Freelance showcase and personal playground of Dave Feit
Thanks for stopping by! While I am very grateful for those who take the time to read my work, I would greatly it if you read this one on HuskerMax.com.
Why? As a writer for the site, I earn a fraction of a penny per page view. And with three mouths to feed, and a poor wife who becomes a football widow 12 Saturdays a year, I need those penny parts to keep everybody happy.
Thank you,
Feit Can Write
Thanks for stopping by! While I am very grateful for those who take the time to read my work, I would greatly it if you read this one on HuskerMax.com.
Why? As a writer for the site, I earn a fraction of a penny per page view. And with three mouths to feed, and a poor wife who becomes a football widow 12 Saturdays a year, I need those penny parts to keep everybody happy.
Thank you,
Feit Can Write
Time for another edition of the Hot Takes.
Husker fans, we have found our “Jump Around”
As we’ve discussed before, Nebraska is unsure of how to fill the gap between the 3rd and 4th quarters. The goal is to replicate the excitement, fan involvement, and impact on the other team that Wisconsin’s “Jump Around” has become. To that end, Nebraska has tried several things, most of which were failures. Here is a partial recap of what’s been done in the last 10 years:
Then along came the Killigans, a Lincoln-based “folk-punk” band. They covered a long-forgotten fight song called “The Cornhusker” and turned it into a perfect bridge between the 3rd and 4th quarters. Have a listen:
Hopefully most of you are with me on this, but if not, let me paint the big picture of why this song will work so well:
I think “The Cornhusker” is a no-brainer of an option for the coveted 3rd/4th bridge. I hope the brilliant folks in the Athletic Department agree with me, and can get a video (featuring the lyrics) put together for Saturday night.
Let’s do this. For Nebraska and the Scarlet. For Nebraska and the Cream.
Ameer Abdullah calls out the offensive line.
During Monday’s press conference, Ameer Abdullah said this about his offensive line (emphasis mine):
“We have to get better,” he said. “We lose our fundamentals sometimes. The guys are trying really hard … But when you’re in the game setting, the most important thing is your first step, keeping your first step on blocks — just the fundamentals we work on every day in practice.
“You can’t lose sight of that just because it’s a game setting. You have to go through your techniques and stuff. A lot of guys get too excited and forget the fundamentals. They’re really strong, but you’re not as strong when you’re not good in your fundamentals and techniques.
“Up front we’ve been pretty good to this point, but we have to be much better.”
First and foremost, he is absolutely right. Ameer and the other backs have not gotten the level of blocking we have come to expect from the offensive line. I’m not enough of a tactician to know if this is all because of forgotten fundamentals, but I would like to think Nebraska’s line can get a push on 80-90% of the defenses in the country.
Secondly, I think this demonstrates just how indisputably respected Abdullah is within the team and fan base. For a contrast, imagine the reaction a year ago if Taylor Martinez said the same things. Both are/were seniors, focal points of the offense, and a team captain. Without this devolving into another Martinez attack session (I use T. Magic to illustrate my point, not to compare the two players in any way), we all know that he would be absolutely crushed by the media, fans, and the message board/Twitter community. Meanwhile, Abdullah issues some of the harshest in-season criticism of teammates in recent memory and nobody bats an eye.
I’m not saying it’s bad that Abdullah is holding his teammates accountable, I’m just impressed that nobody has a problem with it. It’s just another example of the leadership and respect Abdullah has on this team.
Go ahead and boo the Canes.
I typically don’t condone booing the opposing team when they come on the field. Regardless of how you feel about the “Greatest fans” signs on the stadium gates, I feel Husker fans should focus their energy on supporting our team, not knocking down another team. Plus, many teams delay their entrance until Nebraska is coming out, so you have to choose between cheering your team and booing the opposition, which gets lost in the noise anyway.
Now, I’ll freely admit that I did quite a bit of booing during my college years (especially when Colorado or K-State was in town), but I can’t remember doing it in the last 10+ years – even when the Longhorns were making regular trips to Lincoln. (As the folks in my section can attest, refs are not exempt from my no booing policy).
But this week is different. This is Miami. The program of cocky punks like Michael Irvin, Warren Sapp, Ray Lewis, and others who embraced trash talk and taunting. The program that made habit of turning Nebraska’s New Year’s Day dreams into nightmares – on their home field. The program that won two of their national championships by beating Nebraska head to head.
I get that this Miami team is far, far removed from the Hurricanes of the 80’s and 90’s. I also get there is no logical reason to boo some kid is so young he who doesn’t understand why Tom Osborne didn’t kick the PAT, then try to win in overtime. Really, I do.
But being a fan of a team means that sometimes rational thought takes a backseat to emotion. Grudges and bitter memories linger and stew. Some wounds never heal.
Booing the Canes Saturday night may not make those things go away, but it might allow 30 years worth of demons to escape. If that’s the case, boo away.
The current game day forecast calls for temps in the 70’s with lows in the 60’s for the Miami game.
I continue to hold out hope that on Saturday night we see temps drop in the lower 30’s, with rain turning to snow after halftime.
I doubt I’m the only one.
The speculation on where NBA All Star LeBron James will go has been heating up ever since he opted out of his contract with the Miami Heat. Rumors have him going to Los Angeles to become a Laker, back home to Cleveland, or even staying in Miami with a retooled lineup.
But with LeBron, the destination is only half of the equation. Once he decides where he is going to go, how will LeBron announce it to the world?
Not how I would pick a team, but what do I know?
Arguably, he will not do another installment of “The Decision” – the one hour, live on ESPN special, where LeBron managed to piss off and alienate almost every person in America when he famously chose to “take (his) talents to South Beach”.
In announcing his next team, there are several different approaches that James can take.
Feit Can Write 