Reflecting on The Play

So, after a few days’ giddy reflection, what lessons might we take from the events at Memorial Stadium last Saturday night?

I mean, beyond the obvious, such as: “It ain’t over ‘til the fat quarterback flings;” or the ancient Chinese proverb, “he who leaves early may beat the traffic but thus share not in the glory;” or, “Jesus Christ, you NEVER let a receiver get behind you on that play.” 

All well and good, but what else?

Well, perhaps we fans might embrace a little humility and perspective. It surely has crossed all our minds more than once that it was only a very flukish ending that saved Husker Nation from yet another Very Bad Week, with rumblings of coaches being fired, a program adrift, past glories so far out of reach they might as well have happened last century.

The Huskers had a 2.7 percent chance of winning in that situation; yet they did. So, yes, they were lucky. Bo was lucky. So what? It says here that Bo Pelini was due some good luck, especially this season, especially after what happened down in Florida last week. It restores one’s faith in God, or at least the football gods, that he was granted some.

So, by THAT much, we avoid doom and gloom.

Look, I’m a typical fan. I really don’t know much about coaching except I’ve almost always been certain somebody else out there could do a better job than the schmuck we had. That goes for Tom Osborne, too; but for three seasons, he was a hapless hack.  

So the two proudest, happiest moments of this season – maybe of the entire Pelini era -- are the two most improbable: Little Jack Hoffman’s scamper for a touchdown in April and Ron Kellogg III's heave and Jordan Westerkamp’s leap for another in November.

It says something about Huskers’ fans that they have taken such joy and pride in Jack’s moment, and it says even more about the coaches that they let it happen. And it says something, too, that so many fans have taken special delight that this latest moment came courtesy of a third-string quarterback who stuck around more than four years, working his tail off though knowing he might never play. The indescribable joy on his face as he ran around the field, and the joy of the players as they piled on top of each other, were a helpful reminder that for all the weight we put on this business, it is about kids playing a game.

Both moments remind us that what we really love about sports has little to do with championships and rankings. 

Maybe there will be another moment or two like those this season. Probably not. Maybe there will be a division title, maybe even a conference title. Probably not. Or maybe there are two, three, four more losses on this schedule.

Maybe, just maybe, it's not the victory but the action; not the goal but the game; in the deed the glory. Hey, that's pretty good; someone oughta carve that in stone somewhere.

Easy to say on a Wednesday night while still basking in the glow of Kellogg's CornFlick. I still reserve the right, of course, as do you, to call for Bo’s head this Saturday afternoon.

But let's not forget this feeling.