Brian Rosenthal: NU, where the wind comes sweepin' down the plain
Would any Nebraska-Iowa State game be complete without a little wind?
How about a lot of wind?
Game-time gales were 28 mph from the south, with gusts of more than 40 mph. That’s stronger than your average Memorial Stadium breeze.
Just ask special-teams coach Bill Busch. He said coaches do studies of the wind, and found that last year it blew an average of 22 mph for home games.
“Every game we have wind,” Busch said, “so we deal with it.”
But the wind at Memorial Stadium does some crazy things. Flags blow all sorts of directions. Strange bursts come at inopportune times.
“It’s really weird,” freshman kicker Adi Kunalic said. “You’ll be sitting there on the 50, trying to kick a field goal, and there’s no wind right there, but as soon as you start getting closer, you can feel the wind.
“It’s just different at different spots in the stadium.”
The wind seemed to favor Kunalic no matter which way he kicked Saturday. Not surprisingly, he booted a kickoff through the North Stadium uprights.
“I think they should start giving us points if we do that,” Kunalic said.
OK, but how do you reward a touchback into the wind? Kunalic did that, too, going 3 or 4 yards deep into the south end zone late in the first half.
“I was surprised,” Kunalic said. “I just had a really good hit on the ball. They’ve been telling me this whole time, ‘Don’t try to do anything different, just try to kick it as hard as you can,’ and it was a pretty good kick.”
Nebraska correctly judged and fielded numerous kicks, too. Sean Hill returned a squib kick near midfield. Nate Swift, the good-hands man, was back more often than usual on punt returns.
“It wasn’t fun,” Swift said. “The wind’s always swirling in there.”
But it’s the home-field advantage, right?
“Our kids back on the back end did a great job,” Busch said. “I mean, our guys knew the ball, understood the wind. I’m really proud of them.”
The Big 12 (going) South
Boy, does the Big 12 South stink, or what?
Oklahoma loses to a team that won two games last season. Texas gave up 41 points. At home! (Can you imagine giving up 40 points in your home stadium?)
Did we mention both those losses Saturday came to North Division teams?
Oklahoma State and Texas Tech can’t play defense. Texas A&M looked miserable at Miami.
Baylor? Well, the Bears lost to A&M by 24 points.
What’s all this mean? Probably that the Big 12, overall, isn’t very good. That means there’s no clear-cut favorite to win the title.
Who steps up and takes advantage of this rare opportunity? Anybody
Going deep
* At least fans didn’t boo the Tunnel Walk, which was grossly mistimed.
* Are the many fans applauding Mike Gundy’s rant on criticizing college athletes the same ones berating and ridiculing players behind an anonymous screen name?
* From an e-mailer last week, stating Nebraska’s defensive problems were talent-related, not coaching: “I’ve coached. It’s not rocket surgery.”
Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com.
How about a lot of wind?
Game-time gales were 28 mph from the south, with gusts of more than 40 mph. That’s stronger than your average Memorial Stadium breeze.
Just ask special-teams coach Bill Busch. He said coaches do studies of the wind, and found that last year it blew an average of 22 mph for home games.
“Every game we have wind,” Busch said, “so we deal with it.”
But the wind at Memorial Stadium does some crazy things. Flags blow all sorts of directions. Strange bursts come at inopportune times.
“It’s really weird,” freshman kicker Adi Kunalic said. “You’ll be sitting there on the 50, trying to kick a field goal, and there’s no wind right there, but as soon as you start getting closer, you can feel the wind.
“It’s just different at different spots in the stadium.”
The wind seemed to favor Kunalic no matter which way he kicked Saturday. Not surprisingly, he booted a kickoff through the North Stadium uprights.
“I think they should start giving us points if we do that,” Kunalic said.
OK, but how do you reward a touchback into the wind? Kunalic did that, too, going 3 or 4 yards deep into the south end zone late in the first half.
“I was surprised,” Kunalic said. “I just had a really good hit on the ball. They’ve been telling me this whole time, ‘Don’t try to do anything different, just try to kick it as hard as you can,’ and it was a pretty good kick.”
Nebraska correctly judged and fielded numerous kicks, too. Sean Hill returned a squib kick near midfield. Nate Swift, the good-hands man, was back more often than usual on punt returns.
“It wasn’t fun,” Swift said. “The wind’s always swirling in there.”
But it’s the home-field advantage, right?
“Our kids back on the back end did a great job,” Busch said. “I mean, our guys knew the ball, understood the wind. I’m really proud of them.”
The Big 12 (going) South
Boy, does the Big 12 South stink, or what?
Oklahoma loses to a team that won two games last season. Texas gave up 41 points. At home! (Can you imagine giving up 40 points in your home stadium?)
Did we mention both those losses Saturday came to North Division teams?
Oklahoma State and Texas Tech can’t play defense. Texas A&M looked miserable at Miami.
Baylor? Well, the Bears lost to A&M by 24 points.
What’s all this mean? Probably that the Big 12, overall, isn’t very good. That means there’s no clear-cut favorite to win the title.
Who steps up and takes advantage of this rare opportunity? Anybody
Going deep
* At least fans didn’t boo the Tunnel Walk, which was grossly mistimed.
* Are the many fans applauding Mike Gundy’s rant on criticizing college athletes the same ones berating and ridiculing players behind an anonymous screen name?
* From an e-mailer last week, stating Nebraska’s defensive problems were talent-related, not coaching: “I’ve coached. It’s not rocket surgery.”
Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com.
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