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We're here in Columbia, and we'll be answering all of your questions - weather, illnesses, the Missouri crowd - before the game. Talk to reporter Samuel McKewon and get his takes before the big game.

The chat is FREE to all, and we'll run it through the coveritlive system.

It starts at 6:30 p.m. Be here until kickoff!

Click here!

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You didn’t think it was going to be easy, did you? When a program declares emotional bankruptcy, like Nebraska’s football team did in 2007, Husker fans can’t just expect the pigskin gods to clear the brush while Bo Pelini and Co. hike back to the top.

The breaks NU once got when undefeated seasons were the norm…now turn into 81-yard daggers in your Husker heart. And so it’s a little fitting that Nebraska heads to Missouri for a statement-making game with its share of adversity to overcome. Rotten, rainy weather. A flu bug that’s sidelined running back Roy Helu – and others - for the last two days. A whole day to kill in a Columbia hotel – on a weekday, no less.

“I would normally watch (ESPN’s) College Gameday,” tight end Mike McNeill said.

(Might I suggest a trio of Maury, Jerry and Steve Wilkos, chased with two of the 13,000 “judge” shows now gracing our airwaves? You’ll learn a lot about paternity tests!)

So, no. It’s not going to be easy. It’s going to be, in fact, a pain in the Big Red Patoot. And it’s not just the scholarship numbers, talent and spread offenses that evened the playing field. It’s the expectation that Big 12 teams no longer have of Nebraska. That fear is gone. The Huskers are not, in the eyes of conference foes, the biggest, baddest, smartest, best-coached team on the block. Oh, they’re big, bad, smart and well-coached. But the aura is gone. The hyperbole.

Fifteen years ago, that white road jersey alone was worth a field goal or a touchdown. Nebraska came down the tunnel, led by a stately, deliberate gentleman in Tom Osborne, and opposing fans used to crane their necks just to see the horde behind him. They’d pick the biggest of the bunch – Zach Wiegert, Jason Peter, Brendan Stai, Mike Rucker – and give them the once-over. They’d see Nebraska’s latest fast, strong quarterback. For a couple years there, they’d locate No. 1, Lawrence Phillips, who, for all the right and wrong reasons, cut one mean figure.

Whatever feeling those opposing fans had – distaste, jealousy, awe, hatred, hope – it was tinged with an acknowledgement, a mental tip of the cap, that men were about to play football. What Osborne assembled, in his later years, was almost more of a traveling road show, a carnival of strong arms, borderline personality disorders and pumped-up Napoleons, than it was a football team. NU couldn’t field that team today no more than Miami or Florida State or Oklahoma could field their coterie of hustlers, rappers, cokeheads, gamblers and mercenaries.

But damn if that spirit of dominance wasn’t woven into the fabric of a brutal game. Pelini likes the word “dominate.” It has a feeling of totality, just about any way you use it.

Thursday’s game is about getting some of that back – without the infamy, of course. It’s about walking into a dark club like you’re Sinatra, and somebody owes you three drinks. It’s about opposing quarterbacks hearing footsteps that aren’t quite there, defensive backs giving up the chase a second too soon, and a punt returner signaling for a fair catch out of self-preservation. The stuff mediocre teams do when they sense they’re outmatched. The stuff Nebraska did in 2006 and 2007 when it faced USC. And last year when it faced Oklahoma.

Folks, believe it: This translates into wins on every level. Peyton Manning and Tom Brady have thrown off defenses based on their reputation alone. Half of the offenses the Baltimore Ravens face simply retreat into a cave of off-tackle runs and short passes. They want no real part of that Ray Lewis-led nastiness. Right now, there isn’t a pass Drew Brees couldn’t complete. You see it in every drop he makes, every read, every throw.

That’s the reputation Nebraska used to have.

Now, you don’t earn back that respect, and that fear, back overnight. Missouri’s fan base, like Colorado’s fan base, isn’t going to acknowledge anything out loud. They’d rather turn in their snob card than do something like that. And the Tiger seniors will end their career knowing, regardless of Thursday’s outcome, that they gave better than they got.

But, sooner rather than later, NU needs to start sending the message: The interlude is over. Back to the main stage.
What better opportunity will there be than Thursday night in Columbia, on ESPN, in front of Lil Red, Mike the Tiger, Erin Andrews, God and everyone?

The rotten weather – and you should plan for puddles – will dull both of the offenses a little. Nebraska’s flu bug, whatever the extent, should tie a couple fingers behind the Huskers’ backs, if not the whole hand.

It smells a lot like 1994 Kansas State, one of the great games in Husker history, a 17-6 win more about guts, dark hearts and raw desire than any display of skill. It smells, too, like the 1981 Missouri, when sophomore Turner Gill had to deliver a 6-0 win in front of 72,000 bloodthirsty fans with a touchdown in the final minute of the game. Nebraska was only 4-2 at the time, and the win was a turning point in the season, the true beginning of Gill’s journey to greatness.

This Missouri team probably isn’t as good as any of the above opponents. The Tigers don’t run the ball very well, and they’re so concerned about giving up the big play that they don’t stop the run very well, either. The one player Nebraska really feared, Jeremy Maclin, is gone. The one player Nebraska couldn’t stop, Chase Coffman, is too. The one player Nebraska couldn’t stand, Chase Daniel, makes three.

Last year’s game was about Missouri kicking NU’s shins,
hard, as if to say, yeah, we just did that.

This year, it’s Nebraska’s turn to stun an angry, raucous, rainy, beer-filled crowd and say, yeah, you did - thanks for playing.

If NU can pull it off, forget about the betting lines that predicted it would happen anyway, or even what Missouri does from here. It gets a little Sinatra back in the room.

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It'll be like attending the game at Faurot Field...without the rain. Yah!

We've got five free passes to the Joyo Theater's Husker party for this Thursday's game vs. Missouri! Just show your pass at the door and head right in. It's a fun, family friendly way to enjoy the game. And the game isn't just on a big screen...it's on a HUGE screen. You might as well be inside the action, it's so lifelike.

And...if you're a Husker Locker Pass member...you can get $5 in free concessions, too. And trust us...$5 at the Joyo goes a lot farther than $5 downtown.

The Joyo is a bonafide Lincoln landmark located in the city's historic Havelock district. It's the kind of place you used to see in all kinds of small towns in Nebraska, and it has that easygoing, country feel to it. A place where the kids could enjoy a Saturday matinee while mom and dad went shopping in town.

In order to receive one of these five passes, it's simple: Tell us your favorite Nebraska-Missouri memory in the comment section below. It's so easy!

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During his press conference Sunday, Missouri coach Gary Pinkel frequently put his hands on the lectern about a foot apart, as if describing a small rock bass he caught in the Lake of the Ozarks or demonstrating how the umpires in Australian Rules Football signal a goal.

But he’s really talking about the mental and emotional “zone” he likes his quarterbacks to reside in, whether they throw four touchdowns or four interceptions.

Pinkel said his latest prodigy, sophomore Blaine Gabbert, is skilled at staying inside that zone. Whether it was his astonishingly good first start in the “Braggin Rights” game vs. Illinois, or a crucial second half comeback at home vs. Bowling Green, the 6-foot-5, 240-pounder is a tough kid to rattle.

"I'm impressed with his poise,” Pinkel said. “He's kind of trying to find where he fits himself in a game, mentally, where he keeps focused…one important thing for quarterbacks is to stay in a place where you can function, where you don't get caught up in the hype or the negative of what's going on and you kind of stay in the zone. Whether you get sacked, or throw a touchdown or an interception, you come right back in this zone. I've been impressed with him.”

The numbers make those intangibles look like a shabby coat. Gabbert’s thrown for 1,161 yards and 11 touchdowns in four games. Nary a pick. Thus far, he’s been at his best in the second half, where he leads the nation in passing efficiency – 33-of-43, 547 yards and six touchdowns.

Pinkel shrugs off those numbers a little bit.

“He's only played four football games,” he said. Against Nevada, Furman, Illinois and Bowling Green at that.

But Gabbert had the advantage of one year behind former starter Chase Daniel, whom Pinkel referred to frequently during Sunday’s press conference, labeling him “a battlefield commander.” Getting to watch Daniel run and operate the offense, Pinkel said, helped Gabbert to hit the ground running in 2009. Another Mizzou standout, Brad Smith, didn’t get that chance. He and Pinkel were learning the life of the spread offense together, on the fly.

Several years later, the Tigers’ passing game seemingly works to a metronome. Receivers know their spots, taking the short, choppy steps on bubble and tunnel screens necessary to set up blocking before accelerating, 0 to 60, with impressive speed. Gabbert, positioned in a deep shotgun, gets the snap and is ready to fire to them immediately.

"When we get going and when our tempo is up, everything is pretty much clicking,” Gabbert said. “That's when our offense really rolls.”

He’s taller than Daniel, and can see receivers Daniel could not. Graced with a bigger arm, Gabbert is able to manufacture long passing plays – he threw several howitzers at Nevada – outside of the offense’s framework. He’s burly, too, which allows him to throw the ball under duress with more velocity and accuracy. For all their talents, Daniel and Kansas’ Todd Reesing are forced to skitter about, inviting a risk-reward proposition that tilts toward the lesser choice against better defenses.

Count Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini as impressed. He complimented Gabbert more than once during his Monday press conference. They weren’t expansive compliments – Pelini prefers the “good football player” line – but he went out of his way to suggest that no matter Gabbert’s performance Thursday – if it were, say, ugly – it wouldn’t change that Gabbert can play.

Pelini never bothered to say that about Daniel.

Indeed, the one element Nebraska and Missouri fans can agree on before this game is that Gabbert’s a keeper. NU players are friends with him. He’s impressed the pants off of the Kansas City and St. Louis media, for good reason, without giving off Daniel’s almost aggressive charm.

“We all know what Chase was like, he was wired all the time,” Pinkel said. “…He was just electric out there all the time. Blaine doesn't have to be like that, he doesn't have to be like Brad Smith.”

He might be better than either one of them.

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Think, for a moment, of Nebraska football as a giant bulletin board. And everything on that bulletin board is part of what makes NU, well, NU.

What’s on there? Great coaches, of course. Game-changing quarterbacks. A tradition of power football. The walk-on program. Thousands of things.

And one of the centerpieces of that board is a simple black shirt with white numbers on it. Out of a simple choice at the sporting goods store has grown one of the definitive traditions among college football defenses.

The first-team Cornhuskers. The Blackshirts.

And I guess we all have our takes on what those practice jerseys mean. Here’s head coach Bo Pelini’s opinion:

“It represents playing to a very, very high standard,” Pelini said at his weekly press conference. “Week in, week out. To me, it’s as a unit. It’s not an individual thing. To a certain extent it is, but it’s about your unit. It’s about that first group. It’s about earning the right by how you’re executing the type of football you’re playing. That’s how I see it.”

My take: That jersey is about creating an expectation of greatness, and holding the men who wear it up to that standard. The jersey, in other words, transforms the player wearing it.

It’s not reflective of what the player’s already achieved. It is reflective of who he is supposed to become while bearing the responsibility of being a Blackshirt.

The positions are subtly different. Like putting the emphasis on a different syllable of a word.

Does that subtle difference matter?

It’s a topic of discussion because NU is No. 1 nationally in scoring defense. Yes, this includes games against the Sun Belt Three, and maybe those games shouldn’t really count. But they do, and you can be sure Pelini and Co. aren’t going to be handing back the first shutout since 2006.

And yet the shutout and the ranking aren’t enough for Pelini. In fact, until he was taking a call from a fan last week during a radio appearance, “I really hadn’t thought much about” the Blackshirts.

“I’m not disrespecting the tradition or anything else,” Pelini said. “But I think it’ll become obvious to me,” when the Husker defense has earned the honor.

Maybe Pelini was being casually dismissive of the topic. He can be that way sometimes, and it’s a trait he’d be wise to eliminate as time goes on. Because he probably doesn’t mean he hadn’t thought about a tradition important enough to Husker fans that the words “Blackshirts” is flashed all over the HuskerVision screens on game day.

But if it hadn’t crossed his mind, handing out the jerseys after a dominating shutout that included two sacks and defensive touchdown, well, it points to something, doesn’t it? Indifference? A lack of awareness? Something?

Maybe the opponent, Louisiana-Lafayette, wasn’t good enough. Maybe it comes after a significant win. Last year, Pelini handed them out after a 45-35 win over Kansas, not exactly a stellar defensive showing, but a big victory. By that point in the 2008 season, reporters figured they wouldn’t show up at all.

When they did, one of them went to reserve defensive end Clayton Sievers. Safety Matt O’Hanlon, who had started all season, didn’t get one. And the look on his face that day spoke volumes. Before the Gator Bowl, Eric Hagg had his taken away and given to another reserve defensive end, Shukree Barfield.

Pelini calls the timing and selection of players “a feel thing.” Fair enough. But such a vague process certainly invites scrutiny and arguably diminishes the tradition.


Is that OK? Sure it is. It’s Pelini’s team, and I’ve stayed firm on this idea: When he was hired, he was given a mandate, essentially, by the state of Nebraska, whose collective anger helped sack Steve Pederson, bring back Tom Osborne, fire Bill Callahan and draw Pelini back into the fold. Pelini should run the team as he sees fit, and sink or swim on the merits of his ideas, talent and effort.

The bulletin board of Nebraska football, after all, is made of a cork laced with the state’s fiercely independent spirit. That freedom, really, the foundation of the Nebraska Way. Pelini’s not Bob Devaney, or Monte Kiffin, or Charlie McBride. He’s not bound to this thing. He’s bound to winning within the rules. If he does that, the first-team defense can wear Hypercolor jerseys, for all the fans would care.

But Pelini’s taken a half-measure here. And it puts him in an odd spot. What if he awards them too soon? What if NU holds Missouri to ten points, gets the shirts, then get fleeced by Texas Tech? Does he snatch them back? The way Pelini’s set it up, inevitably that day will come. As will the questions.

And the simple, inspirational band of Blackshirts may become more complicated and convoluted than it already is. Ditching a tradition is often easier than trying to redefine it.

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Two years ago, Mike McNeill’s parents thought they might get a hometown discount in the bleachers of Faurot Field.

Sure, McNeill was a Nebraska tight end traveling into a hostile Missouri den. But he was also a native son, a friend and former teammate of Mizzou receiver Jeremy Maclin. McNeill even hosted current Mizzou quarterback Blaine Gabbert.

“My parents got a rude awakening,” McNeill said. They were called names and heckled.

They called it the “Zou” for a reason. It certainly played a role in the Tigers’ 41-6 victory in 2007, when NU quarterback Sam Keller seemed rattled from the opening snap, and the Cornhuskers’ defense walked around in a fog, casting a net so wide that Missouri frequently – and happily – attacked the middle of the field.

“They were jacked up,” McNeill recalled. “They had their special uniforms for our game. And extra seats. I’m sure the fans will be pretty rowdy.”

A record crowd is expected for Thursday night’s ESPN-televised game. The Tigers are 32-7 at home since 2003 - 17-6 vs. the Big 12 - and has won nine straight games over Big 12 North opponent, including three straight over Nebraska. Because of the 8:00 p.m. start – tip your cap to the start of the baseball playoffs for that – Mizzou partisans will have the bulk of the day to, ahem, prepare, while NU bangs around their hotel.

“We’ll probably play a lot of Playstation,” senior wide receiver Chris Brooks said. “A lot of Nebraska vs. Missouri.”

Brooks is arguably most excited Husker for the trip. He’ll get to see his 5-year-old son, Chris Brooks, Jr., who lives in St. Louis, where Brooks starred in high school. It’ll be a late bedtime for Junior that night.

He’s also trying to wrangle up enough tickets for family members. Missouri is enjoying a rare sellout for Thursday.

“Cousins that I didn’t know I had,” Brooks joked, “and uncles. But it’ll all get worked out.”

Brooks’ prediction for the atmosphere of gold-clad Tiger fans?

“Real crazy,” he said. “I think we need to answer the bell, compete and match their intensity from the opening kickoff. I think if we do that, we’ll be in good shape.”

Head coach Bo Pelini pointed to NU’s experience at Virginia Tech as useful prep for Missouri. Though Nebraska’s offense pulled a grilled-cheese meltdown late in the third quarter, the Huskers generally kept their pose in Blacksburg, and snuffed out the Hokies’ early momentum after a long kickoff return.

“All your experiences help you,” Pelini said. “Both good and bad.”

Running back Roy Helu said the Tech game – plus Pelini’s love-it-on-the-road approach – converted him into a guy who wouldn’t mind playing “12 games on the road.”

“Never really bought into that ‘road mentality’ stuff until we went to Virginia Tech,” said Helu, who gained 169 yards in Blacksburg. “The best football experience of my life. The environment. They were loud, they were jingling their keys. We were loving it on offense. The louder they got, the more focused they got.”

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When Gary Pinkel became head coach of Missouri’s football team in 2001, he recalled Sunday, he was pretty much reminded every day how long it had been since Mizzou had beaten Nebraska. How long that thorn had been stuck in the Tiger toe.

“It was hugely important to knock that down,” Pinkel said. “But we’ve had obstacles since we got here. ‘Can’t win at Nebraska. Can’t beat Nebraska.’ We inherited all those.”

And Missouri’s long put that that barrier in the rearview window with wins in 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2008. The last two wins were by a combined score of 93-23.

“I think we’ve played some good games against Nebraska,” Pinkel said during his weekly press conference. “But if you look at the win-loss record, they’ve beaten us a lot more times than we’ve beaten them. They’ve certainly got a huge edge on us.”

Thus, Pinkel said, a respect for the Cornhusker brand – in a series that hasn’t had a lot of warm feelings lately.

“A lot goes with that name in terms of history and tradition, he said.

The architect of Missouri’s resurrection isn’t skimping on his praise of the current Nebraska squad, either.

Pinkel said he’s “very impressed” with the 3-1 Cornhuskers, who visit the 4-0 Tigers Thursday night in Columbia.

“Very well-coached, very disciplined,” Pinkel said. “I think they’re playing very, very well…you look for weaknesses, and I don’t see any. I think they’re sound in every area.”

He particularly singled out NU running back Roy Helu and defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh.

Of Helu: “The more he runs, the better he gets. I think that’s a
sign of great running back.”

Of Suh: “He’s a big athlete. He can run. Very explosive. He’s
very, very competitive…he’s a very dominating player. Very impressive. It’s kind of fun to watch him play and compete.”

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It’s after Nebraska’s football practice Wednesday, and running back Roy Helu stands in the south end zone of the Hawks Center, cracking jokes with a bunch of middle-schoolers who came to greet the Cornhuskers as they left the building.

They laugh and then huddle up, while one of the kids leading a chant. Helu, easily the biggest guy in the bunch, is right there saying it, too. And he’s practically the only NU player left in the practice facility.

The 6-foot, 215-pounder is the last guy you imagine will cop to an “inner struggle.” But, then, that’s Helu, a Christian who consistently deflects attention away from him successes and toward his weaknesses – or the strengths of his teammates.

“An inner struggle? Yeah,” Helu said. “Every morning when I wake up, I want to be selfish. I can’t though. And I do sometimes.”

Helu talks about “losing focus” and “mental toughness.” He talks about a vision he has for Nebraska’s offense, and how “we’re nowhere near it.” He is by turns funny and cryptic.

He is also – for this week, anyway – the leading rusher in the Big 12, with 464 yards for a 116-yard-per-game average.
Couple that with his 169-yard breakthrough game at Virginia Tech, and pundits are beginning to catch on to what defensive coordinator Carl Pelini, whose unit often faces Helu in practice, already believes.

“The best back in college football,” Pelini said at the Big Red Breakfast Friday. “…Roy will make you look like a bad tackler."

Naturally, Helu isn’t satisfied with his work so far. He labels it “average at best.”

“That’s Roy,” offensive coordinator Shawn Watson said. “He’s a perfectionist.”

Pass blocking has always one of his bugaboos, although running backs coach Tim Beck said recently Helu has improved (in part by necessity) in that area.

But Helu would also like to be more productive in the first quarter. And the junior from The Bay Area has a point there: In 22 first-quarter carries this year, Helu is only averaging 4.27 yards. Take away a 39-yard backwards swing pass from Zac Lee, and that number dwindles down to 2.6 yards per carry.

“The biggest part of my game I need to improve on is starting faster,” Helu said. “Finishing strong is great and everything, and because we have such a great offensive line, it’s easier as the game goes on.

“But I’d like to attack tackles and all that sort of stuff in the beginning of the game and take some of the load off the offensive line.”

Physically, he’s fine with the extra workload. After Quentin Castille was thrown off the team in August, Helu knew that was coming anyway. And he’s OK with the pressure of an eight-man box, too. He’ll likely see it through the Big 12 season, as defenses dare Zac Lee to beat them.

“I got that after the second game when (tight end) Mike McNeill told me their goal was to hold me under 100 yards,” Helu said. “That got me fired up.”

Now, Helu said, he’s focusing on mental aspect of his game. Being sharp on every play, every carry, for several drives in a row. For guy who was part of a committed three-man rotation last year –who hardly played against Mizzou in 2008 – it takes some getting used to.

“The kind of intensity we’re called to have for attention to detail on offense is constant,” Helu said. “It’s a progression, but it’s something I have to keep throughout the whole season.”

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Reporters came with a quiver full of Missouri questions for Nebraska’s football team Wednesday night.

The Huskers brought their shields and scripts, deflecting any talk about Oct. 8 game in Columbia until next Monday’s press conference. If NU is using the bye week to prepare for its biggest test of the year – and most assuredly it is – you wouldn’t guess it from the players.

“We don’t have anybody to play this week so we’re just looking at ourselves,” defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh said.

Said quarterback Zac Lee: “I’m sure we’ll get into that next week. This week we’ll focus on us, try and improve us…that’s a week away. We’re going to worry about that next week. It’s a little while. We’ll get there.”

Mission accomplished on Wednesday, head coach Bo Pelini said, applauding the Huskers “energy” and “tempo” during the two-hour, half-pad workout inside the Hawks Center. Despite the “shells,” NU was plenty physical in drills and continued that pace throughout the practice.

Pelini noted a great “sense of urgency” among the team as Big 12 play looms on the horizon. Last year, NU lost its first two Big 12 games – one of them to Missouri, 52-17 in Memorial Stadium. In 2007, Nebraska dropped a 41-6 decision to the Tigers, triggering a collapse that led to Bill Callahan’s firing.

Suh started in both games, and said there was “no point” in revisiting those games. The senior out of Portland hadn’t seen this year’s game plan for the Tigers, but he didn’t suspect it’d look much like the last two seasons.

“I’m sure we’re not going to run the same stuff, obviously, that didn’t work,” Suh said. “And in 2007 – totally different staff, totally different people.”

Rather, Pelini said, the focus would be on a “very, very good, well-coached” Missouri squad that still executes its spread, no-huddle offense at a high level and has improved on defense.

“I don’t care about history,” Pelini said. “That’s the last thing that’s on my mind…and it’s going to be won in 2009. Not 2008, or 2007, or 2006. It’s going to be won or lost by the kids who take the field this year.”

Note: Because of the Thursday game, NU will begin its “game week” schedule on Saturday instead of Monday, conducting its weekly press conference Monday instead of Tuesday. Pelini who said Nebraska’s practice weeks “are always screwed up anyway” thought the weekend start might be “a good thing” because there wouldn’t be any classes cutting into the routine. Both weekend practices are closed to the media.

Pelini also confirmed that senior safety Rickey Thenarse would be "out indefinitely," and clearly for the rest of the season, as Pelini later said NU should have a "pretty good chance of getting that year back." Thenarse played just short of the 30 percent benchmark needed for a medical redshirt. Last year, Barry Turner, Sean Fisher and Cameron Meredith all received medical redshirts.

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We talked to Columbia Tribune columnist Dave Matter about the growing rivalry between Missouri and Nebraska since 2003, when the Tigers snapped a 25-year losing streak to NU with a 41-24 win. Since then, Mizzou is 4-2 vs. Nebraska, and a number of controversial statements and incidents have fanned the flames of the respective fan bases.

In part one of our conversation, we touch on "The Punch" and Chase Daniel. This portion of the conversation will be free to all listeners; subsequent portions can be access via Locker Pass. Enjoy!


After you've listened to part one, here's part two.

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