Signature Loss?
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October 16, 2008 by
As the Huskers have struggled through a long streak of losing to top ten teams, fans have called for a “signature win� under their new head coach (whether it was Callahan or Pelini). While most would agree that the Huskers have failed to capture a signature win in the Pelini era, could the Texas Tech game qualify as a signature loss?
Bo Pelini says he’s not about moral victories. That’s all well and good. Nevertheless, it’s not uncommon for a struggling team to announce itself with a close loss against a good team before it finally breaks through and starts winning those games. Look no further than Ball State.
The Cardinals caught some headlines in the past two seasons with close losses to Michigan and Nebraska. Now the team is 7-0 and ranked 24th in the AP poll. Looking at their remaining schedule, this team might finish 12-0 and perhaps even snatch a BCS bowl berth.
There are other examples. Remember when Kansas came into Lincoln in 2006 and took the Huskers to overtime? A year later, they were 12-1 and won the Orange Bowl. Perhaps there’s no glory in a signature loss, but it certainly can be an important turning point for a program.
Or have we forgotten the 1994 Orange Bowl against Florida State? The Huskers were a heavy underdog in that game but came within missed game-winning 47-yard field goal of upsetting the Seminoles. The disappointment of that loss fueled the Unfinished Business campaign that brought the Huskers the national championship a year later.
No last Saturday, didn’t get the Huskers any love from the national media. But perhaps it will become the turning point toward better things in the future for Nebraska.
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Grant Oct 16 08
As an ameature coach (freshmen football) I can say it has been my experience there truly are no "moral" victories. If I'm too competetive to hate losing a freshmen football game, imagine what a Bo Pelini is like. However, just b/c you lost, doesn't mean you don't have a lot to hang your hat on.
For example: My freshmen recently lost by 5 points to a team that beat them by 40 as 8th graders. Now, we should have won. We played bad offensively, had terrible field position, and played a really bad 1st half. However, while I hated losing that game, I can tell you I have never felt as positive about a loss as I did that night. The key was, the next day game was over. No discussions on "woulda, coulda, shoulda". Build off the positives and mistakes you can learn from and move forward.
I think that is what you are seeing w/ this staff, albeit on a MUCH larger scale. Losing sucked. Hate it, but we feel positive with the direction we are starting to go and the improvements we are making.
darren Oct 16 08
Moral victories still look like "L" on the win-loss total.
I appreciate all of the historical examples you provided of teams that showed marked improvement in losing games.
Will that translate to bigger things next season? Maybe. That sure would be nice. :-)
Right now, I'm much more curious to see how that "signature loss" might have affect - one way or another - on this week and this season.