Miles: Nebraska?s Intensity of Fandom is ?Awesome?

PBA Hosts Third Avery Strong Day on Saturday

Tennis Coaches Eager for Curtain to Come Up

Track Star Tierra Williams' Remarkable Journey

Randy York N-Sider

Official Blog of the Huskers

The same day Tim Miles and his team took a chartered jet to East Lansing, Mich., and returned to Lincoln the next night with a fourth consecutive Big Ten basketball win, I asked Nebraska’s head coach for some help defining the essence of Big Red fans.

Not surprisingly, the 2014 Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year and Big Ten Coach of the Year didn’t need to know why. As always, he was completely aware that Nebraska was hosting 10 collegiate sporting events this weekend. Eight are scheduled on Saturday, including Miles’ Huskers hosting Michigan at 1 p.m. at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

The bookends are Friday’s 5 p.m. historic Nebraska’s women’s tennis team christening the Dillon Tennis Center and Sunday’s 2 p.m. Nebraska-Iowa wrestling match at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. Miles knew instinctively what I was seeking and even though his surging team’s nationally televised matinee against Michigan is sold-out and the weekend headliner, he became the perfect pitchman for the other Husker programs competing in Lincoln this weekend.

“Coming to Nebraska after being other places that were good schools and great communities, it’s amazing to me to see the energy level of Nebraska fans and the depth of their enthusiasm and support,” Miles told me. “Our fans show up rain or shine, win or lose. They never stop supporting our student-athletes and our coaches.”

Nebraska’s Fan Intensity Emerges Strongly in Different Ways

“Nebraska is such a special place, it’s hard to describe,” Miles said, “but I know this –  the intensity of their fandom is awesome to be a part of because it comes out in such strong ways. You can be in a restaurant, in a shopping center or wherever else you might be, Nebraska fans will encourage you and they will pick you up.

“Our student-athletes feel that, and our coaches certainly feel that,” he said. “To watch Nebraska – whether it’s baseball, football, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, volleyball, softball, gymnastics, track and field, wrestling, whatever sport we have, Nebraska goes all the way through and that’s why this is such a special place to be.”

Miles remembers his earliest days at Nebraska when he told legendary Husker volleyball coach Terry Pettit that Nebraska's loyalty reminded him of North Dakota State’s passion. Pettit “kind of chuckled, and he was right,” Miles said. “Nebraska was Bison Athletics on steroids, and I mean that in a very good way. Nebraska is just such a cool place.”

Exhibit 1 in Miles’ heart right now is Bone Marrow Donor Drive/#AveryStrong Day set for Saturday. The third annual event is a moving part of Nebraska men’s basketball support for the National Association of Basketball Coaches Suits and Sneakers Awareness Week.

“Look at the way our fans have adopted the Harriman family,” Miles said. “When (former Husker assistant coach) Chris took a job at New Mexico, Cheryl decided to move back to our community for support and medical care. Now we get another chance to honor Avery (their 8-year-old son who has been battling Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia since he was 2-years old)."

Miles: Two Bone Marrow Matches Equivalent to Two Saved Lives

For Miles, the big picture is helping save lives, and he’s thankful that Kristin Eichorst, wife of Nebraska Director of Athletics Shawn Eichorst, is leading the charge and bringing the swabs back to PBA to expand the bone marrow registry.

“We’ve already had at least two hits, or matches, so in my eyes, that’s at least two saved lives, and that’s pretty cool stuff,” Miles told me. “Our effort is making a real difference and having a positive impact. The game is going to be awesome because we have a blueblood like Michigan coming in here Saturday. The circumstances around the game are what makes Nebraska so special, and Saturday is going to be another great day to help the cause. We've all been touched helping the Harriman family and others across the country fight cancer.”

Miles will be wearing another sweater designed by Scott Barber, a friend from his days as the head basketball coach at Colorado State. “All of our coaches will be wearing the pediatric colors of yellow and orange, and we’ll be wearing special shoes made by Adidas,” Miles said. “It’s just going to be a really cool. You can’t imagine the amount of people getting behind us, and when you think about everyone involved, you can’t help but be thankful.”

With that in mind, here's a quick look at Nebraska’s other home attractions this weekend:

Scott Jacobson, Women’s Tennis Coach:

Friday, Jan. 22: Women’s Tennis vs. South Dakota State, Dillon Tennis Center, 5 p.m.

“Maggy Lehmicke (Senior, Kirkland, Wash.) has played No. 1 singles for the previous two years and has done an admirable job. She and Lisa Andersson (Junior, Varberg, Sweden) finished last spring very strong and also had a very strong fall as well. Lisa and Maggy will start the year as our No. 1 doubles team.”

Pablo Morales, Women’s Swimming & Diving Coach:

Saturday, Jan. 23: Swimming & Diving vs. Illinois, Devaney Natatorium, 11 a.m.

"It’s our final home dual of the season against Illinois, a conference rival. We have an 11 a.m. start for our Senior Day, and it’s a great chance to recognize our nine young women, who have contributed so much to our program. Our highest performer in that group is Taryn Collura, who has been an NCAA qualifier and school record holder. There will be a lot of great energy and cheering inside the Devaney. Fans will see races that are so close, they come down to the very end. A one-finger touch to the wall can be difference between winning and losing the meet.”

Gary Pepin, Men's and Women's Track and Field Coach:

Saturday, Jan. 23: Men’s & Women’s Track & Field, Mark Colligan Memorial, Devaney Indoor Track, 11:30 a.m.

“The two highest ranked individuals we have in the Big Ten Conference are Antoine Lloyd (Sophomore, Kentwood, Mich.) in the 60-meter hurdles and Craig Driver (Senior, Minden, Neb.) in the pole vault, plus Kaiwan Culmer (Sophomore, Nassau Bahamas) in the triple jump. On the women’s side, the star of our last meet was Tierra Williams, pictured above (Junior, Auburn, Neb.). She won the triple jump, won the long jump and was the top collegian in the 60-meter dash. She’s ranked second in the conference in the long jump and the triple jump, and this is the first year she’s ever competed in the triple jump. Last week, we had so many nearby schools, our crowd was big. This week, we have some very good track and field teams – Wichita State, Colorado State and Illinois State – coming in here for the Mark Colligan Memorial. One good thing about watching a track meet is there are so many events going on at the same time, it’s a little bit like a Three-Ring Circus. So you can kind of pick your choice of what you like best. It may be the men or may be the women and both are going on at once. There’s a lot of action.”

Kerry McDermott, Men’s Tennis Coach:

Saturday, Jan. 23: Men’s Tennis vs. UNO, Dillon Tennis Center, 2 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 23: Men’s Tennis, North Dakota, Dillon Tennis Center, 7 p.m.

“Dusty Boyer (Senior, Ham Lake, Minn.) begins his senior year as our No. 1 singles player after earning All-Big Ten and Academic All-Big Ten twice. He’ll team with his brother, Toby (Freshman, Ham Lake, Minn.) as our No. 1 doubles team. They won the Big Ten Indoor doubles title last fall and Toby was runner-up in Big Ten singles.”

Chuck Chmelka, Men’s Gymnastics Coach:

Saturday, Jan. 23: Men’s Gymnastics vs. Air Force, Devaney Center, 6 p.m.

“I’m looking forward to the first double dual we’ve had with our women’s team since I’ve been head coach. We have three seniors this year, including Ethan Lottman (Omaha) and Sam Chamberlain (Franklin, Ohio). Those two are looking forward to this weekend because they get another shot at the Air Force Academy. We wanted the dollar-day special to keep fans at the Devaney all day. That was our goal and determining factor to make this 6 o’clock event happen. If people can stick around the whole day watching track and field and swimming and diving and men’s and women’s gymnastics on the same day, I think it would be awesome!”

Dan Kendig, Women’s Gymnastics Coach:

Saturday, Jan. 23: Women’s Gymnastics vs. Rutgers, Devaney Center, 6 p.m.

“Hosting Rutgers and having a double dual with our men’s gymnastics team Saturday night is a great opportunity to see both our teams compete at the same time. It’s good for the fans and good for the teams because when one team’s at home, the other is usually on the road. It’s a great fan event and a good time to bring your sons and daughters and take advantage of the Pepsi Pack the House promotion ($1 admission, $1 drinks). Jennie Laeng, pictured above (Junior, West Middlesex, Pa.) and Hollie Blanske (Senior, Oak Grove, Minn.) are really off to a good start this season. Grace Williams (Sophomore, Linden, Mich.), Megan Schweihofer (Freshman, China, Mich.) and Dani Breen (Sophomore, Ames, Iowa) have also performed well."

Mark Manning, Wrestling Coach: (pictured below)

Sunday, Jan. 24: Wrestling vs. Iowa, Devaney Center, 2 p.m.

“We get to close out an action-packed Nebraska weekend in Sunday’s dual against Iowa, which is the most iconic wrestling program in the country. Last November, Iowa set a national attendance record (42,287) when they beat Oklahoma State in the first-ever wrestling meet in a Division I football stadium. Iowa hosted the meet before they played Minnesota in football that night. They’re a program with legendary coaches and wrestlers. They do a good job, have a great program and are always going to be a good team. What a great opportunity for us on a Sunday afternoon. We have a young team, but our expectations are high. That’s how we look at it because our guys are excited to see how we’re going to fare. We have some good leaders – Jake Sueflohn (Sr. Watertown, Wis.), Austin Wilson (Senior, Hastings, Neb.) and TJ Dudley (Junior, Imo, S.C.). Sunday’s meet will be a great opportunity for every young man on our team and our fans. We’re excited to host a meet like this and wrap up what’s going to be an incredible weekend for Nebraska fans.”

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This Weekend at Home in Nebraska Athletics

Friday, Jan. 22: Women’s Tennis vs. South Dakota State, Dillon Tennis Center, 5 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 23: Swimming & Diving vs. Illinois, Devaney Natatorium, 11 a.m.

Saturday, Jan. 23: M & W Track & Field, Mark Colligan Memorial, Devaney Indoor Track, 11:30 a.m.

Saturday, Jan. 23: Men’s Basketball vs. Michigan, Pinnacle Bank Arena, 1 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 23: Men’s Tennis vs. UNO, Dillon Tennis Center, 2 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 23: Men’s Gymnastics vs. Air Force, Devaney Center, 6 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 23: Women’s Gymnastics vs. Rutgers, Devaney Center, 6 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 23: Men’s Tennis, North Dakota, Dillon Tennis Center, 7 p.m.

Sunday, Jan. 24:   Wrestling vs. Iowa, Devaney Center, 2 p.m.

Note: Men’s and Women’s Track & Field and Men’s and Women’s Gymnastics are Pepsi Pack the House special events