Derek Rau got his favorite Husker item the night before the Nebraska Cornhuskers won their most recent national championship.

Rau, then 17, was in Miami for the 1998 Orange Bowl and staying at the same hotel as the NU football team. While their parents were partying in the lobby with other Husker fans, Rau and his brothers were peeking through the window of the hotel’s game room watching players like Ahman Green shoot pool when one of them motioned for the brothers to come in.

“We were just admiring the players,” said Rau, a former Marine and currently a security guard from Omaha. “They said we could come in and I was like huh-uh, no way.”

When Rau and his brothers got inside, everyone in the room came up and signed the Husker jersey Rau’s brother was wearing. That jersey would become Rau’s favorite Husker item, not just because he cared about the autographs, which he did, but also because of the story behind the signatures.

That’s the same way with most Husker fans and their favorite piece of Big Red memorabilia. The item isn’t just cherished for what it is, it’s cherished because it reminds them of the story when their favorite NU icons became real humans before their eyes.

That’s why Stan Schleifer, a administrator at the University of Nebraska at Omaha and a Husker fan from Bennington, and several members of his family have a picture of a sweaty Tom Osborne with Schleifer’s son hanging from their fire place mantles.

It was 1987 and Schleifer and his son were visiting Nebraska and they went up to the practice field to watch the Huskers run through plays. Afterward, Osborne was running around the track and eventually, he stopped and walked over to Schleifer and asked if he could do anything for them.

“How about a picture with you and my son?” Schleifer asked him.

“Not too many people would have stopped,” Schleifer said more than twenty years later.

Why is the sweaty picture of the former coach so cherished?

“It wasn’t the idea of having it as much as it was the story of how we got it,” Schleifer said.

Blake Jackson, an 8-year-old from Omaha, got his favorite Husker item at the end of last year’s Virginia Tech game. He and brothers were looking at the players near the end of the game with another group of kids, all of whom were asking the players to throw them their gloves.

Jackson said his brothers weren’t saying anything, which is why, he thinks, Marlon Lucky made sure the group left with a pair of gloves. He said they saw Lucky look at them and then walk over to Lester Ward and tell him something before Ward walked over and handed the brothers his gloves.

The used gloves are now sitting on Jackson’s dresser and remind him it takes more than a loss for Husker players to avoid recognizing their fans.

So what's your favorite Husker Item? BLCleveland from Husker Locker said he has n old Nebraska T-Shirt that he cherishes, let us know what your favorite item is, and be sure to describe how you got because, more often than not, that’s the whole story.

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If you had any doubt – the slightest bit, doubt the size of a single fish egg – about the utter failure of the Bill Callahan era at Nebraska, this weekend should have washed it away like the tide drags abandoned crab shells out to sea.

In 2009 NFL Draft, only three members Callahan’s vaunted recruiting classes were selected. Three. San Jose State had that many. New Mexico and Abliene Christian had two. And no Huskers higher than midway through the fifth round. You might have to go back to the 1969 NFL Draft to find such a meager NU class, although the 2008 bunch is right in there.

And the first of the 2009 picks – linebacker Cody Glenn – was stuck at fourth-string running back for much of the 2007 season, his career resurrected only by Callahan’s firing and the hiring of head coach Bo Pelini and linebackers coach Mike Ekeler, who gave Glenn a good enough crash course to eeld his skills to one of the more difficult positions on the defense.

Meanwhile, Callahan’s preferred back, Marlon Lucky, didn’t even get to be Mr. Irrelevant.

Maybe If Callahan hadn’t wasted Lucky’s first year on campus. Or burned Zach Potter’s redshirt. Or buried Joe Ganz underneath the depth chart rubble, only to be forced into giving him a shot when he was the only one left standing.

If only.

Does that mean Potter, Lucky, Ganz or others won’t play in the NFL? Of course not. There are some advantages, in fact, to becoming a priority free agent instead of a draft pick, and NFL teams sometimes use late-round draft picks on projects who flame out two weeks into training camp. NU has a number of players good enough for the NFL. They need the right fit and the right attitude, but they’ll get their chance.

What the 2009 class means is that Callahan’s pitch - which revolved around his NFL experience, around his ability to recognize talent, recruit it with fierce diligence and organization and turn it into a professional product – was akin to oceanfront property in Grand Island. His “talent” was more upside than finished product, and he and his staff didn’t take enough pains to finish it. Often, they rushed the talent into service before they were ready and snatched a crucial redshirt year away from guys like Glenn, Niles Paul and Prince Amukamara.

Now - had Callahan landed that gilded, magic quarterback he always pined for, like Kansas State’s Josh Freeman, I don’t doubt he would have produced, consequences be damned, the kind of player Freeman became: A big, sturdy stiff with enough intelligence and arm strength to con some poor NFL franchise, like the reeling Tampa Bay Buccaneers, into drafting him.

Ron Prince ran Kansas State into the ground that way, protecting “his” QB to the point where, when KSU’s offensive line seemingly refused to block for Freeman, or Freeman temporarily lost his faculties, Prince pulled Freeman from the Nebraska game. Freeman sat on the bench, staring into dead space, while Ganz pounded the Wildcats’ defense with the zone read. Freeman walks away from Manhattan with a fat contract. Prince got his old job back at Virginia. KSU fans, meanwhile, must curse their twin presence for the next decade; that’s how quickly they ruined what Bill Snyder had built.

Callahan, forced to work with the chopped ham of Zac Taylor and Ganz, who often performed like the delectable pieces of Spanish jamon, didn’t get the Princely opportunity to sacrifice a whole team for one man.

But he did make sure Lucky got rushed through the system, Potter received dubious coaching from a recruiting mercenary, Andre Jones disappeared into the ether and Matt Slauson, who was selected this year, wasted 2007 at his “Chipotle” weight, far above where he belonged.

You may counter: Isn’t Ndamukong Suh headed for a first-day pick in 2010? Sure. Did Callahan recruit him? Yep. Callahan also left behind guys like Keith Williams, Mike McNeill, Eric Hagg, Roy Helu and Jacob Hickman. I forsee all of them being drafted in the next two years.

But Callahan hardly developed those guys. Indeed, Suh was backsliding in his last year under Kevin Cosgrove. Their draft positions will be small credit to Callahan recruiting them, and large credit to Pelini, offensive coordinator Shawn Watson (who, to be fair, is a Callahan disciple) and position coaches developing them.

Finally, coaches told Nebraska players why they were doing something. Coaches corrected mistakes on the field, instead of in a film session. Finally, players were treated like the kids they still remain, instead of cogs in a wheel. Finally, they developed the down-in, down-out technique that makes good NFL players.

You know, it’s interesting. ESPN’s Tim Griffin reviewed the NFL Draft picks of each Big 12 team since the inception of the league and NU, unbelievably, remains on top in terms of number of players drafted (59 in all), and the relative quality of those players. Although Oklahoma and Texas have dominated the Big 12 over the last seven years, Nebraska is close to both programs when it comes to players selected in the first three rounds of the draft.

It’s now been two years since any Husker was picked in the first four rounds.

Since Callahan took over in 2004, just one of his scholarship recruits, Brandon Jackson, was drafted in the top three rounds. And Jackson left NU after his junior season in 2006, with the legitimate concern that, if he returned, he would have been buried on the depth chart like he had been the beginning of that year, when he was fourth. Behind a guy named Cody Glenn. Who, one year later, was fourth on the depth chart.

You figure it out.

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Nebraska's seniors got a final chance to show off for NFL scouts Thursday at NU's annual Pro Day, which was, according to NFL.com, attended by 20 teams. The workouts were closed to the public and media - about ten years ago, one could stand right next NFL coaches and shoot the breeze, but no longer - and while players gave an estimate of they did, NFL.com's Gil Brandt actually posted the official results late Thursday night.

Our impression? Marlon Lucky, who was once a third or fourth-round prospect, did himself no favors by pulling a hamstring and not being able to do positional drills. Looks like his work out in California didn't much pay off.

Meanwhile, it seems like Ty Steinkuhler mihgt have worked his way into a preferred free agent slot, which some will tell you, is better than being drafted in the sixth or seventh round, because a player can actually choose where they'd like to go. Steinkuhler has a pretty good season on tape, and while injuries are a major concern with him, his workout numbers were such that He was faster and had a higher vertical jump than quarterback Joe Ganz.

As for Ganz's numbers, well, not mind-blowing, but you don't sign or draft a quarterback for any of those reasons. Ganz will have to catch on somewhere and learn to stick in the pocket as long as it will hold.

See also: Ganz on Witt and Lee

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Cody Glenn. The Nebraska linebacker who was essentially thrown off NU's team for unspecified reasons with two games left in the season will play in the Texas vs. The Nation game on Jan. 31. He'll be joined there by defensive end Zach Potter and offensive tackle Lydon Murtha.

In the East-West Shrine game, Nebraska will have running back Marlon Lucky and offensive guard Matt Slauson participating.

See also: New NU hoops arena gets delayed

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As part of our season in review, we're recapping the best offensive, defensive and special teams plays of the year. First up: Best running plays.

NU spread around its wealth in 2008, using three running backs in just about every formation and play the Huskers had in the playbook. But although Marlon Lucky, Roy Helu, Jr and Quentin Castille all had their moments this year, it was Helu who emerged with the most impressive runs and three 100-yard games down the stretch of the season.


Here are the best running plays:


Roy Helu, Jr, 52-yard touchdown run, Kansas. The nail in the Jayhawk coffin, Helu took the ball from quarterback Joe Ganz on a zone read play hit a wide open gash in KU’s defensive line and took it to the house. The run gave NU an insurmountable 31-21 lead in a 45-35 win.



Marlon Lucky, 58-yarder, vs. New Mexico State. One of the last classic power stretch plays that the Huskers ran all year. Lucky took the deep handoff, hit an outside hole to the right, then cut all the way back across the field over the next 30 yards before being driven out of bounds. Vintage Lucky, and arguably the best run of his career.



Quentin Castille, 37-yard touchdown run, vs. Kansas State. Castille had some ups and downs in 2008, but his highlight had to be this tough, physical house call on fourth down. Castille broke a tackle at the line of scrimmage, busted loose and galloped to the end zone.



Helu, 24-yard touchdown run, vs. Kansas State. A run right out of the Rozier portfolio, as Helu took the handoff, jutted hard to the right almost immediately to avoid a blitzing Wildcat, reached the sideline and took off for the end zone before anybody knew what happened. A rare combo of instinct and agility.



Helu, 57-yarder, vs. Oklahoma. It was garbage time, the game was over, as NU trailed the Sooners 62-21. But Helu wasn’t done. He broke a number of tackles on the play, including three right at the line of scrimmage, to help set up Nebraska’s final touchdown.



Best opponent run: Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin looked at Nebraska’s defense on a fourth-and-one, took a hard step to his left, and sprinted around the end in what amounted to a 47-yard quarterback sneak for a touchdown. NU fans who were in Memorial Stadium for the Huskers’ 32-20 win over Baylor probably understood they were watching the next coming of Vince Young. At least they should have.



See also: The 11 Best Defensive Plays

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Nate Swift didn’t exactly start his receiving career at Nebraska with a bang.

The noise was a little more cringe-worthy than that.

“The first ball that was ever thrown to me was against Pittsburgh (in 2005) and I landed on that guy’s ankle and broke it,” Swift said.

From those humble roots sprung a career that might make Swift one of the most celebrated receivers in NU history. Swift is second on the career receptions and receiving yards charts behind Johnny Rodgers, the 1972 Heisman Trophy winner who has comfortably held the records at a program that often led the nation in rushing after then-coach Tom Osborne began to convert to an option offense in the early 1980s.

Swift, with 136 catches, could surpass Rodgers’ 143 grabs in Saturday’s game against Baylor if he gets enough looks. The receiving yards record will take two or three more games; Swift currently has 2,021 yards, while Rodgers has 2,479.

Pretty good for a savvy slot receiver who wasn’t a primary target until this season.

“I didn’t plan on breaking any records,” Swift said. “I haven’t yet. It’ll be an honor if it happens, to be up there and named with some of those guys, especially Johnny Rodgers.”

Running back Marlon Lucky (126 catches) also has a shot at breaking the receptions mark. He’ll be nowhere near Rodgers’ yardage mark, however.

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Marlon Lucky was breathless from his after-practice running and his legs were tired enough that he slumped his body against the red padding that lines the north fence of Memorial Stadium. The padding, apparently off its mooring, slapped against the fence and left Lucky scrambling for his balance.

Yes, it’s been a bit of an interesting season for the senior from North Hollywood, Calif.

His touches are down. The offense has changed in subtle-but-meaningful ways. And running backs coach Tim Beck remains committed to a three-back rotation of Lucky and two sophomores, Roy Helu, Jr. and Quentin Castille. In 2007, Lucky averaged 145 all-purpose yards per game. In 2008, he’s at 80 yards.

But if it isn’t the senior campaign No. 5 had envisioned, he’s not saying; indeed Lucky, with the opportunity to sulk publicly or privately, hasn’t done so.

“I just hang in there,” he said Monday. “Every time I get the ball, I try to do what I can.”

While the offensive line and tight ends struggled to secure blocks in “heavy” formations, Lucky wasn’t able to do much until two weeks ago. That’s when Watson, watching his squad struggle with penalties and complex assignments, nudged the offense toward simplicity in the second half of a 52-17 loss to Missouri.

The result? More looks for Lucky, more points for NU, more time of possession and more energy for the Cornhuskers’ defense.

Lucky had 146 total yards against Texas Tech and 90 in a lopsided win over Iowa State – most of it in the first half.

In the ISU game, Lucky also had a starring role in the “Wildcat” set popularized by Arkansas’ Darren McFadden in college and now the NFL’s Miami Dolphins. On two plays, he took the direct snap from center, faked to Castille, and ran in the opposite direction. On a third, he took the snap and followed Castille’s lead block on a sweep around the left end, resulting in a touchdown.

“It’s football, we steal from everybody,” Lucky said. “You’ll see the same play from a different team. It’s all competitive to find ways to put the ball in playmakers hands.”

Lucky said the formation had a “special name” that could change week to week. Last week it was "Joker." Whatever it is - you probably haven’t seen the last of it.

While the set had modest beginnings in Ames, Beck said the concept is built around Lucky’s open-field talents and may include a play in which Lucky throws a pass – he’s thrown for three touchdowns so far in his career.

“It’s hard because it’s a one back set with two true backs,” Beck said. “How do you defend it?”

Head coach Bo Pelini sure had a hard time when Arkansas ran it against his LSU defense last year. The Razorbacks gained 385 rushing yards that day – 211 from McFadden alone – most of which came out of the same formation. McFadden even threw six passes, completing three for 34 yards and a touchdown in a 50-48, three-overtime win.

“Bo mentioned something about doing it,” Beck said. “You draw from his experience as a defensive coach. Anytime you come up with some ideas and you’ve got a mind like Bo’s, you go ‘hey, Bo what do you think of this?’”

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