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So just to prove my identity, and say thanks for having me, here's an extra preview (different from the one I tweeted, which is posted above). Hope you enjoy the comic tomorrow.

Nebraska didn't pick him either

My brother-in-law (who lives in Central Texas) made some strong suggestions for the drive to San Antonio. Background ... I have made the drive to San Antonio several times in the past few years. I-35 from a ways north of Dallas through to San Antonio can be a VERY busy and hectic drive. About the only respite is for a short time south of Dallas. LOTS of traffic and construction regularly otherwise. I can vouch for how stressful the drive and traffic can be, and traffic and congestion is not something that generally bothers me. All that being said, he recommended (instead of taking I-35 past Oklahoma City) taking I-44 southwest from Oklahoma City to Wichita Falls then taking US 281 the rest of the way. Otherwise he said we could stay on I-35W through Ft Worth and then take 174 south at Burleson to US 67 to 220 to US 281 on to San Antonio. He said at a very minimum to do this ... bypassing Waco, Austin, etc. He guaranteed me this would be quicker than staying on I-35 and I believe him given my experience in the past. He said I-35 is especially bad this time of year with the current construction and spring break traffic. If you choose to not do either of those suggestions, MAKE SURE and take the tollway around Austin. Out of state drivers do not have to pay to take it and the speed limit is 80 mph. Last time I was on it, it was SO MUCH faster than dealing with I-35 traffic through Austin. (If you go through Austin on the way check out The Salt Lick for BBQ) I visited some Dallas message boards and people almost unanimously were saying they take US 281 instead of I-35 when heading to San Antonio. What will I do? Taking I-44 to Wichita Falls feels a little bit extreme to me, but I might do it. My bro-in-law is generally dead on. Otherwise I will for sure be taking the second route I outlined jumping off I-35 at Burleson. Apparently the drive through Hill Country on 281 is very pretty (for Texas). Traffic is especially bad from North of Waco through to San Antonio ... I've never had it not be bad. Apparently there are some great places to eat and pick up pie along the 281 route as well. Stephenville - "The Hard 8 BBQ" (only would pass through here if you took I-44 south of OKC) Lampasas - "Firehouse BBQ" Blanco - "Blanco Bowling Club Cafe" (great pie) Marble Falls - "Blue Bonnet Cafe" (pie) Hico - "Koffee Kup Family Restaurant" (pie) People from Dallas were all talking about these places too. Just wanted to share what I had found out in some of my research ... See everyone in San Antonio! We are driving to Wichita tomorrow night and then on to San Antonio on Thursday. GO B1G RED!

Okay, that headline may be a little overstated, but play along. We've played out the "What if Leslee tips in the buzzer-beater vs. Michigan?" We've played out the "What if Biggs doesn't turn it over twice in the final 72 seconds vs. Penn St.?" But rarely do we play the "what if" game in wins. I'm going to attempt. As far as individual clutch shots go, we've seen plenty of them this year. How many times did Petteway ice a game with a late three? How many clutch free-throws have he and Shields hit to put games away? What about the four clutch free-throws that Tai hit at home vs. Ohio St. in the final two minutes? We all remember the Gallegos three coming out of the eight minute timeout vs Wisconsin. Huge. But I'm going to take you back to the home game vs Indiana. Indiana holds a 13 point halftime lead. Their zone is causing us major problems and our 19 first half points mark a season low. The second half starts a little better. Behind two Gallegos threes and six points from Petteway, we cut that lead to five at the 16 minute timeout. Then we go cold again. From 15:49 to the 7:41 mark, we are only able to muster two field goals. Petteway goes to the bench at the 15 minute mark after picking up his second and third fouls. Gallegos had gone ice cold. Shields had gone ice cold. Benny, in his limited minutes had been an absolute liability vs their zone. The only saving grace was that the Hoosiers hadn't been any better. Enter, Nate Hawkins. Not only is he a true freshman, but he is seeing his first minutes since January 4th. This is January 30th. Nate played 10 minutes, all in the second half, and only took one shot. But man was that a big shot. If you remember, Indiana had been daring him to shoot. He had passed up two pretty good looks. But at the 7:41 mark, down three, he let one fly. Dagger. That three ties the game, rejuvenates the crowd, and sparks an 8-0 run over the next two minutes. That run, arguably, provided to be the most pivotal stretch in our five point win. But, what if that shot doesn't go in and Indiana heads to the eight minute time out, up three (or more)? I'm not sure, but I'm glad we didn't have to find out. Good job, Nate.

Some comics take as little as an hour or two to actually write. I write them in chunks though. Usually I think of jokes or concepts or situations throughout the week, and jot them down. Then I work on stringing it together into as much of a cohesive one-sitting story as possible, which takes a bit of time. The night before posting, I open up Photoshop and do all the placement. That's just busy-work, usually done while watching Archer and drinking beer. Sometimes when I'm putting stuff together I think of something new and slide a joke or two in. But mostly I write it in chunks throughout the week. Regarding your second question, I'm really glad the university engages with it. Not just for my own selfish reasons either. It's good for them to not pretend like stuff like TWOS, Faux Pelini and the like don't exist. They do exist, and people seem to like them. As a brand, the Huskers can make great strides by bringing us jackasses into the fold and making it all one big happy family. I'm glad they have, and it seems like there are some good folks running things there.

Haha, so far these are roughly the responses I expected. I do think it's nice to see his bracket every year. May not always see eye to eye with the guy, but it's cool he does this like millions of other Americans.

For those of you who are not familiar, there is this blog/tumblr by the name of the Tunnel Walk of Shame (TWOS) that for the last couple of years has been lampooning the Husker football team. You can see his work here On February 19, 2014 he made the following tweet (three days after we beat Michigan St on the road) As a man of his word, he's followed through and I'm sure we'll see the comic appear at 8 am. We'll have to find out if he thought at the time he would spend his free time searching for Mike Peltz on the internet for hours. The semi-mysterious TWOS will be stopping by at some point Wednesday morning/afternoon to answer/mock/ignore all your questions so fire away. Click here to view the article

I really don't think it's a B1G deal.

I will go there one more time if we get to play them and if we beat them this year. Otherwise I won't go to any of their sites just because there is nothing for me there to read.

That is such good news because he's wrong about almost everything!

You know it. But I won't be around for tailgating/festivities, sadly. Down there for something else, but sneaking in a trip to the game.

Finally got the word that my drill make up has been accepted. Excitement level is officially through the roof.

The column is up - http://www.tunnelwalkofshame.com/post/80063394815/game-week-nebrasketball-2014 Warning: The content is not Jean appropriate: viewer discretion is advised

Thankfully Spurs is taking me or I'd probably end up in Mexico.

Every time you cheer for Creighton God kills a kitten.

Whataburger is my fucking jam. Was treated to it by an awesome family in El Paso as a pre-Thanksgiving snack.

Hey guys! This is TWOS. Happy to chat some Nebrasketball. The new comic will be posted in the a.m., as the godfather noted above (I don't know if he has a real name but I talk to him on Twitter sometimes and he seems nice). I'll drop a link to the comic in the morning and, depending on work schedule, be around throughout the day to chat. I look forward to it.

Perhaps this has been posted and I missed it, but I read that only one at-large team has a worse defensive efficiency rating than Baylor (NC State). Apparently there are a lot of gaps in that zone.

First of all, I am firmly in the camp of disliking the Creighton Blue Jays (Yes, spelled "Bluejays" wrong intentionally). From 1999-2000, when Terrell Taylor was a hot dog and talking trash more than any opposing player I had seen (and this was backed by former players I was friends with at this time - I was in college). Add in Rodney Buford and you had quite the special duo come through that program, along with guys who couldn't even read (literally). From 2003-2004, when we ended their season, on their home floor, in the NIT, and we were told "Well, that game doesn't matter. Only the regular season matters. NIT is for losers." From 2005, when something like 12 of 16 schools on our schedule would work with us (HHC) in doing interviews, sending out media guides, etc. The Creighton SID (Rob something) was completely rude to me, lectured me on my grammar (which is pretty spot on the majority of the time) and informed me they wouldn't be doing anything or sending out a guide. This is back before media guides were standard on-line and 10 of 12 Big 12 schools sent them without a problem, as well as allowing access. Little dick syndrome even back then. From DBAG Perrault, the biggest fraud of a media personality in the country, and a career bush league radio guy with no future (BTW, Mike Welch, you DO have a future. I need to reach out to you soon). From the last 15 years, when there's NO DOUBT they have had more basketball success. Nobody here is arguing that. But they seemed to revel in calling us "Little brother" (which makes zero sense), have fans like LincolnJay who would end every post with "BE LOUD!!! BE PROUD!!!" and multitudes of others who would do ANYTHING to belittle Nebraska, a program with an all-time winning record head to head and a program who saw basketball as its (for the majority of that time) 5th best athletic program. You see, basketball is Creighton's marquee sport. Pretty much always has been. Basketball has NEVER been Nebraska's marquee sport. And never close. Is some of that incompetence from AD's, coaches, players, etc? Of course. But a lot is that there was NEVER an emphasis placed on basketball in a serious manner until recently. Flash forward to tonight. I head over to the Creighton site for the second time this year (First since back before and after we played them) and I see constant mocking of Nebraska, how Baylor is a lock, they don't even CONSIDER US a possible opponent. Are you joking? A 3.5 point underdog? The 4th ranked Big 10 team versus the 7th ranked Big 12 team? Two conferences that are VERY comparable RPI wise? There's two possibilities for this reaction - both very much possible (and probable). 1. They're clueless basketball fans and seriously think we couldn't defeat a Baylor team no better than Ohio State, who we split with in the regular season and no logical person would say we didn't "have defeated" last Friday. They don't understand a team +3.5 has a better than 2:1 chance of winning, meaning odds are pretty good, and they don't understand we've already defeated teams better, such as the aforementioned Ohio State, Wisconsin and Michigan State (on the road). 2. They're scared shitless. They know that their All-American player, Dougie M, is gone, and that Daddy wasn't ever able to cut it at BCS level leagues in the past and will never be able to recruit that caliber of athlete again. Luckily for Daddy, the Big East is only 25% better than the Valley in its peak years, so he has a fighting chance of competing in the middle of that league and avoiding the "pathetic" NIT in half of the years. They know that their 26 year old point guard will soon have to get a real job, unless he gets into UFC Fighting, which I would advise or even better, cock fighting (hey, it fits, doesn't it?). They also know this "team of a lifetime" and "dream season" couldn't even finish 1st place in a watered down, slightly above mid major status league during the regular season, and choked away a conference championship in the tournament against a team that (GASP!!!) has the same seed as "little brother" Nebraska in the NCAA's (11 seed - thanks to Creighton's incompetence in getting them that high). What's even funnier is that they wouldn't even have won the Valley this year, clearly a non Top 8 league, and they've only gone one round further than Nebraska in the NCAA. So why are they scared? Well, with all of the above in mind, they see that right down the road, for the first time in program history, FINALLY Nebraska is dedicated to fielding a basketball team. No more forcing a coach out after the school's first NCAA appearance in 1986. No more forcing a coach out in the 90's who put the program to a new level. No more old facilities. No more stupid administrative mishaps. They see "little brother" finally putting its money where the fans' mouths have been. In Creighton's defense, a lot of us HAVE been claiming things are getting better, with little evidence (other than hope) to back that for years. However, nowadays, it would take a mental midget to not clearly SEE the differences in: 1. A top 5 practice facility in America. 2. A top 5 basketball arena in America. 3. A top level basketball coach that has won over almost every heart he's crossed that has a beat. 4. A first team All Big 10 performer with two years left; a former huge recruit to Florida who is going to become a second team All Big 10 performer by his senior season in two years; a sophomore All-Honorable Mention B1G as a sophomore; a big time point guard prospect who is a freshman; and a Top 25 caliber recruiting class brewing for 2015. 5. A much better basketball conference (and ten times the network than the conference formerly called the Big East). 6. A completely sold out season ticket fan base. 7. Fans who get into the game (unlike the old days). 8. National attention (gobs of it). And last but not least: 9. A program that SHOULD be TWO YEARS AWAY from the NCAA Tournament. Yet here we are, in year two. I don't blame them for being scared shitless. Times are changing. They always will. What's funny though is that looking back, I see we were going to lose to MSU. Then at Indiana. Then to WISC. And miss the tourney. I'm reminded that we were never going to make the NIT and if we do, its a loser tournament. And now "little brother" is TWO YEARS ahead of schedule, with more momentum than Rodney Buford had going through security with his marijuana inside his tin foil at the airport, and you know what, Creighton can't stand this. This is THEIR year. Their "Final 4 run" (which is still posted on their site even today and talked about like its normal - you should read it, its quite adorable). And here we are, one win away from playing them, and they can't STAND to think of it. "Little Brother" taking the headlines and becoming even with them in their DREAM SEASON. TWO YEARS before we are supposed to do anything. They can't stand getting beat by "little brother', let alone being in the same tournament and same bracket. UNL is a bunch of peasants who are not near as good at basketball as the almighty Creighton, don't you know?!? The same Creighton whose power sport has never seen a Sweet 16 in modern times; the same Creighton whose power sport, in its best season ever, can't win its regular or conference tournament; the same Creighton that is so superior to "little brother." So in short... Nebraska may very well lose to Baylor. I read posts on this site and I see NOBODY mocking Baylor... taking them lightly... saying it'll be easy... Are we ribbing Creighton and hoping to play them? Of course - that's normal. But these morons take it to a new level, and its very fun to watch happen. Its like watching Jose Valverde try to close out a baseball game during the 2013 season. You see, NU very well MAY lose before Creighton, even TO Creighton. But if it happens, you know what??? This is your best year in program history. Daddy loses his shiniest toy, his 26 year old whack ass frat boy PG and "little brother" down the street, TWO YEARS EARLY, has all the momentum building in the world. And that makes "little brother" awfully difficult to deal with.

If you go to Youtube and type in Baylor 1-3-1, there are a few short clips of what TA&M did a few years ago to the Baylor zone. Also watched a video of MSU going against a Nwestern 1-3-1 back when they had Shurna. Seems like maybe running ray across the baseline to load up a side might be a good idea. Same thing with maybe having a big inside and then flashing another big or a wing player to the middle which could be an open shot or even a kick out. I would definitely like to see quick ball movement against these guys though. Anything to shift their zone around for 25 to 30 seconds a trip could pay dividends for us in the 2nd half.

Can we not do this thread, Dimes? Thanks.

That shot enabled Hawkins not redshirting to be totally worth it in the end! Might be time for another Hawk sighting vs BU to hit a clutch bomb... or against CU!!

That was a topic of conversation after that game, that Hawkins seemed like he didn't want to take the shot, had passed the ball off instead of pulling the trigger and when the ball came back to him it was like he had no excuse not to take that shot. They were practically daring him. Funny thing is, if Hawkins misses that shot and the tide of the game continues in their favor, we probably aren't having this conversation. It might have just been a season that merely lived up to expectations. But we wouldn't have thought that shot mattered at all. It would have been just another miss among many on the year. As misses go, it would have seemed far less significant than Leslee Smith's missed tip the last second against Michigan. But MAKE it, and it changes everything. In that sense, it didn't really "save" our season so much as it "allowed" or "enabled" the season we ended up having to take place.

that hawkins shot was one of the better moments of the season, and this has been a great season. Hopefully hawkins works hard in the offseason. He he has a nice looking shot. He and Fuller need to replace Ray's shooting next year.

See you there!

Trick question? The answer is: Walt Pitchford 3 pt make.

This just doesn't make sense... I was told by some people in blue that the Big East was the elite conference.

I hadn't even noticed it so guessing it's not a big deal to me.

Agree...and all their complaining about the events during the football season was pretty stupid too. The arena was open to families that wanted to see the game in a fun atmosphere. Most of the bars and restaurants are so packed with drunk people that they aren't designed for kids...and most of those places are filled way beyond fire safeties.

I would like to see Parker get the start. Send a message to Cherry that he is going to be there all day long. Right away. Don't let him get confidence early for no really good reason.

It's everything I could have hoped for and so much more.

It should be a thing. OK, the comic is now live.

Anytime is a good time for Foreigner posts.

I want to know what love is I hope you can show me - Obligatory 6:30 am Foreigner post

They're at 191. Quickly scrolling through the teams below them, I didn't notice ANY at-large teams ranked lower. A few auto bids, but I didn't notice any at-larges (could've missed one. http://www.teamrankings.com/ncaa-basketball/stat/defensive-efficiency

2 Legit

What? Either it's autocorrect on a phone or N2D is really drunk every night

If I had the money I would look into get one here in Lincoln. If I owned it I would eat free... and be dead inside of a month. My heart would just explode, but whata way to die.

Much knowledge, so informed... Wow... Super appreciate.

Thanks for the info kansashusker! The 2014 Wichita Eagle/VarsityKansas.com All-State girls basketball team Girls Kylee Kopatich, Olathe South Jacee Kramer, Jefferson North Shaelyn Martin, Salina Central Kaylee Page, Wamego Lanie Page, Wamego Coach Matt Richardson, Hesston The girl holding up the blonde is Jacee Kramer she's attending Emporia St next year. The blonde is Shaelyn Martin, she's going to K-State as is Kylee Kopatich number 33 in blue. We all know where Kaylee is going and hopefully her sister follows her.

Take it from a grizzled old veteran with regard to marriage: Based on the response to this idea by the girlfriend: Do NOT screw this up. Propose immediately. Sincerely, HB It took me 28 yrs. to get my wife hooked but I finally did it. We will have been married 34 yrs. in April

Because I care, Norm. Hang out here. http://www.ourdailybears.com/ SB Nation's Baylor site.

I think we just need to send every potential recruit/transfer a DVD of the Wisconsin game on senior night.

I think Benny would be a better fit on a guy who handles the ball and can attack the basket. Just my opinion tho. Benny shuts down cherry, and we will be in better shape

Spent some time checking out a few BU games on YouTube - someone with more basketball IQ - which shouldn't be too tough - can correct me if I'm wrong on these observations: Defense Their zone has a 1-3-1 look to it initially, but they don't really follow a lot of 1-3-1 principles, instead it seems to have a lot of matchup principles. They will put single pressure on the ball on the perimeter, even well beyond the 3-pt line, but it doesn't seem as though they're interested in forcing turnovers off that pressure. They almost never double team out on the perimeter. Instead, they almost seem to want to speed teams up with the on ball pressure, and then force turnovers off a player who is out of control after speeding up, whether throwing a wild pass after penetrating the zone or dribbling into a double team on the interior. NU will need to show some discipline & patience vs that zone. Don't let BU draw you in and speed you up. Use pass fakes and shot fakes. There are holes in the zone, and you can create driving lanes by moving the ball around, and they give you the holes when they extend the on-ball pressure beyond the 3-pt line. Often times the spot at the FT line is open, so whomever NU decides to place up there - Shields, Rivers, maybe Pitchford - needs to pass well and/or hit that 15-foot jumper, which will open additional driving lanes. Rarely if ever press full court, but they may put a package like that in after watching our B1G Tourney film. You can get open looks from 3 against the zone, but the ball really needs to go inside first and then out to the 3-pt line, otherwise they're much more likely to contest it. We seem to shoot a better percentage from 3 when we do this anyway. Their interior players are really good shot blockers, but they will give in to ball fakes. We've done a better job of that over the last several weeks. Driving and shooting off one foot will likely yield a blocked shot; driving and shooting off a jump stop with two feet with the occasional ball fake will increase the chances or scoring and/or drawing a foul. Petteway may be able to get over their shot blockers off one foot, but probably no one else. BU is a good rebounding team, but as with any team that plays a lot of zone, offensive rebounds will be there. It's just a matter of how many guys you want to commit to the offensive glass versus trying to stop their transition game - risk/reward type of thing. We've been pretty committed to stopping transition and worrying less about offensive rebounding lately, so I'd expect that to continue. Offense They really don't run much of anything other than screen and roll. It appears the only player for whom BU will run set plays is the 3-pt shooter Heslip. I didn't see anyone try zone against them, although I'd imagine they don't change much against a zone. The point guard Chery is really tough. Good driver. When teams try to pressure him on the perimeter, he will call for screens 35 feet from the basket and drive. He likes to shoot jumpers off the drive and likes to go right a lot. Also passes pretty well off the drive, although he will commit turnovers in bunches at times. Reminds me some of the kid from UMass or Mathieu from Minnesota. Really needs to have the ball in his hands a lot. I can see why they struggled a bit when he was injured. Heslip is deadly from 3. Have to find him in transition, as they'll look for him from 3 as often as they'll drive for a layup when in transition. I think you can take him out of the game in the half court, but if he hits 3 or 4 threes in transition, it won't matter. He'll shoot it well beyond the 3-pt line if you leave him. Their interior guys are solid offensively, don't seem to be great post-up players, but they'll score off passes from Chery. They also do pretty well driving from the FT line area. They really crash the offensive glass, so I think this is an area where BU is vulnerable. You can beat the big guys back down the floor if you rebound well, giving you scoring chances in transition without the fear of a blocked shot. They also will give up 3s in transition, so finding Gallegos may be key here. Texas especially did a nice job beating them down the floor to get open 3s before they could get their zone set up, even after made baskets. They look like the really good Big XII teams we all remember - crazy athletic, but prone to stretches where they can't score. They're a really solid team and will be a tough out, but I think if we can turn them into jump shooters - other than Heslip - and then rebound we have a good shot. And when Chery turns it over or when they take a bad shot and we rebound it, make them pay in transition. Getting easy baskets off our defense will be very important. We've done a great job of those things lately, so we really have to just keep doing what we've been doing defensively the last several weeks. I think our base defense will be good enough to get the job done, although I'd imagine we'll mix in a little zone, especially if we have foul trouble, as we've been doing. On our end, we have to keep the emotions in check offensively, because BU will feed off our mistakes if we're undisciplined offensively. BU will block some shots, so we can't get frustrated with that and stop "loving the rim." Petteway has to stay on the floor and avoid foul problems. And Shields may be the ultimate key - if he's the guy we use at the high post, his ability to hit that 15 to 17 foot jump shot, drive and score from the FT line, or drive and find shooters on the perimeter may determine how successful our half court offense is.

Good news is the ink shouldn't be dry yet on Iowa State's scouting report about Baylor from the Big XII title game - how quickly do you suppose Coach Miles texted Doc to see if he'd do his old school a solid. Also interesting - Iowa State is in San Antonio too, playing the late game Friday. Wonder if Doc will get a chance to stop by NU's shoot around or stop at the arena and catch some of the game Friday morning? Two teams that had very similar work in February and March, with strong finishes to the season. Both also had the same record vs Top 25 RPI teams. Baylor versus Nebraska 3-7......T25 RPI......3-7 10-9....T50 RPI......4-7 12-10..T100RPI.....6-9 Best Wins Baylor: 74-61 home vs Iowa St, 67-62 home vs Kentucky, 78-73 neutral vs Oklahoma Nebraska: 77-68 home vs Wisconsin, 60-51 at Mich St, 68-62 home vs Ohio St Worst Losses Baylor: 82-72 at Texas Tech, 66-64 home vs W Virginia (both losses came before Feb. 1) Nebraska: 87-74 neutral vs UAB, 70-64 at Purdue, 58-54 at Penn State (all losses came before Feb. 1) Conference Baylor: 9-9, 6th in Big XII Nebraska: 11-7, 4th in Big Ten Streaks Baylor: Has won 10 of its last 12, including wins over #3, #5, and #7 NCAA seeds Nebraska: Has won 10 of its last 13, including wins over #2 and #4 NCAA seeds No common opponents Last meeting: Feb. 9, 2011, at Baylor 74, Nebraska 70 http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=310400239

I heard a rumor that he had Notre Dame stuff hanging in the family basement...