Jeff, I can remember in '86 telling you "you will be an old man before CU beats Nebraska".

They would love to spoil our season this year...
oldtennisbum | 11.14.06 - 7:58 am | #

Good post and a particularly problematic question. It's apparent that NU-CU is definitely a rivalry south of I-80. Bill McCartney made it the "red-letter" game, blah, blah, blah.

But the problem for Nebraska fans is that for 20 years OU-NU was THE game. Between 1970-1989, the teams met 20 times, and 14 of those games were between two top 10 teams.

By the time Colorado was becoming nationally relevent around 89-90, we'd had years of focusing on one opponent and the reaction seemed to be, "wait, now we have to worry about Colorado too?" (KSU would do the same thing about 8 years later.)

I think that indignation definitely fueled things for CU. As the Buffs surged the Sooners swooned and then the Big XII did away with any hope of NU-OU remaing a true rivalry in '96.

Sure Oklahoma and Nebraska will play meaningful games in the future and every time they do we'll dust off the old clips, but it'll never be what it was simply because they don't play every year.

So I guess the question becomes, do we want to have a rival or not? If we do, I think it has to be Colorado.

(Which brings up another question: Can you choose your rival? Ask any Husker fan born pre-Return of the Jedi and I think they'd prefer Oklahoma, anyone after that...there are probably enough tough CU games to warrant the Buffs.)

I'm done, finally.
Brandon | Homepage | 11.14.06 - 9:23 am | #

Brandon,

Good thoughts. I really would much rather have OU as our key rivalry game. There was a time when I just assumed Tom Osborne and Barry Switzer would coach against each other forever.

Obviously CU works as a rivalry game but when they come in with a 2-9 record I admit it feels a bit manufactured. Hence my decision to go back to the rivalry's roots.
Jeffie Husker | Homepage | 11.14.06 - 12:13 pm | #

Exactly. CU "works" as a rivalry game. They win by defaut because NU plays them on the same non-trad football day every year.

But the series definitely lacks the "you throw out the records" feel of many rivalries. In the past 25 years, Nebraska leads the series something like 19-6, and that encompasses CU's heyday.
Brandon | Homepage | 11.14.06 - 1:49 pm | #