Nebraska post script

[Saboteur II]

Wow, does that fanbase travel. They live and die Huskers’ anything.
I was among a smattering of Pitt fans up high,but the Husker Crowd is to be admired.
I was high up so body language was lost but it was clear that you have to bring your A+ game against them.
We did not obviously but the mood was set early with service errors.
There are some things you don’t do.
1. Spit into the wind
2. Tug on Superman’s cape
3. Committ service errors against Nebraska.
4. Pitt can outwork teams but against Nebraska that won’t matter if you give points away.
Last note. That arena sucks. I’m 6 tall and not overnight. Only the Beatles and Maharishi Yogi posed in a cross legged posture can enjoy those seats.
Not the intimate setting of 10k that best serves the sport.
We are spoiled. Pitt has a great program.

 

[HOF Coach]

Wow, does that fanbase travel. They live and die Huskers’ anything.
I was among a smattering of Pitt fans up high,but the Husker Crowd is to be admired.
I was high up so body language was lost but it was clear that you have to bring your A+ game against them.
We did not obviously but the mood was set early with service errors.
There are some things you don’t do.
1. Spit into the wind
2. Tug on Superman’s cape
3. Committ service errors against Nebraska.
4. Pitt can outwork teams but against Nebraska that won’t matter if you give points away.
Last note. That arena sucks. I’m 6 tall and not overnight. Only the Beatles and Maharishi Yogi posed in a cross legged posture can enjoy those seats.
Not the intimate setting of 10k that best serves the sport.
We are spoiled. Pitt has a great program.

Did you stay for the Wisconsin-Texas match?

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

Wow, does that fanbase travel. They live and die Huskers’ anything.
I was among a smattering of Pitt fans up high,but the Husker Crowd is to be admired.
I was high up so body language was lost but it was clear that you have to bring your A+ game against them.
We did not obviously but the mood was set early with service errors.
There are some things you don’t do.
1. Spit into the wind
2. Tug on Superman’s cape
3. Committ service errors against Nebraska.
4. Pitt can outwork teams but against Nebraska that won’t matter if you give points away.
Last note. That arena sucks. I’m 6 tall and not overnight. Only the Beatles and Maharishi Yogi posed in a cross legged posture can enjoy those seats.
Not the intimate setting of 10k that best serves the sport.
We are spoiled. Pitt has a great program.

The state of Nebraska probably has the best sports fans in the country, all things being equal. Not sure who even comes close. I think its easy to say that they love their university or there's nothing else to do there but it goes beyond that. They LOVE sports. Period. Creighton basketball, College World Series, heck, Nebraska-Omaha hockey just started a program a few years ago and rank 5th in D1 attendance. Remember what Steve Pederson said? If they turn the lights on on a weeknight at Memorial Stadium, 30K people will show up just to see what's going on. So I'm not surprised they traveled well.

 

[mike412]

I have a fairly good friend who is from Hutchinson, Kansas originally (aka the middle of Absolutely Nowhere) and she once explained the reason she thinks Nebraska travels so well:

(1) They have a history of being successful in a variety of sports. It’s easier to follow a winning program.

(2) Their HS teams do not have rabid followings. It has been about the Big Red for decades. No one misses a trip because they need to stay to see a HS game.

(3) There isn’t a lot else to do there. Don’t underestimate that as a factor.

(4) A lot of them have flexible work schedules. Farmers, for example, can take 3 or 4 days off during the wheat growing season. Planting can be delayed by a week. Cultivation is the only time-sensitive part of the process.

(5) It’s not that expensive because many of them have RVs. The typical 2 car family has a flatbed and an RV or trailer. No hotel bills. Plus, Nebraska is smack in the middle of the country. Driving to Florida or California is about the same. There is a big difference between driving halfway across the country and all the way cross-country. She used to drive between LA and Vegas like it was a trip downtown because she had made so many trips from Hutchinson to Wichita. She says you won’t see that many Nebraska fans in airports but you will see lots of them at diners along the route.

If Kansas were really good in a lot of sports, she said it might be similar for their fans. Except historically it has been basketball and nothing else in Kansas.

 

[Franb]

Wow, does that fanbase travel. They live and die Huskers’ anything.
I was among a smattering of Pitt fans up high,but the Husker Crowd is to be admired.
I was high up so body language was lost but it was clear that you have to bring your A+ game against them.
We did not obviously but the mood was set early with service errors.
There are some things you don’t do.
1. Spit into the wind
2. Tug on Superman’s cape
3. Committ service errors against Nebraska.
4. Pitt can outwork teams but against Nebraska that won’t matter if you give points away.
Last note. That arena sucks. I’m 6 tall and not overnight. Only the Beatles and Maharishi Yogi posed in a cross legged posture can enjoy those seats.
Not the intimate setting of 10k that best serves the sport.
We are spoiled. Pitt has a great program.

And it was a service error that gave Nebraska its 25th point in the 2nd set, after Pitt had made the comeback. That was the match.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

I have a fairly good friend who is from Hutchinson, Kansas originally (aka the middle of Absolutely Nowhere) and she once explained the reason she thinks Nebraska travels so well:

(1) They have a history of being successful in a variety of sports. It’s easier to follow a winning program.

(2) Their HS teams do not have rabid followings. It has been about the Big Red for decades. No one misses a trip because they need to stay to see a HS game.

(3) There isn’t a lot else to do there. Don’t underestimate that as a factor.

(4) A lot of them have flexible work schedules. Farmers, for example, can take 3 or 4 days off during the wheat growing season. Planting can be delayed by a week. Cultivation is the only time-sensitive part of the process.

(5) It’s not that expensive because many of them have RVs. The typical 2 car family has a flatbed and an RV or trailer. No hotel bills. Plus, Nebraska is smack in the middle of the country. Driving to Florida or California is about the same. There is a big difference between driving halfway across the country and all the way cross-country. She used to drive between LA and Vegas like it was a trip downtown because she had made so many trips from Hutchinson to Wichita. She says you won’t see that many Nebraska fans in airports but you will see lots of them at diners along the route.

If Kansas were really good in a lot of sports, she said it might be similar for their fans. Except historically it has been basketball and nothing else in Kansas.

The point about Nebraskans not going to HS football games is interesting. While I doubt HS football keeps too many other fanbases from traveling in droves, the lack of a "HS football culture" in Nebraska seems to play in to more fans traveling for the weekend. A question I would ask your friend, though, is what about youth sports? Do they play youth football and other youth sports on Saturdays like they do most places? It would make sense for those leagues to play on Sundays instead since there's no NFL team. And it gives them Saturdays to devote to the Huskers, either home or on the road.