Nebraska...not feeling Frosty anymore

[iam416]

For any M fan considering the trip to Lincoln next year, do it. It's a great time. Great college town; great venue; and Entropy was a fantastic host. A really great day that not even the stink of Joe Bausermann could ruin. I will make that trip every time OSU plays out there, whether they're good, bad, or unspeakably Bausermann-rific.

[geo weidl]

Its looks like a fun time. I am considering it for next year.

[Wild Hoss]

Was that talent there showing you the o-lie-o cheer? Just kidding.

He did not, but we became pretty well acquainted with it during the first 40 minutes of the game. Buckeye Nation represented.

[Wild Hoss]

For any M fan considering the trip to Lincoln next year, do it. It's a great time. Great college town; great venue; and Entropy was a fantastic host. A really great day that not even the stink of Joe Bausermann could ruin. I will make that trip every time OSU plays out there, whether they're good, bad, or unspeakably Bausermann-rific.

I have to say, I had your pregame analysis of Bauserman pegged as hyperbole...but it was not. Not at all. I cannot fathom the fact Ohio State has a quarterback that bad.

Miller OTOH, is a kid with a future and would have beaten our ass if the turfmonster hadn't struck.

[entropy]

Chatelain: Martinez delivers a happy ending

http://www.omaha.com/article/2011100...a-happy-ending

Chatelain: Martinez delivers a happy ending

Column by Dirk Chatelain
World-Herald Bureau

LINCOLN — Taylor Martinez dropped back to pass, looked into the wind, the rain and an 11-point deficit. He fired.
Interception.

Then you heard it: boos. Lots of 'em. Unmistakable and unmerciful.

Bo Pelini heard 'em. (He raised his arm to the crowd and appeared to wave them off in disgust).

Martinez heard them, too. This may have been the low point of his 18 starts. This could have been the final blow to his confidence — and his career as starting quarterback.

Worse, this was looking like 2007 all over again. Another embarrassment in front of a national audience and several Husker legends on the sideline.

Then the quarterback did something few outside the Husker locker room anticipated. He looked through the storm of critics — Tommie Frazier, Jason Peter, Phillip Dillard, the girl in Spanish class, the boobirds and, yes, me.
He fired back.

He swallowed his anger, found his poise and rallied his team.

Martinez finished with 293 total yards, but he won't show up on any Heisman ballots for his performance. He didn't break any big runs. He didn't throw many perfect passes.

He did what good, veteran quarterbacks do: He took what Ohio State gave him. He made countless little plays. Moved the chains. Avoided turnovers. Kept momentum alive.

One second-half misstep from No. 3 and this thing would've been over. The mistake never came.
Afterward, Husker coaching intern Joe Ganz walked through the interview room. He summed it up like this.

"How 'bout that Taylor Martinez!"

Said offensive coordinator Tim Beck: "He's a special player. To endure what he's endured through the media and the press and the fans wanting to throw the towel in on him. I won't (throw the towel in). Coach Bo won't. Our team won't.

"I'm proud of the way he responded. Boy, he gamed it out tonight. Ain't no question about it. Made plays with his feet, made plays with his scrambling around, throwing the ball. You couldn't ask him to do any more than he did tonight."

Is Martinez the long-term answer at quarterback? Can he produce championships? That's still debatable. Still unknown.

What's not debatable is that Martinez has matured as a player. A year ago, Texas rolled into town with two losses and jumped on Nebraska's offense — 17-3. Pelini pulled Martinez from the game.

Not this time. Bo stuck with the kid (as he should have; Martinez wasn't playing that badly). And when opportunity arrived in the form of a Braxton Miller fumble, Martinez found his groove.

Perhaps his sweetest play was a fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Rex Burkhead. The Buckeyes sniffed out the play-action and attacked from every angle. Martinez didn't bury his head and go down. He took a few steps backward, saw Burkhead in the right flat and delivered the ball with accuracy.

Rex did the rest.

Ohio State gave the Huskers some help, no doubt. Who knows what happens in the second half if Miller doesn't get hurt. Or if Ohio State sticks to the ground game with Joe Bauserman at quarterback.

Doesn't matter. The Huskers saved themselves a hellish two weeks before the Minnesota game. They probably saved their chances at a division championship.

And Martinez gained some admirers.

Let's face it, he doesn't quite fit in here. Not like some players. He's a West Coast introvert and he can't go anywhere without being recognized. He would feel more comfortable somewhere he could blend in.

But Nebraskans respect perseverance. They respect heart. And Martinez showed it to them like never before.

After he took the final knee, fullback Tyler Legate picked up Martinez and threw him over his shoulder. Upside down.

When Legate let him down, Martinez walked off the field and into the tunnel. He didn't raise his arm in celebration — or in disgust. He didn't say much at all. He didn't have to.

Actions speak louder than boos.

[entropy]

a lot of things went Nebraska's way last night. Jean-Baptiste's move from WR to Corner a couple weeks ago really looks smart now.

[Wild Hoss]

Sorry Talent, but this was way too funny to pass on...pun intended.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Heh heh...the announcers cover for him an awful lot. "Smart decision in throwing it away". Sadly, it was completely unintentional. :::sobs:::

[iam416]

Lmao, Hoss, but what's with the 3 completions? Otherwise, accurate. Bausermann is now 3 for 24 in road games. At the time, it was unbearably frustrating. Now, I can laugh. I won't, however, watch him take another snap. I just can't do it.

[entropy]

if it makes you guys feel better, OSU is now part of history.. biggest comback for Nebraska, ever.... first BIG win

[entropy]

talent... so what did you think of the game experience?

[entropy]

I posted that picture on facebook and a buckeye friend of mine typed:

"I wish a booster would pay him."

LOL

[Wild Hoss]

Lmao, Hoss, but what's with the 3 completions? Otherwise, accurate. Bausermann is now 3 for 24 in road games. At the time, it was unbearably frustrating. Now, I can laugh. I won't, however, watch him take another snap. I just can't do it.

LOL, yeah that's an obvious oversight, but still pretty funny.

Having sat through the Mickey Joseph/Mike Grant years at NU however, I can sympathize to some degree. The inability to throw a competent downfield pass is extraordinarily frustrating, especially these days when the average D1 quarterback is throwing for 62%, and there's a dozen or so throwing for better than 70%. I was amazed at Taylor's efficiency yesterday, but it was pretty pedestrian by national standards.

[entropy]

if you have a good running game, you can be predestrian. I'll take taylor at predestrian than what we've seen so far.

[iam416]

Entropy:

I enjoyed the game experience. It's a good venue. I was under cover with the OSU fans, so I avoided the rain and it's always fun to be in the away section. Downside -- it was stuffy up there and I was sitting next to the most optomistic OSU fan I've ever encountered -- one who thought that as if by saying something it would happen. At 27-27, she said, alright, we're going to score. I looked at her and told there's no way in hell we're scoring again. Heh.

Pardon the digression -- good gameday experience -- crowd was really dead by the end of the first half, but really electric by the 4th. Bah.

Overall, the in-stadium experience was very good. The only thing I'd give middling grades is the band/team entrance, but I'm a snob when it comes to that. Heh. Stadium, though, was loud. I'd rate it as louder than Neyland but a touch behind PSU in my experience. If I weren't stuck up where I was, I think it would have been louder than PSU.

"I wish a booster would pay him."

On the plane ride back, a guy said he hopes the NCAA considers Bausermann as self-imposed penalty, and if they do, they should give us an extra 5 scholarships a year. A common refrain. Also heard--the Bausermann experience is a death penalty -- only worse -- we have to watch the body writhing in pain for 12 games before it dies.