Nebraska 24, Colorado 7
October 29, 1994
CLASSIC LOON DROPPINGS
Nebraska 24, Colorado 7
October 29, 1994
Say what you will about the Nebraska Cornhuskers, but don't ever say that they don't have a strong tradition. This can be evidenced in many ways -- for example, at least nine wins each year, the number of 11-year-old children in the state named "Irving," "Mike," and "Turner," and a sellout streak that dates back to the Pleistocene Epoch. In fact, putting rump roasts into the seats at Memorial Stadium is probably as good a part of the tradition as the Huskers' beefy linemen. The highly rated Colorado Buffaloes, of course, were everyone's sacred cows this year, and in this juicy matchup all the hotshot wisecrackers on ESPN figured the Big Red was dead meat. Glad Bill McCartney and his pretty boys from Boulder bought into that hype, too -- it was like leading Buffs to the slaughter.
A few takes:
BROOK, LINE AND SINKER: Everyone knows that No. 18 is an avid hunter and fisherman. After Saturday, everyone knows that Berringer's casting arm is pretty good for flingin' the football, too. Brook ran the Cornhusker offense to precision, suckering in the Buffaloes with perfect play-action passing. Do you suppose CU's defensive folks have figured out that Nebraska likes to throw to the tight end? Methinks they had that figured out by the time Eric Alford nabbed a pretty Berringer spiral to make it 24-0. The best part was during the post-game interview, too, when Berringer downplayed his performance and gave all the credit to his teammates. Babbling Brook, he's not.
RUSH ON SALAAM: Certainly, Rashaan Salaam has powered himself to the top of the Heisman heap with his tough running. It is a good sign for Mr. Salaam's chances, however, that he does not have to face the Cornhusker defense again this season. Though the hotshot ran for 134 yards, don't be fooled: Those numbers are phonier than O.J. Simpson's alibi. The Blackshirts were ferocious, never allowing CU to get a third-down conversion the whole game and turning Kordell Stewart into Jimmy Stewart. I say, those Buffies might be able to beat some Big Ten team like Michigan with the Hail Mary ball, but against guys like Barron Miles and Tyrone Williams there was no chance for late-game heroics this week. In fact, a good man on the Buffalo offensive line was harder to find this week than Courtney Love's pride.
THE EYES HAVE IT: I have it on good authority that Dr. Tom waited until this season to install the mighty HuskerVision replay screens so he could steal a win from the Buffs. See, half the time the glitzy, flashy Colorado players were caught looking up at the massive screens, just to get an idea of what they looked like on TV. By the time they realized they were actually football players and not walking ESPN highlights, CU was down four scores. Score another one for the wily Dr. Tom!
NOT-SO-HAPPY VALLEY: Don't look now, Penn State, but here comes a big, red steamroller flyin' up on your hind side. With its big win over the No. 2 team in the country, the third-ranked Huskers are sure to gain more votes this week than Newt and his Republicans will during the mid-term elections. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if NU jumped over the Nittany Lions. After all, the only reason NU was shoved from the top spot was because of Tommie's blood clots -- no team has been able to whack the Big Red as of yet. It's time for Nebraska to reclaim what is rightfully theirs: The title of No. 1 team in all the land.
THE BOTTOM LINE: In the locker room after the game, CU's running back told reporters that he would return to Boulder for his senior season. Why pass up NFL riches for another year with the Buffs? "Unfinished business," Salaam said into every microphone shoved his way. Funny, that's the exact same slogan that a certain group of red-clad men have been using all year long in their quest for Dr. Tom's first title. And if they play the rest of their games the way they did against the black-and-golden boys from out west, business might just be good. With Rashaan out of the way, NU still has to battle dudes with funny names, starting this week in the form of a determined bunch of Kansas Jayhawks. They have one dude named Ashiki and another named Ashundi, but it's gonna take more than colorful monikers to pull off an upset on the Killing Field of Memorial Stadium. Nebraska 42, Kansas 7.
==STEVE==