missing two of their best players, the Pokes continue to rack up points. Even though they cruised to the finish against Mizzou, they were still out gained by 40+ yards and barely racked up 350 yards of offense. (3 turnovers and a couple of big Mizzou drops helped) That might not cut it when Texas comes to town, but at least they get a nice scrimmage in Waco to get ready.

3) Oklahoma (3-3, 1-1) at Kansas
Everybody writes off Oklahoma, yet their three losses this season have been by 1, 1 and 3 points. Uhhhh, that's still pretty good. On paper, the Saturday match up with KU looks fairly even, but if Landry Jones has even a HINT of a good game, KU is going to be in for a world of hurt. I imagine the locals will be hopped up enough to give OU fits...but seriously...how intimidating can 50,000 Zima drinkers be...waving their arms back and fourth like they're at a Miley Cyrus concert? Sooners will have their backups in by the end of the 3rd.

4) Texas Tech (5-2, 2-1) vs. Texas A&M
Holy shit did they crush Nebraska. Actually, most of the game was fairly competitive, but just as I said last week..they did what they had to do early and got Nebraska out of their ball control scheme. That Sheffield kid looked like the real deal, as the blackshirts fluttered around like clowns at a circus. (Hey Niles Paul..feel free to FALL ON THE BALL.) Not sure what all of it means...but it tells me Texas Tech is exactly who they always are...a good, solid but not great team who can lay an egg at any time, or throttle the crap out of a team at any time. As for this week...if A&M gave up 60+ points to KSU.....what will happen when they face...

5) Texas A&M (3-3, 0-2) at Texas Tech
I'm going to give the Ags a bit of a pass against K-State. It was cold..they turned the ball over five times, and let's face it..they really weren't going to win the division anyway. Now their 94th ranked defense gets to take on a Texas Tech team that put 31 points up on Nebraska in Lincoln with relative ease. Good luck boys.

6) Baylor (3-3, 0-2) vs. Oklahoma State
Nick Florence was finally yanked after 2 awful games, and replaced by 10th year Blake Szymanski. Did you know that SEVEN different Baylor players have thrown passes this year? I realize their offense is in disarray after Robert Griffin went down, but good lord Art Briles, dial it down a little bit. Baylor gets to finish the ride down the toilet bowl this season with games against Okie State, Missouri, Texas and Texas Tech. As for Saturday...Okie State is one of the nation's best running teams...Baylor is 100th in rushing defense and giving up nearly 200 ypg. Hmmmmmmm

2 comments:

  1. Do you realize that it makes your team look incredibly unimportant if you have enough time to make a blog dedicated to hating the Huskers. I like that there are Husker Haters out there.That just shows you that someone takes notice one way or the other. I'd rather see that than root for a team so inconsequential that people don;t have the time or passion to hate.

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  2. This blog isn't about hating the Huskers. The old blog was about Hating the Huskers. Then I shut it down because your team is incredibly "unimportant".

    Keep up.

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