Nebraska football’s 5-1 start bringing joy to former players

The sun was setting and most Nebraska players had already exited the Memorial Stadium field, heading toward another locker-room celebration dance after holding off Rutgers. Held up was one of the senior Husker leaders, safety Isaac Gifford, by two people who looked even happier than him.

Luke Gifford — Isaac’s older brother — clapped and grinned. Jerald Foster, the former 330-pound offensive lineman, jumped around and whooped. Both were captains on the 2018 Nebraska team that finished 4-8. Nebraska during their four years as regulars posted one winning season amid a pair of coaching changes.

“One more and we’re going to a bowl, thank God!” Foster shouted after throwing the bones in a forearms-crossed pose with the Gifford brothers.

These 5-1 Huskers — a play or two from 6-0 — are bringing buzz to a fan base and validating their own internal expectations. They’re also breathing life into a generation of recent players whose win total never exceeded where NU is now at the season’s midpoint.

Following from his new home in Wisconsin, Austin Allen still feels the jitters and adrenaline rush of a fall Saturday. The former Nebraska tight end and 2021 team co-captain sees something new as well: a team with a run-based offensive identity that can chew clock and finish close games.

The offseason things some view as quirky Allen considers relentless culture building that is paying off. Team trivia quizzes. Campus scavenger hunts. A spring football draft.

“I think we were content with where we were as a team and hoped for best results and that lost us games in the end,” Allen said. “These guys are really trusting each other that it’s no longer ‘We’re losing the game when we’re up seven and the opponent has the ball.’ It’s ‘I trust my defense and we’re going to get a stop and kneel this out.’”

Dicaprio Bootle’s college experience began with a Husker bowl game during his redshirt year in 2016 ahead of records of 4-8, 4-8, 5-7 and 3-5. The defensive back left for the NFL as NU’s drought endured to 3-9, 4-8 and 5-7 through last season.

For the first time this fall, the member of the Los Angeles Chargers practice squad can talk up his alma mater that’s sitting just outside the top 25. The former team captain tells his younger brother, Dwight — a redshirt freshman DB — that his time in Lincoln is trending differently under coach Matt Rhule.

“I watch some of the clips online and listen to Coach Rhule talk and get ready to run through a brick wall myself,” the older Bootle said. “Imagine how they feel. I’m for it. We’re winning. I get to brag on my team. I love it.”

Mo Barry, a 2019 captain whose senior year ended a late Iowa rally shy of the postseason, still scouts Nebraska’s next opponent when he’s not working with commercial and residential real estate properties in Omaha. The former linebacker sees Husker defenders who understand their scheme while playing free and loose.

It’s not perfect, he said. How can the program still not have a steady kicking operation? The rush offense still needs to be more potent to win games in the season’s second half.

But things still seem pretty good from his outside perch. The locker room camaraderie in 2019 “wasn’t the best,” Barry said, and certainly not to the current level. He credits Rhule for keeping short his public criticism of players during media sessions and putting accountability on himself. Everyone seems to know and embrace their role, whatever it is.

Best of all, he said, winning is bringing joy back to the community. He’ll partake vicariously, like watching the next leg of a relay race. Only a few of his former teammates — including fellow defenders Ty Robinson, John Bullock and Javin Wright — are still around.

“Nebraska fans definitely deserve it,” Barry said. “All the money, all the time that these Nebraska fans put into this program, it’s almost like, ‘How in the hell does Nebraska not win seven games?’”

Said Allen: “I don’t want to jinx it, but one more win and I might make a little holiday trip somewhere for a bowl game.”

The Aurora native said he feels relief for a fan base his squads tried and failed to satisfy for half a decade. He attended the Colorado contest and got caught up in “an atmosphere and a half.” He’d never heard of a team bringing everyone together for physicality drills during pregame warmups. Now he wonders why more places don’t do it.

The former Husker leaders — all who used to do regular postgame interviews trying to process losing seasons — can’t help but offer advice to the current team for the season’s stretch run. Allen warns not to get complacent with mundane technique details. Bootle implores NU to guard against being satisfied with just another win or two. Barry wants to see Big Red keep playing like it still has a point to prove — he’s experienced what happens when that collective edge fades.

Isaac Gifford, himself a 23-year-old senior in his final college season, jogged off the field last weekend ready for a bye week before the final sprint. One more chance to finish strong for so many people, including the crowd of recent Huskers who never did.

“It’s trying to honor all the guys that went through the lows of the lows here,” Gifford said. “It feels good to finally get some wins on the board.”