If the Nebraska football team insists on wearing black uniforms for a game a Memorial Stadium and then hoodwinks its fans to do the same — get off my lawn!
If portions of Tom Osborne Field are painted black, such as the end zones and the huge N at the center of the field, simply because the players are wearing black jerseys — get off my lawn!
If the Pride of All Nebraska, known as the Cornhusker Marching Band, dons black uniforms because the players are wearing black uniforms, the fans have been hoodwinked into doing the same and portions of the playing field have been painted black — get off my lawn!
This Grumpy Old Cornhusker hates alternate uniforms, especially all black at home games and the wimpy all whites during road games.
I do not want my beloved Big Red to look like the Iowa Hawkeyes, and I especially do not desire any type of resemblance to the Colorado Buffaloes. And I do not want my traveling Cornhuskers imitating Penn State’s road-wear.
So there. I’ve shared my grumpiness.
Now, I’ll add confusion.
I partially blame Penn State for my befuddlement.
Nittany Lions’ Head Coach James Franklin boasted a win-loss record of 101-42 between 2014 and 2024. In 2024 his team recorded 13 wins against three loses. He played for the Big 10 Championship and made it to the third round of the college football playoffs.
Enter the 2025 season and his Lions win their first three games. Then they lost the next three. Franklin was quickly fired on October 12. Franklin offers an overall record of 104 wins and 45 losses, and he is fired?
Like Secretariat out of the staring gate, the media began tagging NU coach Matt Ruhle as Franklin’s successor.
At the time, Ruhle’s overall record at Nebraska was 17 wins and 14 losses. Not exactly numbers one would print in gold on their coaching resume.
Following the week-long media circus – and please note there are a lot of clowns whose makeup attempts to hide their incompetence – Nebraska laid a giant egg at Minnesota, losing to the Gophers, 24-6. The Big Red faltered while wearing their wimpy all white uniforms.
I asked the Huskers to poo-poo that apparel plan – but they didn’t listen.
A seven-point victory the next Saturday over Northwestern was followed by Ruhle signing a two-year contract extension.
Please note, if Nebraska takes a dump the rest of this season and falters in 2026 and Ruhle is canned, that extra two years on his contact will mean an additional 18.5 million dollars in termination payments. In case you’ve forgotten, on November 26, 2022, Ruhle signed a contract guaranteeing him 74 million dollars over eight years. Now it’s roughly 92 million dollars over ten years.
So far, NU’s 92-million-dollar financial commitment has blessed NU fans with 18 wins and 16 losses.
This is in addition to the countless N.I.L. dollars that has been donated to the University’s 1890 Initiative Program and the recent opening of a 165-million-dollar athletic training facility.
So, now I’m immensely confused and it’s time for a confession.
I can’t keep up with the changes taking place in college athletics.
Especially football.
When Tom Osborne was hired as head coach in 1973, his annual salary was twenty-five thousand dollars.
The stadium’s seating was humble. Financially strapped students sat on the face of a wooden plank. So did a 70-year-old who may have donated hundreds of dollars to the football program. NU had moderate to poor training facilities (weight room, etc.) inside Shulte Field House and an average locker room beneath the south stands.
All Nebraska did between 1973 and 1997 was win championships or play for them.
The Cornhuskers hit the road this coming Saturday night for a west coast encounter with UCLA.
As of this writing, the Bruins are a 2.5-point favorite.
My assumption is that there will be thousands of NU fans – dressed in red – chanting Go Big Red!
When the Huskers gather on the Rose Bowl field, my demand is that they are wearing their traditional red pants with white jerseys.
If not, then get off my lawn!!!!