Talkin' Football
Okay, before I get back into more weighty issues I have a couple of football items to get off my chest.
Item 1: Nebraska is *sigh* rebuilding.
After my attendance at the Nebraska/Missouri game in Lincoln this weekend, I came away with a few opinions.
I held out hope that new coach Bo Pelini was going to be able to turn around the Cornhuskers this very season. He's not. Too much is broken. He'll be doing very well to make a bowl game with this team. If he doesn't accomplish that, it's no reason to abandon his effort. There is a LONG ways to go to fix this team. How much of this is due to the regime of former coach Bill Callahan is hard to tell. But... after all those highly ranked recruiting classes Callahan supposedly pulled in, the Huskers were clearly lacking against the skill players of Missouri. And the lack of depth at some key positions for Nebraska (D-line especially) was glaring.
Chase Daniel is a special player, who has the smarts and skills you rarely see at the college level. As much as Pelini changed looks and formations and brought pressure, it really didn't matter. He and the Missouri offense were crisp and a step ahead the whole game. That said, the Nebraska defense was often fouled up by their own hand; getting caught out of position, making penalties, and over pursuing so much Missouri made easy yards with cut-back runs all night.
Anyway, the Missouri fans in attendance were fairly gregarious people. They expected to win. They won. They were happy. They weren't obnoxious about it.
Nebraska fans were very unhappy with the officials due to a couple of questionable calls against the Huskers early, and took out a lot of their disappointment on them when it came to booing. But more than anything they resigned themselves to "rebuilding" and morosely left the stadium early by around the middle of the third quarter. Kind of sad. But they'll surely keep filling the stadium win or lose for the rest of the season as they always do.
Item 2: The Vikings Win, Fire Brad Childress
The Vikings won a ridiculously weird game against the New Orleans Saints tonight. The game turned for the Vikings on a blocked field goal, returned for a Vikings touchdown, and two Reggie Bush punt returns for Saints touchdowns. Adrian Peterson was effectively shut down as the threat by New Orleans, but Gus Frerotte stepped up just enough to compensate for the win.
All that said, Brad Childress continues to cement his reputation as an idiot. Ahead 20-10 in the second half, Childress once again refused to commit to the run. Yes I know Peterson was not having a big night, but he does best when you get him in a steady rhythm of carries. Plus, 3 and out running drives eat more clock than 3 and out passing drives, which was what Childress got instead.
Brad Childress is likely to lead a very talented team to yet another losing season because he thinks his terribly predictable playbook is more interesting than adapting to the skills of his players. Adrian Peterson should be the feature of this offense, but under Childress he still looks alot like the "backup running back" Childress kept calling him last season. I can only imagine how good the Vikings might be if the teams tonight switched head coaches. That would have people talking about a Vikings Super Bowl.
On a side note, Vikings Defensive Coordinator Leslie Frazier is doing a much better job than the statistics will indicate. This is a much improved defense from a year ago. Teams are putting up big passing numbers as before, but in key situations they're being shut down. Can't wait for Madieu Williams to return from his pre-season injury.
Item 1: Nebraska is *sigh* rebuilding.
After my attendance at the Nebraska/Missouri game in Lincoln this weekend, I came away with a few opinions.
I held out hope that new coach Bo Pelini was going to be able to turn around the Cornhuskers this very season. He's not. Too much is broken. He'll be doing very well to make a bowl game with this team. If he doesn't accomplish that, it's no reason to abandon his effort. There is a LONG ways to go to fix this team. How much of this is due to the regime of former coach Bill Callahan is hard to tell. But... after all those highly ranked recruiting classes Callahan supposedly pulled in, the Huskers were clearly lacking against the skill players of Missouri. And the lack of depth at some key positions for Nebraska (D-line especially) was glaring.
Chase Daniel is a special player, who has the smarts and skills you rarely see at the college level. As much as Pelini changed looks and formations and brought pressure, it really didn't matter. He and the Missouri offense were crisp and a step ahead the whole game. That said, the Nebraska defense was often fouled up by their own hand; getting caught out of position, making penalties, and over pursuing so much Missouri made easy yards with cut-back runs all night.
Anyway, the Missouri fans in attendance were fairly gregarious people. They expected to win. They won. They were happy. They weren't obnoxious about it.
Nebraska fans were very unhappy with the officials due to a couple of questionable calls against the Huskers early, and took out a lot of their disappointment on them when it came to booing. But more than anything they resigned themselves to "rebuilding" and morosely left the stadium early by around the middle of the third quarter. Kind of sad. But they'll surely keep filling the stadium win or lose for the rest of the season as they always do.
Item 2: The Vikings Win, Fire Brad Childress
The Vikings won a ridiculously weird game against the New Orleans Saints tonight. The game turned for the Vikings on a blocked field goal, returned for a Vikings touchdown, and two Reggie Bush punt returns for Saints touchdowns. Adrian Peterson was effectively shut down as the threat by New Orleans, but Gus Frerotte stepped up just enough to compensate for the win.
All that said, Brad Childress continues to cement his reputation as an idiot. Ahead 20-10 in the second half, Childress once again refused to commit to the run. Yes I know Peterson was not having a big night, but he does best when you get him in a steady rhythm of carries. Plus, 3 and out running drives eat more clock than 3 and out passing drives, which was what Childress got instead.
Brad Childress is likely to lead a very talented team to yet another losing season because he thinks his terribly predictable playbook is more interesting than adapting to the skills of his players. Adrian Peterson should be the feature of this offense, but under Childress he still looks alot like the "backup running back" Childress kept calling him last season. I can only imagine how good the Vikings might be if the teams tonight switched head coaches. That would have people talking about a Vikings Super Bowl.
On a side note, Vikings Defensive Coordinator Leslie Frazier is doing a much better job than the statistics will indicate. This is a much improved defense from a year ago. Teams are putting up big passing numbers as before, but in key situations they're being shut down. Can't wait for Madieu Williams to return from his pre-season injury.
Posted by Doug Williams on
Monday October 6, 2008 at 11:33pm
I've been checking in on you sporadically and like your message and flair for the Queen's English. Keep it up.
Give your old Uncle Bob a shout sometime.