Nebraska football tailgate talk: Betting against the Utes and on the Huskers in Vegas

Greetings, Husker fans! I know the last two games of the season left a worse taste in your mouth than your in-law's Christmas cabbage dish, but there is still good reasons to tune in Wednesday, at 2:30 Central Time, on ESPN, as the Huskers take on the 15th ranked Utah Utes. Plus, it's a great time to get that half-day-out-of-work office closure. Husker speculation is that there will be around 20-25,000 best fans in the business in attendance in Sin City at Allegiant Stadium. It would be nice to see the Husker faithful break the attendance record of 44,615 set back on 2006.

Lots of changes since Black Friday. In case you missed it, Rob Aurich is the new Defensive Coordinator. He comes from San Diego St. most recently but he's been coaching since 2014 and has had a top-25 defense at every school. Not bad for a start. All the buzz is good on this guy. He's known for scoring defenses and for shutting down offenses (8 of 12 opponents held to less than 10 points last season). Everywhere he's been it's paid of in quick results. This looks good for the Blackshirts. He brought with him Coach Rob Manning (also at SD St.) who will focus on the defensive edges. Manning can also boast USC and Michigan on his resume. Nice additions!

Betting on a good game for Nebraska and good eats during the Las Vegas Bowl

My FAV new addition is Offensive Line Coach, Geep Wade! Everything I've read about him so far checks all the boxes. He's well known for his players' physicality, focus on fundamentals and dominance in run & pass blocking. My favorite quote is how he's going to get his players to "play nasty." I'm here for ALL of that! He's already been working with the team for bowl practices. Lord knows it is a refreshing change. Former NFL defensive lineman Dave Tollefsen is making a cameo to work with the DLine ahead of the bowl game, too. Will he remain as a coach? Time will tell.

Coach Donovan Raiola isn't the only Raiola gone. Also gone is quarterback Dylan Raiola. Also gone is his old agent. I find it interesting there has never been anything formally announced by media savvy Dylan Raiola, either. Listening to some of the chatter lately has me believing that maybe he wasn't as well loved by the players as previously indicated. Regardless, if you're keeping track, that's 4 high schools, 3 college commits, 3 agents, and now at least 2 colleges. I wish him luck. Mostly, I wish for him to outgrow the toxic influence in his life. Totally unrelated, when Husker QB TJ Lateef was asked to share his thoughts about Rhule & Company about possibly bringing in a portal QB he replied, "I welcome any competition." That's another refreshing change.

Even though Big Red is a 14-point underdog in Vegas, keep your focus on the positives from the bowl season. This means another 15 practices the team is able to make happen. When you remember that there were 7 painful years without a bowl game -- which equals to 105 lost opportunities, it's still a very good thing, no matter what the odds. It's great for new guys to get bonus reps. And it matters greatly for fine tuning the portal shopping list for coaches.

All you have to do is peruse the Husker Football Twitter to see how much the team is enjoying the experiences the bowl game provided to them. So far there's been a welcome by an Elvis impersonator with full-dress showgirls, the Fremont Street experience with Coach Rhule flying by on the zipline, a Bellagio fountain experience, custom lid shopping, and an NFL football game at Allegiant stadium (with former Husker Thomas Fidone on the roster). Make no mistake, they all know this is a business trip but what can we expect Wednesday?

Utah Utes said farewell to head coach Kyle Wittingham. He's now over in Ann Arbor trying to repair the never-ending reputation damage to Michigan (good luck with that). They have promoted Morgan Scalley to head coach. They also don't have their first round projected offensive tackles Spencer Fano and Caleb Lomu (again, not sorry). They still have a double threat at QB and both of them like to run the damn ball. QB Devon Dampier was a transfer from New Mexico who can sling it (over 2000 yards this season). Slippery Lefty QB Byrd Ficklin can create unique opportunities for his team as well. Utah averages 270 yards a game rushing (2nd nationally). Not good news for the woes on run defense for Nebraska. Running back Wayshawn Parker ended the season with 133 attempts and 931 yards, averaging 7 per carry.

You may remember that Husker QB TJ Lateef injured his left hamstring in the last game of the season. He's been rehabbing it carefully and according to Coach Rhule, he's "full go." This is critical as the defensive line for the Utes likes to get after a QB. What wil the Huskers do without NFL commit Emmett Johnson? Mekhi Nelson and Isaiah Mozee will get the snaps. Not going to lie, I really hope one of them can show better than they did all season.

On Wednesday, the recipe for a Husker win is TJ airs it out a lot this game. He's got the weapons and if he's truly healthy, it's the best strategy on offense with the star of the season running back getting ready for the combine. A lot of the game will depend on keeping Utah limited on 1st downs. Tackling is also going to be huge for the Big Red against the run. With a lot of run game on tap for New Year's Eve, leaky yardage will be a killer. Alignment, assignment and technique is HUGE for the defense this game. If Big Red can be disruptive to Utah, they have a chance.

I'm not going to pay attention to the score at the end of the game. It's about each play and what each player does with it. How they make their mark. How they work toward their goal. Yes, I want to win, but this game is about more than winning. It's one last ride together for the players. Some who were cheated out of their first and second seasons under Coach Frost. It's about the new guys who graduated early to get a jump start on their college career. For me, it's one last time to get together with other Husker fans and hug and laugh. I'll be screaming at the television and cheering on Big Red. You should do the same if you can't get to Vegas. Everybody gambles there. Why not put some money on the underdog. As always, Go Big Red!