If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.
If you are having difficulty logging in, please REFRESH the page and clear your browser cache and try again.
If you still can't get logged in, please try using Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Firefox, Opera, or Safari to login. Also be sure you are using the latest version of your browser. Internet Explorer has not been updated in over seven years and will no longer work with the Forum software. Thanks
Tom Osborne and Oklahoma coach Barry Switzer before the Orange Bowl after the 1978 season.
2 hours ago ? By Steven M. Sipple
WHAT: "A Tribute to Tom: Night of Legends Gala," honoring Tom Osborne.
WHEN: Saturday night.
WHERE: CenturyLink Center, Omaha.
WHO: Guests will include Barry Switzer, Barry Alvarez, Bo Pelini, Bill Snyder, Scott Frost, Irving Fryar, Charlie McBride, Craig Bohl, Eric Crouch, Johnny Rodgers, Mike Rozier, Bob Stoops.
* Proceeds go to The Teammates Mentoring Program and the NU Athletic Research Center for Study of Brain and Sport Performance.
Related Links
Barry Switzer envisions a relaxed atmosphere.
No way he would miss this event.
"Chris Fowler is going to come out as emcee, we're all going to sit on a couch, and we're going to respond to the questions he throws out," the former Oklahoma football coach said.
Oh, the stories Switzer could tell. Especially about Bob Devaney. Yeah, birds of a feather. Switzer also has a few about his good friend Tom Osborne.
Switzer no doubt will bring his "A" game Saturday night for "A Tribute to Tom: Night of Legends Gala," honoring the recently retired Osborne. Hosted by NU athletics, the event will be held at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha.
Fowler, the ESPN "College GameDay" host, will give the night a big-time feel. In that regard, he'll have help: Bo Pelini, Barry Alvarez, Bill Snyder, Scott Frost, Irving Fryar, Mike Rozier, Charlie McBride, Craig Bohl, Eric Crouch, Johnny Rodgers and Dennis Haysbert (you know, the Allstate Insurance commercial guy), to name a few.
It is billed as "a fun, interactive evening with interviews, video features and 'sideline reports.'" Ten-person tables cost from $2,500 to $10,000, and individual tickets from $250 to $1,000, with proceeds going to The TeamMates Mentoring Program (established by Tom and Nancy Osborne in 1991) and the new NU Athletic Research Center for Study of Brain and Sport Performance.
A crowd of about 2,000 is expected.
Switzer, of course, is capable of stealing the show. Flash back to 2006, when he came to Lincoln to help raise money for Osborne's bid for the Republican gubernatorial nomination. It was a memorable occasion. Switzer was at the top of his game. When Switzer enters a room, any room, it's often like a wave of energy arrives, such is his charisma.
Osborne, of course, is slightly less gregarious, though he is charismatic in his own unique, understated way.
"He's Dr. Tom," Switzer said of the former Nebraska coach and athletic director. "And I'm just a slap-happy, go-lucky, loose-as-a-goose kind of guy. But we both have great respect for each other. We both know the game. Know how to coach. Know how to recruit. And know how to get kids ready to play. That's all that counts. We did it different ways.
"There are no magic playbooks. If there was one magic playbook, we'd all be doing the same damned thing."
I've never heard Switzer mention it ? perhaps you have ? but he was 12-5 against Osborne. However, one of Oklahoma's losses sticks in Barry's craw to this day. If Fowler wants to get a rise out of Switzer, he need only ask him about Nebraska's 17-14 triumph over top-ranked Oklahoma in 1978 on a cold, gray November day in Lincoln.
"We fumbled the son of a gun at the 2-yard line (actually the 3), and it cost us the national championship," said Switzer, his voice rising as if the defeat occurred yesterday. "We led the nation in practically every category, offensively and defensively. We had the Heisman Trophy winner (Billy Sims), the Outland winner (center Greg Roberts).
"We fumbled nine times that day. Lost six of them. We couldn't overcome the ninth one."
I've long marveled at how coaches can move on so quickly after such debilitating setbacks (Oklahoma defeated Oklahoma State 66-6 the next week). It's why folks admire Osborne's even keel.
"It hurts, but you get over it," Switzer said. "You got to get on down the road. Get ready for the next one. Football players and coaches are resilient. We can't sit around and pout. Fans, they can think about the damned losses all week long."
Switzer is traveling to Omaha with Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops, OU athletic director Joe Castiglione and Billy Sims.
Mention Osborne, and Switzer experiences a flood of memories.
"We both started as head coaches at the same time (in 1973)," Switzer said. "We both inherited great situations. I always think of Bob Devaney. I think of all those great assistants over the years. Milt Tenopir. John Melton. Monte Kiffin. Warren Powers. All those guys. Even Don Bryant. I became close with those guys.
"We were the best two programs in the country. For years, we were the dominant powers. Hell, we were the ones. Then Tom did what he did in the 1990s. It was kind of neat to see all that."
Does Switzer have a favorite story he likes to tell about Osborne?
He paused.
"I'll save them," he said. "Get there on Saturday night, OK?"
Post Extras:
Grammar... The difference between feeling your nuts and feeling you're nuts.
10 hours ago ? By BRIAN CHRISTOPHERSON/ Lincoln Journal Star
OMAHA ? It was truly a red-carpet affair. The long train of a woman's dress served as a carpet for those walking into the CenturyLink Center banquet hall for a "Tribute to Tom ..."
Meeting the media before Saturday night's event began, Tom Osborne did not know exactly what awaited him. It'd probably be overwhelming, he predicted of the party in his honor.
"I hope it's not real heavy and I don't think it will be, knowing the cast of characters."
Yes, the characters.
They all came to honor Osborne: Barry Alvarez, Bill Snyder, Charlie McBride, Craig Bohl, Jerry Moore, Eric Crouch, Ndamukong Suh, Scott Frost, Johnny Rodgers, Barry Switzer. ESPN's Chris Fowler served as emcee.
"Fair catch, fair catch," Switzer joked as he poked his head into a room where Rodgers was answering questions.
"No fair catch, Coach," Rodgers joked back.
Both would agree on one thing: Osborne is the genuine article.
"You could call him a father figure, brother figure, mentor kind of guy, who took an interest in you, period," Rodgers said. "If I called Tom in 1971, he'd call me back. And if I called him in 2013, he'd make sure he'd call you back. He really hasn't changed."
Then came Switzer. He carried a drink in his hand and said: "I brought this for Bob Devaney."
Jokes aside, Switzer said there was one point he really wanted to get across.
"What Tom accomplished in his career (are) the greatest 25 years any college football coach has ever had," said the former head man of the Oklahoma Sooners and Dallas Cowboys. "He cast a shadow longer than anyone who has ever coached the game. You don't win like what he won and not be the best."
Though competitors, and having far different personalities, Osborne and Switzer became good friends through the years.
Switzer recalled calling Osborne in the early 1990s when Nebraska was dominating. He wanted to know what the heck had happened to the Husker-Sooner rivalry.
Switzer remembers Osborne telling him: "Barry, when you left, the rivalry left. It's not the same."
The games meant a lot. But they were nothing without the relationships.
Osborne was the first guy Bill Snyder called when Snyder was asked, after retiring as Kansas State's coach the first time, about being the Kansas lieutenant governor.
After discussions, Snyder ultimately decided to turn down the offer. It turned out good for K-State.
"Tom's everybody's friend," Snyder said. "Just an individual that has all his values in place and cares about people."
It's those relationships, whether it be with coaches or former players, that Osborne said he'll cherish the most from his experience with college athletics.
"People forget about the championships and the wins and losses," Osborne said on his big night. "If you had to name the Heisman Trophy winner from 10 years ago, or national championship team from 15 years ago, it's probably a little bit hard to name them. But the relationships persist. I guess that's one of the great things about coaching that I'll always appreciate.
"I was with Bob Devaney the day that he died. It's kind of interesting, because we didn't talk about games or championships or awards. We talked about relationships. So at the end of things, that's really what it all comes down to."
It's his attention to other people that made Osborne so special, McBride said.
He remembers Osborne used to go into the freshman team's locker room every day to talk to kids, asking how they were getting along.
In a place where kids away from home are wondering how they fit in, Osborne's interest meant everything, the former Husker defensive coordinator said.
"If you asked Tom during the season to sit down and ... write every person's name down on the football team, and where he was from, and his parents' names, he could do that," McBride said.
Consider there could be upward of 150 players on the team at one time, that's no small feat.
McBride will also tell you Osborne was just as much a coach's coach as a player's coach.
"I don't know one time in my time there that he came in and said, 'Charlie, I don't like the way you're teaching this or you're teaching that.' And he was one of those people that was always upfront with you.
"If you wanted to talk to him, he'd tell you the exact truth and he'd give it to you cold-turkey. If you didn't like it, that's the way it was. And at the end of the year, we'd have a meeting and he would want us to tell him the things we didn't like about him, if there was anything."
There are funny stories to tell, of course. McBride didn't know if he should say it, but Osborne did drive pretty fast, as he recalls.
McBride remembers one spring when Osborne asked him if he wanted to go fishing with him on the Snake River. Sure enough, 10 minutes after the spring game they were in a car.
And making good time. Osborne usually did.
"It was the days of 55 mph and I looked over and we're going 72," McBride said.
As McBride remembers it, a state patrolman pulled them over in Long Pine. A swell guy, but not so much that he didn't hand out a ticket. But you know, he made good conversation.
On their way back home after the fishing trip, McBride found out Osborne's ticket made the front page of the area paper.
Just a funny story remembered on a night of stories. Osborne may not even recall it. But you couldn't help but wonder: How many times did the patrolman tell that story?
Post Extras:
Grammar... The difference between feeling your nuts and feeling you're nuts.
Scott Frost told the crowd he always thought TO did want anyone politicking for the NC because of a moral belief... Little did he know years later how bad Tom was at politicking.
Bo's best story was when he said he was pretty nervous before his 1st game in 2008, and he says Tom came up to him in the locker room to wish him well and Bo said do you have any advice coach? Tom says to Bo "Just one thing Bo." Bo said "what is that coach?" Tom said "don't ever take any crap off of those refs."
Line of the night... Scott frost says he only saw tom nervous once but it was bad, right before the flea kicker play vs Missouri in 1997. Said Tom's hands were shaking as he was trying to read his play chart. Tom said later his hands were shaking because he knew it was going to be the last play and he was going to have to ask frost to pass the ball
Switzerland told his stories about the pranks devaney and he used to pull... Many Nebraska fans know of Barry's surprise visit on Bob's weekly TV show, but what many of us didn't know was the next year, devaney hired a stripper to dance on one of Switzer's shows. As it started, Barry leaned around her and into the camera said "Bob Devaney, I know you did this.. Where are you?"
Grammar... The difference between feeling your nuts and feeling you're nuts.
Chris fowler (very good and gracious and said bama's "dynasty" didnt compare to ours)
Holly Rowe (great job too as roving interviewer, especially getting jimmy burrow and billy sims together side by side for the first time in 35 years to discuss "the fumble")
Ron brown gave the invocation
Bo Pelini
Charlie mcbride (told hilarious story about Tom calling a defense against ou that resulted in a long td run)
Trev alberts
The jet
Scott frost (hilarious)
Eric crouch
Mike rozier (funny)
Billy sims
Jim burrow
Tommie Frazier
Bob stoops
Bill Snyder
Barry Alvarez
Irving fryar (might have given the best speech of the night about TO being a father to him and how TO planted seeds)
Ndamukong suh
Harvey Perlman (who presented Tom's entire 12 person family with a 10 day fishing trip to Belize from NU)
Tom spoke last
Great video with heartfelt messages from guys like Dave Rimington (who choked up at the end and barely finished), grant wistrom (same, started to cry), Vince Dooley, grant teaff, Jim delany, lee corso, bob devaney's son and Clarence Thomas (who closed the videos with a three minute speech about Tom and nancy that brought of TO's family to tears).
I am sure I'll remember others later.
Eichorst attended and kept a very low profile but was engaging. Tim beck, Barney cotton, jack pierce, Will shields, Neil smith, milt tenopir, tony Samuel, Zach weigert, Jerry Moore, John Melton, guy ingles, terry conneally, Craig bohl, and several others attended and mingled.
A young man, covered in head-to-toe bronze paint, rode the long escalator down to the main floor of CenturyLink Center on Saturday. He was a living Heisman Trophy on his way to somehow help salute retired Nebraska Athletic Director Tom Osborne.
If you got within 10 feet of him you could smell the paint. If you got within two feet of him you could see that the paint was covering a Ryan Klachko jersey. A fitting disposal, I suppose, of a jersey no longer needed in the Nebraska football offices, but a fitting choice as well. Concussions forced Klachko to give up football.
Hail Varsity E-News
Name:
Email:
Half of the proceeds from Saturday night?s tribute to Tom Osborne will go to the new research facility in East Stadium that will devote major resources to studying concussions. The other half will go to Osborne?s Teammates mentoring program.
Osborne?s passionate about those things. It?s hard to imagine that there was any other way to lure the laconic coach out on the town on a rainy night to be feted by nearly 2,000 fans, former players, and colleagues other than with that promise ? it will do some good.
That was always the motivation behind a stunning career as an administrator, teacher and coach and this was to be it?s big, sweet and surreal send-off.
Ninety minutes before the event started Osborne was asked what he thought about being the featured guest.
?I don?t know yet,? he said. ?(It?s) probably a little overwhelming.?
Not long after that, Barry Switzer showed up. The party could officially begin.
***
On the floor above where the living Heisman Trophy was posing for pictures, a living Heisman Trophy winner was explaining what Tom Osborne meant to him.
?He taught me how to catch a BB at midnight with no moon with my sunglasses on,? Johnny Rodgers said because Johnny Rodgers talks like that.
Barry Switzer interrupted him. He entered the room, drink in hand, and yelled, ?Johnny! Fair catch! Fair catch!? because Barry Switzer enters rooms like that.
?I brought this for Bob Devaney,? Switzer said of the drink. ?I just didn?t feel right being in Nebraska, sitting in front of a mic, and not having a drink sit there and think of Bob. It just makes me feel more comfortable.?
Truth is, Switzer?s comfortable anywhere. It?s his most redeeming quality. He dominates the room, even if the room is 95-percent full of former Nebraska greats. He talks about mortality ? ?I?m in the fourth quarter. I hope I?m not near the two-minute warning, I don?t think I am, and I plan to play overtime.? ? and it?s okay, even at a retirement ceremony. It?s all in the delivery.
Osborne isn?t present at the rowdier reception room upstairs, but just about everyone else is. They all got there via a woman?s dress that served as the red carpet.
Mike Rozier wears a newsboy cap, of course. Guests lounge on strategically placed sofas, their feet up on ottomans covered in turf, their arms slung over custom-screened Tom Osborne pillows. Wisconsin Athletic Director Barry Alvarez has his photo taken with Dennis Haysbert, either the Allstate guy or Cerrano from Major League depending on your era. Nobody is quite sure why he?s there and nobody really cares.
None of it makes sense, but none of it needs to. This is the answer to the night?s burning question: How do you celebrate a man who had an almost inhuman aversion to celebration?
The answer? You go big and hope it works out.
***
?Football is a game for not very well-adjusted people,? Charlie McBride said at the opening of dinner.
On Saturday, the maladjusted seemed to feel perfectly at home among each other. Bob Stoops and Tim Beck chatted in the corner. Matt Davison and Scott Frost joked back and forth. Jerry Moore and Craig Bohl, two former Osborne assistants who?ve won national titles of their own at the FCS level, held court at one of the 150 tables in the CenturyLink Center?s ballroom. Vince Dooley, Grant Teaff, and R.C. Slocum sent their regards via video.
A good portion of college football?s history is here, but also it?s present and future. Frost, an up-and-comer in the coaching ranks, shared that Osborne?s hands were shaking when he called the play that became the famous flea-kicker of 1997.
?It was the only time I saw him nervous,? Frost said.
?My hands were shaking because I realized we were going to have to throw the football,? Osborne says later in the night. It?s a counter punch to a good-natured jab Frost had thrown earlier regarding his willingness to campaign on Nebraska?s behalf following the 1998 Orange Bowl and Osborne?s sub-standard campaigning abilities as evidenced by his failed 2006 gubernatorial bid.
The stories and memories fly all night long. Irving Fryar captivates the room with the story of calling Osborne moments after he crossed the podium and received his doctorate degree in Theology. He tells of the story of Osborne?s in-home recruiting visit, where the coach listened to Fryar?s sister play piano and drank the Kool-Aid Fryar had mixed up. That was enough to get the New Jersey kid to Nebraska.
Tommie Frazier shared his Husker origin story too. Osborne visited him the day after losing 22-0 to Miami in the 1992 Orange Bowl. Most of college football?s royalty had spent some time in the Frazier living room that year and Tommie?s dad didn?t talk to any of them. But Frazier?s father spoke to Osborne that day. ?That?s when I knew I was going to Nebraska,? Frazier said.
The stories and memories flew all night long, interrupted by occasional bits of live entertainment. Osborne?s career was interpreted through dance. There were Las Vegas impersonators in the house. Ol? Blue Eyes didn?t have blue eyes and Neil Diamond was a little pudgier than I remember but Osborne took it all in quietly.
Somehow, Chris Fowler, who earned every penny he was paid, kept it all moving. ?This is the craziest program I?ve ever seen,? the ESPN analyst said. It was a rare bit of understatement.
Before Osborne closed the night by thanking the crowd and accepting the gift of a fishing trip to Belize from UNL Chancellor Harvey Perlman, the Michael Jackson impersonator, the best of the night, worked through a spot on version of Jackson?s famous ?Smooth Criminal.?
It was that kind of night ? a fake Michael Jackson directly addressing Coach Osborne as ?Tom.? One man had made a career being somebody else. The other had made a career out of being unlike anyone else.
When their path?s crossed on Saturday in Omaha, neither of them ever could?ve seen it coming.
Grammar... The difference between feeling your nuts and feeling you're nuts.
My favorite moment of the night ... and a memory I will have forever ...
I walk into the restroom and I notice Billy Sims and Barry Switzer. While standing next to coach I say, "Dang, water's cold." He chuckles and says, "I don't even want to take my dick out in front of Billy. Damn!"
I just about piss all over myself laughing so hard. Whole damn bathroom was erupting in laughter.
Grammar... The difference between feeling your nuts and feeling you're nuts.
Bo Pelini spoke recently of Nebraska constructing a "recruiting building." I think he was only half-joking.
He might soon have to hire a player-personnel director who oversees an NFL-style personnel department, complete with regional scouts.
Yeah, bizarro world, as Pelini likes to say.
At the moment, however, he's in limbo with everyone else.
Perhaps you've heard about the NCAA's sweeping plan to deregulate college football recruiting. Well, not so fast. The NCAA announced last week that a 15-person rules working group has recommended to the NCAA board of directors modification of two of the most controversial proposals adopted in January.
The first would have allowed essentially anyone in the football offices — even sports information directors — to contact prospects. Hence the potential for what would amount to recruiting call centers.
The second would have allowed coaches to send recruits an unlimited amount of printed material, meaning the 500-page media/recruiting guide would make a triumphant return. Hold the phone on that rule, too.
As for the controversial proposal that would allow programs unlimited contact with recruits (phone calls, texts, tweets, anything) — there is no planned modification.
Let me get this straight: The unlimited-contact proposal would remain intact, but coaches would be left to handle all of that contact. I'm sure Pelini just loves that possibility.
Nebraska recruiting coordinator Ross Els basically laughs to keep from crying.
"To me, (NCAA officials) didn't do anything to help the (high school) student-athlete because he's still going to get bombarded," Els said.
Meanwhile, coaches' workloads would increase dramatically.
"We would have to take time out of our meetings, etc., to do all that communication," Els said.
The unlimited-contact proposal is a bit repulsive in some ways. We've been through that. In some ways, though, the proposal makes sense. For one, coaches wanted streamlined recruiting rules. Well, they're going to get that. In addition, such an arrangement would greatly minimize the need for third and fourth parties in the recruiting process.
What's more, coaches no longer would have reason to complain about restrictions hindering their ability to get to know athletes.
I'm not going to condemn rules before they're even tried. NCAA officials note that men's basketball has operated with many of the same rules for nearly a year, with mostly positive feedback.
Modified proposals will be considered by the D-I board of directors May 2. Until then, Nebraska essentially is in a holding pattern as it considers adding positions such as player-personnel director.
"We still have to see what rules are going to be passed," Els said. "There is so much up in the air right now. We're talking to people about possible new positions, but we don't know what's going to happen."
One of John Wooden's maxims comes to mind: Be quick, but don't hurry.
"We're not just waiting and seeing (what happens)," Els said. "We're talking about guys and we're talking to guys, but certainly we're not going to hire someone and then a few months later say, 'Oops, your position is eliminated.'"
For what it's worth, Els dislikes the idea of schools being able to send out an unlimited amount of printed materials.
"I think that would open the floodgates and let us do whatever we want," he said.
A few big-money schools no doubt are licking their chops. Stay tuned.
* Two red flags from Nebraska's spring camp:
1. Walk-on Brodrick Nickens, a senior from Alliance, has gone from working with the second-string offensive line to taking reps with the second-string defensive line, despite not having played defense since high school. Guessing that doesn't happen at Alabama.
2. Husker coaches say they expect highs and lows from a youthful defense. Trouble is, we saw extreme highs and lows from last year's veteran unit. In other words, buckle up.
* As an ardent Moe Iba fan, I was interested last week hearing Dave Hoppen reflect on his former Husker basketball coach. It was a mixed review. Iba was a master with X's and O's and always treated him fairly, Hoppen said.
"From a personality standpoint, he was not the greatest," said NU's all-time leading scorer. "He didn't have a real good relationship with his players. I didn't go to Nebraska because of Coach Iba. He didn't 'wow' me with his recruiting. He actually hated recruiting. … But he really knew how to coach."
Just as I thought.
* Nobody asked me, but the decision is easy: Ameer Abdullah sits out the rest of spring. As for the Red-White Game, Tug-o-War, anybody? Anything to spice things up for the Big Ten Network. What could be more important?
Grammar... The difference between feeling your nuts and feeling you're nuts.
Big Ten Network analyst Gerry DiNardo learns all he can about teams, a process that involves trips to every league school to watch practice.
He watched Nebraska on Wednesday and came away with some, well, tweets:
-- "Z. Anderson jumps out - on track to have outstanding season. Love the way K. Bell practices" (HuskerExtra.com response: Zaire Anderson evident has recovered well from major knee surgery last fall).
-- "O Line was very impressive. They have 2 do a lot in the scheme and have to be athletic & they r" (HuskerExtra.com response: This has to be music to Husker fans' ears).
-- "J.Cotton much improved based on today's practice, 2 early 2 tell but this could be best O Line in B1G"(HuskerExtra.com response: Jake Cotton, a 6-foot-6, 305-pound junior, could emerge as starting left guard).
-- "Bad news A.Abdullah dinged - good news I.Cross getting a bunch of reps with the 1 O. Good 4 depth in fall" (HuskerExtra.com response: Wonder if Imani Cross concedes starting spot to Abdullah. I doubt it).
-- "T. Armstrong still has a bunch of work to do but he also has a bunch of talent and only needs reps" ("He's going to be a good one," Taylor Martinez said Wednesday of redshirt freshman Tommy Armstrong).
-- (At times hard 4 me to tell but it looked like @ times 9 of 11 on 1D were Frosh/Soph.Young & can run" (HuskerExtra.com response: DiNardo's right. There are times when that is the case -- nine freshmen and sophomores on the first unit).
-- "Offense veteran and talented, Defense talented but lack experiance which means better feel 4 D in fall" (HuskerExtra.com response: I think this means he'll have a better feel for the Husker defense once fall rolls around. Makes sense).
-- "Neb should always be in a championship hunt & when on campus U can't help recall their great history"
(HuskerExtra.com response: With so much energy, passion and money going into Nebraska football, the Huskers should indeed regularly challenge for Big Ten championships, and win one every now and then).
Post Extras:
Grammar... The difference between feeling your nuts and feeling you're nuts.
1 hour ago ? Lincoln Journal Star
(2) Comments
Related Galleries
Photos: Husker men's basketball vs. Purdue, 3.14.13
Related Links
Husker Extra on Facebook
Shavon Shields scored 19 points and Brandon Ubel added 16, and the Nebraska men?s basketball team hung on to defeat Purdue 57-55 in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament on Thursday in Chicago.
No. 10 seed Nebraska (15-17) will play second-seeded Ohio State (23-7) in Friday?s quarterfinals at 5:30 p.m.
Ray Gallegos made the second of two free throws with 12.6 seconds left to give Nebraska a two-point lead, and Terone Johnson missed two jumpers in the lane in the final 5 seconds, with Gallegos securing a rebound at the buzzer.
The Huskers, picked in the preseason to finish last in the 12-team conference, defeated its fifth different Big Ten team this season, and avenged a home loss to Purdue in January.
?Obviously, when you?re going in picked last, you kind of feel like nobody believes in you but ourselves,? Ubel said. ?But we don?t need anybody outside to believe in us, because, if everybody in that locker room and on the coaching staff and everybody believes, then we?ll be fine."
Ubel, a senior forward, had 11 points in the second half and tied his career high with five assists.
Shields, a freshman guard, had 15 points in the first half, including Nebraska?s first seven of the game.
?I think they were aware of what Shavon can do,? Nebraska coach Tim Miles said. ?And I think Shavon had a really good game. They did a nice job on him after the first 11 or so points. Everything he got after that was hard-earned.?
The Huskers shot 21-of-47 from the field and were 12-of-17 at the free-throw line, although four of those misses came in the final minute.
D.J. Byrd scored 15 points, including 10 in the final 4:46, to lead Purdue (15-17). His first three-pointer of the game ? and Purdue?s first as a team ? came with 4:09 remaining to pull the Boilermakers to 48-47, capping an 8-0 run.
Dylan Talley answered with a 16-foot jumper to end a scoring drought of nearly five minutes for Nebraska, and the Huskers never relinquished the lead.
Nebraska led 30-28 at halftime, opened the second half on a 9-0 run to take its biggest lead of 11 points, then fought off Purdue late.
Nebraska won its first Big Ten Tournament game in two tries, avenging last year?s first-round loss to Purdue, and won its first conference tournament game in three years.
Ohio State, which had a first-round bye, has defeated the Huskers twice this season, most recently 63-56 in Lincoln on Feb. 2.
?Our guys will be ready to go,? Miles said. ?I think they will be locked-in, and their hearts are fresher than their legs, but I think that's going to be all right. We?ll just play a low-possession game and see what happens.?
Purdue coach Matt Painter said Shields' play made a difference.
"I thought Shavon Shields was great in the first half. He played like a senior, played like an experienced guy. So give him credit," Painter said.
"If you would have told us that we would have took their two best shooters and they would have had nine points (Ray Gallegos) and five (Dylan Talley), I would have said we would have won this game. But, obviously, we didn't. But give them (the Huskers) credit. They outplayed us."
Post Extras:
Grammar... The difference between feeling your nuts and feeling you're nuts.
A few thoughts after watching ESPN2's telecast of Nebraska's 57-55 victory over Purdue on Thursday in Chicago:
-- Unless you have a heart of stone, you really have to feel good for Tim Miles, his players and his staff. What a nice reward for what many folks (myself included) thought would be a throwaway season for NU.
Nebraska improved to 15-17. It had won five regular-season league games, about three more than I figured.
For the balance of Thursday's game, the Huskers showed more energy than the Boilermakers. Miles' team obviously has stayed together. It seems like its chemistry improved as the season progressed. That's a credit to all involved.
-- I really like that freshman Shavon Shields gets many of his points within the context of the offense. He's an intelligent player. He doesn't force things. He shows a calm demeanor -- a maturity that belies his youth. He scored 19 points Thursday on 8-for-12 field-goal shooting, helping Nebraska get off to a strong start.
-- No way I would've guessed Nebraska would win this game with senior guard Dylan Talley finishing with only five points. Credit senior big man Brandon Ubel for picking up the scoring slack. He finished with 16 points and eight rebounds. Ubel and fellow senior Ray Gallegos were a combined 3-for-7 from the free-throw line during the final 52 seconds, which made the finish more interesting than it had to be.
-- Gallegos (9 points) was only 3-for-11 from the field. But he drilled a crucial three-pointer with 8 1/2 minutes remaining to push Nebraska's lead to 48-39. NU was struggling offensively at the time and needed a boost. Gallegos to the rescue. Never mind Gallegos' shooting percentage, he has one of the prettiest jump-shots you'll ever see. Make no mistake, it's a true jump-shot. He can really elevate. You'll seldom see his shot get blocked.
-- Nebraska, the No. 10 seed, looked gassed late, which isn't surprising considering the Huskers essentially used only seven players, as is often the case. Next up is second-seeded Ohio State (23-7) at 5:30 p.m. Friday on BTN. The Buckeyes are riding a five-game winning streak.
-- Anybody else catch ESPN play-by-play man Mike Tirico's plug for Nebraska's new facilities? He said NU hoops "has as good of facilities as anyone in the country." Maybe a 6-foot-9 power forward somewhere heard Tirico.
Post Extras:
Grammar... The difference between feeling your nuts and feeling you're nuts.
Tweet
Comment