Can Ya Feel It??

Jee whiz! Here it is the 18th day of August already, and I've posted but just one thought for the month. Pretty bad showing, I'd say. I've never had a stretch where it seems every time I sit down to write, either something or someone calls my attention away from the computer, or my eyelids are so heavy, I just can't go on any longer.

As I've already alluded to, this summer has been a great one, albeit busy. We have now celebrated three birthdays in a four-month span. Korynne's was in May, Mandi's was in July, and today was Madilyn's third birthday celebration. She actually turned three last Sunday, but we chose to celebrate today in an effort to accommodate most of her friends. She decided long ago that she wanted a princess party, so all of the princesses descended on our castle at 10:00 this morning. Whoa. I'll get back to ya on that experience, once the pictures are downloaded and you can truly appreciate and understand just what happened.

And now, the real reason for sitting down and typing this post. Ladies and Gentlemen, kids of all ages, there's something a-brewin' here in Husker Nation. The football season is quickly approaching, and the levels of anticipation and excitement are higher than they've been in quite some time. Fourth-year head coach Bill Callahan has brought in some big-time recruits, and seems just one or two big wins away from returning the program to the glory days. The offensive line is beginning to resemble the coveted "Pipe Line" of the mid-90's championship teams, when the front four were as big, ugly and mean as one could imagine. Our quarterback is a transfer from Arizona State who is big-game experienced with a strong arm and pinpoint accuracy. Our projected starting running back is chomping at the bit for a huge year, and seems poised to accomplish the task. While the Husker defensive line has some question marks with no returning starters, they have already surprised more than a few folks in team practices and scrimmages.

Dare I say, the Husker program is on the rise and will knock a few heads this season while competing for its first conference championship since 1999. It won't be easy. We visit Wake Forest, another quality program on the rise, for our second game of the season. USC comes calling to Memorial Stadium the following week for a prime time matchup. Three weeks later, we visit the Tigers of Missouri who were preseason picked to win the Big XII title. If that weren't enough, we travel to Texas to take on the Longhorns. But to be the best, you have to beat the best, and we certainly have plenty of opportunity to do just that this season.

My predictions? First, I think Callahan had this USC game circled in his planner a long time ago. This will be one of those career-defining games for him, and he knows he can say a lot about himself by knocking off the mighty Trojans. I think the Huskers shock the nation and hand USC a loss. Provided we take care of business as expected, Missouri should be our only real test in the Big XII north division. I don't see us losing to the Tigers. Both defenses are at least somewhat suspect, which means it'll boil down to whoever scores more in this game. Edge: Nebraska. This scenario will at least get us into the Conference Championship game against a mightier South division opponent, probably Texas or Oklahoma. I'd love to see another classic NU-OU matchup, but that remains to be seen. I'll save anymore predictions until after the Missouri game, and we'll see just where the Huskers stand at that point.

In the meantime, I'm getting goosebumps just thinking about the possibilities for this year. Can somebody please give me a "GO BIG RED!?!?!?"