Shots Fired
"Having been to The Big House, it was surprisingly average when it came to noise and intensity. Memorial is significantly louder."
"It's the quietest 100k I’ve ever sat in."
"I love The Big House, it is a beautiful stadium. It just is not loud. It was quieter than Oregon and even Missouri. It was barely louder than Minnesota."
"Memorial Stadium is louder 10/10 times even at 50-percent capacity. 'The Big House' isn’t very loud."
Even though these are just quotes from random Nebraska slaps scattered across the Twitterverse, it's clear that things are heating up for Michigan's game in Lincoln tomorrow. Even some outlets that cover the program are getting involved in the bashing of U-M's game day environment.
It's not just the fans, though. Husker senior linebacker JoJo Domann was asked about Michigan's desire to run the ball early and often and he had a familiar response.
It's not surprising that the Husker fan base is latching on to this movement. The official Twitter account for Nebraska football and Scott Frost himself are asking for a raucous environment.
All this means, is that Nebraska is gearing up for their biggest game of the year tomorrow.
Matt Coatney is the Nebraska women's basketball play-by-play announcer and studio anchor for Husker football and the host of Big Red Reaction. He had this to say about tomorrow's game.
"It's Friday before a HUGE Husker football home game. If you can't get pumped up for this one, you've got too much embalming fluid in your bloodstream. A top-10 team, a college football blue blood coming into Lincoln, televised on REAL national TV, a night game, great weather, October and Nebraska coming off a dominating conference win with great momentum. Fridays in Lincoln before a big fall football game are amazing!"
To say that tomorrow means a lot to Husker Nation is the understatement of the season.
And I don't think any of it matters.
First of all, I'd put that week two, "Maize Out" environment for the Washington game in The Big House up against any college football setting in the country. It was loud, energetic, picturesque and it had a legitimate effect on the Huskies. Michigan also pounded UW and won by 21 points.
Second of all, I think the Nebraska fans might be setting themselves up for a big let down. The Huskers, while ascending after a 49-point win over Northwestern, haven't done a whole lot in 2021. They started the year with a loss to Illinois and have three wins over doormats. The Huskers are 3-3 on the season with wins over Fordham, Buffalo and Northwestern. Here's where those teams rank nationally on offense and defense:
Fordham: Offense - No. 50, Defense - No. 119 (it's worth noting this is among FCS teams)
Buffalo: Offense - No. 75, Defense - No. 80
Northwestern: Offense - No. 88, Defense - No. 114
Can you say inflated confidence?
Michigan is favored by only 2.5 points versus the Huskers but I actually don't think that's close to enough. The Wolverines have smashed every spread this year, minus Rutgers, and are coming off a big road win. A 21-point win over Washington and a 21-point win over Wisconsin last week in Madison have given the Wolverines a lot of confidence and should equip them for the road test in Lincoln tomorrow.
At the end of the day, it'll be settled on the field. I saw 80,000 fans get pretty quiet in Camp Randall last weekend and I think we'll see 90,000 pipe down in Lincoln tomorrow.
