Nebraska...not feeling Frosty anymore

[lineygoblue]

He was a good kitty. We had to put him down about 3 months ago, and its one of the most difficult things I've ever had to do. Leaving the Vet's office without him just tore me apart.

[hack]

AWESOME.

[entropy]

[lineygoblue]

rampant

[entropy]

LINCOLN — As Dennis Leblanc was putting together his notes last week for the Nebraska football postseason banquet, he was reminded that one of the Huskers' biggest wins came before camp even started in August.

Coming out of summer sessions, NU had pushed its cumulative grade point average to 3.015 — believed to be Nebraska's first time over 3.0 since Leblanc joined the academic staff in the late 1980s and the cumulative GPA began being calculated.

"We knew heading into the summer that we were just about there," Nebraska receiver Kenny Bell said. "So a goal was to get that 3.0 over the summer."

Leblanc, NU's senior associate athletic director for academics, said the Huskers won't know an updated GPA until all paperwork is completed after the fall semester. But the momentum from reaching that plateau last summer, and the continued backing of head coach Bo Pelini, left him optimistic about the future as Nebraska went into winter break.

"My guess is that it'll be similar," Leblanc said. "What I do know is that I'm sure it's going to be higher than it was last year at this same time."

Leblanc said the 3.015 cumulative mark was for 138 players. The team had gone into classes last summer with a 2.986.

"When you get that close, it still takes several people to bump that above," he said. "Coach Pelini has been very supportive of what we do — and all the coaches have been — but I guess he's just taken it to another level."

How involved is Pelini?

Leblanc said he was having lunch at the Husker training table last week when Pelini checked in during a recruiting trip.

"He called and said, 'Anything I need to know? Any calls I need to make?' " Leblanc said.

Leblanc said another example came last July when Pelini was at Big Ten media days. Leblanc needed to see a player, but hesitated to call Pelini because of where the coach was and what he was doing.

"I sent him a text, probably at 3:45, and he said I'd see that kid by 5 o'clock," Leblanc said. "Within an hour, that kid was at my door.

"I have full access to him. Those are the kind of things that really make it work."

Leblanc shared some other items at the NU banquet:

• The Huskers had 27 Academic All-Big Ten picks and five Academic All-District selections. They had first-team Academic All-Americans in Austin Cassidy and Rex Burkhead and a second-teamer in Sean Fisher.

Next season, NU wants to catch Northwestern in Academic All-Big Ten honors. The Wildcats led the league with 31.

• A total of 18 players will travel to the Capital One Bowl with degrees in hand, including five juniors. With nine other non-seniors on pace to graduate in May, the Huskers will have 14 players on next season's roster with their degrees (NU had two this season).

"We've never had anything like that before," Leblanc said.

But the 3.0 GPA still remains one of the largest points of pride within the team, Leblanc said, because it took everybody to get it.

"It's a huge deal," NU linebacker Will Compton said. "You don't really see that in programs. We were the first Nebraska team to do it.

"It's just something that was laid out in a foundation for us. And we just knew going in and going forward that that's an area you had to take care of."

Contact the writer:

402-444-1042, rich.kaipust@owh.com

twitter.com/RKaipustOWH

[Ghengis Jon]

Pretty cool. Merry Christmas Ent.

[entropy]

Thanks. happy Holidays to you and everyone else..

[entropy]

LJS


Ron Brown was worried. Worried Curenski Gilleylen had misunderstood. Worried that the senior thought he was on his way to Wyoming when he wasn't.

Why else would he be there? Husker players who aren't on the travel roster don't have to attend the Friday meetings prior to road trips.

Gilleylen wasn't on the roster. Yet Gilleylen was there early that morning. Ready to meet with all the other running backs. Ready to go over the game plan with some freshmen who'd be playing in a game he'd be watching on TV.

Had he not heard?

Brown panicked. The Nebraska running backs coach approached Gilleylen to find out.

Oh, Gilleylen knew. He just showed up anyway.

"Bar none, I've never seen a more unselfish player than Curenski Gilleylen," Brown said.

That Friday night when the team arrived in Wyoming, there was a chapel service, a normal procedure the night before a game for those who are interested.

Brown was there. So were many of his running backs, including starters Rex Burkhead and Tyler Legate.

"Our chapel service was on unselfishness and serving, and washing each other's feet," Brown said. "I asked the guys, ‘OK, guys, in our room, ‘Who's been that guy?' And they'd already seen Curenski get up early and come to the practice session and not get on the plane.

"I looked up and I saw Rex and I saw Tyler, and I saw tears streaming down their faces. And I couldn't hold it in. Because we realized that's the example we're talking about."

Want to find the one guy not overly impressed by Gilleylen's attitude?

Maybe talk to Gilleylen.

To him, that's just what you're supposed to do.

"Whenever you're committed to something, you have to be committed to it. It's not about me playing or not playing, me traveling or not traveling," Gilleylen said. "Those are the guys that you go to war with and you want to be with them. Whether you're leaving on a trip or not, you want to show that you're supporting them, that you're paying attention, you're not just looking for any way out. It wasn't about me trying to prove a point or something. I guess I was just trying to show them I was there for them no matter what."

He arrived on campus from Leander, Texas, a wide receiver with the kind of speed that immediately caught the coaches' attention.

Gilleylen played in 11 games as a redshirt freshman in 2008, and was starting at the beginning of 2009.

He caught five passes of at least 35 yards in the first four games that year, including a 51-yard touchdown in the opener against Florida Atlantic.

You forget this now, but Gilleylen was one of those household names around Nebraska that September. Making plays. In the headlines. On his way.

And then halfway through that season, he drifted into the background. Other guys were getting the snaps.

Gilleylen just sort of disappeared.

By his junior year, he played in seven games but didn't have a catch.

By his senior year, coaches approached him about moving to running back to help with depth.

It was one of those writing-on-the-wall moments. Nebraska already had Burkhead, and three touted freshman running back recruits were on the way.

Gilleylen gave it some thought, then nodded. Sure. Let's go.

"Honestly, I love the game of football and it's taught me so much. I think not playing probably taught me a lot more about myself than if I had been playing," Gilleylen said. "My goal was to come here and obviously play football and I haven't had necessarily the opportunity on the game field. But I have an opportunity every day in practice to sharpen and hone my skills, just to do the best I can do."

Gilleylen hasn't had one carry this year, but teammates know what he's all about.

Brown said if you asked his running backs to name one person who best exemplifies what it means to be successful, Curenski Gilleylen would be the name you hear.

Coaches see it too, recently giving him the Character Award at the team banquet.

When he received the award, a team chaplain reminded him that teammates often don't remember their peers for what they did on the field as much as what type of person they were off of it.

"And I was just going over that in my head," Gilleylen said. "Whenever I think of Roy (Helu) or Niles (Paul), or people I was close to, obviously, they did great things on the field, but it's who they were as my friend and my brother. Those were the type of things I remember."

Gilleylen is devout in his faith. He said it is that belief in God that kept him going when things got tough.

"That's the only reason why I'm here today still practicing hard, still trying to encourage people. That's definitely helped me focus on what I can control," Gilleylen said. "I think this is where I'm supposed to be and this is what was supposed to happen."

As for what might happen next? That excites Gilleylen.

First, that bowl game in Orlando, Fla., one last trip with the guys he calls "my family."

It might be tough, but Brown said he'd love it if he could find a way for Gilleylen to see a few snaps. Who knows? Maybe even that first carry.

After that, the senior plans to graduate in May with a degree in civil engineering. He also wants to take his shot at playing football at the next level.

After all, those who can jump as high and run as fast as Gilleylen can make some noise at Pro Day.

Don't count him out. Brown doesn't.

Whatever the next destination may be, the coach knows Gilleylen will take on his next challenge at full-steam.

There's just a button inside of Gilleylen, Brown said, that most don't have. He keeps going when many would throw their hands up and head home.

"In a day and age where everyone points at themselves, and wants glory for themselves, and if they don't get their carries or their stats or playing time, then they pout and get mad, there's a guy like Curenski," Brown said. "And Curenski's been a shining example of what it means to be a real man."

That's success. No stat sheet needed to figure that out.

[entropy]

LJS


Ron Brown was worried. Worried Curenski Gilleylen had misunderstood. Worried that the senior thought he was on his way to Wyoming when he wasn't.

Why else would he be there? Husker players who aren't on the travel roster don't have to attend the Friday meetings prior to road trips.

Gilleylen wasn't on the roster. Yet Gilleylen was there early that morning. Ready to meet with all the other running backs. Ready to go over the game plan with some freshmen who'd be playing in a game he'd be watching on TV.

Had he not heard?

Brown panicked. The Nebraska running backs coach approached Gilleylen to find out.

Oh, Gilleylen knew. He just showed up anyway.

"Bar none, I've never seen a more unselfish player than Curenski Gilleylen," Brown said.

That Friday night when the team arrived in Wyoming, there was a chapel service, a normal procedure the night before a game for those who are interested.

Brown was there. So were many of his running backs, including starters Rex Burkhead and Tyler Legate.

"Our chapel service was on unselfishness and serving, and washing each other's feet," Brown said. "I asked the guys, ?OK, guys, in our room, ?Who's been that guy?' And they'd already seen Curenski get up early and come to the practice session and not get on the plane.

"I looked up and I saw Rex and I saw Tyler, and I saw tears streaming down their faces. And I couldn't hold it in. Because we realized that's the example we're talking about."

Want to find the one guy not overly impressed by Gilleylen's attitude?

Maybe talk to Gilleylen.

To him, that's just what you're supposed to do.

"Whenever you're committed to something, you have to be committed to it. It's not about me playing or not playing, me traveling or not traveling," Gilleylen said. "Those are the guys that you go to war with and you want to be with them. Whether you're leaving on a trip or not, you want to show that you're supporting them, that you're paying attention, you're not just looking for any way out. It wasn't about me trying to prove a point or something. I guess I was just trying to show them I was there for them no matter what."

He arrived on campus from Leander, Texas, a wide receiver with the kind of speed that immediately caught the coaches' attention.

Gilleylen played in 11 games as a redshirt freshman in 2008, and was starting at the beginning of 2009.

He caught five passes of at least 35 yards in the first four games that year, including a 51-yard touchdown in the opener against Florida Atlantic.

You forget this now, but Gilleylen was one of those household names around Nebraska that September. Making plays. In the headlines. On his way.

And then halfway through that season, he drifted into the background. Other guys were getting the snaps.

Gilleylen just sort of disappeared.

By his junior year, he played in seven games but didn't have a catch.

By his senior year, coaches approached him about moving to running back to help with depth.

It was one of those writing-on-the-wall moments. Nebraska already had Burkhead, and three touted freshman running back recruits were on the way.

Gilleylen gave it some thought, then nodded. Sure. Let's go.

"Honestly, I love the game of football and it's taught me so much. I think not playing probably taught me a lot more about myself than if I had been playing," Gilleylen said. "My goal was to come here and obviously play football and I haven't had necessarily the opportunity on the game field. But I have an opportunity every day in practice to sharpen and hone my skills, just to do the best I can do."

Gilleylen hasn't had one carry this year, but teammates know what he's all about.

Brown said if you asked his running backs to name one person who best exemplifies what it means to be successful, Curenski Gilleylen would be the name you hear.

Coaches see it too, recently giving him the Character Award at the team banquet.

When he received the award, a team chaplain reminded him that teammates often don't remember their peers for what they did on the field as much as what type of person they were off of it.

"And I was just going over that in my head," Gilleylen said. "Whenever I think of Roy (Helu) or Niles (Paul), or people I was close to, obviously, they did great things on the field, but it's who they were as my friend and my brother. Those were the type of things I remember."

Gilleylen is devout in his faith. He said it is that belief in God that kept him going when things got tough.

"That's the only reason why I'm here today still practicing hard, still trying to encourage people. That's definitely helped me focus on what I can control," Gilleylen said. "I think this is where I'm supposed to be and this is what was supposed to happen."

As for what might happen next? That excites Gilleylen.

First, that bowl game in Orlando, Fla., one last trip with the guys he calls "my family."

It might be tough, but Brown said he'd love it if he could find a way for Gilleylen to see a few snaps. Who knows? Maybe even that first carry.

After that, the senior plans to graduate in May with a degree in civil engineering. He also wants to take his shot at playing football at the next level.

After all, those who can jump as high and run as fast as Gilleylen can make some noise at Pro Day.

Don't count him out. Brown doesn't.

Whatever the next destination may be, the coach knows Gilleylen will take on his next challenge at full-steam.

There's just a button inside of Gilleylen, Brown said, that most don't have. He keeps going when many would throw their hands up and head home.

"In a day and age where everyone points at themselves, and wants glory for themselves, and if they don't get their carries or their stats or playing time, then they pout and get mad, there's a guy like Curenski," Brown said. "And Curenski's been a shining example of what it means to be a real man."

That's success. No stat sheet needed to figure that out.

[entropy]

Nebraksa basketball has struggled to score all hear. But now with 3 starters out... Tough to watch.

[hack]

Somewhere in there is a punchline about Jim Tressell, but more important, this requires a poll. Is that better or worse than RichRod's Josh Groban Moment? The fact that he's arching his back is probably the determining factor for me...

[entropy]

Hack... Ummm.. The picture is not real. Richrod's moment... Well, was..

[hack]

Bummer. OK gringo, you win this time...

[entropy]

I can't get a read on how I think UNL will do on Monday...

[Paul L]

I don't care if the pictures are real or not; they're freakin' hilarious. More dammit!