There is joy in Mudville! Err, Lincoln.
Yeah, Lincoln.
That's because yesterday we told you the story of the Nebraska Cornhuskers, and how their near 60-year sellout streak - one that dated back to 1962, yes NINETEEN SIXTY-TWO! - was in jeopardy. Coming off an embarrassing loss to Illinois and with a less than inspiring opponent on the slate Saturday (Fordham) there were still seats available through the school's official website.
Well on Tuesday we got an update, and the word "were" is the proverbially important word here, because there are tickets, no more. Apparently two boosters decided to scoop up all the remaining tickets and give them to disadvantaged youth in the area.
Admittedly, the gesture is cool, especially for a bunch of kids that will get to go to a game that they might otherwise be unable to.
At the same time, it still paints a dire picture for the present and future of Nebraska football.
If it was this much of a struggle to sell out these games, what happens if and when things get worse? Oklahoma is on the schedule in just a few weeks, and games against Ohio State, Wisconsin and Iowa (all ranked in the Top 15 to start the season) await.
If the team continues to fade, how many times will the boosters bail out the program to keep a cool streak alive? We might find out sooner rather than later.
But still, for at least one week, it lives on.
If you want to read the original story from Monday, continue to scroll.
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The most incredible streak in college has nothing to do with Nick Saban and Alabama, Ohio State, Oklahoma or any other super power.
But instead the opposite: It comes from a program that has struggled for the better part of two decades.
That streak is at Nebraska, where the school has sold out a staggering 375 straight games. THREE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY FIVE!!! It's a streak that dates all the way back to 1962, meaning that yes, for damn near 60 years, Nebraska football has never had a single football ticket available, once the game kicked off Saturday.
But a combination of a disastrous first three years of the Scott Frost era, a disastrous first game against Illinois on Saturday in Week 0, and a super lackluster opponent in Week 1 with FCS program Fordham coming to town has that streak in jeopardy.
Among the many things that head coach Scott Frost addressed in his Monday press conference was this very topic.
"If there's still some tickets out there, buy them up and come watch this team," Frost said, according to KMTV. "This is a special group of kids with a lot of character, a lot of talent. We can't wait to play in front of the fans so we need you there."
Here are the full quotes from Frost.
And it appears as though that isn't just Frost rallying the troops, but instead a fact.
A quick search on Nebraska's website seems to indicate that you can in fact still by tickets for Saturday's game, with a going rate of $70 a pop.
It was also confirmed by new AD Trev Alberts, who said - even before the disastrous loss to Illinois over the weekend - that there were still a few tickets available for the Fordham game.
"I will tell you, 'We're still making progress. We're still selling tickets.' But I would challenge Husker Nation to ask you to continue buying tickets and continue supporting us," the Nebraska athletics director said on Wednesday on the 'Sports Nightly' radio show. "This is really important to us. This is important to our football program. It's important to our fans. We have tickets to sell, we have tickets to move. Our team is working really hard in that area as well.
So yeah, it really does appear as though that streak is in jeopardy.
For some context on just how long ago it was since the last time Nebraska failed to sell out a game, well here are some facts:
Nick Saban was 11-years-old, the last time Nebraska failed to sell out a football game.
Scott Frost was still 13 years from being born. That's right, he has never lived in a world where Nebraska didn't sell out a football game.
The Cornhuskers have won five national championships since their last non-sell out.
So yeah, it's been a while.
And it all could be coming to an end this weekend.
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