Nebraska Bowl
As happy as I am about the tradition and culture of sports (collegiate football in particular) here in Nebraska, I can’t help but feel lost whenever I get dragged into yet another convoluted conversation with my boys about thing like the Nebraska bowl. I simply call it the Nebraska bowl despite the vast number of bowl games that Nebraska’s ever gotten involved with because I believe that this craze to attend at least one Nebraska bowl game is in fact pretty much as legendary as the Nebraska bowl games themselves. Anyway, as I was saying, the reminiscences of various Nebraska bowl games that I get wrangled into (because I am apparently effectively one of the boys) always leave me bewildered and inadequate as a Nebraskan.
I mean, sure, I know that the Nebraska bowl games are pretty big events – Nebraska’s participated in forty-three bowls if I remember correctly, and if I’m to believe Knack, thirty five of those were consecutive: from 1969 to 2003. The fact that Nebraska bowl games (which are holidays in themselves, even if they do occur over the holidays) have also brought forth three national championship game victories to the state may have factored into this mania as well. And true, the Nebraska bowl history also includes a fifth all-time ranking in the history of these games. But I am nevertheless frazzled at the support – and obsession – generated by Nebraska bowl games.