Post Iowa and a few picks

     Watching the Nebraska-Iowa game, yesterday, was like watching two exhausted boxers in the 12th round of a fight. No belts on the line, a decent undercard, but not a main event. Yesterday was no Ali-Frazier, it was more like Jerry Quarry v. Jimmy Ellis.
     It also had an old-school feel to it that I dig. I-Backasaurus Rex led an attack that was like five-yards-and-a-cloud-of-rubber, but I like that. I actually do enjoy watching the offense grind away at a team, at any moment a play could pop for a huge gain, but the steady erosive nature of the attack did wonders for a defense that was probably still trying to recover from last week.
     Speaking of the I-Backasaurus, he gets my nod for offensive MVP. The team MVP is obviously Lavonte David, but Rex has been the go-to guy all year long. Excellent story to emerge from the game; Rex had tied the school record for carries in a game with 37 (again), the o-line convinced him to come out and take the last snap in 'victory' formation so he would get one more official carry, and the record. I have heard that it was Yoshi that convinced him to do it, saying that the o-line wanted him to get it, and that they wanted to be a part of it. Pretty cool, huh?

(It's unclear what T. Rex's exact speed was, but it could run down all other animals in its ecosystem)

     Taylor had a pretty decent game, and passed Tommie Frazier on the passing yards list. He tweaked an ankle, early in the game, which limited the playbook for him. He did get lucky on one pass that should have been picked, and had a couple of attempts that went off of defenders faces at the line. All in all, a decent game. Kenny Bell looked like he has shaken off his issues of the past couple of games, and really stepped up. Jamal Turner got into the game, which shows some improvement for him. Kyler Reed finally got a touchdown reception.

     Let's hear it for the o-line. A battered, beat-up bunch of dudes who gave a gutsy performance when they really needed to. Speaking of o-line, Mike Caputo must have jilted the umpires daughter or something, two clipping/crack-back block penalties against a guy who has had zero all year, neither of which should have drawn a flag. Caputo, Yoshi, Jones, Choi, Long gave Rex the room he needed to do what he does. Let's also hear it for Sirles, who came in when Jones went down and filled in, nicely. I think there is a pipeline getting built in Nebraska, and it doesn't end in XL.

     The Blackshirts did what was expected of them. They shut down the run, and Alfonzo took their best receiver out of the game, again. Lavonte David was here, there, and everywhere; hitting dudes, covering the tight end, getting a sack and stripping a fumble. I still want to see that holding penalty in the end-zone, again. The series that Iowa scored on was one of the weirdest I've seen. I don't think the Iowa receiver caught the ball in-bounds at the three, and no-one sought to review it. I hate to play the fake injury thing, (that's not true, I loved it when Joe Nash, and his bum knee, did it to Cincinnati back in '88) but we should have a flopper to buy more time to get plays reviewed. It took Iowa four plays and three penalties to get into the endzone after a first and goal from the three, to take away the shutout.

(Carl just wanted me to tell you thanks for keeping him employed)

     Just wanted to drop a few quick notes and picks for yesterday and today.

     Leroix picked LSU, trust me. He also has Alabama in the Iron Bowl, and Virginia Tech over Virginia. Bubba is Enjoying the week off. Marcus says Stanford should beat Notre Dame.

     Lloyd says Ohio State will beat Michigan, making Huskerfan say 'Whaaaaa'? Northwestern will play Sparty tough, but not tough enough. Illinois will lose to Minnesota, costing Ron Zook his job.

     Granny is taking whisky, and is picking the Stinking Badgers to beat Penn State. Indiana and Purdue are playing for the 'Old Oaken Bucket', proof that some of these B1G trophies are just stupid. Purdue will win.

     Time to kick back, relax, and get healed up for the bowl game. It appears to be either the Insight.com Bowl or the Outback Bowl. Insight.com pays $6.7m and the Outback $7m, so we're in for some decent cash. I've seen one projection that puts us in the Outback with South Carolina. It would be nice to take on pickle-puss Steve Superior, again.

     Husk-husk and on the qb.















Nebraska, Iowa and Corn

     The atmosphere at "Our Lady" was somber for a gameday. Distraction seemed to be the pervading theme. Fans distracted by the madness that consumed the "Black Friday" shoppers that besieged low-end retailers like a horde of ravenous zombies. The girls, distracted by the early start time and the patrons that wandered in like refugees, seeking shelter from the madness or just coming down from the L. tryptophan overdose.
     The four of us were distracted by the heavy events of the day before. To be fair, Lloyd didn't seem any more distracted than usual. Lloyd, Cassandra, Preacherman and I had gathered for the season finale. This year it is the rivalry game that almost seems forced. Like laughing at a boss's joke, even though you've not only heard it three times already, but watched the show he got it from.
     This whole Iowa thing as our chief rival just doesn't seem to work for me. I get all the reasons why we get told that it works; geography, corn, lifestyle, corn, Omaha v. Des Moines, corn...did I say corn? I still would like to suggest that instead of a lame trophy, that the loser of this annual battle be forced to administer Council Bluffs. 'Heroes' game just sounds so contrived. Anything else would be contrived, too, but Corn Trophy or Corn Cup or Giant Golden Cob are worse so I guess we're stuck. I wouldn't mind the Kinnick Trophy, Iowa's only Heisman winner who was from Omaha would be fine with me.
     "Lloyd. How is the offense going to do against these Hawkeyes?" I asked.
     "They should be OK, I think," he replied. "The huskers should be able to move the ball pretty well on the ground. Iowa's defense isn't anything to write home about. They also won't have the luxury of keying on one guy, now that Taylor has developed into an efficient, if not scary weapon. Burkhead should get back into his groove. The O-line needs to establish its nastiness early and help propel the offense to an early lead."
     I nodded, not really surprised, and not really hearing anything I didn't expect. "Preacherman. How about the defense?" I had to kind of shout since Preach was a little distracted.
     "They got to stop the run. Marcus Coker is averaging over 100 yards a game, and is a big, physical running back. They need to stop the run, but need to do it without loading up the box. Vandenburg is a good enough quarterback to hurt a defense if they try to bring a safety up in run support. They were embarrassed last week, and wrung out. Those guys were on the field all day long, I hope they bounce back after a short week and I hope the offense lets them spend a lot of time on the sideline."
     I turned to Cassandra. "How do you think special teams will do?"
    She rolled her eyes. "The Law of Averages would suggest that they have to do better than last week. That was literally the worst half of special teams play I have ever seen. This week has to be better. It's probably good that Iowa isn't known for their special teams threats, either on returns or blocking kicks."
     "Intangibles?" I asked the assembly.
     "Senior Day," said Lloyd. There are 21 seniors who are playing their last home game for the Huskers. Guys like Austin Cassidy, Mike Caputo and LaVonte David. They will step up and be the vocal leaders the Huskers will need today for that last, final push to a decent bowl."
     "Bounce-back," added Preach. "After the other two losses this year, the defense has responded with a really good game. I think today will be no different.
     "Home cookin'," Cassandra added. "I don't mean the officiating, 'cause we never get the right calls at home, either. I mean getting to sleep in your own bed, do your own thing with your own comfort level. Both of Nebraska's big losses came on the second weeks of consecutive road games. Iowa is in that situation this week, and had to deal with a short week. Nebraska did too, but has been doing it for years with the Colorado game. They have a schedule in place."
     I sat back and watched one of the dancers listlessly maneuver through a set with 'If you want Blood' by AC/DC. I pondered what I though the final score would be. Lloyd was furiously tapping at his screen as I pronounced "24-14, Huskers."
     Lloyd looked up from his toys. "I just got a text from a buddy in LPD. it read 'John Doe shot yesterday. Coma."
     Comatose. That means even if they bring charges against Lt. Moore, which will be hard to stick, Mr. Alan Davison is still alive, and if he wakes up, he will be able to offer his testimony. "Moore can't let that happen, but he won't be able to do anything about it. Or will he?"
     The four of us watched the clock edge closer to game time. Kickoff should give us at least a temporary respite. I hope the Huskers win.
     Husk-husk and on the qb.