Never Really Disliked Nebraska Until This Ego-Fest

[AHF]

Nebraska quarterback Taylor Martinez's comments about the Georgia defense before the Capital One Bowl -- that the Bulldogs were "just another typical Big Ten defense" -- weren't quite in the same neighborhood as Jordan Lynch's about Florida State, but they also weren't exactly complimentary. Did the Huskers' 45-31 loss to the Bulldogs (and Martinez's offense being shut out for the game's final, decisive 24 minutes) change his tune?

Not in the slightest. Per the Lincoln Journal Star, the defeat only served to make Martinez even more insistent that Georgia -- and the entire SEC -- isn't anything special.

"I think the Big Ten, talent-wise, is a lot better, and the defenses in the Big Ten are better than SEC defenses," Martinez said. "This was supposed to be one of the top defenses in the SEC, and we pretty much did anything we wanted against them."

Even putting aside the question of why "anything we wanted" didn't include the Huskers scoring a single point in the game's final quarter-and-a-half, Nebraska's Capital One Bowl performance simply doesn't warrant Martinez's boasts on behalf of his conference.

The 5.6 yards gained per-play by the Huskers was their fourth-worst mark of the season, and two of the three lower numbers were in blowouts vs. offense-deficient opponents (Minnesota and a Michigan team playing third-stringer Russell Bellomy at quarterback) where Nebraska took its proverbial foot off the pedal.

In fact, Nebraska's performance actually suggested the opposite of what Martinez does, in terms of the SEC-Big Ten comparison. Despite its lofty preseason expectations, Georgia was a middle-of-the pack SEC defense in 2012, finishing a clear sixth in total defense behind No. 5 Vanderbilt. But against the Huskers, in yards-per-play, the Bulldogs outperformed the Big Ten's No. 1 (Michigan State), No. 3 (Wisconsin, twice), No. 4 (Penn State) and, yes, No. 6 (Ohio State) defenses.

It's a small sample size. But the Capital One Bowl results, at least, argue that the average SEC defense would, in fact, rank among the Big Ten's best ... and that Martinez is flatly wrong.

It's not just Martinez among the Huskers showing a little less respect for their conquerors than normal. This is what running back Ameer Abdullah told the Omaha World-Herald:

“I don't care if it's 'Bama, I don't care if it's Notre Dame. Georgia was nothing special. We came out, we had 'em tied. We just didn't finish. I feel like we're a better ballclub than those guys. You saw that early. We just didn't finish. ... “We knew they were gonna come out lively and talking. But if you hit 'em in the mouth a couple good times, they were gonna lay down. And that's what we did. We just didn't finish.”

Feel free to feel whatever you'd like to feel, Mr. Abdullah. But who has the "better ballclub" is typically measured by who has more points at the end of the game.

And as for Mr. Martinez, his willingness to vouch for his adopted much-maligned league is admirable; he's not wrong that the Big Ten does in fact have many good defenses and many good defenders. But it's hard to think his description of his offense's output as "pretty much ... anything we wanted" in a two-touchdown loss is anything other than sour grapes.

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/blog/eye-on-college-football/21487135/bowl-loss-doesnt-stop-taylor-martinez-from-talking-sec-smack

[coachx]

They are lucky John Jenkins was academically in eligible . Kind of hard to study and take finals with a concussion. They did have their way with us running the football bc of that. Have not seen a white boy rush the ball like that since Gerhart at Stanford and Hester at LSU. The fact their sideline was in the cool shade and our was in the warm sun was a disadvantage the Dawgs over came. They are also lucky our receivers fell down on both of Murray's INTs or it could have gotten ugly quick. Can't wait for UGA - Clemson in Death Valley next year. Dawgs could be in trouble if Murray goes pro leaving a QB to make his 1st ever start........plus 9 defensive players making their 1st start vs a senior QB with the #1WR in the country. UGA's coaches will have their work cut out for them. Props to your Tigers for that big win vs. LSU. Sorry this is hard to read. Not sure how to start new paragraphs on an iPad. I think I need the tap talk app.

Edited January 3, 2013 by coachx

[AHF]

You are upset with the Nebraska fans or the 18-21 year old players making public comments?

(1) The Nebraska stars making public comments & (2) the Nebraska coaches who let them make these comments both before the game (this I didn't mind) and after the game (which fails on multiple levels). The combination of those two things has me resenting the Nebraska football program as a collective whole at the moment.

I don't have any issues with the Nebraska fans - just the football program. The few Nebraska fans I have known (an admittedly small sample size) have been good fans and good sports.

[AHF]

They are lucky John Jenkins was academically in eligible . Kind of hard to study and take finals with a concussion. They did have their way with us running the football bc of that. Have not seen a white boy rush the ball like that since Gerhart at Stanford and Hester at LSU. The fact their sideline was in the cool shade and our was in the warm sun was a disadvantage the Dawgs over came. They are also lucky our receivers fell down on both of Murray's INTs or it could have gotten ugly quick. Can't wait for UGA - Clemson in Death Valley next year. Dawgs could be in trouble if Murray goes pro leaving a QB to make his 1st ever start........plus 9 defensive players making their 1st start vs a senior QB with the #1WR in the country. UGA's coaches will have their work cut out for them. Props to your Tigers for that big win vs. LSU. Sorry this is hard to read. Not sure how to start new paragraphs on an iPad. I think I need the tap talk app.

I am also excited about renewing the rivalry, but I think Clemson will be serious favorites next season. UGA will need a lot of young, unproven players to step way up if they want to sustain their current success -- especially if Murray leaves (although I don't expect that right now).

[jhay610]

This is poor form after a two (almost three, but for a dropped pass by King late in the game) touchdown loss. I think the conference vs conference debates, based on bowl outcomes, is overblown. I certainly understand if players and fans from other conferences are tired of hearing about how great the SEC is all of the time.

That said, these comments reflect poorly on the team. There is no question that the Nebraska offense and their uptempo style gave UGA some big problems, but let's not pretend that UGA was very good against the run all year anyway.

At the end of the day, Nebraska scored 24 points on offense (discounting the pick 6) and was shut out after the opening drive of the second half. The UGA receivers had a field day, despite missing their top three guys, against the #1 pass defense in the country.

They need to be quiet. It's fine for them to talk like this behind closed doors -- I get athletic confidence/arrogance, but you should not be speaking this way to the media, particularly after a loss.

Edited January 3, 2013 by jhay610

[macdaddy]

That's seriously delusional. Now i don't feel so bad that Martinez was pummelled viciously at the end of the game. This may be not only the most arrogant statements i've heard from the losing end of a whooping but also probably the stupidest.

[AHF]

I don't know if 2 players making comments is enough to blanket the program and it seems a little unfair to think that the coaches can have that much control over what players say. If anything I think it just makes those players look like dopes, especially since Jenkins did not play and they were embarrassed in the 2nd half.

Come August it is going to be real exciting to have the Clemson-UGA game starting up. I hope Murray stays and the game ends up being a top 10 match-up, but whoever is "favorite" probably will not matter much. I think it will be an even match-up and the atmosphere will be electric. I was fortunate enough to make it to 4 games this year including the LSU game. What an exciting game, and I was able to catch the Hawks-Pacers game on that Saturday too!

I am with you 100% in being excited about the Clemson-UGA game. That is a rivalry that needs to be in place every year. Hopefully the "new" BCS going into effect after next year will reward teams for playing games like that.

I do think that coaches have a ton of control over what players say, though. You can't stop someone from saying something stupid once but you can publicly smack them down afterwards and make it known that this isn't acceptable in your program...which is exactly what a coach like Nick Saban, Frank Beamer, Mark Richt, etc. would do. The fact that the Nebraska staff didn't do this taints the current state of the program for me. If I were a coach, I would make sure my players didn't do this ever again because it makes them and the team look bush league and makes the coach look like he doesn't have control of his players.

Not the same thing if they talk smack and win (although many coaches wouldn't accept that sort of wholesale bashing in that context either). A coach like Spurrier likes to talk smack but he is smart enough to do it when he wins and shut up when he loses...which still breeds resentment but at least a level of respect goes along with that.

[DrReality]

It was all settled on the field. the Huskers used to be dominant in a different decade. Not any more.