Landmark? Maybe Just a Street Sign
At Big Red Network, we love debating the importance of certain games and wins. It's the kind of thing all fans love, I think. It is a fun topic to debate. The Lincoln Journal Star's Steve Sipple knows this too. Maybe that is why he took the rather gutsy stance of calling the recent NU win over Kansas a landmark triumph. Respectfully, I disagree. It is a nice win, sure. But, whether it is a true "landmark" depends on what both NU and KU do down the stretch.
Huskers Need to Move Forward
For NU, the victory over Kansas only matters if they take care of business moving forward. Sure, the Huskers qualified for a bowl and that matters. But, if the Huskers stumble this week at Manhattan or (worse) lose at home to Colorado, the win over KU loses its shine. Winning the last two makes KU the start of a three game win streak. Losing them reduces the KU win to a bit of a false positive.
Kansas...6-6?
About the Jayhawks, I respect what Mark Mangino has accomplished down there. They play hard and together. They have playmakers at some spots. But, beating them hardly qualifies as a big deal if the hawks finish 6-6. With a trip to Austin and a neutral site game against Missouri, that is a very real possibility. Should KU win one or (better) both of those games, then NU could claim a victory over a very stout foe.
For right now, I think the Husker win over 8-2 Western Michigan might be more impressive than the KU win. Hey, seriously, Western Michigan beat Illinois. So, let's wait and see what happens over the next two weeks. Is it a landmark win? Maybe. Or it might just be a street sign - only useful if you go the right direction.
11/11/2008
Good, tempered points as always on this site.
Bo has kept them focused through one of the toughest schedule stretches we’ve ever had. I’m confident we won’t look past KSU, and I can just see that smirk return when he brings the house on Hawkins in two weeks.
This game was very important. We got a little elbow room in our division. This team needed to get a rhythm going, after each conference win preceeded a top ten team….and a loss. Finishing strong will mean a lot to these seniors who saw how their predecesors had to graduate…and having the bowl game will be freaking sweet!
(oh, and maybe this has been discussed already, but was there an issue with the live blog for last week’s game? I didn’t see it all day.)
11/11/2008
A stumble against K-State or Colorado would be a huge disapointment. However, I don’t just want to see us win out, have a respectable 8-4 record and a bigger bowl game (although all of that is great). Really, what I want to see is a game that we are firing on all cylinders and have no more than 1 turnover and 50 yards or less in penalties. Regardless of our opponent, I want to see how good this team can be when they play to their fullest potential.
11/11/2008
Joel,
Unfortunately none of the BRN staff was available to manage the live blog Saturday. It wasn’t a tech issue…just a lack of manpower. Sorry about that.
11/11/2008
While beating the Kansas team we played Saturday may not have been the landmark game we want, I would suggest it is the first game this year that would have bucked pre-season expectations.
What I mean is, as you a look at the schedule before the season, many of us try to pre-determine the outcome of each game. Up to this point, I had predicted the correct outcome of the first 9 games. Kansas was the first team I had in the loss column that we managed to put in the wins.
Obciously, Kansas is not the team they were last year, but not many of us knew that 6 months ago when trying to prognosticate the Huskers season.
Omaha, NE
11/11/2008
I agree with Darren in regards to Western Michigan. Right now it probably is the best win of the year and that’s remarkable when you consider:
a) It was the first game of the season which is always sort of a crap shoot.
b) It was Bo’s first game as head coach and you have to take into account the pressure he must have felt, if not acknowledged, to get a win. It’s not like he would’ve been run out of town had he lost, but a win allowed the fan base to stay away from the ledge they’d spent the latter half of 07 occupying.
c) The MAC this year is as good as I can remember.
d) Remember that the talk leading into the game was how WMU wasn’t scared to go on the road and take on the big boys of the BCS conferences. Their victory over Illinois, while at home, still supports that idea.
I think when it’s all said and done and we know where both teams finish up, this game might be deserving of a long hard look in the off-season.
11/11/2008
Chimney Rock was a “landmark” for travelers on the Oregon Trail. They may have been massacred or died further down the trail, but it didn’t mean the rock wasn’t a “landmark.” Beating KU was something looked forward to, and achieved—ie. a landmark.
Chicago, IL
11/11/2008
Bonus points to Beans for the Chimney Rock reference.
11/11/2008
Agreed…makes me want to go play a game of “Oregon Trail”.
They should re-release that game on PS3 or Wii or something. :-)
11/11/2008
Darren -
It’s all good, just making sure my computer wasn’t acting up…I lost the radio feed online halfway through the second half as well, but I think that was just huskers.com having issues.
Oregon Trail rocked. A high def version on the ps3 would be pretty sweet, but there was just something about everything in the game being a shade of green or white on those Apple relics…think I might have shot most of the buffalo to extinction…
11/11/2008
Not to be too picky…......KU Doesn’t go to Austin this year, they host Texas. It probabaly won’t matter much.
GBR!
Bob
11/11/2008
Sorry about that, Bob. Readers, note his correction about the KU-UT game.
That’s what I get for writing these things in the wee hours of the morning. ;-)
11/12/2008
There is no reason to be sorry! My drive to work every morning is rushed, just to get to this site! You and your team, along with all of the “Co-contributors” have the best blog in Husker Nation.
Keep up the great work!
GBR!
Bob
11/13/2008
I agree - keep up the great work!!
12/2/2008
Hey Darren,
A bigger street sign now that KU beat Mizzou in the Border War.
But still not a landmark b/c of the way Texas drubbed them seven days post-Nebraska.