A Heidelblog Historian And A Husker Herald On The Halcyon Days

Many readers of these pages know only a sliver of the interests of the Heidel-Head. Not only is Dr. Clark an elite Oxford historian, but he is also a Nebraska football nerd. He grew up in Nebraska during the heyday of Cornhusker football, and last Saturday’s game celebrated the 1994 anniversary of their last national championship. During the 1970s–90s, Nebraska was as dominant as Alabama or Georgia is today.

Furthermore, a certain West Coast seminary has not one, but two Husker aficionados on its theology faculty. Dr. Craig Troxel, Professor of Pastoral Theology and head of the Practical Theology Department, also grew up in a small town in Nebraska. Both have amazing recall and deep impressions from Nebraska football. Refreshingly, they think that college football (not so much the pro league) can be a good diversion and pedagogical tool.

At the turn of this century, Nebraska football was one of the top three all-time winning programs, having won national championships consecutively in 1970 and 1971, then three out of four under Tom Osborne (1994–1997). This historic program still has the eighth most victories in college football history—behind only the prestigious company of Michigan, Alabama, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Texas, Oklahoma, and Penn State, but ahead of Georgia and Tennessee.1

For the last two decades, however, Nebraska has a combined record of 136-113, with a losing record (52-67) for the past decade—far below their historic 68% winning percentage for all games.2 The glory days of coaches Bob Devaney, Tom Osborne, and Bo Pelini, and Heisman trophy winners like Johnny Rodgers, Mike Rozier, and Eric Crouch have occulted. But hope (not to mention respect) springs eternal in the heart of a Lincoln football fan.

Decibel-heavy Memorial Stadium featured 87,000 (mainly Nebraska) fans for last Saturday’s picturesque meeting in Lincoln. The students, as the poster remarked, wondered: “So this is the Nebraska football that my dad talked about.”

True enough, for the first half, the opposing quarterback—maybe now dismissed as a Heisman prospect—had four sacks and precious few first downs. Colorado Coach Deion Sanders’ son, Shedeur Sanders, thawed slightly toward the end of the first half, but the Nebraska defense was dominant; so was the Husker run game. Sanders barely escaped a fifth sack in Colorado’s penultimate drive of the first half, and the ensuing field goal attempt was blocked, yielding a 28-0 Nebraska lead at half. With a fifth sack in the third quarter and the sixth before it was over, that Nebraska defense nearly matched last season’s entire sack total for Sanders.

In contrast, even with the stellar performance of Nebraska’s rookie quarterback, Dylan Raiola, the energetic Nebraska defense won this game. The freshman quarterback, however, had a far better game than did Shedeur Sanders. Moreover, Nebraska’s running game was superb, and the stout Nebraska defensive line held Colorado to less than one yard per carry in rushing yards (with negative 17 yards in the first half). Clearly, Nebraska controlled both scrimmage lines.

So what does Nebraska do now with her first AP poll ranking since before Covid and first 2-0 start since 2015 (why, the Athletic’s Stewart Mandel even projected them in his top twelve playoff bracket this week)? Does this new start portend a return to glory and the future of this program?

For answers, it is time to expose readers to one of R. Scott Clark’s incurable habits. Yes, the Heidel-Head is both a history nerd and a sports nerd. See, it can be done. Will all this move Dr. Clark into ecstatic utterances? And would our head of practical theology find value in this fall ritual? Can there really be two solid, confessional men at the same seminary outside of SEC geography who love college football—in moderation, of course, as good Calvinists?

From my office at the HSN (Heidelblog Sports Network), I spoke to them recently at the HIH (Heidelblog International Headquarters) in the afterglow of this whopping Matt Rhule victory. If wished, for more color commentary—and Scott is seldom lacking in colorful commentary—find the full HSN interview below.

Both of these elite theologians grew up listening to Nebraska football on the radio—often with their dads. Scott wanted to answer my question, “what did you love most about Nebraska football?” with “everything,” adding that it was wonderfully communal. Craig summed up that “In Nebraska, football was all we had . . . other than hunting.” Interestingly, both of these confessional theologians related how unifying the games were for the community, with Craig Troxel informing me that Nebraska had a tradition of giving a standing ovation to any team who defeated the Huskers. That is class which has largely vanished.

Scott still remembers the touchdown dive to defeat LSU in a Sugar Bowl over fifty years ago, and without hesitation dubs the 1971 Nebraska v. Oklahoma contest as the “Game of the Century.” Since he is a professional historian, that is now settled.3 That regional rivalry and other games against Texas teams were also litmus tests for good versus evil. The opposing teams and coaches were viewed as evil personified, leaving little ethical neutrality.

Following Nebraska football has parallels to theological or spiritual formation. In Aristotelian fashion, Dr. Clark mentions both virtues and vices that can be learned from these games, and Dr. Troxel believes there are lessons that sport can teach about ministry. He is quick to note that character formation often comes from defeat, and how perseverance is needed for ministry, as with everything in life.

Both of these elite theologians still talk about what they learned from their fathers—Craig suggesting also that his mother from Nebraska knew so much that she could easily be an offensive coordinator. Scott still gets goosebumps (and you thought he was all cognition!) when the Nebraska team enters the field from the tunnel—he has only witnessed that about six hundred times. A good tradition is worth preserving, and a parallel liturgy may be discovered in the great rituals. I wonder if there are as many “contemporary” sports rituals as there are in contemporary worship neo-traditions, leaving one to imagine hopefully that college football will outlast Hillsong.

Tom Osborne (who coached a quarter of a century and retired with a modest six-figure salary compared to current pay scales) was a professing Christian who influenced many players in his tenure. Present coach Ron Brown is another professing Christian, and head coach Matt Rhule, besides coaching at a Baptist University in Waco for two years, grew up as a Nazarene minister’s son.4

Both Drs. Clark and Troxel took a quiz (see the video), eeking out a seventy. Further, over the past fifty years (think almost six hundred games), neither has ever cheered for Notre Dame—and they allege that their Calvinism has nothing to do with that. My interview friends also tell me we have not scratched the surface—and I believe them. Dr. Troxel has even included thoughts on the value of athletics (complete with some Nebraska lore) in his fine book, With All Your Heart (Crossway, 2020).

So, it is on to the era of Dylan Raiola (whose dad was an All-American center in 2000 at Nebraska and whose uncle is presently the O-line coach), who brings some hope. Of course, they stole him away from his earlier commitment to the number one team in the nation—You are welcome. It looks like he made a good decision and will be NFL ready before he is a senior.

Trying to tamp down excessive enthusiasm, Clark texted on Saturday: “Nebraska football fans need to be empiricists and believe things when they see them.” Faith and hope may help the Huskers, but the empiricism of the scoreboard sure lit the fan base last week. If Big Red handles the next two Big Ten home games against flame-orange-colored teams, they just could visit the top non-SEC team in the nation with a 7-0 record.

Notes

  1. This data is from Winsipedia.
  2. The History of Nebraska Football,” Huskers.
  3. See a five-minute highlight reel of this epic game at Historical Husker Media, “1971 Nebraska vs Oklahoma with Radio Audio,” YouTube, November 6, 2011.
  4. To see a little of the influence of Rhule’s father and his Christianity, see: Chris Vannini, “The quiet voice helping Matt Rhule change Baylor off the field,” The Athletic, September 26, 2017; cf. Tom Shatel, “Nebraska Coach Matt Rhule’s Fatherhood Playbook Was Written by the Fathers Who taught him,” HuskerExtra, June 16, 2024. Also, Coach Rhule learned the value of fatherhood from his own dad and seeks to build his players into strong paternal figures.

©David Hall. All Rights Reserved.


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    Post authored by:

  • David Hall
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    Reverend David W. Hall is married to Ann, and they are parents of three grown children and grandparents of eight grandchildren. He has served as the Senior Pastor of Midway Presbyterian Church (PCA) since 2003. Previously, he served as Pastor of the Covenant Presbyterian Church in Oak Ridge, Tennessee (1984–2003) and as Associate Pastor at the First Presbyterian Church in Rome, Georgia (1980–1984). He was ordained to pastoral ministry in 1980. He was educated at Covenant Theological Seminary and is the editor and author of several volumes.

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  1. Of course it took a Penn State Alum to drag Nebraska back to being a ranked team while playing in the cupcake side of the Big “Ten”. 🙂 But we did all enjoy watching the hype machine being haulted (again) Saturday with the Buffs loss.

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