No Place Like Nebraska

This story was ghostwritten by a third party after interviewing Steve.

November 3, 1962.

I remember so many things about that day, starting with the weather. It was the type of cold that goes straight to your bones, and there's not one thing you can do about it.

I was around 11 years old at the time, and my brother and I were invited to attend a Nebraska football game at Memorial Stadium with a buddy and his family.

As a kid, you don’t think anything of it. I was just excited to see a fun football game between Nebraska and Missouri, despite braving what felt like ten-degree weather.

What the thousands of us in attendance at that game didn’t know is that it would be the first in a series of sellout streaks spanning over 60 years.

With the 400th consecutive sellout at Memorial Stadium happening this Friday against Illinois, to know I was a part of the very first sellout and am forever linked to this unmatched tradition is something that truly takes my breath away.

In those 400 home games, we’ve had just about everything. 

From the Heisman winners and national championship teams we’ve put out on that field to the heartbreaking seasons and everything in between.

But you know what? Through the highs and the lows, no matter what, the fans keep coming back.

More than anything, that’s what makes me the most proud to be associated with this university, football program, and sellout streak that encapsulates what college football is all about in the great state of Nebraska.

Witnessing History 

As much as I love football and the Nebraska Cornhuskers, I can honestly say it wasn’t always that way.

While I enjoyed football, it wasn’t my first love. Baseball was my first love.

I lived and died with the New York Yankees.

You’ve got to remember when I was a kid, Nebraska wasn’t this powerhouse and blue-blood program that we know today.

In fact, Bob Devaney’s first season at Nebraska was in ‘62, the same year I attended that game against Missouri. So Nebraska football hadn’t quite got its hooks into me like the Yankees had.

That all changed when I enrolled at Nebraska as a student in ‘69. As Nebraska fans know, we went on to win the 1970 and 1971 National Championships. 

To be a student when Devaney got us to the top of the mountain and established ourselves as one of the best programs in the country — boy was that a special time.

I’ve been an avid fan ever since.

One of the most notable games I ever attended was the 1972 Orange Bowl between 11-0 Alabama and 12-0 Nebraska.

My buddies and I traveled to Miami for the game. We were sitting with some Alabama fans before the game. They were talking up their star RB, Johnny Musso, and were wondering who was our dominant offensive threat. Not an easy question; among a backfield consisting of Jerry Tagge, Jeff Kinney, Johnny Rodgers, and Bill Olds.

We had eventually three NFL first-round picks, including a Heisman trophy winner. 

I’m not sure these Alabama fans knew what their team was in for!

That’s not to say Alabama didn’t have a great team; they were undefeated for a reason. But there was no question who the best team was on the field that day.

Nebraska proved it by jumping out to a 28-0 halftime lead! My buddies and I were ecstatic. 

Our excitement slightly dwindled in the second half, as we only scored one touchdown the rest of the game and mostly sat on the lead to finish with a 38-6 victory.

That ‘71 team is considered one of the best football teams of all time, and I beam with pride knowing I was there in Miami to watch them finish off one of the most dominant seasons in the history of college football.

A Big Red Advantage

You can’t really think about this sellout streak without thinking about how much of a home-field advantage it is.

Close to 90,000 fans screaming at the top of their lungs and cheering their team to victory is something that every opponent has to plan for when they enter The Sea of Red.

I remember in ‘74, I had my own personal experience with how much of an impact a crowd can make.

I was just out of college and attended a game against Oklahoma State. It was a defensive battle, to say the least, as the score finished 7-3 with a Husker victory. But things were looking bleak late.

Oklahoma State got the ball in the fourth quarter at their own 15-yard line or so. From there, they proceeded to just gash us on the ground. They were getting four or five-yard chunks every play.

It was so disheartening to watch as a fan because it looked like the Nebraska defense was gassed after being on the field all day.

Well, I couldn’t take it anymore, so I decided to do something about it.

Oklahoma State had first and goal at the five-yard line, and me and another guy a few rows behind me simultaneously yelled, “De-fense!”

With God as my witness, 20 other people joined in on the chant. Then hundreds after that. Then the whole stadium was just screaming.

Before I knew it, the whole stadium was yelling, “De-fense!” as loud as they could, and sure enough, Oklahoma State couldn’t punch it in. They ended up turning it over on downs at the goal line and the Huskers squeaked out the win.

It’s why I always have so much love for the Husker faithful because their passion and energy that they show every Saturday makes it difficult for any team to make a trip to Lincoln.

With the sellout streak as proof, the best fans in college football reside in Memorial Stadium.

We'll all stick together

Like I mentioned earlier, no matter if Nebraska is having an undefeated season, or we don’t win enough games to go to a bowl game, the fans will be there to show their support.

That’s what I believe separates Husker fans from the rest of the country.

“We’ll all stick together in all kinds of weather.”

Those aren’t just lyrics in a fight song – they’re actions that Nebraska fans embody year in and year out.

I went to a game in 2017 when Urban Meyer and Ohio State came to town, and to say it didn’t go well for us would be a tremendous understatement.

It was 35-0 at halftime, and the score ended up finishing 56-14 in the Buckeyes’ favor. But did I get angry and storm out? Did I give up on this team?

Absolutely not!

And the vast majority of the fans at Memorial that day didn’t either because no matter how frustrated we were, we stayed to cheer and support these young men amidst the adversity they faced on the field.

As we approach the 400th consecutive sellout, it’s nothing short of surreal to think that I was at the very first one.

Through all those games, seasons, and roller coaster of highs and lows, I can’t exactly pinpoint why the fans continue to sell out each game every year.

It might be the foundation Bob Devaney and Tom Osborne set with the national titles.

Maybe it’s the fact that Nebraska doesn’t have a professional football team.

But one thing I do know for certain.

There’s no place like Nebraska.