LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) -It’s been a long time since Nebraska coach Bo Pelini has been part of a team that lost three games in a row.
He doesn’t like the feeling.
“Believe me, it hurts me when I lose, and it takes me a while to shake,” Pelini said.
The Cornhuskers (3-3, 0-2 Big 12) go into Saturday’s game at Iowa State with consecutive losses to Virginia Tech, Missouri and Texas Tech.
Three-game losing streaks are nothing new for the Huskers in the 21st century. They lost five in a row in 2007 and three in a row in both 2005 and 2004.
But Pelini, in his first year as Nebraska coach, hasn’t been with a team that’s lost three straight since he was linebackers coach with the New England Patriots in 1999. That team had two three-game losing streaks.
The 40-year-old Pelini started coaching in the college ranks in 2003, and it wasn’t until this year that one of his teams even lost two in a row.
“As a little league kid, I didn’t lose many games. In high school, I don’t know if I lost three in my career,” he said.
Pelini has no problem pinpointing why the Huskers have been losing.
It’s all about execution, or lack of it, he said. Pelini used some form of the word “execution” 11 times in his 26-minute news conference Tuesday.
“Winning is about not beating yourself, executing, being precise, playing with discipline,” he said. “At times we do that, but we’re not consistent enough in a lot of facets in the game. Otherwise, there’s a good chance we could be sitting here 5-1.”
The Huskers have committed a Big 12-high 54 penalties, including 10 personal fouls. The offensive line has committed untimely penalties, including drive-killing back-to-back holding calls in the first half against Texas Tech. Joe Ganz has thrown costly interceptions the past three games, including one to end last week’s 37-31 overtime loss at Texas Tech.
The defense has gone three straight games without forcing a turnover. The secondary has blown coverages, the biggest one by cornerback Armando Murrillo, who let Michael Crabtree get away on Texas Tech’s big fourth-and-4 conversion in late in the game.
The Huskers have received lots of praise for playing No. 7 Texas Tech close. Pelini doesn’t want to hear it.
cuted them for 70 plays and if we just had those four plays back… If you have a lapse, you can’t have it back.”
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