Six years to win a title.

[k9_r]

Does that seem like a lot? I mean, we were living on the Big 12 basement steps for three years before coming here, so... Takes a while to put it together, right? Seems like things are working out well.

We've actually been pretty good in the B1G. Three 2nd place finishes, a 4th and, now, a championship. Had a stinker a couple years ago finishing 8th with a 9-14 record.

Fact is, for the entire six years the Huskers have the 2nd best record sitting 7 1/2 games behind Indiana.

Here's the six year composite.

1 IN....... 95-46 (.673)
2 N........ 88-54 (.619)
3 IL....... 84-58 (.592)
4 MD..... 42-30 (.583)
5 MN..... 77-62 (.554)
6 MI...... 78-65 (.545)
7 IA....... 76-68 (.528)
8 MSU... 73-68 (.518)
9 OSU.... 72-72 (.500)
10 NW.... 50-93 (.350)
11 PUR.. 49-94 (.343)
12 PSU.. 46-95 (.326)
13 RU..... 23-48 (.324)

 

[HuskersNC]

Dave Van Horn set a very high standard, winning a tournament within 2 years and regular season title within 4, but also against top 10 competition and with a crap facility with a few dozen fans in the stands. I have never heard who the 5-6 other serious candidates were for the job in 2011, so I can't speculate on if hiring a more experienced coach would have yielded faster results. Hopefully this sparks a revival of Husker baseball for a while

 

[donahues17]

The question is what rank is the big 10 compared to other conferences? I would say maybe 7th or so. So Nebraska is a power 5 conference team that has only won 1 conferenxe championship in 6 years. That would be like football only winning 1 conf champonship in 6 years in say the WAC? In my opinion, Nebraska should be either 1st or 2nd in most years.

 

[huskerfan_12_05]

The question is what rank is the big 10 compared to other conferences? I would say maybe 7th or so. So Nebraska is a power 5 conference team that has only won 1 conferenxe championship in 6 years. That would be like football only winning 1 conf champonship in 6 years in say the WAC? In my opinion, Nebraska should be either 1st or 2nd in most years.

We actually have been 2nd 3 times out of this 6 years , & 1st once just missing out on a title by .5 game last year. So that is 4 out of 6 years in 1st or 2nd in the league.... I'd say that's pretty dang good. Baseball is not comparable to football at all imo... we are #1 in a league that should get 4 teams into the tournament which is pretty dang good. Not as good as the big 12 obviously but still a pretty decent league

 

[k9_r]

Another thing I’ve looked at is how Nebraska’s entry in the Big Ten has affected the conference’s standing in the baseball world. Conference RPI rankings tell a story.

Prior to Nebraska joining (1997 - 2011): Avg RPI rank - 12.1... Avg W % - .517
After Nebraska joined (2012 - present): Avg RPI rank -- 8.2.... Avg W % - .533

Yr - Rank --- (W/L Record)
Prior to us..
1997 - 14 --- (264-248)….. 2005 - 10 ---- (293-263)
1998 -- 6 ---- (252-231)….. 2006 - 16 ---- (288-289)
1999 -- 9 ---- (300-239)….. 2007 - 12 ---- (291-266)
2000 - 10 --- (290-263)….. 2008 - 14 ---- (279-277)
2001 - 14 --- (273-260)….. 2009 - 13 ---- (276-261)
2002 - 13 ---- (277-254)…. 2010 - 11 ---- (305-286)
2003 - 11 --- (282-257)….. 2011 - 15 ---- (289-284)
2004 - 14 ---- (277-280)
Since joining..
2012 - 10 ---- (325-289)
2013 - 8 ------ (313-277)
2014 - 10 ---- (286-271)
2015 - 7 ------ (376-308) <--- Maryland and Rutgers join
2016 - 7 ------ (367-322)
2017 - 7 ----- (372-318)

Not to mention that Husker facilities and fan support have drawn attention and provided impetus for improvement around the conference.

You're welcome, Big Ten.

(As always with charts like this, adjust zoom to keep things on their own line.)

 

[coolonetoo]

I prefer the approach of looking at average finish. When comparing performance over time, it lessens the impact of one really good or really bad season. Illinois, for example, gets a big boost in overall record with a 21-1 season in 2015. But the Illini have otherwise been mostly average. Here's the data since 2012 and excluding Maryland and Rutgers:

Nebraska (4,2,2,8,2,1): 3.17
Indiana (2,1,1,6,3,6): 3.17
Minnesota (6,4,4,9,1,3): 4.50
Michigan (10,5,4,3,5,2): 4.83
Illinois (6,5,3,1,8,10): 5.5
Ohio State (6,2,7,7,3,11): 6.00
Michigan State (5,7,6,3,6,9): 6.00
Iowa (9,8,7,2,8,4): 6.33
Purdue (1,10,10,13,13,8): 9.17
Northwestern (11,9,9,10,12,7): 9.67
Penn State (3,11,11,12,8,13): 9.67

Nebraska and Indiana are pretty clearly the most consistently high-achieving programs in the league over this span. I expect that trend to continue over the long haul as I think they are the two programs that are the most committed to baseball.

So, bottom line, we are a top program in what is now a decent conference. If the Big Ten was only as good as it had been the decade prior to us joining it, the numbers above would be somewhat embarrassing. But there's no doubt the league as a whole is better.

FWIW, Maryland has been a boost to the conference with an average finish of 4.33 in three seasons. Rutgers has been a drag at 11.33. But that pretty much applies to every sport, right?

 

[frankluv]

I don't get it. Can't we just enjoy this Big Ten Season Championship without bitching? Let's just enjoy this and hope that we keep moving forward.

 

[donahues17]

I don't get it. Can't we just enjoy this Big Ten Season Championship without bitching? Let's just enjoy this and hope that we keep moving forward.

Nobody is bitching, just having conversation. Its what adults do. Thanks for the thoughtful insight though.

 

[donahues17]

I agree the league has gotten better since Nebraska joined the conference and yes they can directly thank Nebraska for that. Big ten schools have taken notice of baseball as of late and started making improvements to their stadiums. They still need to get more fan involvement to make it even better. Biggest thing hurting many big ten schools is the amount of money spent on travel. Ive mentioned before how some big ten schools dont have a lot of top schools within driving distance to help boost their RPI. So I dont think the big ten will ever be a top 5 conference like it should be. A power 5 conference should be just that in every major sport. Right now we sit at 7th RPI wise behind the American Athletic and Conference USA.

 

[k9_r]

I don't get it. Can't we just enjoy this Big Ten Season Championship without bitching? Let's just enjoy this and hope that we keep moving forward.

Didn't really notice any bitching. I know I'm pleased as hell and hoping for a good post season.

 

[HuskersNC]

I don't get it. Can't we just enjoy this Big Ten Season Championship without bitching? Let's just enjoy this and hope that we keep moving forward.

 

[bleedhuskerred]

I was skeptical if Erstad was able to get it done here. Very happy for him and the team. GBR! Keep it rolling.

 

[frankluv]

The question is what rank is the big 10 compared to other conferences? I would say maybe 7th or so. So Nebraska is a power 5 conference team that has only won 1 conferenxe championship in 6 years. That would be like football only winning 1 conf champonship in 6 years in say the WAC? In my opinion, Nebraska should be either 1st or 2nd in most years.

Sounds like bitching to me. Seriously, can't we just celebrate the win?

 

[donahues17]

Nope simple conversation. I really dont give 2 $#%@ what it sounds like to you to be honest.

 

[donahues17]

Sounds like yoi are bitching about people bitching. Dont like it, dont read it. Damn life is so simple.

 

[frankluv]

I have to read it before I can decide that I like something. On the other hand, why do you respond if you don't give a sh## about what I was trying to say. Enjoy the moment. Go Huskers. We can't win the national title with these team but I will enjoy any more wins that they can pull out.

 

[RobsterMobster]

Sounds like bitching to me. Seriously, can't we just celebrate the win?

Unlike RSS where everything is sunshine and rainbows we allow open dialogue on the Baseball Board. Everyone on this board pretty much knows what we have and what we can become but will always dissect things a little further because the obsession about Husker Baseball is greater over here.

I can understand the confusion though so no worries. For example, it would upset most people if I said I felt we under performed this year and could have been a Top 16 seed and hosting a regional next week. That isn't to undermine what has been accomplished but more so looking back at missed opportunities is all. I'd bet Erstad would say the same thing quite honestly and in fact I've heard him have such conversations in the past.

The great thing is we can have these discussions while have a pretty decent year, doesn't mean it is b****ing parse.

 

[coolonetoo]

For example, it would upset most people if I said I felt we under performed this year and could have been a Top 16 seed and hosting a regional next week.

I doubt that would upset anyone regular on this board.

 

[RobsterMobster]

I doubt that would upset anyone regular on this board.

True, I guess I was referring to the RSS side. I've made some mistakes on dissecting too much over there and was destroyed by the mob. I will say the negative posters on RSS tend to be that way without any real fact behind it so the rest are a little on edge and easy to get defensive which I get.

 

[k9_r]

Unlike RSS where everything is sunshine and rainbows we allow open dialogue on the Baseball Board. Everyone on this board pretty much knows what we have and what we can become but will always dissect things a little further because the obsession about Husker Baseball is greater over here.

I can understand the confusion though so no worries. For example, it would upset most people if I said I felt we under performed this year and could have been a Top 16 seed and hosting a regional next week. That isn't to undermine what has been accomplished but more so looking back at missed opportunities is all. I'd bet Erstad would say the same thing quite honestly and in fact I've heard him have such conversations in the past.

The great thing is we can have these discussions while have a pretty decent year, doesn't mean it is b****ing parse.

Win the Western Carolina and Iowa series at home plus pick up one more win on the California trip (lost late leads twice) - our RPI would be easily in the low 30s and available for a nice improvement in Bloomington.

Losing a three run lead going to the bottom of the eighth at Penn St cost us as well.

Reverse those things and we would be host eligible depending on this week's results.

 

[sklarbodds]

Win the Western Carolina and Iowa series at home plus pick up one more win on the California trip (lost late leads twice) - our RPI would be easily in the low 30s and available for a nice improvement in Bloomington.

Losing a three run lead going to the bottom of the eighth at Penn St cost us as well.

Reverse those things and we would be host eligible depending on this week's results.

Creighton v2, ugh.

The rain suspended game vs tOSU should have been a win.

Yeah, you button up some of those and we're hosting. However, I don't think it's reasonable to ever expect to not have some losses that are a little disappointing.

For me, especially given the arms that went down this year, this is about where I had hoped we'd be. Top 1 or 2 in the B1G with a solid spot in the postseason pretty much locked up.

I would love to have a team that regularly competes for regional hosting and super regionals but I think that's easier said than done. Darin hasn't set the world on fire, but it's hard to look at his body of work and think anything but he's done a pretty decent job.

I do wish he'd recruit power a little more and be a little more aggressive on the base paths.

 

[RobsterMobster]

Creighton v2, ugh.

The rain suspended game vs tOSU should have been a win.

Yeah, you button up some of those and we're hosting. However, I don't think it's reasonable to ever expect to not have some losses that are a little disappointing.

For me, especially given the arms that went down this year, this is about where I had hoped we'd be. Top 1 or 2 in the B1G with a solid spot in the postseason pretty much locked up.

I would love to have a team that regularly competes for regional hosting and super regionals but I think that's easier said than done. Darin hasn't set the world on fire, but it's hard to look at his body of work and think anything but he's done a pretty decent job.

I do wish he'd recruit power a little more and be a little more aggressive on the base paths.

I do think the injuries hurt but those early games are what really set us back. Losing to those Cali school's, Utah, and whatnot. I just want to go to a regional again!