Nebraska...not feeling Frosty anymore

[entropy]

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

http://kittypelini.com/

[entropy]

From THEMAT.com

ABBOTT COLUMN: Top 10 wrestling stories of 2011

By Gary Abbott USA Wrestling

12/27/2011

Every holiday season, between visits with family and friends, I make sure to find a little time for a column on the Top 10 wrestling stories for the year we have completed.

Looking back, 2011 was an active and interesting year within wrestling, helping line up what should be a spectacular Olympic year ahead. On every level of wrestling, there were some great stories and amazing achievements.

Here are my top 10 stories for 2011. As always, I encourage you to go down memory lane for this past year and identify which stories stand out in your mind. There are no wrong answers; we sure had a lot to pick from this past year.

1. Jordan Burroughs amazing rise to the top of the world – Coming into 2011, everybody knew that Nebraska star Jordan Burroughs was talented and had a bright future in the sport. I am not sure anybody knew just how quickly he would take that great talent and championship desire and become the best wrestler in the world. Burroughs dominated the college season, winning his second NCAA title as a senior and rightfully earning the Dan Hodge Trophy as the top college wrestler. But it was his assault on freestyle wrestling, something he had not done since the 2008 Junior World Championships, which was the most amazing feat.

Burroughs ran off a winning streak which continues into the new year. He won his first U.S. Open title in Cleveland, beating a talented Nick Marable in the finals. He beat the Russian in the USA v. Russia World Dual meet in Times Square. Burroughs made his first World Team by stopping another young stud, Andrew Howe, in the finals series. He captured a gold medal at the Ukrainian Memorial International during the summer. He went to the World Championships in Turkey and tore through the field with five straight victories. Big wins included an early defeat of two-time World champion Denis Tsargush of Russia, and a gold-medal win over last year’s World silver medalist Sadegh Goudarzi of Iran. Rather than take a break, Burroughs went down to the Pan American Games and won another gold, stopping a tough new Cuban for the title. Burroughs’ success did not go unnoticed. His coach Mark Manning was named FILA Freestyle Coach of the Year for his mentorship of this young star. The interesting part is that Burroughs is still learning, still making mistakes, still growing in freestyle. His future could be amazing. Like the true greats in U.S. history, such as John Smith, Kenny Monday, Dave Schultz, Kevin Jackson and others, he won a World or Olympic title on his first try.

http://themat.com/section.php?section_id=3&page=showarticle&ArticleID=24501

[Paul L]

http://kittypelini.com/

Fantastic

[lineygoblue]

thank you for that mental image ...

[Jamie H]

I don't think the LPD wants to set a precedent that its OK to get all boozed up and give it a whirl behind the wheel before deciding to pull over someplace and pass out.

Did he drive and then pull over, or did he sleep in the parking lot where he was parked? Those seem like different things to me. If someone gets out to their car, realizes they are drunk and doesn't actually drive off, I don't see how that is drunk driving.

[entropy]

Tried sleeping it off instead of driving, hence the reduced charge.

[entropy]

Brian Christopherson - LJS: Meeting the new guy

Rick Kaczenski met the Nebraska media for the first time after Friday's bowl practice.

The new Husker defensive line coach said his time in Orlando has been like "a bonus week" of coaching and that he's getting a "feel for how Coach and his staff operate."

It's been a whirlwind month for Kaczenski. And we're not just talking about the new job. He also has a new daughter, who was born the day after the Nebraska-Iowa game. "That's the one good thing that happened that week," Kaczenski joked.

"I was telling my wife on Christmas ... 'You know, a month ago, I was getting ready to play Nebraska. Now we have a daughter. Now I'm getting ready to get on a plane with Nebraska, so it's been a heckuva month.'"
Bo Pelini didn't have a close personal connection with Kaczenski, but it's obvious he respected the former Iowa coach's work with defensive linemen from afar.

In fact, Pelini said Friday he looked at Kaczenski last year when he was filling the two defensive coaching positions now held by Ross Els and Corey Raymond.

As for what the new coach can actually do in regards to this Capital One Bowl? W

Kaczenski said this past week for him has been "more about kind of getting a feel for the players and the personality of the coaches, and the players also. And just learning who the guys are, and them learning about me a little bit."

I asked the coach what he thought he could do Monday during the game given the fact he just arrived?

"Really, just kind of not to screw anything up," Kaczenski said with a smile. "I'm pretty good about staying in the back. I'm not going to speak unless spoken to. We really haven't discussed a whole lot my role. I'm sure we'll sit down close to the game with Bo and JP and kind of see what I'm doing. But I don't know the terminology. I've been studying South Carolina, but I don't know them quite as well as these coaches do. So I'm just not quite sure how much I can contribute. If there's anything I can do, obviously I'm excited to do it."

As it comes to leaving Iowa, Kaczenski when you've been around a bunch of coaches for seven or eight years like he was, it becomes like a family.

"Coach (Ferentz) was really great about it and I think he saw it as an opportunity for me to grow also as a coach," Kaczenski said. "He gave me his blessing and said, 'There's no bridges burned, you're going out the front door.' I appreciated him and I hope he appreciated me for the things we were able to do there. We had a really nice run. Coach, he's a first-class guy. He'll be a Hall-of-Fame coach. And the things that he's done at Iowa is just amazing. There was no ill will. Everyone was great just across the board."
Kaczenski said he'll be pulling hard for Iowa in its bowl game against Oklahoma.

We'll have much more on Nebraska's new D-line coach in a story in tomorrow's paper.


That’s the thing about heroes—they don’t sacrifice children. They sacrifice themselves.

[entropy]

ORLANDO, Fla. -- It was just before kickoff. Rick Kaczenski was wearing black and gold with no idea of what a whirlwind the next month would be.

He wanted to whip Nebraska that day.

But as he stood on the field in the moments before that game last month, his eyes were drawn to a particular scene.

"I was looking up and when the players come out of the tunnel, I saw that sign that said, ‘I play for Nebraska.' I said this is kinda neat. I can't believe I'm actually coaching in a game at Nebraska even as an opponent."

The game went on. Nebraska won 20-7. Back to Iowa City.

Then things took off.

The next day, Kaczenski's wife gave birth to a daughter, the couple's second child.

That, in itself, would make this a December to remember. But more was around the corner.

He spent the early days of the month recruiting for Iowa, fully expecting to be there come 2012. Then came an offer from Bo Pelini.

Kaczenski had a personal connection with Husker football strength coach James Dobson, but not Pelini.

But Nebraska's head coach knew that he liked the way Iowa's defensive line played football.

Pelini put Kaczenski on his radar even a year ago, talking to him last offseason before deciding to fill two defensive assistant positions with Ross Els and Corey Raymond.

A year later, another opening. Pelini knew who he wanted.

And when Pelini came calling, Kaczenski said the job was "impossible to turn down."

He said Pelini's reputation as a defensive coach was one of the main reasons.

"Iowa was a great place, and Kirk Ferentz is a first-class guy, and in my opinion a hall of fame coach," Kaczenski said Friday after Nebraska's practice. "But to grow as a coach on the defensive side of the football, I don't think there's a better mind in football to learn from (than Pelini)."

He's learning in CliffsNotes style right now, picking up whatever he can as fast as he can. Officially given the job last Thursday, Kaczenski made the trip to Orlando to help coach in the Capital One Bowl.

But Kaczenski admits his role isn't a big one this week as the Huskers get ready to play South Carolina.

Football is football, but he's still catching up on all the terminology.

"I'm really not doing any coaching down here, just kind of observing and getting a lay of the land and getting a feel for things," Kaczenski said.

And so when it comes to his role in Monday's game?

"Really, just kind of not to screw anything up," Kaczenski said. "I'm pretty good about staying in the back. I'm not going to speak unless spoken to. We really haven't discussed a whole lot my role. I'm sure we'll sit down close to the game with Bo and JP (John Papuchis) and kind of see what I'm doing."

He smiled when asked if he has all the defensive linemen's names down yet.

"No comment."

The 36-year-old Kaczenski has spent the past five years coaching Iowa's defensive line. Among the players that flourished under his watch were All-Big Ten picks Adrian Clayborn and Mitch King.

Though he left Iowa for a conference rival, Kaczenski said he ended his time in Iowa City on good terms with Ferentz and those in the program.

"Coach (Ferentz) was really great about it and I think he saw it as an opportunity for me to grow also as a coach," Kaczenski said. "He gave me his blessing and said, 'There's no bridges burned, you're going out the front door.' I appreciated him and I hope he appreciated me for the things we were able to do there. We had a really nice run. ... And the things that he's done at Iowa is just amazing. There was no ill will. Everyone was great just across the board."

It all happened so fast, the coach said. He still has trouble wrapping his mind around it.

Timing is everything in this profession. He considers himself fortunate.

He was just telling his dad that the other day.

"Can you believe this?" Kaczenski told him. "I was just walking the sidelines of Eerie Prep Cathedral High School 13 years ago and now I'm wearing Nebraska colors. So you just never know."

[entropy]

In the first half we had 227 yards against this vaunted SEC defense and were easily pushing them around in the run game and hurting them in PA passing.

In the 2nd half we had 34 total yards. However, we opened with a 52 yard drive that resulted in the missed FG. After the 1st drive of the 2nd half we had -18 yards in the four remaining drives. Obviously, being forced into obvious passing situations really turned around the match-up in their favor up front when it was our O vs their D. However, I believe we also had nine of our ten penalties in the 2nd half.

All the blown opportunities and mistakes would have beat us against a Top 10 team. But this team imploded in the 2nd half, pure and simple.

[entropy]

Steven M. Sipple: NU fans should expect much more from program

Posted: Monday, January 2, 2012 10:00 pm

South Carolina defensive end Aldrick Fordham (57) recovers a second-quarter fumble by Nebraska running back Ameer Abdullah (8) at the Capital One Bowl, Monday, Jan. 2, 2012, in Orlando, Fla. (TED KIRK/Lincoln Journal Star)

ORLANDO, Fla. — The Nebraska defensive lineman, in the din of Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium, looked toward the Husker sideline, obviously flustered.

South Carolina faced fourth-and-1 late in the game. Nebraska desperately needed a stop. Nevertheless, the Husker lineman wasn't exactly dialed in. He looked dazed and confused. Maybe the Gamecocks noticed, because the play went right at him for a 5-yard gain.

Why the confusion? Well, why not? Truth be told, the play was a microcosm of Nebraska's lack of execution and overall frustration Monday during its 30-13 loss in the Capital One Bowl.

One can read far too much into bowl games, such is their unpredictable nature, and Husker fans will read plenty into this one.

My read? I expect much more from Nebraska than what I saw in this outing.

Much more should be expected from NU in Husker coach Bo Pelini's fourth season.

You don't expect Nebraska's offense to self-destruct because of penalties, as was the case in the second half, including four during a six-play span of the third quarter. The Huskers seemed to have kicked that habit this season.

You don't expect Nebraska's defense to yield 230 passing yards to an average quarterback — even if 148 went to gifted wideout Alshon Jeffery.

You don't expect one of Nebraska's best defenders and foremost leaders, senior cornerback Alfonzo Dennard, to lose his cool and get ejected from the game (along with Jeffery) in the third quarter. Both players were to blame. Dennard threw a couple punches. Jeffery was was shoving and woofing. They needed to be tossed. It was ugly.

Yes, it's an emotional game. Tempers flared. Still, I expect more from Nebraska players.

I expect more from Nebraska's offense than to drive into South Carolina territory four times and come up empty.

"That makes me want to throw up," Husker offensive coordinator Tim Beck said.

Nebraska fans could relate. This bowl represented an excellent opportunity for the Huskers to achieve a third straight 10-win season — which hasn't happened since 1999-2001 — and gain some needed momentum heading into the recruiting homestretch. A win would've shown that Pelini still had his bowl mojo working.

A win would've placed Nebraska in the top 15 nationally, or somewhere close.

South Carolina (11-2) isn't a great team. But it's an SEC team. It was a prime opportunity for Nebraska to puff out its chest by beating somebody from the nation's best conference.

It would've been a feel-good win, for sure.

Woulda, coulda, shoulda.

Nebraska fans have heard plenty of such discourse for the past decade.

"We were right there," Pelini said. "You know, even at 23-13, you're right there. Especially at 16-13, you're right there to win the game. I'll say it straight out: Our football team, even after the game, feels we're a better team than them.

"But you have to go out and earn it. It's a humbling game. You give them credit. They made plays."

Jeffery made the play of the game by hauling in Shaw's 51-yard Hail Mary pass right before halftime.

"Our guys didn't do what they were coached to do," Pelini said of the play. "Period. End of story."

Actually, the bad news would keep coming for Nebraska. The Huskers managed just 64 yards in the second half. All-Big Ten running back Rex Burkhead was held to 18 yards on eight carries after halftime.

Mistakes piled up. South Carolina sacked Taylor Martinez five times in the half. What was a coach to do?

"Execute," Pelini said flatly. "You can't do it for them."

I'd prefer to hear Pelini take more responsibility after such a loss. He is usually good in that regard.

Pelini's detractors will note his record is 10-7 in the last 17 games as Nebraska's head coach after his 28-9 start. Is there stagnation?

It's interesting how much one game can impact the way a fan base feels about a program. Nebraska fans understand all too well. They felt it in 2009 when the Huskers lost in the final moments at Virginia Tech and again in a one-point loss to Texas in the Big 12 title game.

They felt it in 2010 when Nebraska lost at home to Texas. They felt it again last season when NU lost to Texas A&M and Oklahoma. Excuse me if I'm leaving out a couple such setbacks.

Pelini's right when he says Nebraska has plenty to feel proud about this season.

On this day, however, the Huskers took a significant step backward.

I expected much more.

[entropy]

http://www.omaha.com/article/20120102/BIGRED/701029853/-1#shatel-talented-but-wayward-huskers-reflect-their-coach

OWH editorial on the game

[Paul L]

Ent- what's your opinion of Pelini? Do you think he should be fired?

[WM Wolverine]

You guys went 9-4 and played a pretty tough schedule? I don't think Pelini got the most out of his talent (or the year before either) but its about what you guys probably expected...

Martinez is quite limited as a passer (makes mistakes to boot), that limits your offense and you guys don't have the OL, stud RB to carry the offense. Defensively, I expected you guys to be a lot better. You NU guys here could tell me more about what didn't go right on that side of the ball.

[entropy]

9-4 is fine, but 9-4 with 3 blowout loses have people upset.

On Defense, the biggest problem, imo, is Nebraska got away from teaching. In Bo's first 2 years a lot of time was spent teaching this defense. It's complicated and takes some time to grasp. I think with a new DB's coach who didn't understand it as well as the previous DB's coach, that teaching disappearred. Bo has been spread to thin by with hiring coaches he has to manage rather than guys who can hit the ground running.

I also think UNL developed an unfounded sense of arrogance. I think the staff believed they could just outsmart and outscheme people. It seemed like guys did not develop or improve like they did in years past. I think you can also see this in some of Carl's actions.

jmo.

[Jeff Buchanan]

Interesting observations.

I also think it is interesting that at the elite football program level, we are seeing how important core leadership and management are.

While I don't think coaches are worth the salaries and bonuses they are getting paid and there is a problem with salary inflation in general in this segment of the entertainment industry (yes, that's what I mean), a head CFB coach has to have a set of skills to produce a product that is, well, entertaining enough to keep butts in the seats and the AD coffers filled. This is new, IMO.

Rodriguez didn't have them and probably Pelini doesn't either. You can argue that neither has got the kind of subordinates they need to run things (won't open wallets is the common refrain) but I think there is a baseline set of leadership and management skills a successful head coach has to have. I'm not sure many of them have it if the high turnover rate at CFB programs is an indicator that they don't.