MMLB

For those of you who are familiar with Sports Illustrated's website, NFL writer Peter King has his column called Monday Morning Quarterback, where he talks about a bunch of stuff ranging from NFL happenings to his favorite quotes of the week, as well as usually commenting on his love for coffee and Tom Brady. Or thats the way it seems anyways.

See, I've always been partial to the defensive side of the ball. Why should the most glamorous position get all the attention? Oh, because it's the most glamorous? I guess I didnt think about that. Anyways, I decided to name my own little Monday installment the Monday Morning Linebacker, because it's what I used to play in my glory days at Bethel University (I'm #5), which is a Division III powerhouse. And by powerhouse, I mean we've never won a playoff game. Also, I think LB is the most badass position on the field.

We start of today's linking with a little blog by former sCUm kicker Mason Crosby, where he discusses his grueling preparation for the NFL draft. Although right now there is only one post, I'm sure we can all look forward to more exciting stories of him kicking field goals, with the inside scoop on all the crazy shenanigans of kickers. Just a question though, is a kicker the best CSTV could do? I mean, maybe it's supposed to be appealing because we never get blogs from kickers, but I think there is a reason for that (kickers aren't that exciting or cool). Although if I have to read a blog by any kicker, at least it's the guy who mastered the art of kicking while dodging 12 ounce projectiles at his home games. That's probably a good selling point in his interviews with NFL teams. Philidelphia Eagles fans probably seem like Husker fans in comparison to Classless, er, Colordado University's wonderful student section.

Also over on CSTV, our old buddy Trev Alberts comments in his mailbag on who has the best home-field advantage in the country, among other things. I think Trev goes out of his way to make sure nobody thinks he's a Husker homer, although I definitley agree with him that whoever does have the best home field advantage, it definitley resides in the SEC. I've been to Nebraska-CU in Lincoln. And while we without a doubt have the classiest fans along with perhaps the most beautiful home in the country, I don't think we have the intimidation factor that the Gators or Tigers do in the Swamp and Death Valley, respectively. I love Memorial Stadium, but I gotta say, I wish our endzone seating was built straight up instead of going out so far. The Swamp and Death Valley, along with the likes of Ohio State's stadium, all go straight up, bottling up sound and creating a din that makes it impossible to hear. Wisconsin's Camp Randall is another example. The Husker's home just isn't as loud as other places. One place that definitley doesnt rank as home field advantage: The Trojan's LA Coliseum. I went to the Husker game there last year, and the only thing intimidating about it was the fact that it was in South Central and the game got over after dark. That place is the definition of dilapidated, although I was more concerned a Dre or Snoop appearance than how ugly that stadium is. Plus, a place that just broke into the double digits on their sellout streak can hardly be considered intimidating. Let me know when they get to 250 or so and we'll talk.

Meanwhile, over on The Fanhouse, gunslinger Colt McCoy and company are discussed after their spring game dominance. That Colt is such a gunslinger, I fear for our secondary's safety when we go to Austin (although I fear for them everywhere they go). He's such a gunslinger. At this point, I'll bet he'd beat Wyatt Earp and Buffalo Bill at the same time. That is, unless Kellen Heard has anything to say about it. At what point can we stop calling him a gunslinger or any other rediculous moniker because of his name? Do people realize he's a college quarterback and not a gunfighter in the 1880's? During our game against UT last year, I thought Musberger was going to go ask for his hand in marriage at one point. Two years ago Zac Taylor took twice the beating McCoy did, but because his name is blander than vanilla, nobody worshipped him. I'm going to name my kid Heisman McHeisman Dale, and the accolades are sure to follow.

As far as McCoy's torrid spring game performance goes (7-11, 136 yards and 3 TDs), doesnt anyone ever remember that in most spring games, blitzing is forbidden? I mean, I completely understand why, you dont want to risk injury and everyone loves more offense. But when all you can rush is your defensive line, eventually the secondary will get tired and someone will get open. Just imagine our spring game this year. With our secondary and unlimited time in the pocket, I expect Keller to get roughly 1700 yards and 19 TDs. And that is not a misprint, you have to remember that in our spring game it's the starters vs. the backups, meaning that he's not even playing against Grixby and Jones.........oh wait.......he'd rather be against them...

Five things I'm thinking about this morning
1. I don't care how big of studs his replacements are, I'm ecstatic that Adrian Peterson is gone. He was the most terrifying back I've seen in a long time when it came to trying to tackle him. I still have nightmares of our defenders bouncing off him like ping pong balls, and they probably do too.

2. Josh Freeman should keep eating. I will personally send him some gift cards to Papa John's and Krispy Creme. At 6'6'', you would think 235 would be an ideal weight, with that body he was more than adept at avoiding defenders last year except Jay Moore (go to the 2:00 mark). If he wants to be the next Russell or Culpepper, more power to him. I like slow fat QBs, not only are they easier to make fun of at games, they tend to be a lot easier to get to for opposing defenses, especially one as fast as the Blackshirts.

3. Speaking of the Purple pussycats, it looks like KSU wants to run a little 3-4 this year. According to coach Prince, this is "...a response to be more multiple defensively.."
What? I understand what he's getting at, but that still doesn't make much sense gramatically. Good luck with that coach Prince, although without a Carriker-caliber end in that base end position, I think you'll find that defense hard to run.

4. In other news on the national front, stud prep running back Noel Devine finally signed his letter of intent at West Virginia, meaning the backfield in Mountaineer country is beginning to get real scary. This guy is amazing, although who knows if he will be able to stay eligible. I'm sure Rich Rodriguez and company will make sure he's on the field somehow, but it's always been a question of mine that if your not smart enough to get into a state school coming out of high school, how are you going to be able to do the supposedly harder college classes while still attending 20 hours worth of football? And from what I understand, WVU doesnt have Notre Dame-esque admittance requirements. Either way, if I'm in the Big East, I'm legitimately terrified. I know it's a tendency of a lot of people to put too much stock in recruiting, but if you've seen video of this kid, you know what I'm talking about. He's pretty damn good. The Huskers were actually in his top 3, but oh well. I'm confident that Mendoza, Helu, and Castille are going to do just fine.

5. I know the National Championship is tonight (my money, like almost everyone else's, is on Florida), but I think we all know that the real excitement is on Tuesday night. That's right, I'm talking about the scintillating matchup between.....hold on, I have to actually see who's playing in it..........Tennessee and Rutgers for the women's national title! Between winning my NIT bracket pool and this barnburner, I'm in line to rake in some real cash! Oh wait, nobody cares about women's hoops? My bad. For those Husker fans out there, you should be excited about the Kala Kuhlmann era at NU. She went to my old high school in Charter Oak, Iowa, and she is by far the best female basketball player I've ever seen in person. That isn't hard, cause I never go to girls basketball games, but still, she's awesome, in addition to being easy on the eyes.

Lastly, before I go, gotta say good luck to the Twins tonight in their opener. I mean, if they lose it's not that big of a deal, there are only 161 games left in the season (which feels like it lasts all 12 months of the year). I don't mind baseball, but does the season have to be that long?

MMLB's Husker-glorifying Quote of the Week:
"Bobby Bowden told me a story, one echoed by other Nebraska rivals, about a time in the 1980s when he took an upstart FSU team to Lincoln. Somehow FSU escaped with a win, and Bobby said he worried about getting his players out of the stadium without incident. To his amazement, the people in red stood and escorted the Seminoles off the field to a standing ovation."-------Bill Curry, ESPN color analyst