September 1st 2018 was supposed to be a day of celebration for the state of Nebraska. Earlier that year Scott Frost was hired as the coach of the Huskers virtually guaranteeing a return to 90’s glory! Big Red’s prodigal son had returned.
My son and I made the trip to Lincoln that evening to witness Frost’s historic first game as head coach versus Akron. The 90,000 fans created an atmosphere as electric as the dark gray cumulus clouds looming off in the distance.
The Husker video team could have shown Schindler’s list leading up to the kickoff and the fans still would have been out of their minds excited. Instead, we were treated to classic Husker Highlights. Johnny the Jet’s punt return against Oklahoma, Rozier’s run against UCLA, Frazier’s run against Florida, and Pelini’s post firing meeting with the team at a Lincoln High School.
Memorial Stadium was literally shaking prior to the kickoff as the rain started to fall. The savior’s debut lasted all of 5 seconds before players left the field due to lightning. My son and I waited it out through heavy downpours and rain themed songs that kept the fans entertained. The game was eventually cancelled forcing us to wait another week.
Little did we know then but those dark storm clouds would prove to be an omen for that 2018 season. Nebraska has been playing football for 129 years and never have they started 0-6. In those six games Nebraska found every conceivable way to lose a game. Dropped passes, blown leads late, Martinez hurt… it became almost laughable. Any collection of 22 men between the ages of 18-22 could have fared better against Michigan. The rival fans were having a field day at our expense. “Looks like that Frost warning got cancelled!” “Frost melts when heat is applied!” Husker fan remained optimistic. “Trust the process” became the rallying cry from Ainsworth to Ogallala.
The season wasn’t a complete disaster though. Nebraska finished the season winning 4 out of their 6 finals games that included Bethune Cookman, Illinois, and Minnesota. Most fans were able to use shoelaces again and domestic assault dropped by 71% during October and November. Scott could still hear the grumbling though. “This team is soft!” “They don’t have heart” “They still wilt under pressure” Frost had to take immediate action!
Needing a quiet place to think, Frost, a known gambler traveled to his favorite Council Bluffs Casino. Fueled by Jack Daniels and Copenhagen, Scott had an epiphany as the dealer dealt his 14th hand of blackjack. Navy Seal training! He thought to himself, “I have a Seal on my team, those guys are tough, and they killed Osama Bin Laden” After losing the last of his $500 he received in autograph fees he set out to inform his coaches of his plan.
Every coach and player to a man was all in for this. “We won’t have any problem with teams like Troy anyone after this!” whispered Lamar Jackson. The charter jet was fueled and Big Red was headed to the beach! The training was as tough as advertised. Log carries and boat crew drills replaced tackling dummies and wind sprints. The team learned how to overcome adversity and understood that you are only as strong as your weakest link. They even re-enacted the shower scene in GI Jane to remember how exposed they felt when trying to cover Rondale Moore. Frost was ecstatic! His teams bond was stronger than ever and was chomping at the bit to release this hype video to Husker Nation!
Watch the video here: Navy Seal Hype Video
Frost releasing the video to the wild via Twitter was like chum in Shark infested waters. At last check the video has over 25,000 likes and was retweeted 8,400 times on Scott Frost’s account. It was posted hundreds of times in the 413 different Husker Facebook groups and flags were ordered to be at half-staff in preparation for the fate of our 2019 opponents.
Nebraska fans appetites however are insatiable. The Navy Seal video as great as it was only held our attention for a few days. This wasn’t anything new. Plenty of teams do this type of training. We need something fresh something that will harken back to the glory years!
Rumors have been swirling that Frost is looking too talented but troubled Maurice Washington for the next hype video release. Washington is currently in a legal battle over a video he sent to a former girlfriend in California. Coach Frost realizes releasing this video would be controversial but it doesn’t get any more 90’s than this! I conducted a poll of 100 Nebraska fans and asked this question:
Would you support Coach Frost releasing the Maurice Washington video to motivate his team? 82% said yes they support it! A few commented about why they would.
Caleb from Gering, “4-8 is 4-8! if this leads to more stops on third down then hell I say release it!”
Margaret from Scribner, “These kids these days with their Snapchat and Instagram are always posting these videos. It’s what they do now. What’s one more? GBR!”
Read about Maurice’s questionable video. Legal Problems
If you need me, I’ll be here constantly refreshing Twitter.