Since the weekly Nebraska Reacts poll would be coming in the middle of bowl season, the questions had to be something beyond the always original “Who Gonna Win?” stuff since the polls would open before our bowl game but take answers for a day or more after its conclusion.
Otherwise, one question I may have thrown in there would have been if Huskers and Utes fans would end up setting the attendance record for its 34-year history. They did. And while it’s easy to say you knew it would happen after the fact,
I did believe chances were good given the combination of New Years Eve in Vegas, a Husker fan base who travels as well as anyone, and a Utes group a reasonable distance away in Salt Lake City.
The first question I had, however, was fine being answered before or after the game – we are an honorable people, mostly – and that was if the double-blowout finish to a 2025 season which started with much more hope and competitiveness would sour some on watching the game – and I separated people making a conscious effort to avoid it from those stuck at work.
As focus now turns to the transfer portal, the second asked everyone at which position the majority of that focus should be directed. Onward…
- Not surprisingly, the majority of Corn & Husker Nation settled in front of their televisions for New Years Eve daytime entertainment. Hey, two bowls in a row after 10 years without is what it is. We can always wait for the new year to start addressing the red flags.
- 24% sat it out – 19% when eliminating those stuck at work (I remember the occasional feeling). 19% is a pretty big chunk. And let’s put it this way – the team on the field those last 3 games looked like one who would have been a double-digit underdog to Frost’s 3-9 Huskers, who were keeping top-10 opponents within one score that season.
- When it comes to portal focus, Corn Nation is pretty much united – they want big men and who can blame them? Dominate the line and all those skill position players look much faster.
- But seriously, Husker fans, like the schools themselves, understand you need the bigs to win. That’s why linemen are the second-highest paid players after QB’s. 85% of Corn Nation thought so – 46% on the defensive side and 39% on the offensive.
- Quarterback is at 13% and that may deserve to be higher given the room currently only has one – and he was very ineffective in each of the last 3 games. Unless both a late high school recruit AND a hopefully experienced portal QB can be acquired (and we should be aiming higher than ND’s Kenny Minchey, a junior to be with just 29 career passes), we will be looking at a very, very thin room in 2026.
- While it would be very nice to have a star running back added, I feel pretty solid about Mekhi Nelson and Isaiah Mozee after the Vegas Bowl. They looked great early and can hardly be blamed for the lack of a passing game to give them room once Utah pushed everyone into the box.
If SB Nation continues making pretty pictures of these polls with football season over, I’ll keep firing the questions. Let’s move fully onto the undefeated Nebrasketball and Go Big Red!
