By Will Cummings
myHitNews.com

The recent decision by the Big Ten brass to place the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the same division was a move made in heaven for football fans around these parts of the country. Having spent time in both Nebraska and Iowa, there is no mystery—based on my observations–that Iowa and Nebraska football fans are not particularly fond of one another: In general, Iowans seem to think that the Husker fans are full of themselves and living on past glory, while the Huskers fans outright dismiss Iowa football as being of any significance in their eyes due to their futility in head-to-head competition against them and in collecting national championship hardware.

Iowa vs. Nebraska Football History Since 1891

Historically, things have not gone well for Iowa football teams in their head-to-head contest against the Huskers: Nebraska leads the series with a record of 26-12-3. But the overwhelming majority of those games occurred prior to 1946. And the earliest of those meetings dates all the way back to 189l. That first battle was waged in Omaha, where Iowa walloped Nebraska 20-0. However, after the 1946 game–a 21-7 Iowa victory–the two teams did not meet up again until 1979, when Nebraska escaped from Iowa City with a close-fought 24-21 victory. The Hawkeyes and Huskers have only met five other times since ‘79. During that span, the Hawkeyes are a dismal 1-4 against their neighbors to the West. As illustrated in the table below–Iowa suffered severe beatings by Nebraska football teams:

So there you have it.

Based on the record between the two football teams, Nebraska fans have every reason to be dismissive towards Iowa Hawkeyes football. As for the Hawkeye fans, perhaps they are suffering more from an inferiority complex and a touch of envy when it comes to their feeling about the Huskers. Sure, Husker fans may be full of themselves—but don’t they have every right to be?

Nebraska’s 5 National Championship Trophies

The above data appearing  in this article was collected from the College Football Data Warehouse.

Related Links:
Iowa Hawkeyes vs Nebraska Cornhuskers: Who Has the Best Football Program in the Neighborhood?

Iowa Hawkeyes VS. Nebraska Huskers: Which Team Will Have Best Record in 2010?

By Will Cummings
myHitNews.com

The digital world we live in is truly amazing. I’m late to the game on Twitter, but I’m giving it a shot. It’s another new technology that MHN is implementing like this post which is being written on my mobile phone. I’ve had the capability to do it for quite some time–until now, just never pulled the trigger.

You can access the myHitNews1 Twitter on our site by clicking on its tab at the top of the page. Of course you can also access it from anywhere as long as you have an account.

I’ll be giving our new-to-me Twitter and mobile post technologies more of a whirl later tonight at the game–if I can manage to do so in between taking shots of the action.

 Cast Your Vote for Hawkeyes or Huskers to Finish on Top in 2010  

Omaha, Nebraska's Niles Paul looks to be the difference maker for the Huskers in 2010.

By Will Cummings
myHitNews.com   

Ooh baby! Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Nebraska Huskers: The Heartland is only a football season away from partaking in what is destined to become one of the nation’s hottest college football rivalries.   

 The Big Ten has brought into its fold one of the most fabled college football programs in the country. In fact–from a historical perspective — winning five national championships since 1970 (1970, ’71, ’94, ’95 and ’97)–the Nebraska Huskers are the de facto best football program in the Big Ten. That’s a no-brainer considering that the entire Big Ten has only produced two national titles since 1968.  

Sorry Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State: those are great programs with some legendary coaches and athletes along the way, but over the past 40 years—combined–you don’t possess near the number of college football’s finest dust catchers as the Huskers own. On the other hand, it has been thirteen years since the Huskers have added any more of them big and shinny best–in–the–land trophies to their collection. And that brings us back to the here and now.  A lot of college programs have caught up to the Huskers and quite a few have simply just been better over the last dozen years or so.  Case in point: the Iowa Hawkeyes.   

Senior QB Ricky Stanzi will need to minmize the turnovers but keep his wining leadership for Hawkeyes to earn the ultimate reward.

The Iowa University Hawkeyes may have never won a single national college football championship, but throughout their history they have consistently fielded one of the better football programs in the country.  And over the past decade—the Hawkeyes have produced better football teams than the Huskers as evidenced by both teams’ records and final AP rankings (click link to article on Hawkeye and Huskers stats over past decade).   

This season both Iowa and Nebraska will field teams that have legitimate chances of winning their conferences and playing for a national title.  Can you imagine an Iowa and Nebraska BCS game—even a championship game between the two? It’s a possibility! That is the great thing about the preseason—everything is still possible.    

Below is the side-by–side comparison between the Nebraska and Iowa 2010 football schedules. Take a look and then vote for the team that you think will finish the 2010 season with the best record and highest AP poll ranking this season: Iowa or Nebraska? 

Nebraska Huskers 2010 Football Schedule					Iowa Hawkeyes 2010 Football Schedule
Date	Opponent (Home Red)	Location	MHN Pick W (Win) L (Loss) ? (undecided)		Date	Opponent (Home Gold)	Location	MHN Pick W (Win) L (Loss) ?  (undecided)
Sat, Sep 04	Western Kentucky	Lincoln, NE	W		Sat, Sep 04	Eastern Illinois	Iowa City, IA	W
Sat, Sep 11	Idaho	Lincoln, NE	W		Sat, Sep 11	Iowa State	Iowa City, IA	W
Sat, Sep 18	Washington	Seattle, WA	?		Sat, Sep 18	Arizona	Tucson, AZ	?
Sat, Sep 25	South Dakota State	Lincoln, NE	W		Sat, Sep 25	Ball State	Iowa City, IA	W
Sat, Oct 02	Break				Sat, Oct 02	Penn State	Iowa City, IA	?
Thu, Oct 07	Kansas State	Manhattan, Kan	W		Sat, Oct 09	Break
Sat, Oct 16	Texas	Lincoln, NE	?		Sat, Oct 16	Michigan	Ann Arbor, MI	?
Sat, Oct 23	Oklahoma State	Stillwater, OK	?		Sat, Oct 23	Wisconsin	Iowa City, IA	?
Sat, Oct 30	Missouri	Lincoln, NE	?		Sat, Oct 30	Michigan State	Iowa City, IA	W
Sat, Nov 06	Iowa State	Ames, IA	W		Sat, Nov 06	Indiana	Bloomington, IN	W
Sat, Nov 13	Kansas	Lincoln, NE	W		Sat, Nov 13	Northwestern	Evanston, IL	?
Sat, Nov 20	Texas A&M	College Station, TX	?		Sat, Nov 20	Ohio State	Iowa City, IA	?
Fri, Nov 26	Colorado	Lincoln, NE	W		Sat, Nov 27	Minnesota	Minneapolis, MN	W
Sat, Dec 4	Big 12 Championship	Arlington, TX	Will they be here?		Schedule Notes:  We should know a lot about the Hawkeyes by the time they meet up with Penn State. How they handle the Cyclones and their travel out West to Az will be a good indicator as to how they should perform this year  against the rest of the big boys. Losses against both AZ and Penn State would be fatal to the Hawk’s psyche and their hopes for a conference title. Even if they do go into the their break at 5-0—don’t get too excited. They still must bump heads with Michigan, Wisconsin, Northwestern and Ohio State. A brutal second half! Positive is: they get the Buckeyes at home this year and it could be for all the marbles.
Schedule Notes: NU has good shot at being 5-0 by the time they meet up with big bad Texas at home. But Huskers are still not home free if they get by the Longhorns: They finish off the second half of schedule against Missouri and Texas A&M and Colorado won’t be a rollover. Positive is: they do not play many of the pollster’s preseason Big 12  No. 1 pick Oklahoma in regular season this year.

Karma — in Indian religions the concept of “action” or “deed”, understood as that which causes the entire cycle of cause and effect (from wikipedia).     

Dr. Tom Osborne: A 2007 ESPN Poll picked him as the greatest college football coach of all time. However, his legacy as an athletic director may be even greater as he leads the Husker Nation into the promise land of the Big Ten Conference.

The above is a condensed simplistic definition of a complex religious concept originated by the Indo-Aryan peoples over three thousand years ago. At its core karma is simply a concept found in most religions, whereby a dogmatic framework or rationalization is provided to explain the effects that human actions deeds thoughts, energy, and unseen forces have on the materail world and our souls. 

So what does all this religious mumbo jumbo have to do with Husker football? Well, I am going to use my personal bare bones—concept—of a kind  karma to illustrate how numerous actions and deeds as well as forces and energy culminate, over time, to produce various specific outcomes. And to explain why as a result of this karma–the Huskers will not win the 2010 Big 12 Championship.   

Oh, and before anyone shouts  “Husker Hater,”  back in May, I originally predicted that the Huskers would win the 2010 Big 12 Championship (click here for article)—but that was well before Dr. Tom Osborne and company decided to jump the leaky Big 12 vessel  for the bounty laden cargo aboard the SS Big Ten. Now everything—most notably the karma–is different.    

Osborne’s Texas Nightmare

The Huskers’ abrupt move to the Big Ten and the subsequent—unexpected–survival of the Big 12 Conference are the significant karma dirt that have changed my mind on NU holding aloft the conference championship trophy in 2010. Ironically, in retrospect, it’s the same type of karma that snatched an apparent conference title from the Huskers last season–in Texas–against arch nemesis Texas University.   

It’s no secret that during the formulation of the Big 12 Conference that, Dr. Tom was not a fan of absorbing so many Texas schools into the former Big 8—especially the Longhorns. Dr. Tom understood recruiting and money and he knew that the State of Texas had an abundance of both.  He understood that it would only be a matter of time before long-dollar Texas and the South Division schools would begin to dominate the conference. It didn’t take long for Osborne to face the new reality. The very first Big 12 Championship pitted Nebraska against Texas: The Longhorns won 37-27.  

Texas QB Colt McCoy celebrates by showing off the 2009 Big 12 Championship Trophy, after rallying his team to a come from behind last second 13-12 victory over Nebraska at the Dr. Pepper Big 12 Championship Game held at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on December 5, 2009.

We can only imagine Dr. Tom’s thoughts last December as he sat in Arlington, Texas Cowboys Stadium and witnessed those Big 12 officials snatch victory from his Huskers by ADDING ONE MORE SECOND ON THE CLOCK, and the sinking feeling in his gut as he watched Hunter Sullivan’s kick sail 46 yards between the uprights and over the crossbar to propel Texas to another Big 12 Championship.  

The aftermath–Less than six months later, Dr. Tom found a way out from the cobbled together, unholly alliance that he always believed-would favor the big-money and talent-rich Texas schools.   

…Let my people go…
                                   Exodus 5:  1 

In my estimation, Dr. Tom Osborne was–the–behind the scenes driving force and main shaker involved in the Huskers move to the Big Ten. This also should be of no surprise to anyone because the highly polished and renowned silver haired football coaching legend and well-connected former U.S. Congressman possessed all the knowledge, skills and panache necessary to masterfully orchestrate the Huskers move to the Big Ten in quick order.    

If Tom Osborne would have won that 2006 gubernatorial primary race he would have gone on to win the general election–he would still be governor of Nebraska right now. Fortunately for Husker football fans–at the most critical point in Nebraska University’s Athletic Department history–Dr.Tom Osborne was available to become the new Director of the Athletic Department. The type of athletic director that could formulate and execute a plan to quickly bring the Big House back into order.  

There would be no Bo Pelini,Carl Pelini, All-World DT Ndamukong Suh and Nebraska would not be headed to the Big Ten if Dr. Tom was not at the helm of the athletic department.   

Reliving that history may lead many to think: “In the grand scheme of things all of these events point in favor for of a Husker Big 12 title in their last year of conference play. After all it’s Osborne’s fortune—his pay back for last season. It’s his destiny to leave the Big 12 in the same glory that he left his coaching career in 1997–as champions!”   

Fairy Tale Ending: A Nebraska 2010 Big 12 Championship

A Husker Big 12 Championship could indeed become reality in December 2010. Perhaps all the related actions, deeds, forces and energy will culminate into a NU  Big 12 title and BCS Championship. And Nebraska’s triumphant entrance into the Big Ten Conference as the reigning National Champs. That would indeed reafirm the brilliance of perhaps the greatest college football intellect of our times—Dr. Tom Osborne.  

It’s a nice fariy tale ending for Nebraska Cornhusker fans–but don’t count on it happening. And here are 3 reasons why I think the karma is all wrong for a Husker Big 12 football Championship in 2010:

I would certainly be willing to contribute to the effort.   

By Will Cummings
myHitNews.com

I’ve been away for awhile due to some commitments, but I will be back in earnest after the July 4th break.

Until then, below is the list of the  top dogs in the class of 2011 and the schools that have been hunting them down.

As anticipated  the 2011 Gang  is shaping up to be a very worthy class indeed.

Nate Skold, a 6-foot-8-inch 280 pound behemoth OT out of Omaha Westside, recently became the seventh Nebraskan in the class of 2011 to pick up a D-1 offer (Tulane). Still plenty of time left in the recruiting calendar to add a few more names to the list. 

 Last updated: July 24, 2010

Class of 2011 Nebraska High School Football Prospect Board OFFENSE
NameSchool	POS	HT, WT Bench, Squat; 40 yd Shuttle Vertical	ESPN Score	Rivals Rank
Linemen
Ryne Reeves Crete  First Team Super-State Offer: Nebraska; Commitment: Nebraska	OL	6-3, 285340, 4205.2 5.00 27″	79 POS RK-2   ESPN’s  Top 150 Watch List	4 Star 5.8
Aaron Frey Pius X 1st Team All-City	OL	6-3, 215NRNR NR NR	NA
Zach Sterup Hastings St Cecilia    All-Nebraska 2nd Team   Offer: Iowa University, Kansas, Kansas State, Ohio, Wisonsin, Louisville, Memphis, Minnesota, Nebraska (Committed), Notre Dame, UCLA Stanford–more to come!	OL	6-9, 265NRNR NR NR	78  POS RK-26	4 Star 5.8
Nate Skold Omaha, Westside  Offers: Tulane, North Dakota, North Dakota State, South Dakota	OT	6-8, 280NA5.60 NA 23″	NA	2 Star 5.3
Running Backs/ Fullbacks
Tre’ Sacks Millard South Second Team All-Metro	RB	5-5, 185	NA	NA
Cleo Miller Omaha Benson     2nd Team All-Metro	RB	5-9, 160NRNR NR NR	NA	NA
Ryan Randall Blair 2nd Team All-Nebraska1st Team All-Omaha Area Junior Year	RB	6-1, 190  NR NR NR NR	NA
Richard Wynne Jr. Creighton Prep	RB/CB	5-7, 162260, 3355.05 NR 31″NR NR NR	NA	NA
Quarterbacks
Jimmie Forsythe Omaha Burke 2nd Team All-NebraskaFirst Team All-Metro Offer: South Dakota Sophomore Year	QB/ATH	5-11, 175 235, 360 4.45 NR 30″	NA	2 Star   5.2
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Galen Gullie Omaha Bryan Second Team All-Metro	WR	5-9, 175 NR NR NR NR	NA	NA
Ted lampkin Omaha Central    Second Team All-Metro  Offer: Iowa State (committed), Kansas State	WR	5-7, 159 NR 4.37   4.42  35″	74  POS RK-92	3 Star   5.5
Athletes
Derrius Vick Lincoln Southeast 1st Team All-City Offer: Colorado State, North Dakota State, South Dakota State	ATH	6-2, 180 230, NR 4.6 NR 31″	NA	2 Star  5.4
Bryce Bostwick Lincoln East 1st Team All-City	ATH	5-11,175 NR NR NR NR	NA	NA
Quentin Urban Millard South First Team Super-State First Team All-Nebraska  Junior Year	ATH	5-11, 185 250, 355 4.59 4.03 35″	NA	NA
James Muhammad Lincoln North Star Junior Year	ATH	5-8, 150NRNR NR NR	NA	NA

Class of 2011 Nebraska High School Football Prospect Board DEFENSE
Name School	POS	HT, WT Bench, Squat 40 yd Shuttle Vertical	ESPN Score	Rivals Rank
Linemen
Brandon Yost Millard West First Team All-Mertro	DL	6-1, 250 NR NR NR NR	NA	NA
Lucas Mickels Creighton Prep	DL	6-0, 283 NR	NA	NA
Ryan Wheeler Millard North	DE	6-4, 244 (295, 405) 4.93 4.28 26″	NA Invited to U.S. Army National Combine	2 Star 5.2
Eddie Ridder Mount Michael	DE	6-6, 212 NR NR NR 31″	NA	NA
Linebackers
Cole Fisher Millard North  First Team Super-State Offer: Iowa University, Kansas	LB	6-3, 185 250, 380 4.62 NR NR	NA	3 Star 5.5
Broderick Boehm Lincoln Southeast 1st Team All-City	LB	5-11, 195 270, 390 NR NR NR	NA	NA
Nate Kroupa Omaha Burke Second Team All-Metro   Junior Year	LB	5-11, 215 305, 510 4.7 4.4 31″	NA	NA
Gus Petersen Cambreidge  2009 Class C2 1st Team All-State	LB	6-2, 195 275, 400 NR	NA	NA
Drew Ott Giltner	LB	6-3, 217 245, 360 4.85 NA 36″	NA	NA
Josh Swanson Gerining	LB	6-0, 197 NR	NA	NA
Antony Ridder West Point Central Cath.	LB	6-2, 195 250, NR 4.7 NR 26	NA	NA
Brock Sherman Crete	LB	6-0, 203 300, 420 4.6 4.4 30″	NA	2 Star 5.3
Joshua Martin Plattsmouth	LB	5-9, 155	NA	NA
Ben Muff Crete    Offer: North Dakota State	LB	6-1, 200 290, 330 4.5 NA 33″		2 Star 5.3
Defensive Backs
Austin Tompkins Lincoln Southwest 1st Team All-City	DB	6-1, 175 NR NR NR NR	NA	NA
Zach Leinbaugh Millard West First Team All-Metro	DB/ K	5-8,175 NR NR NR NR	NA	NA
Cole Spurgeon Gretna 1st Team All-Omaha Area	DB	6-3, 195 NR NR NR NR	NA	NA
Daniel Davie Beatrice Nebraska (committed), Kansas, Ohio University, North Dakota State	S	6-0, 181 250, 335 4.4 4.24 38″	NA Invited to U.S. Army National Combine	3 Star 5.5
Will Sailors Lincoln Northeast	DE	6-4, 244 350, 385 5.2 4.72 30″	NA Invited to U.S. Army National Combine	NA
Trias Bolton Omaha Westside Offer: North Dakota	DB	5-11, 170 NR 4.55 NR NR	NA	NA
Kickers/Punters
Tyson Broekemeir Aurora First Team Super-State	P	6-0, 165 NA NA NA NA	NA	NA
Tanner Jones Hastings	K	5-10, 170 NR	NA	NA

Class of 2011 Full of Talent At the Top

Zach Sterup: The big fella is racking up the offers.

By Will Cummings
myHitNews.com

   The State of Nebraska, with a meager population base of only 1.8 million and geographically situated in the far from glamorous Midwest farm belt–where the winters can be brutally unforgiving and the summers torridly hot–continues to produce some of the nation’s best high school athletes.  To illustrate the point, just look at the top dogs in the Nebraska high school football class of 2011:

Zach Sterup–The Hasting St Cecilia Catholic giant has already picked up double-digit numbers of D-1 offers and 4 Stars from Rivals. “The Big Freak” is also a very talented basketball player who could be on his way to becoming one of the most sought after athletes in the history of Nebraska high school sports.

Ryne Reeves—The Nebraska commit also recently picked up 4 stars from Rivals and is rated as high as the #2 center prospect in the country. Who knows how many offers the Crete High senior-to-be may have picked up if had not immediately pounced on the Nebraska offer.

Ted Lampkin—The dynamo from Central holds offers from Kansas and Kansas State. If you are talking about athleticism and explosiveness (24 and 48 feet plus long and triple jumper) and speed (4.37 forty), Lampkin is your man– a potential college game-breaker deluxe.

Daniel Davie—The “Beatrice Bullet” rocketed his way to state meet All-Class gold medals in the 100 and 200 meter sprints. A healthy-sized  six-footer, Davie has a huge upside to go along with his 38” vertical and 4.40 forty. He currently holds an offer from Ohio but is sure to have more come his way.

Davie received D-1 offers from Kansas and Nebraska, shortly after this article was posted.

Cole Fisher—The Millard North LB claimed two early offers from Iowa and Kansas. Tall and long with plenty of frame to fill, It’s obvious that there are some good genes in the Fisher family. Cole’s brother is already a stalwart for the Huskers. Daddy Fisher could also play some ball in his day.

Derrius Vick—The multi-talented and shifty dual-threat QB from Lincoln Southeast picked up a football offer from Colorado State to go along with his basketball offer from the Rams. Strong camps and/or a good senior season should produce some more takers.  A lot of talent and presence in Vick.

   The talent in Nebraska is often ignored by D-1 recruiters seeking the far more fertile grounds of Texas, Florida, California and the likes. But make no mistake about it–Nebraska high schools produce a lot of good football players.  A major reason why the Huskers have won five national titles and 2009 Division II National Champions Northwest Missouri State has been so successful is because both programs field a lot of Nebraska high school football players.  We should also add Iowa University to the list of successful football programs that have benefited from Nebraska talent, over the years.

A lot of good coaching–from the midgets through high school–and that secret recipe in the water continue to produce some of the best high school football players in the nation.

NOTES:  If it becomes reality, the looming announcement that Nebraska University may leave the Big 12 for the Big Ten– as predicted by media-heads–the change will bring a whole new dimension to high school recruiting in Nebraska. Better yet It could also introduce a new monster rivalry: Nebraska Huskers vs. Iowa Hawkeyes.  And can you just imagine a Nebraska Huskers vs. Ohio State Buckeye game. Oh my!

Change is good.

Related Links:

Class of 2011 Football Prospects

Remembering the Giants That Played Nebraska High School Football

Nebraska Huskers vs. Iowa Hawkeyes

Nebraska’s Pelini Matures in the Role of Huskers’ Head Coach

By Will Cummings
myHitNews.com

Nebraska head football coach Bo Pelini looked and sounded like a man on a mission to win it all, while answering questions presented by the media during Saturday's post-Spring Game session.

   For anyone clinging to the possibilities of the Nebraska Cornhuskers winning the 2010 Big 12 Football Championship and having a shot at the 2011 BCS title game–you may have to temper those hopes a bit. Unfortunately for the diehard NU football fans–up to this point–the 2010 edition of the Huskers football team has definitely posed more questions than answers as to how they can accomplish the task of bringing home this year’s conference championship trophy:

   The most pressing concern for NU will be in regards to their quarterback situation, and this does not bode well as quality performance from this position is critical to the success of any championship team. Last season’s returning senior QB, Zac Lee, completed over 59% of his passes and lead the team to a 10-4 record, including a Holiday Bowl victory. This spring Lee is still recovering from the surgery he had over the winter to repair his throwing arm.  As a result Lee was unable to gain valuable repetitions and further confidence in his abilities during spring drills. This development produces a significant threat to any hopes of the Huskers making a title run this season.

   Sure, this spring the Huskers saw improvement from backup sophomore QB Cody Green and the rise of redshirt freshman Taylor Martinez, but Green is still raw and saw limited action last fall, while Martinez is yet to play a down of college football.  There is nothing like having a seasoned, war-hardened and healthy senior QB at the helm. And if Lee is unable to return to form it could make for a rocky 2010 season for the Huskers.

Huskers Offense Shows a Lot of Promise

   On the hopeful side, the Huskers offense will field enough high caliber athletes to compete with any team in the country. The O-line is suffering from some rep time losses for former Omaha Burke lineman Ricky Henry (injured shoulder) but it still has enough experience and high quality beef to produce the space necessary for the likes of senior Roy Helu Jr., and sophomore Rex Brurkhead to rumble through the carnage in bunches. 

   By all accounts, senior wideout Niles Paul, from Omaha North, had an excellent spring and has become more consistent with his hands and routes.  Paul and TEs Mike McNeil and Ben Cotton, and WR Will Henry and others make up one of the top returning receiving corps in the conference. But again–will there be a QB capable of consistently getting the ball to this talented crew?

Husker Defense: Life Without a Boy Named Suh

   On defense the Huskers come out of the spring looking a little shaky. Gone is heralded ALL-WORLD DT Ndamukong Suh—the kind of dominant college-lineman that only comes around to a program like Nebraska’s every decade or two. Without his presence the Huskers will be a lot more vulnerable on defense. There is no doubt that the junior DT from Cozad, Nebraska, Jared Crick, ranks high among the nation’s best interior defensive lineman. However, you must account for the fact that he greatly benefited from having Suh take the lion’s share of attention from opposing offenses. Of course for that matter the LB’s and secondary were also beneficiaries of having both of these two studs wrecking havoc upfront. At present, the secondary–with the loss of senior playmaker Matt O’Hanlon–is shaping up to be the weakest link in the Huskers’ defensive armor. As the Defensive line still looks to be solid despite the loss of Suh and the LBs should at least be very competitive.

Huskers Have the Overall Talent to Win the Big 12 In 2010

   Across the board the Huskers have all the horses to be a legitimate Big 12 champion contender. Whether or not they will arrive at the destination in 2010 will all hinge on three factors: (1) Their play at QB, (2) the development of the defense and (3) team chemistry–will the type of leadership emerge that will carry the team through to victory at critical points in a game.

Pelini Sending the Right Message  

   If Bo Pelini’s demeanor and comments at his post Spring Game press conference serves as any indication as to his team’s success in 2010–a lot of things will have to get markedly better between now and kickoff on September 4th.  That being said, the Huskers are going to benefit by having a couple of soft games to open the season, which will help them to get things together before they head out to the West Coast to face Washington on September 18.

   Maybe Pelini’s post Spring Game attitude and the statements he made (which I thought may have been his best oratory presentation to date) is exactly the kind of demeanor, words and motivational ammunition that his players and staff need to recieve to get them into the right gear to approach what is certainly an obtainable goal.  More and more Pelini seems to be maturing into the kind of head coach that can deliver a championship program. Now that he has the horses–the rest will be up to fate.

Prediction

   The Huskers with a healthy Zac Lee at the helm have a better than a 50% chance of winning the Big 12 Conference Championship in 2010. Without a healthy Lee in the picture the Huskers chances for a title diminish considerably. In this event–more than ever–they will have to rely on the orchestral skills and motivational abilities of their maturing head coach, Bo Pelini. And the latter is my reason–over any other–for picking the Huskers to win this year’s Big 12 Football Conference Championship.

By Will Cummings
myHitNews.com

The MHN Final Top 25 High School Football Prospects: Class of 2010 rankings is based on the overall bottom line ability of a prospect making an impact on the college game during his career. Therefore, it is weighted heavily in favor of prospects that will be attending D-1 A or D-1AA programs, since those schools represent the highest level of college football and receive the most attention from fans, media and professional scouts.

The overall ranking of each player relative to his peers is based on the combination of the following criteria.

a,) The school that the prospect will attend.

b.) The prospect’s overall raw talent level reflected by his size, speed and/or quickness.

c.) The prospect’s proven ability in high school to play the position he was recruited to play.

Taking the above criteria into account in its entirety leads me to the following ranking for the Nebraska high school Class of 2010:

Analyst Give Good Marks to Huskers’ 2010 Recruiting Class

Take Our Poll (left sidebar) on the top three walk-ons

By Will Cummings
myHitNews.com

   Four scholarship players and thirteen preferred walk-ons from the Nebraska high school football class of 2010 will soon find their way onto the University of Nebraska campus in Lincoln:

Nebraska High School Class of 2010 Football Players On Husker Roster
Scholarship Players
Jake Cotton, DL, 6-7, 250, Lincoln Southwest	Bronson Marsh, QB, 6-0, 200, Millard South
Tyler Evans, ATH, 6-2, 180, Waverly	Andrew Rodriguez, OT, 6-6, 305, Aurora
Walk-ons
Josh Bart, DB, 6-1. 170 Aurora	Trevor Roach, LB/RB, 6-3, 230, Elkhorn
Joey Felici, DB, 5-9, 160, Millard South	Dillon Schrodt, WR 6-2, 175, Lincoln North Star
Derek Foster, DB, 5-11, 175, Elm Creek	Zach Taylor, RB, 6-0, 195, Lincoln Southeast
Andy Gdowski, DE, 6-3, 235, Grand Island	Jeff Uher, DL/OL, 6-2, 270, Creighton Prep
Tyson McGill, LB/FB, 6-1, 225, Norfolk	Yusef Wade, RB/DB, 5-10, 170, Lincoln North Star
JC Moore, DE, 6-3, 240, Fremont	Austin Williams, DB, 6-2, 190, Omaha Burke
	Tyler Wullenwaber, WR, 6-1, 180, Centennial

No more complaining about Bo Pelini not recruiting kids from Nebraska, eh.

   The Huskers 2010 class is ranked as high No. 23 in the nation by some of the top recruiting analyst in the country. However, the Husker still struggle to land the very top prospects like Portland, Oregon DE Owamagbe Odighizuwa. But they did manage to get their fair share of some very good prospects like Corey Cooper (DB), Jermarcus Hardrick (OT), Brion Carnes (QB), Braylon Heard (RB) and Chase Rome (DE) to name a few of the players that stand out to me.

    This Husker class may be the best since the Husker hay days in the ’90′s. The mantra coming out of Huskerville is mental and physical toughness. That is what Pelini hangs his hat on and what he expects his players aspire to possess. The Huskers displayed that temperament on the field during the last half of the season this year. If the Huskers continue to play that way–and you know that Pelini will insist they do–they will never have to worry about not getting what experts deem to be the elite five star players. In fact: playing “Bo Ball” the group of athletes that the Huskers have assembled right now is good enough to win a national title next season. Actually accomplishing that task will be another matter entirely.

   Next season can’t get here fast enough for the Husker diehards. It is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated football seasons in Nebraska’s history.

Nebraska High School Recruiting Notes:

Outside of Millard North’s 6-6, 300lb OT Lincoln Hansen’s late D-1A offer from Eastern Michigan (0-12 last season) the biggest shocker was a couple of Class D-2 prospects from 2009 state champion Humphrey’s St Francis receiving D-1AA offers from a very good South Dakota State program that made it to the FCS playoffs last season. SDS is where St. Francis’ 5-11, 180lb DB Mathew Korus and 6-4, 215lb DE Nick Krings will be playing next fall.

Another prospect that seemed to slip under the radar but managed to land a D-1AA scholarship is Omaha Skutt Catholic’s 6-1, 190lb LB Myles Jablonski  who will be attending North Dakota. Jablonski runs a 4.5 40 and looks to be the kind of prospect that could deliver some big plays for he Fighting Sioux.

Ron Coleman, Omaha North’s two-time All-Nebraska football star and state champion wrestler will play RB for D-1AA Southeast Missouri State.

Omaha Northwest’s Antaries Daniels, Papillion receivers Glenn Lewis, a 2009 All-Nebraska First Team selection, and Sir Bullock reportedly signed with Iowa Western Community College.

No word yet on Burke’s All-Nebraska first team WR Lavant Moore or speedster Stephon Washington.

Check out where others are going here.

myHitNews Final Top 25 Nebraska High School Football Prospects:Class of 2010 ranking will be posted on Saturday (2/6/10) evening.