Husker Fans and Codependence

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
How did two out of sixty some thousand people so
stand out? Two of the hardy Husker fans who committed
their Friday afternoon to the Iowa game. One was literally
in the last seat on the top row of the
upper East Stadium balcony, six stories from the field. There
forty five minutes prior to kickoff and stayed until both

(00:21):
teams exited to the locker rooms. What was in it
for him? Below him was another one in the road
just behind the Husker bench, spent the last quarter of
the game berating the Nebraska coaches and players, reminding them
of how much of his money they're getting to perform
like that? What was in it for him? Clearly both,

(00:43):
like a lot of us, may be suffering from a
tiny dose of code dependency. A Contrary to the optimists,
I don't think this year showed a lot of progress
in the program. When you have it, you aren't confronted
with the questions, doubt, and overall indifference many Nebraska's feel
After Matt Rules thirty seventh game, we were promised this

(01:04):
wasn't going to happen in year three? Who promised? Well
about everybody who doesn't have to buy a ticket or
make a donation to see the game. The actual quote
from coach Rule in August was, I think we're pretty
damn good unquote. But Jim, we're going to a bowl game. Oh,
all you need is six wins to qualify for one,
and they still don't have enough teams to fill them all?

(01:27):
What about the great wins Maryland, Michigan State UCLA. Statistically
they were three of the worst teams in the Power Four,
combining for ten total wins, twenty six losses, and twenty
two consecutive defeats to end the year. Northwestern, that was
a good one six and six, four and five in

(01:48):
league play. In our game, they were a kick return
and a dumb Cough interception away from a win, which
made Iowa the best team we played. Now, how did
that go? Actually, this was the easy Husker schedule in decades. Now,
some will say that's bs when you went nearly ten
years between bowl games. Nobody is for sure a w Yes,

(02:09):
there is when you spend money on free agents and
they don't. You think Iowa's roster had a bigger price
tag than ours. Minnesota's Michigan State, which pushed Nebraska around
for two and a half quarters in Lincoln or UCLA
with the worst defense in the FBS, and interim coach
was one fourth quarter stop from having the ball on

(02:30):
a chance to tie the game. But Jim, this was
a young team. Give him some slack. Really, where was
it young offensive line? In August that starting five had
two hundred and twenty seven games and one hundred and
twenty three combined starts. Receivers Dane Key and Isaiah Hunter
leave this season with a combined two hundred and forty

(02:50):
one career receptions. Secondary Buford Singleton, Sierra Wright Marshall one
hundred and fourteen combined starts linebacker. This This was McCullough's
third D one program in four years. Watson Trent was
All Conference in the Sunbell last year, and Jave and
Wright has been in the program seven seasons. Yes, there

(03:11):
was a youth in a few spots, but this was
not an inexperienced team. We're rebuilding a culture, sure about that?
Show me A solid winning culture involves teaching guys how
it takes a mastery of little things to win big things,
and improved culture doesn't commit one hundred and eleven penalty
yards in the last two games of the season, including

(03:33):
lining up in the neutral zone and illegal substitution, delay
of game, and three personal foul flags on kick returns.
Can you really build continuity when in the last two
years the staff brings in ninety new players, including twenty
seven transfers who took jobs a lot of existing players
spent three years trying to get How is it that

(03:55):
five of six captains this year either threw or caught
the ball, but not one lineman. Seems like we have
no identity, just promises designed to get Nebraskans to spend
a little bit more on free agents and hotshot recruits.
While we keep driving down a lonely desert road hoping
for a gas station. Our two fans are in the car.

(04:18):
One is sure, it's just over the next hill. The
other one says, we passed it a long time ago,
and I'm really mad at myself for not stopping. By
the way, the fans have names. One is loyalty, the
other is devotion.