Bellyachers

OK, so maybe he wasn't whining. Maybe he was just making an observation, albeit a silly one, and it only sounded like whining.

But goodness gracious, the Nebraska Cornhuskers lost again, and here was their head coach and former icon quarterback, Scott Frost, attributing the snapping issues of his center to Iowa players clapping on the sideline. Said it might have confused poor Cameron Jurgens, and that's why he kept snapping the ball all cattywampus.

So football players clapping on their own sideline is an issue now for the Cornharrumphers? What's next, demanding a recount of the latest loss, this one 26-20 to the Hawkeyes?

Bad enough that the Huskers are 1-4 now and looking nothing like what Nebraska is supposed to look like on a football field. But they're also whining about it, and that is especially unbecoming.

Whining about players clapping. Whining about the Big Ten initially shutting down the season, and threatening to temporarily bolt to the Big 12, which Nebraska couldn't do and stay in the Big Ten. Whining, when the conference finally relented and announced a late-to-the-party season, about their schedule. 

Whining about one of its games being canceled because of the Bastard Plague, and hunting around for an alternate opponent -- which the Cornhuskers were told they also couldn't do but tried to do anyway.

At which point the Big Ten was probably regretting not letting them just go ahead and bolt to the Big 12. 

Good lord. Somewhere now, if I'm very still, I can hear old Bob Devaney stomping around up there in X-and-O heaven, wondering WHEN THE HELL his mighty Nebraska Cornhuskers turned into a bunch of BELLYACHING CANDY ASSES.

Things were different in Lincoln in Coach Bob's day. He rounded up a bunch of square-jawed farmboys named Bob and Dave and Jeff and Bill, and he made sure some of them were so big they could block out the sun, and they went around mashing people into odd shapes and sizes. They didn't whine and bellyache and cry like toddlers; they made everyone else whine and bellyache and cry like toddlers.

And they certainly didn't make excuses when Bob or Dave or Bill botched the snap. No, sir. They benched him and brought in another Bob or Dave or Bill, and went right on murderlizing whatever poor Whosis State they were playing that week.

Clapping on the opposing sideline?

That would have just made 'em laugh.

Instead, here in 2020, it's the opponents who are kinda-sorta laughing.

Never heard of that," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said when a reporter brought up Frost's complaint/excuse. "If a player on the field was doing it, I get that. But what are we talking about? The next thing you know, we're going to be treating this like golf."

Well. Maybe at Nebraska, at least.